The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd: 08/16/2019

Episode Date: August 16, 2019

Colin never reads too much into preseason but says you can spot bad pretty easily and the Cardinals look bad.  He thinks there are five franchise Quarterbacks that are one injury away from the team drafting a replacement.  Colin was impressed by Tom Brady's ability to be critical while also embracing young talent.  Plus, NBC's Peter King joins Colin from his training camp tour to talk Andrew Luck, Aaron Rodgers and why Zeke's holdout is so troublesome for the Cowboys  Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for The Herd at Fox Sports Radio.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, this on a Friday is The Herd. Wherever you may be in, however you may be listening.

We are live in Los Angeles on IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1. Joy Taylor's off. Today, veteran newsman, John Goulet, will be accessing all the latest breaking news. It's a very exciting Friday. Look at my guest today. Urban Meyer, Eric Mangini's got video, Peter King, Tom Telesco, Chargers, GM. J. Mack has tomorrow's headlines today in a couple of hours.

Very, very exciting. So, you know, I'm watching preseason stuff last night. And it's very easy to just discard everything from preseason, right? Like it doesn't matter, don't watch it. But be very careful about that. The coaches are watching. The coaches are making selections. It's preseason.

Bill Belichick will cut guys based on performances last night. It matters. These are pro football players. And you don't go crazy on it. You don't want to sound ridiculous as a sportscaster saying, this is great and this is terrible. But there are moments. Dak Prescott blew everybody away in the preseason. I was a doubt.

I'm like, oh, come on, give me a break. It mattered. It showed us who Dak Prescott was. He wasn't intimidated by the moment as the cowboy quarterback out of college. Victor Cruz, a wide receiver undrafted out of UMass, had a great preseason. He went on to lead the Giants the next three years in catches. Victor Cruz had an unbelievable preseason. So, you know, it matters.

Coaches are making decisions on film of games. It matters. Here's what also matters. It's easy to spot bad. Arizona's bad. Cliff Kingsbury looks over his head, and Kyler Murray is not throwing the ball down the field. And that game last night for Arizona,

I don't care what you want to say. Oakland led 26-0. Oakland moved the ball at will. Oakland's defense doesn't offer much. Kyler Murray, running for his life, couldn't throw the ball accurately down the field. field. They have Bance Joseph, who bounced around the league, got fired in Denver. Now he's the defensive coordinator. Obviously, the players are not aligned with what Bance Joseph's trying to do.

Kyle or Murray looks small. Again, he has had five drives so far in the preseason. 33 yards, 13 yards, minus six yards, minus six yards, minus 10 yards. Now, I know he's young, and I know their offensive line is terrible. Josh Rosen had to be watching that, you know, with a little smirk. But remember, Arizona didn't just hire a college coach. Arizona hired a super young college coach. They didn't just hire a college coach who struggled. They hired a college coach who had a terrible record at Texas Tech. Listen, it's hard to spot great in sports.

It's easy to spot bad. Chuck Pagano, fake pun against New England. Oh, you got to fire him. Markell Fultz, number one pick for the Sixers. Oh, crap, he can't shoot. He's a shooter. It is easy to spot bad in sports. Now, spotting very good and great can be difficult.

There are a lot of players in the NFL and the NBA. They're late bloomers. They work in systems. They don't work in other systems. I mean, nobody would deny that Tom Brady with Belichick is magic. Tom Brady with the bad coach may not be as magic. So spotting good and great, it can be difficult. You have to really watch.

Some guys are good in certain systems. Some guys are good with certain coaches. Some guys are late bloomers physically, emotionally, but bad. It's easy to spot. And Arizona right now is bad. That's the worst team I've seen in the preseason. They look disorganized, disjointed. The defense is a mess.

Kyler Murray's not throwing the ball down the field. So I'm going to go out on a limb and have a strong opinion this morning about the preseason. The Miami Dolphins and the Arizona Cardinals will not win their division based on what I've seen in the preseason. Okay. And in the NFL, by the way, is not forgiving. Okay.

I just want you to think about this. Think about all the years Pete Carroll has been coaching in the NFL, position coach, coordinator, head coach, he gets to face Cliff Kingsbury twice. Think about the mismatch in knowledge, experience, personnel that Pete Carroll will have twice against Arizona and Cliff Kingsbury. And that's not a shot at Cliff. I think Cliff's smart. But he had a losing record, like a bad record, 19 and 35 at Texas Tech.

And you can say, well, it's Texas Tech. Yeah, Mike Leach coach there. He was great. Bowl game every year, winning record. So, listen, when your alma mater fires you, nobody's alma mater wants to fire him. Cliff Kingsbury's alma mater fired him. Okay, they didn't want to do that.

That's the last thing you ever want to do. But what I'm watching Arizona right now, you know, it's bad. Like you can't just say, well, it's a different offense. No, no, no, no, no, no. Nobody wants to look terrible in the preseason. New England played Detroit in the preseason. And New England jumped out, boom, boom, drive, touchdown, drive, touchdown.

New England this year has a young team, younger than last year. They'll have eight or nine players in the last two drafts who are getting substantial time. they want to leave a positive imprint on their players. They're going to take this stuff seriously. Tom Brady's yelling, screaming at guys yesterday in practice. Don't tell me preseason doesn't matter at all. Of course it does. It's where we saw Victor Cruz.

Tony Romo, by the way, had a great preseason game. Goulet probably remembers this and people went, who the hell's Tony Romo? He's undrafted from Eastern Illinois. Remember that, John? Yeah, Parcell's played in the entire game. Didn't start the starter and didn't bring in a third stringer. Yeah.

So it matters. looks bad. Disjoined it. In a division, by the way, where you've got Sean McVeigh, Kyle Shanahan, and Pete Carroll. They're pretty good. They're pretty good. All right, I thought about this. And again, I want to shift gears, but I want to talk about something. Again, it's not big, but it's something with Aaron Rogers. Odell Beckham, hurt again. Odell Beckham's missed 16 of his last 32 games. He's hurt again. Not saying it's a major injury, but it's something. Aaron Rogers was supposed to play last night. He had a tight back.

He missed a start. Listen, he's had a concussion. He's had missed seven games with a broken collarbone. Then he missed nine games with a broken collarbone. He had a sprained MCL. You and I both know he was healthy in about seven games last year. You know, eight max. It's not the end of the world.

But I do think there are five quarterbacks in this league. Cam Newton, Jimmy Garapolo, Carson Wentz, Andrew Luck and Aaron Rogers. And they're all very talented. Some more talented than others. Luck's more talented, I think, than Cam and Garoppolo. Aaron could be more talented than all of them, except maybe Carson Wentz. But of those five quarterbacks, ask yourself.

Now, Marcus Moriota and Derek Carr have been hurt too. But I'm not sure their teams are fully committed to them right now regardless. These are five quarterbacks, Aaron, Andrew, Cam, Carson, Jimmy. The teams are emotionally and financially. financially, totally committed to these five arguable Hall of Famers. And ask yourself this, if any one of these during the season, including Aaron Rogers, suffered an injury, those teams would have to consider drafting a quarterback high next year. And it sounds ridiculous, right?

But Aaron's 35 had injuries. It's had an ad-lib style that can put him in the crosshairs of confidence. contact. That sort of sounds like Brett Farr. Brett Farrb was dinged up, though he played at about 35. He had an ad-lib style that sometimes put him in the crosshair of contact. Who did the Packers draft when Brett Farrv was 35? Aaron Rogers. Listen, Green Bay has addressed all of their personnel issues in the last two years.

They needed corners, linebackers, a center, and a tight end. They've drafted all of them. And I think they've drafted well. I love the tight end from Texas A&M. I love the center they got from Mississippi State. So Green Bay has addressed their issues. Green Bay enters this season young at certain positions like Corner, young at certain positions like maybe center.

But they're not untalented. They're not the New York Jets that have a hole at Corner. They're not the Texans that have a hole in their offensive line unit. Green Bay could absolutely next year in their first or second pick say, we're drafting a quarterback. I mean, what does Green Bay need? They went out and solved their linebacker issues. They got a free agent safety and drafted one.

That was a hole no longer. They've addressed corner, center, tight end, and they've always developed very smartly offensive and defensive linemen. So you think about this. in the NFL, you have to be proactive, not react to a disaster. This is why Bill Belichick for years, even when Tom Brady was in his prime, every other year he would draft a quarterback with a pretty good draft pick. This is why the Rams last year, even though Todd Gurley is still a horse,

they went and drafted with their second pick of running back. In fact, traded up to get him. This is why Carolina went. out and got Will Greer. You know, Ron Rivera knows in the NFL, you can't react to disaster. You have to be proactive. Rogers, Luck, Cam, Wentz, Jimmy G. Those are the five guys.

Those organizations are fully financially and emotionally committed. An injury for any one of those guys. Are you going to tell me if Jimmy Garoppolo does? gets hurt in week six, that Kyle Shanahan is not going to call his GM John Lynch. They're not going to have lunch sit down and go, hey, we got to have a plan here. Kyle Shanahan's like, this is my first NFL job. I'm not going into a season with C.J. Bethard and Nate Mullins playing eight games. We got to go after another quarterback.

Are you going to tell me Green Bay if Aaron Rogers gets hurt again? Mark Murphy's not sitting there thinking, hey, this is when we drafted Aaron to back up Brett Farr. We got to start thinking about this stuff. Carolina did it last year with Will Greer. And as much as I like, Andrew Luck, listen, if he misses the first two games to start the year and then in week 12 gets hurt again, you're going to draft a quarterback. The Colts have already addressed corner offensive line. They've already addressed running back, linebacker, pass rusher.

I'm not saying the Colts are great at everything or the Packers are great everywhere, but they don't have big holes in their organization, in their units, in their personnel. As much as I like, Andrew Luck, if he gets banged up again midseason, you've got to think about drafting another quarterback. That is just the truth. 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. Oh, it was so much fun watching Sam Darnold last night.

Sam Donald was amazing Smart 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 beaders 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 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. Kier Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests.

I'm talking. Trip Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. 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 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, Keir Gaines, is we have real conversations about 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 Clifford Taylor the Fourth.

And on my podcast, The Clifford 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 of 42. Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her.

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, 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 Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers while 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 podcast. Accuracy, athletic ability, instincts, three drives, nearly perfect. It was really impressive.

You know I like Sam Darnold. But before I go into the craziness of Sam Darnold, and he, last night, between the Giants and the Falcons, he's just a tremendous player. You know, don't forget, he's bigger than Baker Mayfield. He's stronger than Baker Mayfield. He's more athletic than Baker Mayfield. I mean, hell, he played linebacker in high school and basketball. And he's also, I think, more mature than Baker Mayfield.

That's not to say Baker's not going to succeed in the NFL. Baker's going to have success in the NFL. But where you enter sports is not even. Sam Darnold played 20 less games in college than Baker Mayfield. Sam Darnold's two years younger than Baker Mayfield. Sam Darnold did not have great college. coaches. His coordinator, T. Martin, got fired, and his head coach Clay Hilton wins 10 games this year, or he gets fired. Baker Mayfield had Bob Stoops. Baker Mayfield had, in my opinion,

the best offensive coach by a mile in college football, Lincoln Riley. Okay, so he had, Baker had more starts, older, not good college coaching, great college coaching. Then he goes to Cleveland where he gets Odell Beckham, Jarvis Landry, Nick Chubb, David and Joku. Those are, those aren't good weapons. Those are amazing weapons. In fact, Cleveland's got so much damn talent, they could trade Duke Johnson. Because Duke Johnson wasn't going to play for Cleveland. They had so much talent, they traded an offensive lineman to the Giants, a really good offensive lineman, an interior lineman. So Cleveland has a surplus of offensive talent for a guy that's two years older, had great college coaching. But in the media, nobody, I should say, very few of

us have the courage to go against the grain and say, Darnold's better. He's not better now because he's younger, entered the league with nothing to work with, had to me average to below average college coaching. But Darnold now has a running back, an upgraded O line, an upgraded coach, a legitimate slot receiver. Now, the Jets aren't perfect. You know, they've got a center that had to come out of retirement.

They don't have a number one receiver. They're terrible at corner. They won't be a great football team. there's still a draft and a free agent signing period away from being really, really a playoff caliber team at the highest order. Cleveland could get there this year. Why? Because they've got more good players for Baker Mayfield. But I remember years ago, Shaq and Kobe, the Lakers made a choice and they said, bye-bye, Shaq, we're going to keep Kobe. And I said it at the time. It was the right move. But it wouldn't feel like the right move for two years because Shaq went to a team willing to compete for a title. He went to D. Wade in Miami.

And so for two years, everybody was like, you're wrong, Colin. Lakers are wrong. They chose the wrong guy. No, they chose the right guy. But the answer to every puzzle isn't solved immediately. Kobe and I had this sourced at the highest levels of the Lakers front office. Kobe was a better practice player. Kobe was better with his body.

Kobe was more committed. Kobe was more focused. Kobe had more great years left. And in the end, it was proven that Lakers made the right choice. But that doesn't work on social media. That doesn't work on Twitter. That doesn't work today. It's like, who's winning now?

Who looks good now? That's the future. No, it's not. Tyreek Evans won rookie of the year. Steph Curry was in the same class. Michael Carter Williams won rookie of the year. Janice and Victorola Depot were in the same class. Now, I'm not insisting that Baker is Tyreek Evans or Victorola Depot.

I think Baker is going to have a really, really nice career. But if you're telling me, I've always said about quarterbacks. It's about 12 years. I don't give a rip about your rookie year. I don't even count Peyton Manning's rookie year. I don't care what it was. I don't care about Andrew Luck's rookie year. I don't care about any of these guys' rookie years.

What I care about is about midway point to your second year and on. That'll tell me who you are. If you're not connecting middle of your second year, if you're not picking stuff up, like I don't think Kyler Murray is going to star. I do think the Arizona situation is a mess, but I'm not going to totally judge Kyler Murray. I don't think all of it's his issue. He's got a bad D.C.

The coach is a college coach. but I'll say it again, and I don't care if it gets any blowback, because I couldn't give a rip. I've spent 25 years not giving a rip what people think about my opinions. I've got them sourced. I believe it. I trust people, and I trust my instincts and eyes. Sam Darnold, for 12 to 14 years, I'll take him over Baker.

He just entered the league at a really bad point. Josh Rosen entered in a tough spot. Lamar Jackson entered Baltimore Ravens. I mean, the Baltimore Ravens over the last 10 years have a very good infrastructure. That allowed Lamar Jackson to look better than Josh Rosen first year by a mile. Who do I think those are better football? Josh Rosen. I think if you put Josh Rosen in Baltimore and Lamar Jackson in Miami and Arizona, it wouldn't look the same.

So my takeaway on all this stuff is nobody in the media ever wants to take blowback of my opinion. I'll take Sam Darnold 12 to 14 years, size, athletic ability, durability, toughness, athletic ability, maturity over Baker. Not saying Baker won't work. But what I am saying is nobody's willing to just say Darnold was number one on significantly more draft boards than Baker. That is not disputable. Just not Cleveland's. Who also, for the record, drafted Johnny Mounds out in the first round.

He was not even on most of the best team's draft boards. What's going on, everybody? John Middlecock, three and out podcast. That's me. That's my podcast. Brought to you by Colin Coward's podcast. Network. You like Collins Show. You'll like mine. Talking all football. Used to work in the NFL. Now I talk. And you better believe I'm diving into Kyler Murray. Bill O'Brien. Is he lost as a GM? Jimmy Garaplo

throws five picks in practice. Doesn't matter. I'll talk about it all on this show. Three and out with me, John Middlecock. This is a great, great teaching moment by Tom Brady. So I'm going to show you a piece of tape in about two minutes here. Remember, was it earlier this week, Greg, or was it last week when I said, I got great advice. A gentleman, my first job out of college, he was a former baseball coach. He was my first real boss. His name was Larry Kentop recently passed away. And he gave me great advice that I've used in my life. And he was talking about when he used to be a baseball coach, if he had to deliver bad news to somebody or be critical of one of his players. He said he'd put his arm around him as he chewed him out,

letting them know, I'm your guy, but I got to deliver bad news. I've used that as a parent before when I talked to my son or my daughter, lovingly tell them I'm not really happy. But how stuff lands for young people, you know, you can bark. I'm an older guy. I can bark at somebody and think, yeah, they get it, but it can be too devastating, too harsh, too intense. And so I've learned that through the years is if I have to deliver bad news,

there is a more elegant sandpapered way, a little more refined way to deliver it. So remember when Baker Mayfield got in a little trouble? Duke Johnson said, you know, something about wanting more carries. Baker kind of called him out publicly. And then Brown teammates went and confronted Baker on this. This is how you do it. Now, think about this. So New England's got some young receipts.

right now. Gronk is retired and Edelman's out with an injury. So Brady and Camp is dealing with all sorts of young guys. Nikiel Harry, the rookie, Broxton Barrios, who's a wide receiver, who they drafted last year out of the University of Miami. He's dealing with a lot of young guys in camp right now. So Gromks retired, Edelman's out. And DeMarias Thomas, by the way, is still rehabbing his injury. So one veteran's out, two are hurt. So Tom could bark a little more at those guys. but he had Braxton Berrios in a practice yesterday, and Braxton Berrios missed an assignment. And Tom was asked about it after the practice, and I want you to listen to how carefully Tom Brady chooses his words. And you can't see this on radio.

You will see it on TV. How he is thinking about how this is going to land. He's smiling when he delivers criticism about. about Braxton Barrios. So watch and listen carefully to a real master putting his arm around you as he kicks you in the arse. Tom Brady. I think so much is him expecting the ball to be a certain place and me expecting him to be a certain place. And I think the chemistry between a quarterback and a receiver, a quarterback in a tight end is so important because, you know, it's all the anticipation. If you're waiting for things to happen in the NFL, you're too late. You know, you've got to just

anticipate and expect them to be a certain way, and that's the way they turn out. And I have obviously a lot of experience, so I know where guys should be. So I'm trying to tell them, if you want the ball, this is where you've got to be, which is hopefully a good learning for those guys. And it's good teaching for me. Hopefully it's good learning for them. It's good teaching for me. You see that how he carefully constructs it, very smart, very adult, not chewing out.

What Tom's also saying is I'll ghost you if you don't run the right route. That's what he does to Josh Gordon and to Randy Moss. Remember Josh Gordon was one of his favorite targets? Then he had some personal problems. They faced the Steelers, only two targets to Josh Gordon. Tom wants you to be fully committed, fully prepared, fully focused. He'll ghost you in games. He won't throw to you.

So yesterday in practice, a young guy made a mistake. But the way he delivers the message is adult, not accusatory. not too harsh, probably barked at him during the practice, but then when the media asks about him, Baker Mayfield take this as a subtle gesture of learning. Be playful. In fact, yesterday it was funny. There was a Twitter moment for Brady as one of the new rookies for the Patriots went and tried to be Socrates on Twitter, Aristotle, and said, lowliness is young ambitions ladder, where to the climber, upward turns his face. But when, he once attains the utmost round, he then unto the ladder turns his back, looks into the cloud,

scorning the base degrees by which he did ascend. Julius Caesar, Act 2, Scene 1, Shakespeare. Brady responded on Twitter, study your playbook. Playful, fun. It's how you have to deliver messages when you're the quarterback, especially the young teammates. Put your arm around him when you're kicking their ass. It's called coaching. Brady doesn't want to coach, but it's really smart, and it's why he's the goat.

Not snarky as certain quarterbacks can be in Green Bay. Not above it all. Not cocky. Not provado. Supportive during criticism. Fun, likable during criticism. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. One of my favorite things to do,

Goulet, you know this. I like to predict every year two really good teams that go into the tank and take two teams that were awful that double their wins. And I'm pretty good at it. And so it's interesting because I think this is the easiest year in terms of finding two bad teams that are going to double their wins. I think this is the easiest year I ever remember. San Francisco and the Jets.

San Francisco was 4 and 12. I think they turn out to be a 9 and 7 football team. The Jets were 4 and 12. I think they're going to be somewhere in the 8 and 8 football team. But what's interesting, one AFC, one NFC, they're actually the same team. Now, first of all, let's talk schedule. They both got a scheduling break.

So of San Francisco's sixth toughest out-of-division games, they got a break. Five are at home. Pittsburgh at home, Cleveland at home, Carolina at home, Green Bay at home, Atlanta at home. Only at New Orleans. So five of their six toughest games out of division, they got them all at home. Big break, traveling all the way for those teams west. The Jets similarly got a scheduling break.

They never travel west. The furthest trip west all year for the Jets is at Cincinnati. their road games are all Eastern time zone at New England, at Philly, at Miami, at Jacksonville, at Washington, at Baltimore, at Buffalo. They're all in the same time zone. They'll be the most, they have the least travel of any NFL team in like a decade. They got a scheduling break. Both also have the same key problem. They're lousy at corner, and they're having to depend on Richard Sherman, the old veteran in San Francisco,

or Trumane Johnson, who's currently hurt for the Jets. Both have intense, young, offensive-minded head coaches. San Francisco's big problem last year, they couldn't take the ball away. They were so bad at corner. Only seven takeaways lowest ever. Jets problem? They don't take the ball away. They don't get interceptions from their corners.

Both went out and bought a running back. Both San Francisco and the Jets are built defensively up front with their D-line. both are in a division with a Super Bowl team, Rams and the Niners, and both have a wide receiving court that's talented, but don't really have a true number one. I think both teams have athletic young quarterbacks who, if they can stay upright in front of improved offensive lines, though neither is elite, San Francisco goes 4 and 12 to 9 and 7,

and the Jets go 4 and 12 to around 8 and 8, 7 and 9 or 8 and 8. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Football morning in America. 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 Slic Life 12 and 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. Trip Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses.

Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth. Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free, our Heart Radio app.

Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. 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, ref, my mama wants you to wave at her. What? Where's she at? 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? This Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano and our podcast. 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 would get that thing. That man, hell get to fly. He running 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.

you get your podcasts. Via the Coward Global Satellite Network. Here is Peter King. All right, Peter, it's your 20th camp. Let's not talk about this one. I want to go back to your San Francisco 49ers camp. There's a lot of pressure on Garoppolo. John Lynch.

They spent some money in free agency. Dee Ford, Kwan Alexander. What was your vibe at Niners Camp? Because I think they make a big jump this year, Peter. Colin, I'm probably going to pick them to make the playoffs, in fact. You know, I've said if Jimmy Garoppolo doesn't slip on a banana peel in September, I think they're going to win 10 games. Now, that is a really, really good division. This could be one of the rare years where there could be three playoff teams out of one division.

Because I think the Seahawks are sleeping, I wouldn't call them giant, but I think they're sleeping. The Seahawks, basically, to me, are the Steelers of the NFC. You know, they haven't had a lot of placid camps in recent years in both Seattle and Pittsburgh. but both of them have placid and productive camps now. The 49ers, the one thing that I believe about them is that I think this is the year where all of the investment in the defensive line really pays off. Because it isn't just DeForest Buckner now. Obviously, with D. Ford, I think Solomon Thomas really is on a crucial year for him.

And I think they've got a chance now to finally have that kind of defensive presence that's going to compliment Garoppolo in that office. So I watched Arizona last night. I don't want to make a big deal out of the preseason, but the preseason does tell you things. I remember Victor Cruz out of UMass undrafted popped in preseason and went on to lead the Giants next three years in receptions. Dak Prescott popped in preseason. And here we are, Dak Prescott looking at 30, 35 million. Arizona struggled, Kyler struggled, Cliff Kingsbury struggled. Do you take anything from that, Peter? No, I think we make far, far too much of preseason games. I mean, last week, you know, talking about which young quarterback looked best in like five snaps.

I mean, you know, it's just, it's just too early. And look, I am sure that Cliff Kingsbury, you know, is doing some experimentation. He doesn't know exactly who he's going to play in what situation yet. you know, some of the communication issues in that game really, in my opinion, are the result of players who've never played in that system before just simply trying to figure out. If this happens heavily in the third preseason game, I'd be worried. But again, nobody ever thought that the 2019 Cardinals are going to be a playoff team anyway. This is a year for Kyler Murray to get some calluses on his hand. you know, like when we're talking about batting practice in baseball.

What do you do in March? You get calluses on your hand. You get ready to bat 550 times during the season. That's what this is about for Kyler Murray right now. You know, there's a handful of quarterbacks in this league that I really love, but I do believe they're one more injury away from their front office having to consider a backup plan. Carson Wentz.

Andrew Luck, as much as I love Andrew Luck. his injuries have become, Peter, a little bit of an enigma. We can't get a straight answer. What do you make of the Colts and this sort of... Yeah, I mean, Colin, here's just, here's what I would say about the Indianapolis Colts and about the injuries as it relates to Andrew Luck. I think the biggest problem here is the mystery aspect of it.

Like, I don't think anybody right now, even, I bet you ask Chris Ballard and Frank Reich, and they're not going to be able to know right now, is Andrew Luck going to be able to play on September 20th or November 20th? Or is he going to play this year? That is the weird part of this injury. When I saw Andrew Luck in training camp, he was absolutely confident, positive,

that he was going to play opening day. And now, I don't know if you're in Indianapolis, if you have any idea when he's going to play. The only good thing about that is that Jacoby Brissette, I think is probably one of the top 10 backups right now in football. So it's not like they have to mail in the season without luck. Yeah, he is surrounded now, which he wasn't for the first three years. Their defense can play.

They've great offensive line, tight end play. I agree with you. He's got a better supporting cast. Now, you went to the Eagles camp as well. I believe they're as formidable. I think they'll win the NFC. That's my prediction. I like Howie Roseman.

I like Wentz. What did you make a Wence, the camp, the vibe with a team that really feels poised to be excellent for a long, long time? So in 2018, I sat with Wence for 20 minutes after practice. 2019 I sat with Carson Wence 20 minutes after practice. The Carson Wence of 2019 is markedly different from the, you know, he felt more freewheeling, more open. happier than he was a year ago. He was guarded a year ago. He was so sick of everybody talking to him about his injury.

And I sensed a real, I don't want to say lack of confidence, but a real kind of wariness about whether he was going to be able to last last year. Now, it turned out another injury ended up hurting him, but I think this year he's in a much different place. Now, having said that, Nate Sudfeld is one of the most ten most important players on that roster. You know, and everybody says, oh, my God, what are you talking about? Well, I mean, the backup quarterback in Philadelphia is a vital piece of the puzzle.

It's why if I were Howie Rosen, I might have tried to really stretch one more year and keep Foles. But now that Foles is gone and they're going to miss Suddfeld maybe for like two or three games, when he comes back, he better be ready to play because you just never know. You know, it's very hard. I've always said this. You know, the more successful somebody gets, the richer they get, it's harder to change who they are.

Aaron Rogers is successful. He's got a ring. He is super smart. And now you've got a coach coming in Matt LaFleur who's young, unproven, and has a system very much like Shanahan McVeigh that you, you know, he doesn't love ad-libbing out-of-play calls. I think it'll be fine because I think Aaron's gifted. But I do wonder how the rub goes if Aaron does some ad living and stuff that was called doesn't work.

Do you have any concerns at all about that relationship? I think you have to have concerns about the relationship because, you know, there were times where it was rocky between he and Mike McCarthy. And Aaron basically is a very strong-willed guy who knows what he likes. And so, but I'll just tell you one story from that camp, Colin. You know, I found out that one of the plays in their scrimmage, a family night scrimmage, was a play that Aaron Rogers changed at the line of scrimmage, even though the play he changed to hadn't been installed yet by Matt LaFleur. But he just explained it to everybody walking on the line, here's what you're going to do, blah, blah, blah. And he ended up doing it, and they ran it fine, and they gain yardage on the play.

And Matt LaFleur was over there like, he had no idea what was going on out on the field. but that is the strength of Aaron Rogers. He is never going to stay in a play that he thinks going to be an abject disaster. The one other thing about Rogers and Lefleur that I found interesting, Matt Lefleur, when I said, how does it feel to be Aaron Rogers' boss? He almost winced. He said, oh, I don't want to be called Aaron Rogers' boss. We have sort of a collaborative relationship.

That's the way it has to be with the play designer play caller and the quarterback. So, you know, we'll see how it goes, Colin. The only problem that I foresee coming, in my opinion, Aaron Rogers is not necessarily a consistently tempo quarterback. He wants to survey the landscape and see what he has. And I think Matt LaFleurr wants to play fast, fast, fast, fast. We'll see how that goes. I don't know how that marriage is quite going to work.

Analytics are changing sports. Certainly baseball, they've made, that was the first sport to make major changes. Basketball now. analytics are shoot threes and no mid-range jumpers. Analytics are becoming very cruel to running backs, whereas you can make an argument, you don't sign him to a second long contract. You're at the Chargers Camp Melvin Gordon.

I just ran into him at the airport. Great, great kid. But he knows the reality of what's happening to his position. Similarly, Zeke in Dallas wants to get paid two years early. So you've been covering this league for 30 years. Maybe it's cyclical. But Peter, does it not feel? like the Melvin Gordon's and Zeeks,

if not being eliminated, are being marginalized in this league now, in this sport. I don't think Ezekiel Elliott and Melvin Gordon have the same impact on their teams. If I were to guess right now, I would guess that the Chargers would be comfortable, is the wrong word, would be okay with playing a significant part of this season

without Melvin Gordon, Whereas the Cowboys can say whatever they want. If they don't have Ezekiel Elliott opening day, there's going to be a lot of unease in that locker room because this is probably as much as any team in football, a team that wants to live on the ground. And, you know, the charges are Philip Rivers team. And I think Austin Echler and, you know,

the backup Jackson, I think, are both going to make the chargers feel like we can be okay and we can win without Melvin Gordon. And again, the Chargers did not invent what's happening in the NFL right now. But I think the general manager, Tom Telesco, has to feel like, listen, if we pay Melvin Gordon $12, $14 million a year, that's just going to be one guy on our defense, a young guy that we're not going to be able to sign. So I think, and plus, I mean, Gordon's got another year. So I don't think the Chargers feel like they absolutely, from what?

I've read, they don't feel like they absolutely have to do something with Melvin Gordon. And if he doesn't come in, he doesn't come in. All right, football morning in America, Peter King, NBCSports.com, brave enough to wear a long-sleeved black shirt in the Southern California sun. It's great having you on again. Hey, when you've had a couple of melanomas, Colin, the long-sleeve shirt doesn't really bother you as much as wondering what's going to have what's happening under your skin. Fair enough, Peter.

Have a continued great summer. We love your stuff. NBCSports.com. Football morning in America. Peter King. 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. In 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 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 Cliver 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 42. Hey, rep. My mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker.

Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Joey Dardano. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with thoughtful solutions. Scyke. I'm a comedian. I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant, recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to me. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know.

Listen to Help from Hypocrite Wednesdays on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHart podcast. Guaranteed Human.