The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd for 06/12/2019

Episode Date: June 12, 2019

Colin defends Kevin Durant for playing hurt because those are the moments we remember in sports and we criticize player who don't play when injured. He says the US Women's National team has nothing to apologize for after a 13-0 win. Plus, FS1's Nick Wright talks about NBA free agency and why this injury to KD won't keep him out of New York next season. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

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

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

What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Rhett, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 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. Sike, I'm a comedian. I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant, and 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 IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Best of Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeart radio app by searching herd. This is the best of the herd with Colin Cowher on Fox Sports Radio.

Ah, this is the herd, wherever you may be, however you may be listening. We are live. IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, not on TV this week. It's been so much fun. We are doing a radio only week. I barely shaved and I'm not wearing pants. It's a great, great feeling this morning. Next week I'm off.

Unless the NBA finals goes seven, then I'll work Monday. But I'm going to hang out, go to zoos, intertube with my son, multiple zoos, inner two with my son, hiking, biking, going to have a great next week. I take one week, big week off in the summer, and that's going to be it next week. But I have to wait, and I always take it after the finals and before free agents. There's like 10 days where you can take a vacation if you're a sportscaster. Now, I do miss the draft, but I'll, you know, I can live with that. There's three guys in the whole draft they hear about.

I want to start with this. A bunch of stories now. Warriors are terrible. Kevin Durant wasn't anywhere close to 100%. Oh, my God. Oh, look at the Warriors. This is irresponsible. Oh, this is unbelievable.

Folks, the Warriors are not overly likable to begin with. and now we're piling on. Let's be up front about this. Their head coach Steve Kerr is very political. The owner Joe Lekob is arrogant. Another owner pushed a player. They recruited Kevin Durant to a team that was already loaded. And they represent Silicon Valley,

which like Hollywood tends to lean way left and most sports fans don't. So the minute people can pile on the Warriors, they are not going to hesitate. And there's some piling on happening. Are we forgetting that boogie, clay, Looney, and KD, none of them are really healthy, and all of them have played hurt? Folks, pro athletes return early from injuries. Always.

You're never 100% healthy. How many times have I seen Aaron Rogers gimpy and limping around the field? We love that about Aaron Rogers. He plays hurt. Tiger Woods kept entering tournaments for five years. His back was a mess. He had to withdraw. But we loved the fight.

Kurt Gibson's home run does not happen. The Dodgers. I can't believe what I just saw. That does not happen if an athlete doesn't push a physical envelope. Kurt Schilling in the Bloody Sock. MJ's flu game. T.O. Super Bowl with a broken leg. We have a game final.

Seven, game final tonight. Seven, Stanley Cup final game seven. Boston's best defenseman is playing with a broken face. Damn right, he's playing. He's a hockey player. He needs to play, right? Many of the most dramatic sports moments ever. Injured players overcoming health, the flu, ligaments. Yet one, Kevin Durant backfires. Oh my God, this is outrageous. folks, don't be an investor or an athlete if you're not willing to lose big. When any time a guy brags about, yeah, I've never lost money in an investment. You don't have much hutzpah. You're not really an investor.

Rupert Murdoch's an investor. He's eaten it a couple times. And you're not really an athlete if you've never played hurt because that means you're on teams that don't matter. If you're on teams that matter, Bama football, Clemson football, Patriot football, Philadelphia Eagle football, Warrior Basketball, Rockets Basketball, you play hurt. It's part of the deal. Steve Kerr was upset. Read a story this morning, disbelief. He could not believe he was told.

Kevin Durant could only tweak the injury. Well, the doctors were right. He didn't retweak the calf. It's a new injury. The Achilles. Nobody loves the poker player who plays it safe. They make movies about poker players who put all their chips in the middle of the table. The movies were called Dirty Harry, not Swell Harry.

That's who we are. Sports is a go-for-it business. Some businesses you play safe. Accounting, got to get the numbers right. But KD. playing hurt was a go-for-it moment. don't like risk be an accountant like risk tolerate risk be an athlete or an investor we absolutely crushed j cutler years ago in the 2010 nfc championship because he wouldn't play hurt we crushed him we crushed ladenian tomlinson because he wouldn't play hurt and yet we said but philip rivers

is able to play with a ripped up shoulder stop being hypocrites Stop being hypocrites. You put your arms around the broken down athlete that returns early, risks, career-ending injuries, and plays. And now one backfires, and you're freaking out. Hell, the whole warrior roster's a mess physically. Should boogie really be playing? Clay just popped a hammy. Should he really be playing?

Kvon Looney, whatever he's going through. Good God, he looks like he's in pain. Should he really be playing? No, no, no, no, is the answer to all of them. But when you're on teams that matter, you got to play through stuff. And you are rewarded for it financially? You are rewarded for it with your legacy? Just part of the business.

Don't tell me you get goosebumps with Kurt Gibson's home run and then tell me you're outraged with Kevin Durant playing hurt. Can't have one without the other. Let me talk about something I don't very often. Sucker. Right now we've got the World Cup going on. The United States Women's National Team beat Thailand 13-0. Oh, and people did not like it.

The favored United States Women's National Team beat Thailand 13-0 and celebrated, even after the 7th, 8th, 9th goal. Here are some Canadian broadcasters, former players, A, getting after it. If you were going to blow away a team, do it with humility, and they did not. Megan Rapino has scored countless goals on the international stage. She was celebrating like she had her first. When you're Alex Morgan 2 and you're counting out your goals, it was just unacceptable. Well, I understand there's a goal differential race in this tournament.

I understand they're nervous about drawing Sweden later in the tournament. But this was disgraceful from the United States. I would hope they could have won with humility and grace. But celebrating goals 8, 9, 10, the way they were doing is really unnecessary. Oh, it's just terrible. By the way, Canada, congrats on the Raptors. but your fans cheered Kevin Durant's injury. Not very graceful.

Folks, this is the price and the burden of power. It's the price and the burden of being the United States is scrutiny. First of all, let me defend the United States women's national team. Soccer only allows three substitutions per game. You're trapped. It's not like basketball, not like football, not like baseball. You can't go to a bench. You're only allowed three subs per game.

Number two is, goal differential does matter in soccer and World Cubs. Number three, how do we know Thailand was not just honored to be on the same field? The United States women's national team is the team of the century. Jamaica, they said Jamaica was just happy to be on the field against Brazil. Remember that? And are we patronizing women like they can't handle this? by the way, a 1992 NBA Dream Team beat Angola by 70. There was very little sympathy for Angola.

The women from Thailand are tough. They can handle it. They got their ass kicked. You know what? It galvanizes teams. It gives your reality check of who you are. I play tennis every other day. I play a college player.

He beats me six love, six love. Yesterday he beat me and apologized for a great shot. I said, what are you apologizing for? I don't want your sympathy. You're a barometer on how bad I am. Yesterday, it took him an hour five to beat me two sets. It used to be an hour five to beat me in three. I'm getting better, and I appreciate him not taking it easy on me.

The women from Thailand ask yourself this. If you flip the score and Thailand beat us 13-0 and celebrated, there would not be this outrage. People would say, how embarrassing the United States women with all that talent were humiliated. They deserved it. Well, come on, it's the biggest win in the history of Thailand's women's soccer federation. Of course they're going to celebrate. It was a little over the top, but let's put our arms around.

This is the price and the burden of power and greatness. Scrutiny. Tony Blair is the former prime minister of Great Britain. He was asked on a talk show once about the global hate. This was like 10 years ago. Obama was the president. And he was asked about all the global hate for the United States. And he said, people are jealous of the best-looking richest guy who walks into a room.

Much of it is based in jealousy, animosity, and fear. If a small country beat us 13 to nothing and danced in their 8th, 9th goal, Thailand, We would not be criticizing Thailand. We'd be ripping our women for allowing that to happen because our women are awesome. And they're the face of women's soccer globally. And they're smart and well-coached. And they kick butt and they have the best players. And some of the most iconic women's soccer players ever, they're ours.

Meham. Americans. This is the price of great. The downside to power. I'll live with that. I'll take that downside to live in the United States to the world's leading democracy, the world's leading women's soccer power, the world's leading economy. Yes.

Where are the country people call when the fit hits the shan somewhere else and we pick up the bills? Just flip the score, 13-0-0 Thailand over us. They celebrated. They wouldn't be getting the outrage. Our women are. We would be going good for them. They came prepared. Biggest win in their country's Women's Soccer Federation kicked our butt.

Our girls deserve it. You know what? You should be humiliated. I hope this sticks. I hope it galvanized. I hope it shows how arrogant you were for they should be. You know exactly. That's exactly what would have been happening.

This isn't about classlessness. That's not what this is about. It's about power. And the burden of it, the burden of being Alabama football. If you beat somebody 62-0, you're jerks. But if you lost 62-0, Bama'd still get the criticism, not prepared and arrogant. Ladies, dance all night. That wasn't just about the goals.

13-0 was about the time you have put in over the last 10 years that enables you to dominate people. I'm not going to blame kids at my age, kids in their 20s for getting a little gassed up for having the greatest day historically in the history of United States women's national soccer goals-wise. It's the price of being powerful scrutiny, criticism. 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. Last night, a blown call changed to. 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 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. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeartRadio 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. 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, 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 Cliver 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? Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker.

Listen to the Clippers show on the I-Hart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. American soccer is about to explode. The World Cup is coming. Ramos sending on to Ernie Stewart for Chip. I'm Tad Ramos. I'm Tom Boe. On our podcast, inside American soccer, you'll get the real storylines.

I'm not worried about Policic. I'm not worried about Balligan. I'm not worried about McKinney. My only concern is what happens in the back. The biggest decisions. If you're going to look at stats and numbers, he has no shot at making this World Cup team. And the truth about the U.S. national team.

It wouldn't be a huge surprise if our team ends up in the quarterfinals or potentially a great run into the semifinals. The World Cup is almost here. Experience it all with us. Listen to Inside American Soccer with Tom Bogart and Tab Ramos on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcast. So Adrian Wardenowski, Woj is a very good NBA reporter. this is one of those Colin Wrights, Colin wrong situations.

His headline, Lakers need second star via trade, top free agents unlikely to join. Where Colin was right? Yeah. The Knicks and the Lakers are struggling to land free agents because they're both poorly run and both with this fake false notion, their logo matters.

Lakers, you got to land Anthony Davis, and it's eight days until the draft, and you have the number four pick, use it now. That pick's not as valuable after the draft, because you may draft a guy that Pelicans don't like. The Lakers and the Knicks right now, one's an utter disaster for two decades. The Knicks, one's been bad about to be a disaster

if they don't land AD. Both of their selling points to free agents are non-basketball. The Knicks are saying, hey, you'll play at the garden. The Lakers are saying, it's sunny here and we've won 17 titles most a long time ago. But their rosters, owners, recent teams, records, front offices, not great. An agent's job is to protect his client. I have one.

He's not going to send me into a team or a business with bad ownership. It's why I chose the Murdox and Fox. They get broadcasting. My agent would never send me to accomplish. with bad management. And the Lakers right now, it's a jigsaw puzzle of owners,

former agents acting as GM's magic quit, the rambus is involved. I'm told nobody likes Rob Polinka. I can't confirm it, but he's Kobe's friend. It's a jigsaw puzzle. And the Lakers are in jeopardy of becoming the Knicks if they don't land Anthony

Davis. LeBron's going to be a year older. Lanzo and Brandon Ingram talented but can't stay healthy. Next year's free agent class, not as spectacular. And it's actually all lining up to get Anthony Davis. Here's the moment, Lakers. You got about five days, six, seven maybe. Make a deal.

LeBron's agent is Anthony Davis's agent. That's perfect. LeBron's former GM is the Pelicans GM. So this is a friendly deal. Anthony Davis chose the Lakers initially and says they're one of two teams he'll play for now. The Lakers actually have, they've drafted fairly well, they haven't had a bust, they've got the most tradable assets. Far more than the Knicks or Brooklyn. This is the moment.

Okay, if the Lakers don't land AD, this franchise is going to be in a free fall for a long time. This is the New York Giants passing on Sam Darnold. you end up the following year reaching on quarterbacks overpaying for people being in utter disarray and being mocked even by your local forget the national media

like Woja's just saying free agents are not choosing the Lakers this is something we have been on all since the trading deadline I keep saying this where Colin was very right yes this is not where an agent an agent has a responsibility

to send his client to a well-run organization. That doesn't mean my agent would send me to a perfect company. My agent sent me to a Fox Sports One, which was a fledgling network, but it was owned by the Murdox who had a history of Fox News, Fox Business Channel, the NFL, the Simpsons, 20th century, the movies. You know, they had a history of working and winning and being successful. Wall Street Journal, like, right? FS1 was young. It was fledgling.

It wasn't complete. It's still building. But agents don't send players to James Dolan and the current Laker front office. They just don't. That's being, I mean, that's really, frankly, how an agent gets fired. That a client ends up and goes,

God, it's worse than I thought, and I thought it was bad. So you got to make a trade on this. It's right in front of you. Where Colin was so right, it's getting annoyed. I didn't know you had that one. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the I-Hard Radio app.

All right, let's bring in my buddy Nick Wright. First Things First Call Host. He's on a phone in New York, and because we're on radio this week. So, Nick, I said to start my show, you can't tell me you get goosebumps watching Kurt Gibson's home run, and then you're outraged by Kevin Durant. many of the great idyllic sports moments in American history, T.O. Super Bowl broken leg, M.J. Flu game. I mean, Kurt Gibson. Tiger Woods came back, five, six straight years having to withdraw from tournaments.

Nobody likes a poker player who plays it safe. We like a guy with a cowboy hat that pushes the chips to the middle of the table is that the entire, this is who we are. Don't be an investor or an athlete if you're not willing to deal with risk. and I feel everybody's beating up on the Warriors because they're not very likable. But I mean, are you mad at the Warriors? Well, I'm not mad at the Warriors. And I do feel for Kevin Durant enormously because he was in the ultimate no-win situation.

If he doesn't play in the final and they win a championship, you got guys such as myself who would get on TV and say, I told you he's a luxury, not a necessity. And while you would hope the athlete doesn't care what people like me say, we know Kevin Durant cares deeply. Where I do think he got boxed in was with the reports over the last 96 hours preceding his injury that coaches and or players on the team were questioning how hard he was trying to come back, we're questioning that if this injury would have kept Clay Thompson or Andre Guadala out as long as it had kept Durant out.

So now on one side he's got the media if they win without him are going to say, see, they didn't need you. On the other side, he's got anonymous people within the organization that if they lose, they're going to say, it's your fault you didn't come back. He had one solution here, which was come back, be awesome, either lead them to a championship or just clearly show how much of a, difference maker you are, and it ended sports-wise tragically. I will say this, though. You guys were just talking about Rich Paul. It is the job of good representation to grab the guy and say,

Katie, we're 20 days away from hundreds of millions of dollars on and off the court. Your body is not ready. Do not succumb to the pressure. And that didn't happen. Katie forced his way out there, and it wasn't just supposed to be for a game five. The idea was play in the game five, two days later, play in the game six, two days later play in the game seven. Now none of that seems practical. Yeah. You know, all the years of moving around the country, I've had to buy some homes and sell

some homes because I moved to new cities. And one of the rules of real estate is your first offer is generally your best offer. and the Pelicans first offer from the Lakers was glorious. I believe this morning that Chris Paul and Anthony Davis have all the leverage. I don't think they have to give up the farm to get Anthony Davis. What do you think about that? Well, I think that that would be a very dangerous game of poker. And keep in mind, I think one of the reasons the Pelicans didn't take that initial offer was the draft pick,

which ended up being the fourth overall pick, obviously becomes somewhere in the 20s, if you have LeBron and Anthony Davis for half a season together. But yeah, the Lakers could say, who are we bidding against? We're not going to bid against ourselves. And the Pelicans could say, okay, we'll strike out in free agency and then see your level of desperation. I think this lands pretty simply on Lonzo, Ingram, the number four pick, and filler. I know you think that's a price a little bit too much, but as you guys were discussing right before I came on, if you win a title, nothing is too much. And if you have LeBron for the next four years and Anthony Davis for the next 10, you'll be competing for titles for the next decade.

I wouldn't, to use your house analogy, if you have a house you love and do you make an offer 5% under ask just because you think, you'll probably get it or do you say screw it, I'll offer the full boat because I don't want to lose it and maybe overpay a little bit. Yeah, no, that's that when Steve Balmer bought the clippers, everybody said you overpaid and he said, A, I bought it cash and B, I'm not selling it. What do I care what the price is? In the end, it's going to be worth $10 billion in 20 years, and I just wanted the clippers. So that's a very good point. If you want something, go get something. Jerry Jones said that once. He goes, if I look back at my life, he goes, I've only been burned, when I tried to go cheap.

If you overspend for something great, you almost always go, you know, it was expensive. It hurt for a couple years. Like Carson Wentz's contract, it'll hurt for a year. But it's the right, to your point, it's a very good point. It's the right way to go. I want to ask you this, is that, and I would never generally ask about this topic. But I defended the United States women's national team yesterday for this reason. That with great power comes great scrutiny.

Twitter is a great example. You could be an overnight DJ, overnight sports talk show host, and any network say something, nobody cares. If, you know, a Dan Patrick or a me or a Bob Costas or somebody that's known says something, we can get attacked for it, the more powerful, the more scrutiny, the more heat. So the United States women's national team, had they lost 13-0? And Thailand would have celebrated it. The USA would still be getting crushed this morning because they were arrogant.

They overlooked Thailand. and we're going to support Thailand acting outrageously because it's the biggest win in the history of their country's federation and good for them for not being arrogant or fearful and dancing on our women's soccer graves. Is that the reality is the Americans, we don't want them to win, but we don't like them to win too much, and we don't like them to celebrate, and soccer doesn't have liberal substitutions. It was a complete utter mismatch. That's how I fell on it. That's how I land on it.

How do you land on it? I land that the faux out or women's national team running up the score in an event where goal differential is the first tiebreaker, so it matters. And then the faux outrage over act like you've been there before when it's an event that takes place two and a half times a decade is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever It is just a perfect quintessential example of people who aren't actually mad but want to pretend to be mad and on Twitter think the best way to show how classy you are is to show outrage at someone else's lack of class.

No one is actually bothered by this. This is the type of thing where what you're going to hear is, well, it doesn't bother me, but for those that it does, oh, for the kids watching, zip it. Tell your kids when they play in a World Cup, they can do whatever they want. But until then, don't taunt Johnny at 9 a.m. on the soccer fields at the park. This is so stupid. I can't believe people are actually mad at these men or women. It's the World Cup.

You score a goal. It is the greatest moment of your entire life. And, oh, guys, guys, come on, show some dignity. By the way, thanks to the internet, I was brought to my attention that evidently Indonesia must have a really poor women's soccer team because Thailand beat them 13-0-0 into the run-up into the tournament. So get up the match against Indonesia. We'll beat them. We'll do transitive property, 169 Zip, and you'll see actual celebrations. But until then, everyone needs to calm down.

Only got a minute left. I got to go back to Kevin Duran. I just saw it something. are the Knicks still viable? Because with this injury, is Kevin Durant want to go there hurt? He's already not going to get Zion. Chances are he doesn't get Kyrie.

Are the Knicks going to swing and miss on all free agents? I'd be shocked if Katie doesn't go to the Knicks. The idea that he's going to opt in and spend a year rehabbing around an organization when there were whispers he wasn't trying hard enough to get back, I find that to be ridiculous. listen, I think Katie is going to say, hey, it's the Eastern Conference. They'll sign, call it Kimball Walker to go along with him. Hopefully, he gets back in eight to nine months.

They are at the time 30 and 35. He can push him into the playoffs and see what happens. But either way, much like LeBron with the Lakers, it was a lifetime. It was not a decision just for the contract, but for the rest of his life. This would be a decision for Katie to spend the next decade in New York. So I still think the Knicks are the leading contender. real quick before I go, I do want to let you know the first time, and I think the last time, I was on the radio with you, where you hosting and me being on a phone call,

was in 2007 when I was a caller, and you were arguing with John Goulet, I believe it was, about what television rating Dice K. Matsuzaka's first start with the Red Sox would get. I stayed on hold 48 minutes so I could tell you, I disagreed with you, I agreed with Goulet, and ended up being proven outright months later. This is an amazing sense of deja vu, and what a difference 12 years makes. Thanks for having me on as an actual guest instead of someone that has to be on hold this time, Colin. God, I love it. Was I Rudy or nice?

You offered me an internship if I won the bet. If I was right, I did win the bet. I called back to try to get the internship and never got through. Such is my life. I love you. You too, bro. All right, Nick Wright. Say hi to your family for me.

Be sure to catch live editions of the herd Weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo.

Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down,

give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo SlicLife 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, Tript 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 hard way. Open your free, our heart radio app. Search learn the hard way and listen now. 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 of 42. Hey, ref, my mama want you to wave at her.

What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford Show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, I'm Deanna Maria Riva, actress, mother, lover, and a Gen X woman walking through life one hot flash and hormonal crying jag at a time. You ladies know what I mean. I'll bet you a perimenopausal chin here you do. So let's talk about it.

Join me on my new podcast. How hard can it be with Deanna Maria Riva, where I call on my Gen X squads from Ohio to Hollywood. as we navigate midlife's most fantastic BS. All of a sudden, I'd had hanginess happening on my own. I was like, what the hell is that? I was married when I had her, so I didn't even consider how empty that nest was going to be. Mood swings, night sweats, fupas, sex drive.

Wait, what sex? Dating at 45. How can it be getting naked at 50 with a new guy? That one's kind of hard. Well, that's lighting. They say we can't polish a turd, but we're sure going to try. So let's get blunt with laughs, tears or tears of laughter, and dive into it, unfiltered and unbothered and ask, How Hard Can It Be?

I cannot believe I'm about to say this out loud in public. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Diana Maria Riva as part of My Cultura podcast network available on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. So the Raiders are going to be on Hard Knocks, and they should be. It's the most interesting team, and I think they're just doing it for sales. I think they brought in Antonio Brown for sales in Vegas. I don't think it's, I think they're playing in Canada. They'll, they'll, they'll, NFL will play in London. They're just trying to build their brand.

It's been down for 10 years. And John Gruden is safe for a decade. He's going into a year two of a 10-year contract. So Gruden's got nothing to worry about. The bottom line, he and the owner run the franchise, and the owners told him, hey, listen, don't worry about this year. We're going to bring in Antonio Brown. We're going to go play in Canada.

We'll play in London. We'll do hard knocks. We've got to sell 8,000, 12,000, 22,000 season tickets in Vegas. And that's what they're doing this for. But it's funny, the three teams, they're getting all the attention in the NFL this offseason for free agent moves are Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets. All three are in the AFC. And would it shock anybody if Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets all become dumpster fires by the end of the year? Oakland's got drama everywhere on the toughest schedule in the league.

Cleveland's got a rookie head coach and a combustible superstar receiver. The Jets have a bad old line, a young quarterback, and a new coach. a GM. And the top of the AFC is crowded. Belichick and Brady, Andy Reid Mahomes, Andrew Luck, a great GM, the best offensive line in football, Frank Reich. So New England, Kansas

City, and India are loaded, and the Chargers, Steelers, Ravens, and Texas are all really talented. And I'm supposed to believe Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets and the AFC are going to make waves. By the way, Oakland, Cleveland, and the Jets last year were 1532 and 1. Do you know what they were against winning teams?

The Raiders, the Jets, and the Browns against winning teams last year were 3 and 20 with a tie. 3 and 20. And you think they're going to take over. Oakland's head coach and GM were TV stars? Yes, they're interesting. Cleveland, OBJ, and Baker. Yes, they're interesting.

Lavian Bell to the Jets. Yes, they're interesting. I don't think any of them are making the playoffs. Cleveland's got the most talent. I don't think they'll be in the fight for it, week 14, 15, 16. But, you know, it's tell me the teams that get the most publicity in the off season in the NFL. Are they ever good? Ever?

Seriously. Oakland, Cleveland, the Jets, it's all anybody's talking about. Rams playing Los Angeles. You can't find the players. They run the Super Bowl. You can't find them. They hide. I've never seen an NFL franchise in a city.

You can't find RAM players. You can't find charger players. Those two organizations made the playoffs. They're hiding. They don't want anything. They don't want to be near a television camera. Cleveland, Jets, Oakland, you know, they're like reality shows.

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. It's amazing. The Women's World Cup is up 6% off the last Women's World Cup, and that's with the worst time zone. That was the Vancouver one, which perfectly worked for our time zone. Europe doesn't. It's up 53% over 2011 where it wasn't a European time zone. So it's basically doubled the ratings in eight years of women's World Cup soccer ratings.

The soccer doubters, I've just never understand. There's just certain people that's almost like in America, if you like soft, soccer, you're weak. Well, what about our football? Our football's never been stronger. Why would you be threatened by that? Like soccer? I've told you this, John, if I lined up sports that are my favorite to watch, like the biggest game in each sport, number one NFL, a big NFL game, a Super Bowl is number one. Number two, a great NBA finals game. Number three, United States World Cup matches, and number four, a huge college football game. And then number five would be, you know,

it'd be kind of like a great baseball playoff game in October or a great March madness game in March. And then, then also, I've watched every big U.S. Open Masters. Those are big. But that's my seven, kind of. But like U.S. men's and women's World Cup, I love watching those games. Well, it's only once every four years. Yes.

There's more a special field to it. I used to be an Olympic fan, but the Olympics, over time, have been replaced as the marquee four-year event by the World Cup because I'm a season ticket holder to LAFC. So I watch soccer during the course of a year. So segueging into a international World Cup is easy. I don't watch luge ever. So I find you have these disparate sports in the Olympics. I just don't watch. So I've got to get kind of emotionally, viscerally connected to the Olympics when I don't watch these sports.

I do to some degree, but it's much easier for me to segue as my interest in soccer has increased over the last decade, with my stepson's watching it, and the networks I work at have more of it. It's on more. I watch more and being a season ticket holder. Well, the best for last today, the Raiders were selected for the upcoming season of HBO's Hard Knocks. That is sort of the go-to NFL reality show, HBO's Hard Knocks. Lions were eligible, Giants were eligible, 49ers were eligible, Redskins were eligible, just not that interesting.

This team is built for the show. Gruden, Antonio Brown, Vantes Burfect, Riggi Incognito, legendary franchise, final year in Oakland. This will be the best hard knocks ever. Gruden's great on TV. Antonio Brown's going to be great on TV. So HBO has just released their first promo. We got our hands on it for HBO's hard knocks, and here it is. Coming soon, from the network that brought you the five-part series Chernobyl

comes another epic disaster, hard knocks featuring the Oakland Raiders only on HBO. Just Chernobyl, by the way, is unbelievable. Yeah, that's a little harsh, but now HBO does have, I'm told, does have a backup promo. Coming soon, the legendary Oakland Raiders begin their chase for football's ultimate title in a series that critics are saying is like Game of Thrones with an even sloppier ending. Hard knocks, only on HBO.

People got, so Whitlock, he thought he was beating me watching Game of Thrones, and I've been telling him now for years, Billions is better. Whitlock came around on that, and finally the other day, text me and said, Billions actually knows how to finish strong. You can't have a week ending to a movie

and say, oh, that's a great. When's the last time you watched a movie and said, That's a terrible ending, but you love the movie. I don't think I've ever seen that. Like Game of Thrones was so bad at the end, I thought it took a little of the shine off it, right? A little? No, how would you know?

You haven't watched one second of Game of Thrones. I know I didn't watch a second, but I just theoretically, you can't have a bad last 12 minutes of a movie. I do watch, and yes, it did take the luster off a little bit. Billions has gotten greater. Billions has been unbelievable. To be fair, Billions doesn't have a series finale yet. It's been very good.

Oh, we have another HBO promo on the Raiders. Oh, here it is. Coming soon. John Gruden, Antonio Brown, Vantes Perfect, and Richie Incognito, all star in a show that critics are saying is like entourage,

but with more jerks. Hard Knocks, Raiders, only on HBO. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in.

I'm Timbo, and every episode we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to SportsSlic on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite.

Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart 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 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 Clipper Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 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.

Sike, I'm a comedian. I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff rant and 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 Hippocrat Wednesdays on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.