The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd: 01/29/2019

Episode Date: January 29, 2019

Colin wonders if Anthony Davis joining LeBron would really have the impact on the NBA that people think it would.  He thinks people not giving credit to Jared Goff clearly didn't watch Tom Brady early in his career either.  Plus, The MMQB's Albert Breer joins Colin from Atlanta to discuss the potential of this being a high scoring Super Bowl and why this Patriots team is more like their 2001 team as opposed to the 2017 team.  Presented by Perky Jerky. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise,

breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter.

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Wreck, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was harmed. you just understood.

That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Mark keep coming to her. He's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs.

This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to the Best of Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday. From 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRadio.com

or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching herd. This is the best of the herd with Colin Cowherd on Fox Sports Radio. Ah, it's Tuesday. Here we go. This is the herd. Wherever you may be. And however you may be listening.

Run iHeart Radio. Fox Sports Radio and FS1, Joy Taylor is joining me. Albert Brewer, Jeff Garcia today. Troy Brown, former Patriot Great. Chris Haynes in studio. Joy, how are you? I'm doing great. Good morning. Before I get to the football, I want to start on this old Anthony Davis-Laker thing, this big story.

So yesterday I got off and the show. And I listened to Sports Radio and I was on social media. And I was watching cable television yesterday for like an hour. Everybody's, yeah, this is going to have. happen and that's going to happen and this is going to happen. It was a whole bunch of nobody knows anything. That's what it was. It was a whole bunch of nobody really knows exactly what's going to happen. So this is what we do. We get very excited with big trades. I do too. It's fun. It's a better story. I mean Anthony Davis with LeBron's way better than Anthony Davis with New Orleans. He's been there

for years. Who cares? So I like when stars join forces. I like it too. Here's what we know though about Anthony Davis. Okay, this isn't the glossy magazine cover. Let's be real. Let's keep it 100. Number one is with Boogie Cousins, a great all-star, he couldn't make the playoffs. Seven years, one playoff series win. Sorry if those facts get in the way of how you feel about. Number two is he's heard a lot, including currently. One year he played 61 games, 164, 167, 166. Big guys don't get healthier. You do get that right.

Number three is he shoots better from the outside, hits a three or two occasionally. But 70% of his baskets are right next to the hoop. You watch in the current NBA? This idea I'm going to give up everything for Anthony Davis. Let me ask you, LeBron in his 15th or 16th year in Anthony Davis, who doesn't, he's not Kevin Duran. as a shooter. And I've given up everything else. What's that get me?

It'll be fun. I'm not saying it's not interesting. I'm not saying it's not really, really good. I'm not being Golden State. Let's be real about this. I've seen what LeBron James does to Big Man. I saw what he did to Anton Jameson. I saw what he did to Kevin Love.

And I saw what he did to Chris Bosch. He frustrated them. He made them into stretch fours. They got in the way of LeBron James. It's not like LeBron has a history of he's great with Biggs. No, you know what LeBron's great with? Shooters. He's good with Kyle Corver.

He was good when Bosch moved outside and could shoot threes. LeBron's always been great with shooters because he gets the ball. He drives the ball. He'd be great with Clay Thompson. I said earlier he'd be great with Bradley Beale. I've seen LeBron James with big guys. I saw him with Anton Jameson. I saw him with Chris Bosch.

I saw him with Kevin Love. He drove those guys batty. This idea I'm going to give up everything. Timeout. The Lakers have worked hard to draft and develop as young core of players. They're not terrible. They're just not great players. But Lonzo Ball's got talent.

I'm going to fight to keep him. If I have to give him a way to get AD, I would. But he's got value somewhere. Somebody needs a point guard who's got great vision and 6'5 and can rebound and hit threes. I'd fight to keep Kyle Kuzma. He can hit threes. Good player.

Going to be an 18, 20-point-of-game guy, right? I'm going to fight to keep Josh Hart. high functioning Villanova, high IQ can hit a three. This idea, which can give away the house to get him. That's what the Knicks did with Carmelo. And then they found out Carmelow was sitting around with no furniture around the house. Didn't have any pillows. Didn't have any end tables.

There's Carmelo. Look at me. I'm great. Big chandelier in middle of the house. We're going to sit on. We gave everything away. This is a business, folks. You don't give everything away for anybody.

I saw a story yesterday. It was like, oh, the Knicks should give away this, this. And I'm thinking, I'm the Knicks. I got poor Zingas. I got Kevin Knox. And I have a chance to get the number one pick in Zion Williamson. What about Anthony Davis for? That's going to be a really exciting team.

That's going to be a playoff team. Tell me one time Anthony Davis has been a solution to any major NBA dilemma. It's been in the league seven years. I mean, I like him. But the Lakers worked hard to draft these players and scout these players and coach these players and develop these players. I'm not giving these guys away. I'm sitting there watching yesterday cable TV sports shows,

and I'm on social media and the Angry Bird Twitter, and I'm listening to radio and a lot of talented people out there, and there's a whole bunch of nobody knew anything. Let's just state the two things we absolutely know. And these can't be argued. And these are for sure. Number one, the Celtics can't trade for him yet. They can't.

Under NBA restrictions, the Celtics, the Celtics cannot trade for him yet. Fact. And number two, the pelicans are pissed, and they're mad at LeBron, and they're mad at Clutch Sports, and they're mad at the Lakers, and they're not going to do them any favors.

They're not going to do the Lakers any favors whatsoever. They're going to want Lonzo and want Coosma, and want Ingram, and want picks, and they're going to want everything. So, you know, I understand getting excited about this. stuff I really do. Let's put it in a little context. A little context. All right, let me segue to this. Now we're going to talk Super Bowl. Everybody's got devices. Joy's got phone. I got phone. Goulai's got phone. Everybody's got phone. I love phones, but I got kids. I know what they're

doing to my kids and I know what they're doing to me. I'm less patient. People don't let stuff marinate anymore. They don't let stuff bake. Jason Whitlock says this about it. Great lines. Let's play it. Young people today, they just hate the oven. They hate baking in the oven. Everybody

thinks, hey, toss me in the microwave and I'm going to taste as good as something that was slow cooked the way your mama used to make it. And it just isn't true. It's so true. Nobody wants to use the oven. We all want the microwave. Somebody came out to me yesterday and said, yeah, I don't trust Jared God.

is he the future of the Rams? And I said, of course he's the future of the Rams. What I mean, he's not the future of the Rams? Well, I mean, I watch him and I'm like, well, he's 14 and 3 on the road. You don't think Jared Gough is the future of the Rams? Well, I mean, I watch him. You know, I'm against New Orleans. He wasn't.

What? Let me remind you that we used to have before the iPhone patience. Give me Tom Brady's first Super Bowl. Oh, wait. That year he had an 86.5 passer rating, 18 TDs 12 picks. He wasn't elite. His second Super Bowl, two years later, he had 23 touchdowns, 12 picks, and an 85 passer rating completed 60% of his throws.

He was not a legend. His third Super Bowl in 2004, his passer rating was now 92, 28 TDs, but 14 picks. Tom Brady didn't emerge as a superstar until his fourth Super Bowl, which, by the way, with Randy Moss, he lost. That year, Tom was a legend. His passer rating was over 115. He completed 69% of his throws, 50 touchdowns, 8 picks. Did New England ever say, well, he's the guy?

Folks, Tom Brady didn't peak until his seventh year in the league. He was 30. That's when he was Tom. You know what, Brady. Our devices, our phones, give us instant gratification. We don't let anything marinate and anything bake. Gough, at this point in his career, is better than Tom Brady. He's got a better arm.

He was a three-year starter in college and the number one pick. Tom was the 199th pick. Led by his defense, couldn't beat out Drew Henson in college. Jared Gough is not only the future of the Rams. At this point, he's better, doesn't have the rings, but he's better than Tom Brady. you do remember that Peyton Manning didn't win a playoff game until year six. Did the Colts want to bail on him? LeBron, we think of him as every year he's in the finals.

First seven years got to one. Michael didn't get to a final until year seven. Tom Brady was finally Tom Brady in his fourth Super Bowl, which by the way is the first one he lost. Jared Gough last weekend went into the loudest NFL stadium against a first ballot hall of famer and one of the NFL's tough defenses and my friends Jared Gough outplayed Drew Brees.

Jerry Seinfeld created a show called Seinfeld. It was the best sitcom in my opinion ever. It was not very good the first year or two. Everybody loves Raymond. The network almost pulled it, but they let it marinate and they let it bake. I love devices too, but they've created a sense of instant gratification. If you don't think Jared Goff is good and if you don't think he's the future, get off the phone, use the oven, walk past the microwave.

He's really, really good, clearly capable. of winning the Super Bowl, outplayed Drew Breeze, and is talented more so than Tom Brady at this point in his career. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. 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 real.

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. Sports slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field

and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped. up in the chase, that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth. Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good

person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about on healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee.

We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time of it. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Wreck, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Hey, Miss Parker.

Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what.

He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows. Without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall.

And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nass, but get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running the court, licking his fingers why he got the ball. Like, after you go through a training camp with that, Isaiah, you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

He's one of the guys we lean on all sorts of content, lead content guy at Monday Morning quarterback, our friend at the Super Bowl via the Coward Global Satellite Network. Albert Breer joining us. You know, it's interesting. We have an NBA story here that's been big, and we've seen the Patriots at this thing over and over. Kind of give me a 45-second kind of... How does it feel? You've been to a lot of these Super Bowls because of New England.

Does it feel like same-old, same-old leading up to the game? It doesn't feel like there's an overarching storyline, and we don't always have one. There's not a big injury we're worried about. I don't think Todd Gurley, you know, there's much of a question he's going to play. The question is how the Rams are going to use him. Grankowski's retirement, maybe you can get excited about that or that can drum up some interest.

And then, of course, there's the old coach versus the new coach, Belichick versus McVeigh. So you have your storylines. It just doesn't feel like there's one overarching thing that we're all kind of clinging on to. You know, listen, Tom Brady said it the other day, Albert. You know the Patriots. You covered them for the Boston Globe. And one of the reasons we lean on you is you have more insight with them than anybody in this country, in my opinion. these are not linear.

There have been years that New England felt like a Super Bowl team, and this year I said it. I don't think they're a Super Bowl team. So I was surprised, jaw-droppingly, that they went to Kansas City and won and blew out the Chargers. Yeah. Have we underrated their personnel? Are you surprised they're here?

This is the 2001 Patriots, Colin. I mean, I really think it is. If you want to look at 14 and 16 and 17, when they got to this point, those teams did struggle in September and October, but by the time they got to November, they had their crap together. The difference here is that this team was really struggling in November and December. They lost to Pittsburgh. They lost to Miami.

So, no, I don't think we're underrating the Patriots talent. I think we may be overlooking the way they're built, though, okay? The Patriots have never been built to be an all-star team. It's never been, let's just collect the best talent. They've always been built to combat whatever is in the league at that time. And I think that makes them a little unique. And I think you look at the roster right now, and you can absolutely see it. They've invested in the defensive backfield to do what, to deal with high-powered passing games.

On offense, you know what? You're going to go out and you're going to put 245-pound defensive ends and 220-pound linebackers on the field to cover. We're going to put a fullback in the game. We're going to draft a 230-pound kid in Sony-Michel in the first round, and we're going to put them behind a massive offensive line. And so I think the one thing that we overlook, we don't underrate the talent, The one thing that we overlook is the way that Bill and Nick Casario build this team is not about collecting stars. It's about building a team to combat whatever's going on at the league at that given time.

People have made this into Belichick-McVey. I think it's more Josh McDaniels against Wade Phillips. Bill has a history of beating guys, of beating guys Rex Ryan, Mike Tomlin, who sort of do what they do and everybody knows it. Wade is a, I do what I do, and you kind of know. what I do. Historically, Belichick and McDaniels dice those guys up. I think Wade's

a big storyline here. Your thoughts? Yep. I'd have agreed with that three, four, five years ago. Something changed in Denver. When Wade Phillips got to Denver, the Broncos played the Patriots tougher than any Wade Phillips' defense has played the Patriots before.

24, 16, 18 points the three times they played them. They won two of those three games. And so Wade figured something out, I think a piece at least a piece of this. And I've talked to Wade about this in the past. Denver was the first time that he had a couple of blue chip pass rushers and a couple of blue chip cover guys. It's always been his ideal. In Denver, it was DeMarcus Ware and von Miller up front and then Akeeb Taleb and Chris Harris on the back end. And now he's got that again in Los Angeles

with Aaron Donald and Domen Sousou up front and Marcus Peters and Talib on the back end. And so maybe this is just a matter of finally having the sorts of blue chip players that he's always idealized in his defense. I'm just telling you, something. changed when he got to Denver. He's played the Patriots a lot tougher than he did previous to that. I want to go back to Gronk, and Joey and I were talking about this. I don't think he's a Patriot next year because I think it's time. I think they'll draft a tight end. It's a good class. They got 12 picks. I think they'll draft a quarterback. I think they'll get a tight end. I think Bill loves linebackers and defensive backs. They got a lot of draft picks. Let's talk about Gronk,

who's really changed from the biggest offensive weapon to a, I think he's a really good blocking tight end, and he's got different value now. Do you think in a year he's a Patriot or five months he's a Patriot? No. I mean, I think he's likely to retire. And I think a big part of why he didn't retire last year, I think he realized when he got out there in the real world that there wasn't the sort of money or anything close to it to what he was making in football. And right now he's on the books for $10 million in cash next year, $12 million in the Patriots cap. I don't think there's any way he's back in that number. And if someone else is willing to pay him, I don't think it's going to be close to that.

So that margin, you know, what he can make in football versus what he can make doing something else has shrunk. I think this year was very, very difficult for him, a tough year. And look, this happens with a lot of superstar athletes. When they lose their superpowers, it's very hard for guys to reinvent themselves. In fact, most guys can't do it. You look at Des Bryant, how he struggled with it. I think the guy who's done it better than anybody over the years is Larry Fitzgerald, who went from being a dominant outside receiver to a very productive inside receiver.

I respect what Gronks done in the last few weeks, right? and turning himself into a great blocker against the chargers and then fighting his ass off against the chiefs. He's in that process of reinventing himself. It's just the last couple of years, Colin, have been very, very difficult. And I think mentally he may have already started to attach himself in the game. And you heard it last night. He said he's going to give himself two weeks to think about it after the season ends. That tells me he's already sort of made up his mind.

I think I want to retire, but I want to at least give myself a couple weeks out to make sure that I'm 100% on it. What do you make of the Rams? They're doing some talking at the Super Bowl. Wade Phillips says, you know, he's joking around. They're very, very loose. It reminds me a little of the Philadelphia Eagles last year where they came in sort of with an underdog spirit. Hey, we're facing a dynasty.

We got big personalities. They kind of feel like the Eagles last year to me. Yeah, and you know, I know Sean McVeigh called a couple of coaches around the league who've been in this stage. Dan Quinn here in Atlanta was one. and spent an extended period of time talking to them about how to handle the Super Bowl. And I think it's like anything else for this group. That's the way that the Rams have sort of had their program run over the last couple of years.

And the two programs are obviously very, very different. The key is that each coaches himself, right? Like Bill, the Bill you see up at the podium, the bill you see who's hard on his players. That's who Bill Belichick is. That's how he was brought up. Sean McVeigh runs his program a different way. And I think that that actually plays into handling a stage like this. the right way. They don't have a ton of guys who've been here before, but they do have a few.

And I think there's a looseness, a general looseness to this team that helped them last week in New Orleans when they were down 13 and nothing in that environment. And I think it's going to help them again this week. I kind of think Sean McVeigh's 5-1 in shootouts. I think the Rams are equipped. They're equipped to be in shootouts. They're very comfortable in shootouts. And similarly, if you look at Tom Brady's last three years in the playoffs, they're averaging 34 points a game. I foresee a high-scoring game, and I think both teams are incredibly comfortable in that space. I think this year's Super Bowl is going to look a lot like last year's Super Bowl. Do you have a feeling talking to coaches and sources?

Yeah, and I'd agree with that. I think a lot of this comes down to offensive versatility, which is going to make it really hard on the defenses. And I talked to Matt Nagy, who played both these teams a couple days ago. And the thing that he said, because he's looked at both offensive. and he looks at both offenses every Monday morning to try to get ideas. And he said the one thing that sticks out is that the Patriots can kind of toggle from being a 21 personnel team with a fullback in the game, power running team, to being a shotgun spread empty team like that, right?

So they can do that to you. The Rams, meanwhile, are going to run a lot of things out of the same formation. They're going to make everything look the same. And so you're going to have to defend everything at once. And so both teams have a way of making it very, very difficult on a defense. I think that that actually plays against the defenses in this game because both those defenses are built to take certain things away from you. And both these teams can kind of toggle from one thing to the next. And so I'm with you.

I think this is probably a high scoring game. And remember, Colin, as high scoring as last year was, last year's game came down to one defensive play. Who was going to make the one defensive play? Brandon Graham was the one who made that play for the Eagles last year. Does it come down to a Stefan Gilmore or an Aaron Donald making that play? We'll see. Albert Brear, Monday morning quarterback, former Patriot Beatwriter. Good talking to you, bud.

You got to call. Hi, it's the herd. The world is full of sounds that warn you about danger. Like if you get a little too close to a rattlesnake, you know, you hear a rattle. But in the digital world, if your personal information's in danger, there's no rattling sound to let you know. It can be in big trouble. Good thing, LifeLock has added the power of Norton's security to see more cyber threats. Whether it's potential threats to your identity, like your personal information for sale,

on the dark web, or say, threats to your devices like malware or emerging viruses, hey, if you got a problem, their agents work to fix it. Of course, we know this. Nobody can stop every cyber threat. Nobody can prevent all identity theft or monitor all transactions at all businesses. But LifeLock with Norton can detect a wide range of threats that could sneak up on you. You don't see them coming. Join now.

Get 10% off your first year. Just go to LifeLock.com or you can call 1-800 LifeLock. enter the promo code heard, H-E-R-D. That's the promo code heard for 10% off lifelock.com. Chris Haynes, who I trust, Yahoo Sports, comes on the show. We like Chris Haynes. I trust him. There's a growing belief of uncertainty that Kyrie Irving will resign with Boston.

It's one of the reasons Anthony Davis doesn't want to be a Celtic, because he didn't know if Kyrie Irving is going to be a Celtic. All right, time out. Three things about Kyrie Irving. Number one, he's a flake. he left LeBron and according to sources wants to get back with him. Oh boy. And now he wants to leave arguably

the first or second best coach in the league for guards, Brad Stevens, and a really great roster and a very good GM. Oh boy. Kyrie Irving's a flake. Number two, and you know this is true, he only played eight games at Duke. He's heard a lot. He's never played more than 75 games. He didn't finish last year.

He gets hurt a lot. Number three, he's already said. He said he's going to retire early. He just signed his second movie deal yesterday. What's that saying? People tell you who they are, believe them. He's already told you. He's not doing it Tom Brady.

He's not doing a Kobe Bryant. He's not doing a Tim Duncan. He's not taking pay cuts and plan 20 years. He's not into it. Fine. I have no problem with it. He's honest about it. You're not trying to trick anybody.

So he's a flake. You can't dispute that. If you leave LeBron and Brad Stevens in the East, a little bit of flake. Number two is, he's heard a lot. three as he's told you, I'm not in this forever. So let's start with that. Here's my thing about Kyrie Irving.

You could invite Kyrie Irving to be on your team. You do not count on Kyrie Irving. I'll give you an example. So Sunday, a lot of you are having a Super Bowl party. I am too. And I'll just speak from a guy's perspective. Whenever you have a Super Bowl party, the guy you trust the most, you say, hey, you bring the sandwiches. Because the sandwiches is that you can't have the party without the sandwich.

So the guy you trust the most, you bring the sandwiches. The guy I trust the second most, I say, you bring all the drinks. Beer, soft drinks, you bring the drinks. The guy I trust a little less, I say, um, You bring the chips. I mean, got to have sandwiches, got to have sodas. You bring the chips. Kyrie is definitely not the sandwich guy.

He's not the soda guy. He's not even the chips guy. Kyri is the second chips guy. The guy you trust the least, who's funny, makes the party better. But you tell him, why don't you also bring some chips? If he brings him great, but he may not. And you'll still be okay. you don't build around Kyrie Irving.

There are lots of people in every industry. You've worked with him. I've worked with them. They're the sandwich people to the party. They're the drink people to the party. He's like the second chip guy. You can't ask him in an emergency. You can't trust him.

Kyrie's always been a flake. And that's okay. Flakes make the party more fun. Flakes are often very talented. There's nothing wrong with having flakes. I can be flaky. You can probably be flaky. You know, whatever an accountant needs, I'm the opposite of that. I mean, our society is filled with actors and singers and entertainers and artists and they're not accountants. Highs, low, is emotional. That's what makes the world go

around. Kyrie is way more artist than accountant. And when I hear these rumors, he wants to get back with LeBron. And Anthony Davis is like, I don't know about Austin. Here's my message to Anthony Davis. You do you. Okay. But LeBron has bailed and Kyrie's a flake. So Anthony Davis, you do you. You don't, you don't. Here's what I know about Kyrie. Flaky gets hurt and he's not playing the long game. And I've heard four rumors in two years. I heard Kevin Durant and Kyrie to New York. I heard he signed. He signed. He's signed. long term with Boston. I think he said that.

I've heard he's going to the New York Knicks by himself with Jimmy Butler, and now I'm hearing LeBron, Anthony Davis, and Kyrie Irving in Los Angeles. Okay. All right. You can't fool me once, fool me twice, whatever the saying is. Shame on me, shame on you. I don't know. I can't get him in order.

Well, he hasn't left Boston yet. You trust Chris Haynes? I do. I do. I think Chris Haynes. All he's saying is that there's a growing feeling. He didn't say he wanted to leave Boston. Boston. He hasn't left Boston. Smoke fire. I mean, there was a growing suspicion. Is KD a flake?

KD left? No, KD's not a flake. KD. Well, what if KD leaves Golden State? Well, then he's a flake. You don't think, timeout. Somebody told me this the other day. They said, Kevin Durant's going to leave Golden State. And I'm like, time out. Don't try to get happier than happy. Golden State is perfect for Durant. First of all, they don't ask him to be the emotional leader. That's Steph. They don't ask him to be the coach. That's her. They don't ask him to be the tough guy. That's Draymond. They don't ask him to guard the best player or the best wing. That's often clear, Draymond. They just asked him to come hoop and score. Like if Kevin Durant, I defended him leaving Russell Westbrook, the ball hog, okay? I defended him

there. If you leave Golden State, you're a flake. Do you defend Kyrie leaving LeBron? Okay. No. But. But there's a big gap between leaving LeBron and then leaving LeBron and Brad Stevens and going back with LeBron. That's flaky. Sure, but he hasn't done that yet. And I understand him leaving LeBron. There are a lot of players who don't want to play with LeBron. Silly as it may.

It may be silly, but everybody doesn't have the same motivations. But again, yeah, I mean, they've been to the finals three straight times. LeBron was clearly comfortable with Kyrie being the hero in some games and taking shots. Again, I'm not, it's, there's a huge gap between leaving LeBron for the Celtics, okay, and then leaving the Celtics to go back with LeBron. Well, I mean, it seems a bit silly if he leaves the Celtics and goes back with LeBron. It's like, what was the point of all that? Yeah, now you're a flake.

You're a flake. But he hasn't done it yet. Ah, it just seems, again, he's not the sandwich guy. He's not the beverage guy. He ain't the chips guy. Kyrie's the second chips guy. What's up, everybody? John Middlecock from the three-and-out podcast, brought to you by Colin Coward's podcast network.

If you like Colin's show, you'll like mine. I'm talking all football, and this is a big week. Why? Because it's Super Bowl week. We're talking Sean McVeigh. The dude's up at like 4 in the morning. The Pro Bowl abomination. Tom Brady says he's never going to retire.

John Gruden loves all quarterbacks. We've got a lot going on. Again, follow me, John Middilcoff, the three and out podcast. One of the things I talked about in my life covering sports, this has always been true. The fear of losing more often drives successful people than the joy and the jubilation of winning.

I covered Jerry Tarkhanian years ago at UNLV. He could remember every loss in his career from 20 years earlier. The timeouts, the miss shots, wins for Jerry just became, blurred. Tom Brady talked about losing to the Philadelphia Eagles, and it sounds a lot like what I believe to be true. The losses hurt more than the wins are great.

All these losses are tough. I mean, every one that you've had, you'll remember these forever. But certainly because it happened, you know, just a year ago, you still remember some of those emotions as opposed to, I don't know, 12 years ago when we lost an 07. And I think, you know, if you get to this game and you don't, perform your best and you don't perform well enough to win. You know, you just, you kick yourself for the rest of your life. And I don't think anyone wants to go through that. The whole point of

this week is to win the game. And if you win it, you know, you'll have something to celebrate for the rest of your life. And if you don't, you know, it'll be some mental scar tissue that you have to do with the rest of your life. Yeah. The loss has hurt more than the joy you gain from wins. Emotional scar tissue. People keep coming up to me and saying, hey, who do you like in this game, and I say the same thing. It's hard not to like New England because let me give you over the last three years with these same players mostly. Sony Michelle's obviously a nice new dynamic running back for New England. Last three years, they've scored 34, 30. These are just the playoff games, folks. These are just the playoff games in the Super Bowl. 34, 36, 34, 35, 24, 33, 4, 3, 3, 3, 3, 3,

41, 37. That's against the best coaches, best defenses. They are averaging 34 points and 471 yards. A little more, if you count Super Bowls and divisional because they have a buy before each. But here's the thing. Sean McVane, the Rams are 5 and 1 in shootouts. When you think of the Rams, you think shootouts. They're uniquely built to win shootouts. and one of the things I think people are forgetting

Las Vegas, their opening lines in all the casinos, the Rams were favorites. They had to shift the line because now 83% of the bets from the public, the masses, are on New England.

But the opening line was Rams favored. When people say, who, going to win the game, I say it's hard not to take New England, but the brand of the Rams is high-scoring, winning shootouts. They're five and one in games in which both teams score over 30, and Vegas had them as the favorites before the overwhelming majority of the public and the public money came pouring in on New England. I think this is interesting.

there are obviously different ways to win in sports. You know, there are certain principles. Hard work wins in every league. Draft well, don't overpay for players, works in every league. But I do think it's very interesting what is happening. Boston is considered really one of America's academic cities. It's the home of Harvard, the Sloan Analytics Conference, MIT, 50 universities. Boston, all their sports have been early adapters, very analytic driven.

Now, I'm not saying they don't go get stars, Kevin Garnett, David Price to the Red Sox. I'm not saying they won't go get an occasional star. They're facing in this Super Bowl, the Patriots from Boston, Los Angeles. Now, I'm not saying Los Angeles doesn't care about analytics. The Dodgers are very analytic driven. But the Dodgers go out and get Manny Machado, Manny Ramirez, Rams are star-driven. We all know about the Lakers, LeBron, through the years, Anthony Davis.

What we have not only in this Super Bowl, but what we're seeing now in the big three in America, Patriots, the academic city against the Rams, glitz and glamour, Red Sox just played the Dodgers in the World Series, and the Celtics favored to win the Eastern Conference, were in the Eastern Conference finals last year, and here goes Los Angeles, adding, and they will over time, Anthony Davis, and maybe more stars. There is more than one way to do it, and what's interesting to me is that Belichick is really the perfect fit for New England. no such thing as star treatment

tried to trade Tom Brady wanted gronk out of town he's perfect for Boston their analytic driven culture over stars and Sean McVe similarly is perfect for Los Angeles he's one of the stars

he's one of the guys he's very pro player Peter King told the story yesterday he lets his young quarterback sometimes override him on the biggest plays of the game he did against the Saints The original play, you watch Brandon Cooks go up, now he goes out.

And that play Brandon Cooks was supposed to go in. Before this play, Jared Goff had told Sean McVey on the sidelines, I'd rather have Cooks go out because I think there's going to be too much traffic in here. I don't want to layer the ball over Cooks, I want to fire it to him. And McVey goes, well, not what I would call, but I trust you. Let's run it that way. And McVeigh told me on Friday, that is a perfect example. of what I like to do. I want my players to understand that I'm going to listen to them.

And if they make sense with what they want to do, I'm absolutely going to consider it. This was an example of why players love playing for Sean McVeigh. Players in New England tolerate playing for Belichick who squashes personalities. Players love playing for McVeigh who's fostering personalities, who wants Wade Phillips, Wade Phillips, who's got a big personality. They're punters cool. I listen to my stars. I'll take Indyman and Sue.

Marcus Peters, a keep to leave. So what you're seeing, Boston does it their way. I mean, heavy analytics, they'll dip into stars reluctantly. Los Angeles, they'll do analytics too, but they love their stars. Both are working, and both coaches are perfect fits for the cultures that have always embodied their cities. Want more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search Hurd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. By the way, CBS Sports came out with a list of the 12 best players in the Super Bowl.

Actually, it was longer than that, but I'll keep it to the first dozen. Aaron Donald won, Todd Gurley, two of the Rams, then four straight Patriots, Brady, Stefan Gilmore, pass rusher, Trey Flowers, Shaq Mason, a very good guard. Then they went All-Ram, 7 through 12, Andrew Whitworth, Jared Gough, Brandon Cooks, Rob Havenstein, the right tackle, Indomacan Sue, and Robert Woods.

I think Woods is a little underrated. James White didn't make the top 12, Julian Edelman, Sony-Michel did not make the top 12. Do you think James White and Julian Edelman will play a bigger part than D'Amican Sue in the Super Bowl? Call me nutty, I do.

I don't know. I think New England's personnel, I got burned on this. I think here's the difference. New England's roster is mostly B minus B and B plus guys. The Rams have more A's, but they also have more Cs. And so there are some things the Rams don't do well. I think their linebacking core is pedestrian. And I think the Rams secondary is way hit and miss.

I think the New England secondary, it rarely gets caught in the wrong coverage or in the wrong spot. I think the Rams are all over the joint. They make great plays. They make terrible plays. Sometimes they bite on stuff. They're out of place on more than, you know, more than New England. So I think the difference is New England's got a roster of B's.

The Rams have more A's, but also more C's. But we know a key to beating Brady in big games is getting him off his spot. That's the key. If Domican Sue has a huge game, he's right where he should be on that list. that's going to play an instrumental part in the Rams winning if that happens. Yeah, I think I would put Aaron Donald number one. I would put Brady. No, I'd put Brady 1 and Aaron Donald 2.

So I disagree with the list to start. I'd go Brady 1, Aaron Donald 2. Well, it's tough. I mean, Todd Gurley is incredibly talented. It's just the last we've seen of Todd Gurley wasn't great. So that's probably a lingering feeling. I think Robert Woods is underrated for the Rams. I think he can block.

He can catch. He's good after the catch. He's good before the catch. he's got sure hands, he runs good routes. I think Troy Aikman said a couple of weeks ago. He's one of the best receivers in the league, and everybody kind of said, I watch every Robert Wood snap in college. I didn't watch all his Buffalo stuff, but I watched him in L.A.

He's really good. He's not Julio Joan, not Antonio Brown. Robert Woods is really good. So Belichick should probably completely take him out of this game. Well, I've thought about that. I mean, that's the guy I would take out. That's the guy I would take out. What are the wise guys where?

I get asked that from time to time. The answer is, the new guys. gear from theherdnow.com merchandise store. We are now officially open for business. We have all the apparel, diehard herd fans need to represent the show. Go to theherdnow.com. If you don't, that's a you problem.

And that's a you problem is one of our shirts. Check it out. Theherdnow.com. Theherdnow.com store is open for business today. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. And nobody's telling you,

Exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter.

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game.

This linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Where's she at?

Hey, Miss Palm. Mark, listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs.

We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was crying. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis'clock, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love.

This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.