The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd: 07/17/2019

Episode Date: July 17, 2019

Ezekiel Elliott is an immature player and those type of guys don't generally learn maturity until it's too late. Colin explains there are 6 teams that can win a title and 11 more that are close and explains who they are. Plus, Matt Mosley of the Dallas Morning News explains what the Cowboys will do with Dak and Zeke wanting new deals this off-season. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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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, Rhett, 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.

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by searching herd. This is the best of the herd with Colin Cowherd on Fox Sports Radio. Ah, it's midweek Wednesday, live in Los Angeles. This is The Herd, wherever you may be and however you may be listening. We're on IHeart Radio. Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Joy Taylor's got the summer outfit working today for you, radio listeners. You have to rush to FS1.

Rush to FS1. You have a remarkable. to change your hair every day and change your look. Some days you're like an old Hollywood star, Marlina Dietrich. And then the next day, you look very lit and cool in Miami Beach. I look very lit today, yes. Today you actually look very casual summary and very happy. Thank you.

That's what our sound engineer, Bonnie just told me. I look very summary today. You're like Gloria Estevan in the late 90s. You are taking over America. Thank you. That's a compliment. We have a great hair and makeup. staff here. By the way,

they keep both of us looking sharp. True story. When I used to be a minor league baseball announcer, Tucson, Arizona, high corbett field. After the game tonight, the Miami sound machine will perform. Amazing. And I'm like, yeah, I'm sure it's some hat garage band.

Nope. Nope. Ended up being stars. Started a minor league baseball. I remember the night. Minor league baseball games are fun. And much cheaper than Major League Baseball. I wish they would do, this is, we're going way off the rails here, but I wish they would do with the G League what they do with Myel League.

Kind of quirky and fun and goofy and, you know. Theme nights. Yeah. So let me start our show today. We're officially into football. We're 50 days away from Packers going to Chicago. Arizona and Denver's running backs, rookies all report today a week out from camp starting, okay? And I want to talk about the Cowboys again.

So this is the story this morning on Ezekiel Elliott. This is Charles Robinson at you Yahoo.com is a very trustable guy. He said if the Cowboys aren't proactive about a new deal two years out on Zique, this thing's going to go sideways fast. Pro football talk reports Zeke is going to, Ezekiel Elliott, hold out until he gets a new deal. So once again, Zecchio Elliott is creating organizational tension right before a season. Two of the last three years, one of them a judicial matter, now this one. two years out from a new contract. Folks, this is why I'm tough on Baker Mayfield and Johnny Mansell and James Winston.

It's why I was tough on John Wall. Okay, because I don't have time for you to grow up. I'm paying you a fortune to John Wall. John Wall now is getting mature. He's two knee surgeries in and 45 million large a year. It's too late. as an organization, now I'm overpaying him. I need the first four years of underpaying him or fairly paying him.

The bottom line with Zeke, his dad came out when he was drafted and I'll read the quote. From his father, my biggest worry is, I don't think my son knows how to navigate in life being a superstar. He's like a little boy. He just wants to have fun and play football and enjoy people. The problem is by the time he gets a little more mature, he's 28. he's 4,000 carries in and it's too late. Now I have to overpay him for a running back who's past his prime. This is why scout at the Combine ask about your childhood.

And they ask about your parents. And they ask really uncomfortable questions. And the media, which tends to lean left and be protective of athletes, generally doesn't like it. But this is why you ask the questions. Johnny Mansell, James Winston, are why I ask questions about Baker-May Field. The police video of Baker Mayfield wouldn't be a big deal if Johnny Mansell and James Winston had been stars. But James Winston, Johnny Manzell and Baker came into sports with maturity

issues. Johnny's already out of the league. James Winston's got about a year, maybe eight games, or he's out of the league, and Baker will see. This is why we ask maturity questions. This is why I'm tough on quarterbacks and star players, because I'm paying you a lot of money. And I can't wait for you to grow up. And maturity, by the way, is not really teachable. Blocking is teachable. Tackling is teachable. Playbooks are teachable.

Have you ever met a really immature 21-year-old? And at 28, they were super mature. No. They make baby steps. They get more mature. But generally in life, I can remember the kids I went to college with. The two guys I was best friends with in college that were really mature are now super successful, Great dads, very wealthy.

The guys that were screw-offs are still screw-offs. Like, you don't go 21 in immature to 31 in super-mature. You may get more mature. And by the way, Dallas, you have an example of this. It's called Des Bryant. Des never reached his potential. He didn't take working out seriously. He didn't take coaching seriously.

And he underachieved. By the way, T.O. three times left a team. All three teams got better the following. year. New England won Super Bowls when Randy Moss left. But fans freak out because Zeke is great and it freaks us out in football when a great player could leave. But remember, football is not the NBA. There are players in the NBA. You're just going to put up with a lot of stuff. But the NFL's always been about letting guys go who are still great and have stuff left in the tank. Peyton Manning won a Super Bowl, and Indy knew he could win a Super Bowl. Brett

Farve still had stuff in the tank. Joe Montana went to Kansas City still had stuff in the tank. You've got to get comfortable in professional football in America. The basketball culture is not the football culture. NBA players are generally more important. Only five starters, only 12, 13 in a roster. LeBron's got the ball in his hands the entire game. Zeke, what does he get? 18 carries? They have 69 plays. There's touchdowns the Cowboys have over the course of a season. He's not even on the field. So when you see in the combine organizations asking tough questions about your parents,

your childhood, your maturity, this is why. Or you end up the Cleveland Browns, you spend this money on Johnny Mansell and he's a bust. Or you spend a fortune on coaching and teaching James Winston and he massively underachieves. Now, I think Baker's going to be better than both those guys. But the questions, police video, grabbing your junk, throwing the, football have to be asked. Because I don't have time for Baker Mayfield to grow up. He's a number one pick.

You've got to be good now. John Wall, I don't have time for the nonsense. Now you're two knee surgeries in and $45 million a year. So I'll say it again. I trade Zeke. I trade him. You got eight great young players. Running backs don't dictate wins in this league.

They never have. Adrian Peterson left the Vikings. Never had a losing record. DeMarco Murray left the Cowboys. Won two or three division titles. Labian Bell left the Steelers. Number four in total offense. I'm just not putting up with this nonsense.

Listen, have you ever worked? Forget football. Ask yourself this. Have you ever in college lived with somebody that was immature? Or, yeah, I had one of those. They suck the oxygen out of your apartment. Have you ever had somebody in your family that's immature? They suck the oxygen out of dinner.

Have you ever worked with somebody that's in a locker room or in a cubicle space? They suck the oxygen. They create tension. Everybody walks on eggshells. This Dallas Cowboy team, these windows close real quick. You're in a division with Philadelphia. And I think Philadelphia's got a better GM than you. I think they've got a better coach than you.

I think they got a better quarterback than you. I think they have a better defensive line than you. Every little detail, Cowboy fans, every little detail is going to count. Okay, this is not a division with the Jackson, Jags or the Detroit Lions. No, no, no, no. New England and Philadelphia right now are probably the two

best run football operations in America. So these little tensions, these little bubbles, this little immaturity, this little, oh God, we got to worry about that thing instead of football, and this thing instead of football, they will matter. This is Microsoft and Apple

15 years ago. Like every inch counts for a foot. And I say it again. I know people freak out in football, but he's so great. Yeah, and for the second time in three years, you have organizational tension going right into a camp. Philadelphia doesn't. New England doesn't. Chicago doesn't.

Rams don't. A lot of good teams in the NFC. Seattle doesn't. Dallas does. It's not the NBA. This is not the NBA. You put up with a lot more. You deal with a lot more.

and you have to, and if you can't handle it, don't work in the NBA. That's the culture of basketball. Players matter more. From the AAU to the college to the pro level, they do get over it. In the NFL, they really don't. And you can move off players. T.O.3 times. All teams got better.

Des Bryant, Randy Moss, teams get better. Amazing. It's like this is the second time. Three years. Nonsense. Two years out. Dealing with this. Teadious.

I want to go to this. So we are 50 days away from the start of the NFL season, Packers Bears. But that's not really football. Today, Arizona-Denver Rookies report in a week, the camp start. And one of the reasons, I'm a huge college football fan, Joy and I both love college football. But over the last four or five years, people have said to me, you've reduced your college football talk. And I said that's because Hope left the building. I'm a big believer in Hope.

I want fan bases to be engaged. So the more of you that are engaged, the more I can talk about a sport. And aren't you all real happy about all the NBA parody? Isn't everybody telling me via Twitter, I love the NBA parody? Because next year, like 16 NBA teams, it was like hopeful. I mean, Utah has a realistic shot. Denver, Milwaukee, Philadelphia. You know, by the way, Toronto was 17 and 5 without Kauai.

They'll make the playoffs. Indiana, Portland, Golden State, Houston, endless, Clems, Lakers, and you're all right. You're all very, very viable. Even the teams in the NBA that aren't great, Sacramento, Pelicans, Dallas. So college football, the bubble in college football now of teams that can win the national championship is a three-team bubble of 130 college football programs, Bama, Clemson, Georgia, that's it.

They can win the national championship. They can go through their season, win a conference championship. and then win two games in the playoff. Now, I don't think there's much around that. I do think Michigan and Washington are very interesting, very interesting. I think Oklahoma's always interesting, but it's a three-team bubble. This is why the NFL is fantastic. And I was thinking this morning about, you know, I always talk about these bubbles.

Who's in the Super Bowl lead bubble? I think there are six teams in the NFL that should be favorite. It's roster, coach, organizational quarterback, and the six teams are New England, Kansas City, Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Rams Chargers. I think that's the bubble. But in the NFL, I also think there are 11 teams that hover around the bubble. Now, they may need a fluke win. They may need a break in scheduling.

They may need to stay healthier than other teams. I think they're Atlanta, Minnesota. Tennessee is my dark horse in the NFL this year, along with the first. 49ers. Tennessee was 9 and 7, two years in a row, best offensive line, arguably in the AFC, and Mike Frable appears to be able to coach. Pittsburgh, St. San Francisco is my second dark horse team. I think Kyle Shanahan's the next Belichick, Seattle, Chicago, Green Bay, Dallas, and Houston. Now, I think those teams can win a Super Bowl, but I do think they need a series of breaks. Their personnel's good enough to win, unlike college football. Their personnel's

good enough to win. They may be not quite as good at head coach, or they've got a a real hole. San Francisco secondary, you know, Tennessee, Mariotta, can he ever stay healthy? Houston. God, I like the team. I hate the offensive line. Those are teams that need a break, need a fumble, need a fluke, need a call, need to stay healthier. Probably all those bubble teams need like two of their rookies to pop. Like they come in and you're like, oh my God, we got a rookie here who may get pro bowl votes. But when you add that up, That's 17 of 32 NFL teams. That's called optimism.

That's what everybody's excited about the NBA next year. That's why I've moved off on my show, college football talk. My love for college football hasn't dimmed. I watch more college football than I've ever watched. I bet more college football. I go to more college football games. I've already got tickets for two games this year and we're in July. Okay.

But hope and optimism are. what helps choose my topics. And we are starting here. I think we got six in the bubble, 11, hovering. And I will even throw this in. I think there's five other teams in the NFL that are talented enough that their fan base can lie to themselves that they think they can win the Super Bowl. I was just about to say there's probably a couple teams that are all angry right now.

Okay. So there's five more. So now we're at like 22 of 32. Cleveland is too young to win a Super Bowl. The Jags are too Doug Marone. The Jets have too many new pieces. Carolina is too inconsistent. And I do think the Raven ceiling is too low.

But those teams are good enough at a bar their fans could argue. I mean, Cleveland's got the players. But Jacksonville, by the way, sees too much of Andrew Luck and too much of Deshawn Watson. I don't think they're going to get another division. So now I got six Super Bowl, 11 bowl, and five who can argue about it at a sports bar. 6, 11, 17, 5, 22 of 32. That's called optimism. That's called hope.

That's why, along with other reasons, the NFL continues to be king and why the NBA may have its best regular season in a decade next year. If you can go to a bar and argue you can win it, that is great for my business. Six in the bubble. Chargers, chiefs, Rams, Patriots, Philadelphia, Indie. 11 hovering the bubble Atlanta, Minnesota, Tennessee Again, my dark horse Pittsburgh, New Orleans, San Francisco

Dark Horse in the NFC, Seattle, Chicago, Green Bay Dallas, Houston and five, you can have two Bud Lights and argue at a bar you can win, but you're wrong. Cleveland, Jags, Jets, Carolina, and Baltimore. One more herd? The herd streams

24 hours a day, seven days a week within the I-Hart Radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. 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 SportsClice 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. 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 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, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast,

learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, fam? This Isaiah Thomas. And I'm CJ 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 R. 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 Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers, why he got the ball. Like, 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. 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, 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, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clippers show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. You know, there are coincidences, and then there are things that clearly can't be a coincidence. I think we all acknowledge.

When Kobe Bryant came into the NBA, he mimicked Michael Jordan. His game looked like Michael. He sounded like Michael Jordan for about the first eight years. Kobe was Michael Light. Now, I don't blame Kobe. When you watch a young star, and you pattern your game after him, you can look like that.

I'll give you an example. I'll bring this close to home. When I was a young broadcaster in my 20s, it wasn't until like I was 32, 33 where I found my style. I was like 10% Letterman, 10% Bob Costas, 10% The Iman, Don Imus, 5% Stern. I didn't know what I was, right? Like I was trying to figure out exactly what I was and what my style was. And, you know, other guys, Joe Buck, since he was probably eight, had a style. style and it was his. It didn't work that way with me. My dad wasn't a broadcaster. I wasn't around

broadcast booths. It took me years in years to kind of figure out my style instead of nibbling pieces from everywhere else. And it's funny about, like, Kobe came into the league, and he was trying to find Kobe while he was doing a really amazing imitation of Michael Jordan. And then Kobe's last eight, nine, ten years in the league, Kobe was Kobe. More dramatic than Michael, took tougher shots than Michael, developed his own style. He was much more fashionable, a little less corporate than Michael was. He really became his own guy, but it takes a while. Kevin Durant has a lot of similarities to LeBron, and here's where LeBron's a pretty fascinating do.

You know, LeBron James walked into this league, and then let's go back to LeBron's childhood. Not ideal. You know, he moved around a lot, a lot of chaos, but yet LeBron had a very strong sense of self. very early. And he's still to this day, I'm going to find the best basketball shot. From the very first day in the league, LeBron's like, no, no, no, we will take the best shot. I don't have to take it. And a lot of you critics out there, Michael would have taken the shot and Kobe would have

taken the shot. And LeBron's like, that's not my game. It's pretty remarkable that LeBron was 20 years old in this league and already knew himself, was mature enough to like, this is who I am, this is what I'm, now. And by the way, he's tweaked stuff. But he's never copied as he's tweaked. I mean, he started shooting three-pointers. We never had a 6-9 forward guard that...

I mean, LeBron was just an evolver. Like, here's who I am. I'm comfortable with it. I'm going to get better. I never felt LeBron was like copying anybody. He was just getting better. Kevin Durant feels very much like Kobe early in his career doing the Michael thing.

Just think about this. So Kevin Durant, signs with the Nets, he's first or second best player in the league doesn't hold a press conference. And he's always been great at press conferences. He's very vulnerable. He's very raw. We've seen him cry.

He's a great press conference guy. He doesn't hold the press conference. Oh, LeBron didn't hold a press conference in Los Angeles. Now you think I'm just throwing that out there. But this is the difference with LeBron and KD and why LeBron's going to go down historically better.

It's not just the wins. LeBron has a sense of self. Kevin Durant's always been a little bit of a seeker and a wander. Think of how similar to their careers are. Some of it is just happenstance. Both come into the NBA, highly touted and are exceptional early. They work out together, and they both leave their first team, and it shocks the world. Durant goes to the rival.

LeBron goes to Miami. Holds a press conference. They both join other stars and win two titles, get two MVP's, and they both become the villain of the league when they do it, and they don't like it. Then, after they lose a final to Kauai Leonard, they both bail. And they both join a team, LeBron, Lakers, Kevin Durant, Brooklyn, where basketball's important, but business clearly has an influence. These were not the best teams they could have joined.

Both will not hold a press conference because they're now above the press conference thing, even though both are great at press conferences. And I think the first year for both, this is just happenstance, will be defined by an injury. Kevin Durant can't play in Brooklyn first year. LeBron played got hurt his first major injury. But there are parts of it that feel very much like Kobe Jordan or me and Bob Costas that I'm kind of trying to find my place. LeBron has a show called The Shop with his business manager.

And then KD creates a show called The Boardroom, which is the shop without haircuts, and Rich Clim and his business partners on the show. This is the difference between LeBron and KD. Is that I do believe LeBron has had a huge influence on Kevin Durant's game, brand, and decisions. I feel that Michael had a huge, huge influence on Kobe's name, brand, game, and decisions.

The remarkable thing about LeBron James, he didn't, he loved Jordan, but he never connected with Kobe. He had never had any interest in that because he didn't have Kobe's game. And he grew up liking Michael, but didn't worship him and wouldn't mimic his game. In fact, he often said, I'm not MJ. I'm not going to take the final shot. That's not what I do. in that I don't blame Durant for this.

But we know now Durant's a little bit of a wander, a little bit of a seeker, but here's the difference. Here's the real big difference. LeBron would not have left the Warriors. No way in hell. Because whereas LeBron left teams, Cleveland, Miami, and Cleveland,

that appear to be getting older and worse, Kevin Durant left two really good basketball teams that are young and had years left to win championships. Okay, see, Westbrook and Hardin were both just coming into their prime. No way LeBron leaves the Warriors. LeBron's got two greatest sense of himself and two greatest sense of history in the league. You think of LeBron would bail on Steph and Clay and Draymond and Kurt? There's no way.

And I do think fundamentally this is the difference between LeBron and KD. LeBron's got a much greater sense of self. KD tends to be a little bit of a wanderer. not quite sure what makes him tick. He said this before. This is not me reaching. He said this before. He's trying to find himself.

I want a hoop. That's all I want to do. But then it's not all he wants to do because he's incredibly active on social media. And if he wants the hoop, that's exactly what he could do in San Francisco, was just hoop and hide because Steph's the star of the team, right? It's interesting, no press conference for either. Like LeBron did that. And I was like, that's weird.

That's the first time I've ever seen in the NBA where a. star goes to a team and he just like hides. He didn't show up until the photo shoot. Where's LeBron? Kevin Durant signs. You're not talking. He's hidden. I think some of it's coincidence.

Some of it is LeBron has great influence on KD, whether KD wants to admit it or not. What's going on, everybody? John Middlecop, three and out podcast. Brought to you by my main man, Colin Coward, and his podcast network. If you don't know me,

I used to work in the NFL. I've now been in the media for five or six years. Coming up this week, I talk about the NFL's recent success financially, the franchise tag. And I talk about every young quarterback in the league, their ceiling and their floor. Again, John Middilcoff, three and out podcasts, listen to wherever you listen to your podcast. Baker Mayfield admitted yesterday, big long article. He wanted revenge against Hugh Jackson. When Hugh Jackson got fired and took a job with the Bengals,

Baker Mayfield came out and called him fake and ripped him. And he talked about it yesterday. He doubled down. Baker said, listen, I'm doubling down on this. I'm not going to lie to you. When we played us, it's human nature to want revenge, and I wanted to get revenge on him. So let me say, first of all,

Hugh Jackson did have a right to take another job. But I also think Baker Mayfield just said what everybody else thought in the Brown's locker room. Dude, if you're going to take a job, don't take it in division. That's cheap. So I can see both. Hugh has a right to employment, and I can see Baker saying,

dude, a week later, you're against us. You told us we were your guys. I get both sides. Here's what, again, bothers me. I just wish somebody else said it, not the franchise quarterback. Let a wide receiver say it. Let a DB say it. An emotional position player say it.

I'd rather not have my quarterback doubling down on calling NFL coaches fake. And this is my thing about Baker Mayfield. When you're young, you feel like you've got to win the fight and win the argument and win the Twitter debate. And then you get older and I just stay off Twitter. And I just sometimes lived to fight another day, let sleeping dogs lie. That's just a maturity thing. When you're in your 20s, you want to win every fight, a haymaker, I want to win the argument. And I'm old now.

I just avoid those problems. I don't have the energy to get into fights all the time. You know, a couple weeks ago is a prime example. Baker Mayfield came out and ripped the Texas quarterback. Remember that a couple weeks ago? The NFL guy Baker ripped the Texas quarterback. The Texas college kid was asked about Baker's thing, and he said, I just I don't want to I respect his game so the college kid wouldn't get involved with the NFL player the NFL player took a shot at the college kid the college kid had the mindfulness to go I respect his game a lot I don't want to get involved in this that's my Baker thing now by the way cocky outspoken great on social media reactionary doesn't mean you can't win a bunch of games I'm

I'm not, and that's what Baker's going to be. Variety is the spice of life. I believe in the history of the NFL, quarterbacks that are stoic win championships. Montana, Brady, you know, Roger Staubach. If you look at the quarterbacks I like now, Russell Wilson, I like stoic. I don't like drama.

Big Ben, Aaron Rogers, I get a lot of drama. I don't think it helps the locker room. I think we have proof with both. It doesn't help the locker room. I do think that Baker fits Cleveland. Cleveland's trying to prove it's worth its value. Freddie Kitchens had a quote yesterday saying, the bottom line is,

Baker's been told no his whole life. He walks into every room every day trying to prove to you, he's worth it. At the core of everything is the fact that he's always been told, no, you can't do this. So is Cleveland. So I think Baker is a very good fit with Cleveland. Cleveland's got a chip on its shoulder.

They've been beaten down by guys like me forever. And Baker's got a chip in his shoulder. shoulder, he's been told no, he's had to walk on. I think the fit works. The downside to being the social media quarterback, the reactionary quarterback, the outspoken quarterback, that will be perceived differently based on wins. When Kobe won, he was a killer. When Kobe lost, he was a ball hog. His game never changed. When you lose in the NFL and are the reactionary Twitter, take shots at everybody guy, that will land his immaturity around the league.

If you're winning, people will be like, I love his edge. Chip on his shoulder. And over the course of 15 years, and Baker will play that long, it's not linear. It's like most actors' careers. Good movie, bad movie, awful movie, embarrassing movie,

nice movie, solid movie, awful movie, great movie. Tom Hanks and Denzel, that's not the way it works. In Hollywood, Most of the actors, up, down, good role, bad role, clunker, straight to video, win an Oscar. Outside of Brady, that's the way it works in the NFL for quarterbacks. Like, you have lean stretches, great stretches. You get a great coordinator. Kyle Shanahan to Atlanta.

Oh, right. Oh, then he leaves. Matt Ryan's like, oh, we're not the same team. Cam Newton, great talent. Winning season, losing, winning, losing, winning, losing. That's the way it works. And Baker's personality will be loved. and defended and embraced when he's winning.

But when he's not, it's going to land as immature. And I just think your game is your game in the NBA. Your personality is your personality as a quarterback. And so, you know, yesterday in the last two weeks, actually the last three weeks, Baker's taking a shot at a teammate, had to reel it back in. He's taken a shot at a college quarterback, and he's doubled down taking a shot on an NFL head coach. Like that's a three-week span. Young guy, win the argument.

Honesty is valor, it's power. I think all this Baker stuff, if he wins, we're all going to embrace it. But the minute he loses or struggles, ripping a college quarterback, doubling down in a coach, ripping a running back for wanting a pay raise. I think this is what you're going to get with in his career. I think this is what you're going to get with Baker. You're going to get a lot of what most actors in Hollywood have. You're not going to get the Tom Hanks, Tom Brady, the Denzel, the Don Cheadle.

It's just this nice, smooth ride. His personality's not built to be smooth. Baker's personality's just not built to be a smooth ride. He'll win a lot of games, and he'll start a lot of forest fires. I mean, he's going to start a lot of fires. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed.

This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice 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 athletes 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 controversy, 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 Slicelife 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 a good person because you're not? You're free. 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, Keer 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. What's up, fam?

It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm CJ 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 stopped by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up 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. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliver 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? Quarterback on office blue of 42. Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What?

Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever. wherever you get your podcast. So it's one of these lists. This is the time of the year when, you know, we're all trying to fill space for two weeks until NFL training camp start and get all these lists out there and all that.

So one of these lists, this will get a lot of attention. And fans will just love this is James Jones, former NFL player, good buddy Aaron Rogers, former Packer, nice career now at the NFL Network came out with his five best wide receiving duos. And I don't have any real problem. I only have one little tiny problem. Odell and Jarvis Landry are number one.

listen, they're quick, they can catch, they separate, no problem. Stefan Diggs, Adam Thielen, I'd probably put them number one in terms of over-the-top deep threats. They're remarkable. Thelan's story is absurd how he got into the league and how he dominates. Totally, everybody's, nobody saw him in college. It's amazing. It's one of the great stories in the league. Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, Chargers.

Very good. When Keenan can stay healthy, they're very good. Rams is weird. Brandon Cook's Robert Woods. Cooper Cup is far more valuable than Brandon Cooks to the football team. I'd say Cooper Cup and Robert Woods. and Brandon Cooks. And again, Cooper Cup was hurt last year.

He's more valuable by far than Brandon Cooks. And then Raiders Antonio Brown, Terrell Williams, who came from the Chargers. I don't have any real, again, that's fine. I don't care. But this is what's funny. Let me ask you, are the Raiders or the Vikings or the Cleveland Browns like Super Bowl favorites? Not really. This is a classic list that will get attention.

Here's the list I care about. Pro football focus came out with the best offensive lines in the NFL. Philadelphia, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Colts, Patriots, Saints, Packers, Bears, Carolina. Those feel like Super Bowl teams. But nobody wants to talk about offensive lines. Here's what you don't see with all those wide receiving cores. Where's Cleveland's offensive line in that top 10? Where's Minnesota's offensive line in that top 10?

where are the Chargers offensive line and then top 10? Where is the Raiders? Where is the, all these wide receiver groupings? None of their offensive lines are top 10 in the NFL. And none of them have mobile quarterbacks. And so you can have these great wide receivers. But if you have an immobile quarterback in a below average offensive line, wide receivers don't have the time to get open.

I will tell you, I think the. dark horse team in the NFL is Tennessee. Tennessee was playing to get to the playoffs last year, and Marcus Mario dairies couldn't play week 17. They beat the Cowboys in New England badly. I think they're going to beat Cleveland in week one. I've already made my bet on it. I got four and a half points.

When you look at the top 10 offensive lines, those feel like more Super Bowl teams. When you look at the best wide receiving duos, they just look like exciting teams. The offensive line pro football focus, and I think they do as good a job on offensive line grading as you can possibly do for a guy like me who doesn't really know offensive lines. But Philadelphia should be considered, by the way, a Super Bowl favorite. And the Colts are one of three teams in the AFC and the Patriots. The Saints and the Packers and the Bears are all getting odds in the Super Bowl. They have a real

chance to, like, I see the offensive line list and I'm like, those teams feel like playoff teams. Half of the other list don't feel like playoff teams. Yeah, I feel like the other list is like just. is not taking this into consideration. Because looking at the other list, I would have put the Saints up there. But that makes sense because the Saints' offensive line is in the top 10. So the Saints don't have as flashy

a receivers as all these teams. But the Saints have I could argue the Saints have the first or second best offensive line in the game. So when you give me all the wide receiving duos, yes, Odell and Jarvis and Brandon and Robert Woods, but you got to be

great up front in this league. I've said this for years. quarterback's the most important player in the league. The O-line is the most important unit in the league. And football's a unit sport over a player sport. New England has dominated this league for 20 years. It's not because of Brady, because they never have a bad offensive line. Tom left one year with a broken leg. They still won 11 games because their offensive lines always great.

Philadelphia doesn't have the best running backs. It's running back by committee. They have a great offensive line. The Saints brought seven young players two years ago into the league. Kids, rookies. Why did it pop? Because they were solid up front on the offensive line, giving Breeze time to create a running game with rookies,

create a passing game with, we just don't pay attention to the big uglies up front. That pro football focus list is way more important than that duo wide receiver list, which is fun. I still think. I think Odell will be really good with Landry, but I will say this, Jarvis Landry has more catches his first five years in the NFL than any wide receiver ever. They have the best young tied end or second best, David Njoku.

They have two and eventually three great mouse to feed at running back. And Baker has got to keep all of them happy. And think of those Jarvis stats where Jarvis was getting those numbers. That makes it even more impressive. So Odell's going to go there in that duo, but their offensive line, the Browns have really weak tackles. They're good guard, center guard. They're really below average at tackle.

And Baker's not mobile. And Odell likes to go deep. And Baker's not going to have a lot of time. And if you look at the pass rushes, Baltimore, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh in division, have real pass rushes. So that one's going to be very interesting. I think Jarvis and Odell are talented. But if Baker didn't have a ton of time to throw, do you watch the Chargers play the Browns last

year? Chargers, two good pass rushers? They engulfed, clean. Cleveland up front. Cleveland's bad at tackle left and right. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. columnist for the Dallas Morning News and a good one. Matt Mosley, host of the Doom Day podcast with one of my friends Edwarder, who I think that's one of the great football podcasts in America. And Matt's joining us. I know I'm in the minority in Dallas. But the NFL, Matt,

has been a league for years and years where you move off Brett Farr, Joe Montana, Peyton Manning. And they go out and win a bunch of games. Is there anybody in Dallas? right now that is tired enough of Zeke from judicial to financial headaches that would move off him? No, they're not. They're not, man. And I've been listening to you. And this is an interesting take. And I promise you, I will be at Oxnard to go wall-to-wall coverage if he holds out.

But I think there's about a 2% chance that he doesn't show up down there in the 25th, whenever they fly in. He's going to be there because Dak is going to be in his. ear and Dak is going to bat for him right now and like, hey, you've got to pay all of us and none of us are taking cuts. And Dak's going to tell him, hey, I'm going to have a little bit harder time being in your corner and be with us. So I would say, you know, while it's a very interesting thought process, they don't know how to operate without this guy.

They've built everything in this offense around him. They don't have the faith. They're about to pay a guy $30 billion a year and they have no clue. what Dak would be without Zeke. And Dak knows that too. So, I mean, Jerry is pretty dug in on Zeke. And so there's a better chance, Zeke. Zeke may be, he may be pretty smart here,

because right now he is as valuable as he'll ever be to them. And so a little holdout threat two years early is not as crazy as it seems because he is at the zenith. he's at the top of his leverage point right now. And I promise you, I think they could soften Jerry a little bit if they truly didn't show up. I just don't think Zeech's wired that way. Zique is not his own man.

Zique kind of goes around. He's a friendly sort of a little puppy dog kind of guy. He is under Dax spell, and he will do, I think, what Dack advises him to do, and that'll be to show up at the start of camp. of all these great young players, because I believe Dallas, and I'm not sure there's anybody quite as close, has the best young football players in the NFL. They can't pay them all. Who doesn't get paid here? Probably like Byron Jones, a cornerback that puts up tremendous, you know, all the PFF and all these things, they puts up, you know, he's, but he doesn't intercept the ball.

I mean, if you're not making plays, you can, you can shut. guys down at all, but if you're not getting your hands on a football ever, these guys don't make interceptions. So you may see him have some issues getting paid. And we'll take a look at Jalen Smith. You're so down the road. I mean, that's a great young linebacker. But, you know, he's a guy that somebody else might go crazy over. They were patient. They've let him go. But I don't know how you could give a linebacker like that huge money. I mean, they just don't do it. I mean, over the years, you name me some huge money linebacker the Cowboys have had. It just doesn't happen.

And Sean Lee, you know, got a decent deal, but it wasn't enormous money. So, you know, with the way Van derange is coming on, the two guys that might be odd been out right now would be Jalen Smith and then that Byron Jones, who is an excellent cornerback, but the band never makes interceptions. You know, how is it playing? Listen, from what you're saying, Zeeke and Dak are both going to get their money.

You know, the DAC thing, we've talked about this on the show. He sold a lot of jerseys and kept the Cowboys on TV for three years and made roughly what a DJ in Dallas does. He made Jerry a fortune, the anthem controversy. He defended Jerry Jones, the owner. Like, I get Jerry saying, we're keeping him. He really, there was some anthem stuff about two years ago and DAC did something very unpopular.

popular on social media. He defended his owner. When does Dak get paid? If you're telling me, Zeeks's going to get paid. When's Dak going to get paid? That gets first. Dax's going to get first run at this. But Dax's using his enormous leverage right now to help his teammates and make sure Amari and Zika are taking care of because all these guys know what the Cowboys do. You've made the point. It's the guy's 28 and then he's looking for his money and he's past his prime a little bit. That's why Zeeks threaten the whole out. He knows that too. He knows the way they treated to Marco Murray. This guy was on top of the

world. This guy put up huge numbers. Rushing, you know, rushing crown. And they let him walk. And Zeke knows that could happen to him. And that's why he's thinking my best chance to get money is right now why they base everything around me. So,

you know, the best strategy for all of them might be Dak, Zeke and Amari, three-headed holdout. And then we'd be all over that, Colin. I mean, would be, then we'd be having some fun. You just kind of pull in together, but that won't happen. And they've got to take care of the quarterback.

So he gets his 30-mill a year. And, boy, he made a statement about a week or two to USA Today. Do you see that? Yeah. He's like, hey, I'm not taking any pay cut. I'm not taking a, I'm not doing a team-friendly deal with the Cowboys because I'm going to get a broadcasting job someday. I don't care about any of that.

You know, they can, and his whole point is the cap's going to go up. Gambling's coming in the NFL. These guys are getting smarter and smarter. I mean, you know, he's like, they've got billions and billions of dollars these owners. So the players are like, really? You're going to try to do some kind of PR thing with me publicly and make me look greedy for taking the full deal? Dax not playing that game.

And he said so about a week and a half ago. So I think you'll see Dax deal get done first, then Amari, and then Zique. Now, when will Zeeq have the nerve to hold out? Because you've got to watch that. happen to lay beyond bell. I mean, he may have eventually got some money, but he held out a whole season, and they kind of were able to stay afloat without him. And that would be the hard part. If Zeke dug in his hills, could the Cowboys stay afloat without him? I think it would be a lot harder than it was for the Steelers. Matt Mosley, listen to his podcast with Edward, or they're both

fantastic, very tight in. It's called the Doomsday Podcast, Dallas Morning News columnist. Love having you on the show. When you're out here for Thousand Oaks, stop by the show. Love to put you on the show and on the couch. Okay, I'm going to hold you to that. Yep. We'll go grab some beers. Texas-sized beers. Matt Mosley, good stuff. Listen to his podcast with Word, or it's great. 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 SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slical 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 helped make you You funnier. This week, my guest, S&L'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 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, rep, my mama want you to wave at her.

What? Hey, Ms. 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. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast. 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 funny. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come until 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.