The Herd with Colin Cowherd - BEST OF THE HERD – NFL Over Unders, Top 10 NFL QBs, NFL Playoff Predictions

Episode Date: August 1, 2026

Jason gives his NFL predictions for the season He ranks his top 10 NFL QBs Plus, Fox Sports NFL analyst Eric Mangini joins the show to tell JMac why he’s down on the Texans this season and why he’s buying the Cowboys as a real threat in the NFC.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human. Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave, Netflix, and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on Internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. This is Chelsea Handler from Dear Chelsea. Every week, the news gets worse.

The world gets crazier, and Yamanika is here to tell whoever's responsible, you're the problem. Do you know I just found out who Sidney Sweeney was? If he got a bunch of women, then I should have a bunch of men. Do better or do less so I don't have to do so much. I'm Yamanika, and I'm out. Listen to You're the Problem with Yamanika on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Nick Titoro. You probably know me from NYPD Blue, The Longest Yard, or Spike Lease Black Klansman.

And on my new podcast, delivering happiness with Nick Titoro, I deliver pizza to a new guest. I've shared a slice with everyone from Seth Rollins. What are you doing my belt? To Bill Burr. I don't think I've ever met somebody so exactly out of their mind as I am. And now we even have more great guests coming up, including the great John Tuturo. It's called Happiness. Delivering Happiness.

And many, many more. Open your free High Heart Radio app. Search Delivering Happiness with Nick Totoro. And listen now. Hi, I'm Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of IHeartMedia. I also led the team that created MTV. and my co-founders and I are celebrating MTV's 45th anniversary this month. On my podcast, Math and Magic, stories from the Frontiers of Marketing,

you'll hear the untold origin story from the people who built MTV from the ground up. I want my MTV! Those are powerful words, my, something for me that felt like mine and want. What a powerful word. Listen to Math and Magic, stories from the Frontiers of Marketing, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or whatever you get your, your podcast. Thanks for listening to The Herd podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio and noon to 3 Eastern 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRadio.com

or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. There we go. Hour number two on the Herd. Midweek show heavy on the NFL. We're going to do some over-under shortly. Remember, Ohio State star wide receiver, Jeremiah Smith, dropping by the show probably in about 30 minutes, and then we got new UCLA head coach Bob Chesby, 215 Eastern. Oh, man, cannot wait to talk to him as he is a JMU guy, as am I.

I'm joined by Rachel Nichols. Rachel, over-underbets in July are always a different. difficult proposition. That's where you make your money though, right? Because the idea is that most people haven't had the time to really look down and bear down on everything. You can get odds that aren't happening. That's fair. Yeah. I don't know what to do with some teams like Washington did not make this list because I don't know what they're going to be. So much newness. They're going to be great. That's how they're going to be. They can't be worse than last year. All right. Let's die. Why you got to be like that? Why am I taking strays all the way over here? Well, you know, it's Washington and Fernando. So anyways, I'm just kidding. All right, let's go to some over. under picks for the upcoming NFL season. We're going to start with a guy who lives near me. You know, I see him, not quite a neighbor, but he's in the neighborhood. Jared Goff and the Detroit Lions over 10 and a half wins. Now, I don't think they're a legit Super Bowl team, but this is heavily schedule-related.

I do believe, thanks to a fortuitous schedule, that the Lions are going to be very, very good next year. And again, Jemir Gibbs is a stud, although he wants his contract. Amara St. Brown is excellent. Jared Goff. The offensive line should be improved. It did take a step back last year. The defense is where the question marks lie. Obviously, secondary has major question marks. They will have Aiden Hutchison be starring off the edge.

In the division, I think 11 wins will probably do the trick. Now, if you think that's high, I'm just telling you, look at the schedule for Detroit. A lot of indoor games. A lot of winnable games. They're going to be favored. And it looks like 14 games this season. I'm just telling you, Detroit is going to beat up on some people. Right, so from an over, let's go to an under.

And the first under is the New England Patriots, under 10 and a half wins. Okay? We know they had one of the best schedules last year in this century in the NFL. It was lined up, everything for them perfectly. They're not a great team. They were very good. Drake May was excellent.

You look at the defense, and it was fine. It did not look great in the Super Bowl. It looked pretty good at home in the rain and the playoffs. But there's just nothing to me that jumps out about this team. However, adding A.J. Brown does throw a bit of a monkey wrench into this. Because if they have the stretch-the-field receivers and the run game cooks, Rabel's offense is going to be good with May. That being said, the schedule is absolutely unforgiving.

It is, you know, as you would expect, a very tough first-place schedule. And I do believe there is some aggression. this is probably an eight or nine win team, still in the wild card hunt, but definitely under 10 and a half for the New England Patriots. All right, next bet, we're going back to the NFC, my Philadelphia Eagles. I'm riding that Jalen Hertz train, baby. I know people don't like him. I don't know what it is.

Oh, he only throws to one part of the field. And they just keeps winning football games. He's got Sequod Barkley. He's got what I think is one of the best defenses in the NFC. It's right there with Seattle, guys. It is a tremendous defensive front. The secondary has been excellent. And you look at some of these numbers of a wide receiver by committee.

It's not really quite a pick your poison, but the tight end grouping is strong. The wide receivers are, there's no alpha. You know, I don't think they have a number one, but I don't know that they need one. The real question is Sean Mannyin's play calling. And the more you start to read about what he wants to do, it's starting to sound like not going to be a tush push kind of, year for the Eagles. That being said, I still like them over 10 and a half wins. I have them winning the NFC East. All right. So from an over, let's go to an under, and I'm going to go back

to Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos under nine and a half. Again, anytime Vegas sends out a signal, you've got to interpret it in as many ways as possible. So 14 wins last year, right? Host the conference championship game. I mean, hell, if Bo Nix doesn't get hurt against Buffalo, they probably beat the Patriots at home, right? And they're in the Super Bowl. Now, you go from 14 wins, 11 and 0 in one score games, to 9 and a half. When all they did was add? Jalen Waddle?

What am I missing here? Something seems up in Denver, and I do believe that those first six games, I don't know if we could pop the schedule on the screen, but guys, there's a real world where they're one in five or two and four after six games. It is that brutal of a schedule. and again, the Davis Webb, Sean Payton stuff that we just talked to James Palmer about

is very interesting. That is probably the most interesting head coach offensive coordinator subplot to watch. So I'm going under 9.5 wins on the Denver Broncos. Now back to an over. Jacksonville Jaguars? Jayback, what are you, over, eight and a half? Listen, they're in a division with the Texans

and everybody loves the Texans. And we do have here in the notes that Jacksonville did need to win 8 of 9 down the stretch to get into the playoffs. I fondly remember that Chiefs game. Everybody loved the Chiefs. I told you guys, it was Monday Night Football, Jimmy Jacksonville,

and Lloyd made the big play picking off Patrick Pahomes and running it back for the score. Tremendous game. That kind of jump started the Jags for the second half of the season. Now, they did lose Travis E.T.N., the great running back. However, we also didn't see much

of the superstar rookie wide receiver slash DB that they traded up in the draft four. and I do believe we're just going to see him, hopefully, only play one side of the ball where he can specialize. I like Trevor Lawrence over eight and a half wins for Jackson both of them. And finally, we're going to the New Orleans Saints, and I'm going to go under seven and a half. This is mostly a fade the public. Why? Everybody likes New Orleans. Everybody likes Tyler Shuck.

Now, if you look at some of the data, what we're hearing for the last, you know, two decades is there is zero correlation between late season surge and the next season, which kind of hurts Jacksonville, but I digress. So Tyler Shuck, good quarterback. He's got a solid receiving core. You know, Kellynne Moore did some nice things last year. I just, I'm not a believer in this defense, and I don't know about the schedule. It does not line up as great for the Saints. It's under seven and a half in a division where the Falcons don't really have a quarterback right now. Baker Mayfield seems P-Oed, and Everybody kind of sort of likes Carolina. It is so weird if you look at playoff odds for this division, it's wacky.

Because basically, nobody knows who's going to be good. I decided to go under seven and a half on the Denver Broncos. So to recap, overs, lions, Eagles, Jags, under Patriots, Broncos, Saints. And if you're keeping track at home, four of those six teams were in the playoffs last year. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays and noon Eastern 9 a.m. on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Hey, we're Kavino and Rich. Fox Sports Radio every day, 5 to 7 p.m. Eastern.

But here's the thing. We never have enough time to get to everything we want to get to. And that's why we have a brand new podcast called Overpromised. You see, we're having so much fun in our two-hour show. We never get to everything. Honestly, because this guy is over-promising things we never have time for. Yeah, you blubber lips. Blame and me.

Well, you know what? It's called Over-Promise. You should be good at. at it because you've been over-promising women for years. Well, it's a Kavino and Rich after show, and we want you to be a part of it. We're going to be talking sports, of course, but we're also going to talk life and relationships. And if Rich and I are arguing about something or we didn't have enough time, it will continue on our after show called Over-Promised. Well, if you don't get enough, Kavino and Rich, make sure you check out Over-Promise.

And also, uncensored, by the way. So maybe we'll go at it even a little harder. It's going to be the best after-show podcast of all time. There you go. Over-promising. And remember, you could see it on YouTube, but, you can see it on YouTube, but definitely join us. Listen to Overpromised with Kavino and Rich on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Eating well shouldn't be complicated, but somehow it turns into

recipes, prep, clean up, and half your Sunday gone. Factors solves all that. These are fresh, ready to eat meals designed by dieticians, delivered to your door and ready in just minutes. No prep, no cleanup, no excuses. And it's not just about convenience. You're getting real food, balanced nutrition and zero artificial stuff. Meals that help you stay on track for all of your goals without the grind of doing it all yourself. Grilled chicken, roasted veggies, steak plates, postables, they taste like something you'd get in a restaurant, but they come out of your microwave in two minutes flat. If time costs or effort have been holding you back from eating better, Factor just took those off the table. Right now, get up to $90 off and free shipping.

Hurry this offer won't last long. Go to FactorMeals.ca and use code power. That's up to $90.5.5.com. $80 off and free shipping, but only with the code power at factormeals.ca. Factor, Canada's number one meal delivery service. Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave Netflix and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. Hi, I'm Bob Pipman, chairman and CEO of IHeartMedia.

I also led the team that created MTV. and my co-founders and I are celebrating MTV's 45th anniversary this month. On my podcast, Math and Magic, stories from the Frontiers of Marketing, you'll hear the untold origin story from the people who built MTV from the ground up. I want my MTV! Those are powerful words, my, something for me that felt like mine and want. What a powerful word. Listen to Math and Magic, stories from the Frontiers and Marketing,

on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or whatever you get your, your podcast. What's up fam? I'm sports journalist Ari Chambers. Hey, what's up y'all? It's your girl, Sam J. And we're the host of everyone watches women's sports, a new podcast from Together and I Heart Women's Sports. Because let's be real. Women's sports is giving us way too much to talk about these days. So Kelsey Finler, she became the first female solo rower to go from California to Hawaii. My first thought is like, what's up with the snacks? Like, what are we eating? The highlights, the rivalries, the breakout stars, the moments to take over your entire timeline. And the conversations that start during the game and somehow keep going all week.

Every week, we're breaking down the biggest stories across women's sports. Naomi Osaka, showing out, she beat. Sabalinka. Shout out to you, Naomi. You get the palm, Naomi. You get the palm for that. Because we're not just interested in what happened. We're interested in why everyone's talking about it.

Because everyone watches women's sports. Listen to everyone watches women's sports on the IHeart Radio app. Apple Podcasts. you get your podcast. We'll start with honorable mention, but before we get to that, just a quick thing. Hey, what is the top 10 quarterback? These are the guys I would take right now. Now, I do need to say, I'm not Mr. Hey, Jaden,

Jaden Daniels had an amazing rookie year. You've got to put him in the top 10. We did that with C.J. Stroud. Remember that? He was really good. Got to the playoffs. Oh, he's a top 10 quarterback. Let's just see a little more, and we haven't. Jayden Daniels. Everybody wanted to do that.

He's amazing. Top 10. Can we see a little more? He gets hurt. Like this kind of thing happens all the time. The newest guy is Drake May. Oh my gosh, runner-up MVP. It was so amazing. I need to see a little more, guys.

I'm not going to get giddy over one season. So here we go. Top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL. We're going to start with honorable mention. Are you ready? Starting honorable mention. Trevor Lawrence. I did not see a lot of greatness with a lot of bad coaching.

Then he gets Liam. Cohen and Trevor Lawrence is now in my honorable mention. Lawrence is going to be good. I think you've got a strong case for top 10. I did not have him in there. I need to see another year with Cohen to make sure he is a superstar. I've got Drake May getting honorable mention. Now, again, a lot of people are going to lose their minds.

He almost won the MVP. Guys, that was one season. All the stars aligned. Hey, man, anybody could be great for a playoff run, Sam Darnold last season. Can I see it for more than a season? though with Drake May just, that's all I'm asking. I'm not saying he won't be top 10 next year. I just need to see more than a season.

Okay? Besides Drake May, we're going to go Caleb Williams. And I know Colin has him like top five. Guys, Caleb Williams was awesome in the clutch, six fourth quarter comebacks. He was Mr. Mr. Comeback making all the throws paired with Ben Johnson amazing. We saw him before Ben Johnson got there. How was Caleb Williams? Oh, I don't know what we got. year. Okay? So if we're being honest, I need to see another year of Caleb and Ben Johnson to make the list.

And finally, Dak Prescott also makes honorable mention. He was probably my number 11 because he's done it for a long time. He's really, really good. But somebody can't make the list. All right, here we go. Number 10, top quarterbacks in the NFL, we are starting off with Jared Goff. Mr. Consistency hasn't missed a game in four seasons. If I'm lining up for a game today and it's indoors, Jared Goff is definitely high on the He's a high accuracy quarterback. He does it. He's not mobile, which is why he's 10 and not higher. But Jared Goff only does is find open receivers,

great with Ben Johnson's system, and actually played really well last year. Injuries are what got him. So Goff is 10. Number nine, Brock Purdy. But Jason, he was hurt last year. Okay, he missed eight games. Got it.

He's perceived as a dink and dunk guy because he's not huge. Just an FYI. He has the highest year. yards per attempt of any starting quarterback in NFL history. That's Brock Purdy throwing the ball down the field. The argument against him is he's in Shanahan's offense, but I mean, I don't, what do you want me to do? Do you want me to put him in a bad offense and see? Do you want me to put him with some of the guys we're about to see on this list in their offense?

And then maybe he's got problems. But as a processor and success rate EPA, Brock Prudy grades out high on all those. So I've got him ninth. Number eight, Jordan Love. I continue to be very high on Jordan Love. He has had some slow starts in his career. But how about this? In December and January, 24 TVs and four picks.

Some of this is LaFleur, who's a very good coach. But Jordan Love, he can make all the throws. He's mobile enough. If he were more mobile, he'd be higher on this list. I really like Jordan Love as a quarterback. If you couldn't tell, I'm bullish on the Packers this year. Number seven, Super Bowl MVP. Yes, Rachel. Jalen Hertz.

For all the guys who say, wow, Hertz can't do this. He can't do that. He doesn't throw many times a game. They don't have him throw over 30 times. Do you remember him in the Super Bowl against Spagnolo and the Chiefs? He had 375 yards of total offense, four total touchdowns, and what's going to be the MVP of that game,

if they had pulled off the victory. But of course, Mahomes goes down the field for the win. Jalen Hertz, can do that. They just historically don't have him doing that because they're cycling through OCs every freaking year. I'm just telling you, you know, if you put Jalen Hertz in an offense with a great offensive coordinator,

what is he? You swap Jalen Hertz and Caleb Williams. Tell me, are we different on Jalen Hertz? So again, he hasn't had a great offensive mind yet that's stuck around because anybody good gets a new job. I have Hertz 7, dual threat. I love the guy. I think he's a winner.

All right, let's go to number six. This is the one Rachel had some beef with earlier. Justin Herbert. Yes, he's got zero playoff wins. I get it. But again, when I'm looking at quarterbacks, I'm looking in totality. Okay, playoff wins are like a team stat. Okay?

Justin Herbert, go look at the history of offensive coordinators who's calling his plays. I think you could argue he's been held back by some weak offensive coordinators, and now he gets Mike McDaniel, and this will be the true test. where I believe we'll see Justin Herbert. I think he's as mobile as almost any quarterback in the league. And some of these numbers, guys, since entering the NFL top five in touchdown passes, he's had four different head coaches in six seasons. You know, one of the worst offensive lines in the league last year.

We haven't even seen close to the best of Justin Herbert. He's at six. Number five, Matthew Stafford, the oldest guy on this list by a mile, but won the MVP last year. Now, this is another one where people are going to say, well, he's got McVeigh. He's got Puka. He's got Devante Adams.

What did he do in Detroit? Well, actually, I would say, go look at the numbers in Detroit. He kept that sad sack franchise afloat. He was tremendous. Then you put him in a turbocharged McVeigh offense, and it's like, oh, that's right. He's elite. He's one of the best quarterbacks in the league. Now, again, not in the top four here because he's not very mobile.

But Stafford can make every throw highest graded passer in the NFL last season. And again, for people who want to say, well, Caleb can do this, Drake can do that, we've got like 15 years of data on Matt Stafford being very, very good. I need to see more than 16 or 20 games from those guys. All right. Now, the top four should be obvious. The order is the only question. Joe Burrow, I mean, what can you say about the guy other than, you know,

Joe Burroughs a superstar in this league? If he had a great head coach and I know Zach Taylor comes from the McVay Tree, I mean, we're talking about a guy who probably is, on a Hall of Fame track if he's not already. We're talking about Joe Burrow who, oh my gosh, is this real? All-time leader in the NFL

and completion percentage and completions per game. Why is he throwing that many times? Because the defense stinks and can't stop a nosebleed. Joe Burrow can make every throw in the book, great scrambler, great at the line of scrimmage, great audibling. He's at good playoff runs. There's nothing

this guy can't do except stay healthy. Joe Burrow for me, number four. Now the top three are going to cause a little consternation. Patrick Mahomes is number three. News flash for the advanced stats nerds. Last three years, nobody better at EPA success rate than Patrick Mahomes. The guy is a magician. One of the great quarterbacks in NFL history.

Well, Jay, why is he only three on your list? And I did take him down just a peg from the top two because he wasn't healthy. And he's coming off a major injury. So this is my top 10 quarterbacks heading into the season. Mahomes is probably going to be fine. You know, he's my new BFF. We were hanging out earlier this summer, you know, for like seven minutes. I think Mahomes is exactly what you want in a quarterback.

If you're building one in the lab, it's pretty much a combo of these top three guys. Patrick Mahomes, for me, is number three. Number two, we're going to Lamar Jackson. Again, another guy coming off an injury, not as severe, obviously, as Mahomes. But the two-time MVP guys is unbelievable. And I wonder if... We were doing this list, and let's say, I don't know, Mark Andrews caught a two-point conversion in the playoffs,

or Zay Flowers didn't fumble at the goal line. Are the narratives different around Lamar Jackson? I don't think he's been amazing in the playoffs, but he hasn't been atrocious. And other players, small tiny gaffes, if not, is Lamar been in a Super Bowl? I mean, he is unbelievable. And again, this is heading into this season.

I'm very bullish on the Ravens and Lamar Jackson. And for me, the number one quarterback in the NFL right now is Josh Allen. I think he's exactly what you want. Size, arm strength, toughness. There's really nothing left to say about Josh Allen, except for he needs to make a Super Bowl. Six straight seasons with at least a playoff win, longest streak in the NFL. He's ranked one or two in total touchdowns each of the last five seasons. Going from a defensive coach to Joe Brady will see, still hasn't had in the last two seasons.

really that elite number one receiver. And again, I like to play this game. I don't know if you guys do. If you put Josh Allen in Andy Reed's hands, the way Mahomes has had him, how good is Josh Allen? I think that's a real conversation that needs to be had. Now, Jesse Minter had an interesting quote,

talking about Lamar Jackson. Take a listen. Lamar's incredible. Again, best player in the league. When he's out there and he's, you know, obviously really engaged like he is, he makes everybody on the field better. So he makes the offense better. He makes the defense better for having to defend that type of player.

All he's got to do is be himself. That's what he's proven that he is over the course of time. I do think sometimes when, you know, you're trying to learn new things, like it really energizes you because you know that there's like a requirement to get where you want to get between now and the game. so I just appreciate the way he's gone about his business. Okay, so I want to bring in Rachel here. When Colin did his, I kind of tore it apart. And I expect you to do the same.

I do want to just say, so top 10 opens the door to what the hell does that mean? This is not a resume. This is not what you just did last season. For me, I prefer like a three-season sample size, which is why Jaden Daniels gets dinged, Drake. I just need to see more. I think that is totally fair. By the way, Jesse Minter, this is a second or third. time we played that quote this week. It's like

sounds like a guy who knows his predecessor got fired by the quarterback. Ooh, that's good. I like that. I like that. Look, I think with your top guys, right, I don't think you can put it down to coaching. If he had this coach, if he had that coach. Josh Allen has had turnover problems. That's not a coaching thing. Right? That's not, oh, if he had Andy Reed.

And that, I'm not sure I would put him right at the top there after what happened in the playoffs last year. They lost the playoff game largely because of him. He took the blame afterward and I thought that that was appropriate. He turned the ball over multiple times. You cannot do that at that level, especially with the chiefs out of it the way that they were. Finally, you had a clear path and look what he did. So I'm still putting guys a little bit ahead of him. I'm going to give Patrick Mahomes more credit. I think that he bumps up there one at least

because I do think he's going to come back fine with that injury. I'm not worried about him. He's had played with a brace before, that kind of thing. And Justin Herbert, man, I'm not insulting him as a person. Oh, you clearly are. I am not. You are the one who keeps telling me how good Jalen Hertz is. Yeah. Why isn't Jalen Hertz above Justin Herbert?

I think as a runner, they're probably about equal. Obviously, Hertz and the Tush push, you know, short-yard and stuff. But as a thrower, I give Herbert the edge over Hertz. I like Hertz a lot, but I give Herbert the edge over her. That would be why for me. Hmm. I would have to see it from Justin Herbert this year. Everything has been done for him at this point.

He's got the excellent head coach. He's got offense around him that is strong. They now redid the offensive line completely. He's got who I think and I think you think is one of the elite OCs in the game. It's time, Justin Herbert. Would you have Herbert in the top 10? I would, but probably further down. I put him closer, maybe between Purdy and golf.

And Jaden Daniels? Jaden Daniels, he might sneak into my top 10. But, you know, that's biased. I think he was set up, not set up to fail, but we knew last season. wasn't going to be as good, the season should be better. 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. Eating well shouldn't be complicated, but somehow it turns into recipes, prep, cleanup, and half your Sunday gone. Factors solves all that. These are fresh, ready-to-eat meals designed by dieticians, delivered to your door and ready in just minutes. No prep, no cleanup, no excuses.

And it's not just about convenience. You're getting real food, balanced nutrition, and zero artificial stuff. Meals that help you stay on track for all of your goals without the grind of doing it all yourself. Grilled chicken, roasted veggies, steak plates, postables. They taste like something you get in a restaurant, but they come out of your microwave in two minutes flat. If time, cost or effort have been holding you back from eating better, Factor just took those off the table. Right now, get up to $90 off and free shipping. Hurry, this offer won't last long.

Go to factormeals.ca and use code power. That's up to $90 off and free shipping, but only with the code power at factormeals. Factor, Canada's number one meal delivery service. Get Bell, purefiber internet with craved Netflix and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.com for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. Hi, I'm Bob Pipman, chairman and CEO of IHard Media.

I also led the team that created MTV, and my co-founders and I are celebrating MTV's 45th anniversary this month. On my podcast, Math and Magic, stories from the Frontiers of Marketing, you'll hear the untold origin story from the people who built MTV from the ground up. I want my! Those are powerful words, my. Something for me that felt like mine and want. What a powerful word. the math and magic stories from the frontiers of marketing on the iHeart radio app apple podcast or whatever you get your podcast what's up fam i'm sports journalist ari chambers hey what's up y'all

it's your girl sam jay and we're the host of everyone watches women's sports a new podcast from together and i heart women's sports because let's be real women's sports is giving us way too much to talk about these days so kelsey finler she became the first female solo rower to go from California to Hawaii. My first thought is, like, what's up with the snacks? Like, what are we eating? The highlights, the rivalries, the breakout stars, the moments to take over your entire timeline.

And the conversations that start during the game and somehow keep going all week. Every week, we're breaking down the biggest stories across women's sports. Naomi Osaka showing out, she beat. Sabalinka. Shout out to you, Naomi. You get the palm, Naomi. You get the palm for that. Because we're not just interested in what happened.

We're interested in why everyone's talking about it. because everyone watches women's sports. Listen to everyone watches women's sports. On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. All right, hour number two on the herd. Are you ready for Super Bowl predictions in July? We will do this again in August because take a guest. Cowher's taking another vacation next month.

Hopefully Rachel's around. Oh, I'll need you, Rachel. Late August, it's going to be rough. I got you. I got you. All right, good to know. We are joining you on a Friday from Los Angeles. We have Adam Turnoff.

Folks, listen, if you follow me on the radio, my podcast, you know this is one of the top gamblers in North America. I can't even say where he is. He's that good. But we're going to go through my Super Bowl and playoff prediction. So I'm going to start this out. Our staff has a great note. 36 straight seasons with four plus new playoff teams in the NFL. Keep that in mind.

If you're thinking chalk, you're wrong. Let's get started. Here we go. In the AFC East, despite my... shots at the Buffalo Bills this week and last week I am picking the Buffalo Bills to win the AFC East last year with the Patriots. The Bills bounce back. They are the largest favorites of any team to win their division. I am not buying Joe Brady, but I do believe the Buffalo Bills win the AFC East. Patriots fans, Ear Muffet. Here we go. AFC North. I'm going with

another team. Well, not another. A team that missed the playoffs last year, Baltimore Ravens. Listen, It was the final game of the season, fluky stuff, amazing fourth quarter, Miss Field goal at the horn. I got the Ravens bouncing back and winning the AFC North, another division winner with a new head coach. Declan Doyle obviously calling plays for the first time in his career, bullish on the Ravens. Let's go to the AFC South.

This is a team I like a lot. The Houston Texans. I know. Nobody likes C.J. Stroud. Give me C.J. Stroud, baby. when the public goes one way, I like to go the other. I'm betting on the defense. I'm betting on Stroud being a little bit better.

Ten starters back on defense, holy smokes. The division is going to be better. I know some people think it's down. I think the Titans are going to be good. Daniel Jones is actually moving around, which is scary. Texans win the South. In the AFC West, this is risky because of the net differential in scheduling and rest days.

I'm going chargers. Justin Herbert and Mike McDaniel, I think like the world on fire. I will have a Justin Herbert MVP ticket just for fun. I like the Chargers a lot. I'm down on the Broncos. Denver fans, you can stop watching because I don't have you on the playoffs. All right, let's go to the wow card, the three wild card teams in the AFC, number one, the Chiefs.

Mahomes is back. Reed is back. They did go one and nine in one score games last year. It was, I believe, 11 or no the year before. They'll win five one score games and be fine. I don't love this team. I don't have been the Super Bowl, but I have the Chiefs in the Wild Card.

Next up, wild card number two, the Cincinnati Bungals who were not in the playoffs last year. So for me, if you're keeping score at home, Ravens, Chiefs, and Bengals did not make the playoffs last year. I have all of them in the playoffs this year. I still do think, though, Zach Taylor is terrible.

I like the upgrades on defense. The Cowboys upgraded on defense, so did the Bengals. And the final wildcard team in the AFC, it is not the Jets. It is the Jaguars. We just talked about them. Yeah, they did lose three pretty good players, I think,

one on offense, a couple on defense. We shall see. I'm a believer in Liam Cohen. I do like the Travis Hunter return from injury is going to be big. This is a good team, man, guys. Stop selling the Jags short. Liam Cohen is a great coach. So those are my seven playoff teams in the AFC.

Let's head to the – there it is on the screen. Three new playoff teams. Remember, four every year for the last 36. years. Let's go to the NFC. Right out of the gate, I'm going Eagles. I don't think there's any doubt about this. I think Dallas is going to be better. I think Rachel's commanders will be a little better. I'm not buying the Giants. Give me the Eagles 10 or 11 wins. Defense is nasty. A.J. Brown will not be missed. In the NFC North, I will go with the Detroit Lions. Bit of a surprise. They did not make the playoffs last year. The schedule is extremely fortuitive.

And I think the injuries that crippled them late in the year last year, you know, people are overlooking that. This is a good team. I don't love Dan Campbell. I like them. I think Detroit wins the division. In the NFC South, again, you could basically pick this one out of a hat. I went Tampa, you know, Baker may feel revenge season, perhaps.

Tampa did not make the playoffs last year. Don't love their head coach. He's on the hot seat. I like Baker. I like the offense. Vita Vaya wants out. Maybe they keep them? I don't know.

I don't love. this division. I go about bucks. NFC West. This is a layup. I think they need no introduction and we'll talk about them in the Super Bowl. The Rams. If Stafford gets hurt, they're done. But other than that, anything less than a Super Bowl trip, massive disappointment. So here are my three wildcard teams

in the NFC. Number one is a bit of a surprise and it's a late addition. It's the Minnesota Vikings. We're showing McCarthy on the screen, but it's probably going to be the Kyler Marie Kevin O'Connell's show. And the defense, it can potentially carry this team, guys. They are very, very good. And how about this stat from our staff? Ten different starting offensive line combos last year.

Christian Derisal was down a lot. That is a huge get-back for Minnesota. He is very, very good. Second Wild Card team staying in the division. Green Bay Packers, Jordan Love. Micah Parsons coming back week six. I had hoped it would be earlier. It's just a brutal end to the season last year.

Love had some injuries. I like LaFleur, man. I don't know about all this LaFleur on the hot seat nonsense. I like the Packers as a wildcard team. And finally, yeah, I know you're waiting, Seattle. The Seahawks sneak into the playoffs. They do return 20 of 22 starters,

but they lose Kubiak, which is massive. And Kenneth Walker, I think,'s a big loss. So there are the three wild card teams. Three new playoff teams in the NFC, three in the AFC. Now, I know people are not going to like that. We will quickly go. my Super Bowl, I'll go with the conference championships and then the Super Bowl.

In the AFC, I have, yes, the Houston Texans taking down the chargers. I know that's going to have some heads exploding. Obviously, they met in the playoffs two years ago when it was a bloodbath. I know, guys, I'm going defense and offense here, and I will go Texans. I can't believe I'm doing the C.J. Stroud in the Super Bowl. And then in the NFC, I'm going with the Rams over the Eagles. Stafford and company get it done, and they get back to SoFi for a second home game in the Super Bowl,

which is insane. Setting up the Super Bowl, Rams Texans, and give me, I know, chalky Jason. The Rams, led by Matt Stafford, win another Super Bowl, cementing his Hall of Fame candidacy. I got the Rams taking down the Texans in the Super Bowl out here at SoFi. All right. That was a lot.

I'm nervous that they're going to put that online and I'm going to get ripped apart. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays and noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Man, this guy's so good. When I first got to Fox, I would see him in the halls and be like, oh my gosh, it's Eric Mancini, former Jets coach.

And he would just be a sponge around him. And then I started him with the hot takes and he's like, who is this guy? Let's bring in Eric Mangini. You can catch him on first things first right after us here on FS1. Eric, I always have loved talking to you. Now, you're not going to like it,

but I got my Super Bowl predictions. We're going to pop them on the screen, playoffs in Super Bowl. And I do not have the Cowboys. Obviously, your clip went viral this week. You loving the Cowboys. I don't have them in the playoffs. I do have the Texans, a team from Texas, in the Super Bowl. I have them losing.

Any quick early thoughts? Feel free to, you know, agree or disagree. The C.J. Stroud question is so big. Look, after his rookie year and then rookie the year, honors and the trajectory that he was on and the way that he spoke and the maturity that he handled himself with. I really believe that he was going to take a jump the following season, kind of took a step back, and then even last year, he probably should have been benched in the playoffs. I mean, that was about as bad a playoff run as you can have. So what was it? Two touchdowns,

five interceptions. He put the ball on the ground another five times. Two of those ended up being turnovers. It's like a 51% quarterback rating. And look, the rest of the team gets frustrated with that when you're that good defensively. And that borderline inept at times at the quarterback position, it's a hard dynamic. And he's got sort of a tough road to hoe in the early part of the season to kind of make up for the ground that he lost in the playoffs. Yeah, he didn't have Nico Collins, and they had really no number two, Tank Dell, I think got hurt again. The guy's always hurt. And it was very clear, like, man, this guy's limited.

What about the Justin Herbert love? Maybe we could start there. Herbert getting a lot of love paired with Mike McDaniel. However, it should be noted, he has zero career playoff wins, O and three. Now, you know guys, like Peyton Manning struggles early in his playoff career. Matthew Stafford took 13 years to win a playoff game. I don't know. What do you think about Justin Herbert?

and the Chargers this season. I love Jim Harbaugh's comments on Justin Herbert, and being with Jim Harbaugh for a few years in San Francisco, that's sincere. The belief that he has in him and the things that he says about him, that's not theatrics. He really feels that way, and that's valuable because when he does coach and critique and push Justin Herbert,

Justin Herbert's going to know that it's coming from an absolute place of sincerity and wanting him see him be the best thing can be. And then with McDaniels, Tua was struggling from a confidence standpoint when he got there, and he did great things with Tua. So I think combining those two coaches in terms of pushing his progress forward is really positive. But on the flip side of that, we've talked about Justin Herbert's potential year after year after year about him being one of the great ones. and we're still waiting to see, you know, that materialize,

and then that's problematic as we get further and further on in his career. Yeah, it's the kind of thing where, you know, if you're a Chargers fan or a backer and you're watching, it's not like he was terrible against the Jags in that first playoff game in the loss. He was bad against the Texans, and they were really limited against the Patriots on the road, down there both top two tackles.

Like, he really hasn't had a superstar wide receiver, and now it sounds like I'm making excuses for the guy. Well, for a long time, it was he didn't have the right coach. And now you've got Jim Harbaugh, who's won a national championship in college football, took the 49th as a Super Bowl, so you can take that out of the mix. Say what you want about Mike McDaniels. He's done a lot of really good things offensively. I think that has a chance to be positive.

So we can take the coaching component out of it from a talent perspective, assuming that they are healthy, they should be as talented as anyone else in the division. And typically what you see from great quarterbacks is they're force multipliers, and they make everybody around them that much better. And then it saw with Tom Brady, you saw it with Peyton Manning, you see it with Patrick Mahomes, where they elevate everybody. And we're not talking about, hey, you got to get that guy more weapons, or hey, it's not always the reasons why they're not always the reasons why they're,

they're not successful. It's the reason why they make everybody else successful. And I haven't, we're not having that conversation with Justin Herbert. Perhaps a quarterback we are having that convo with is Caleb Williams. Six game winning comebacks there last season and the regular season, then did it in the playoffs against the Packers. But the Bears are viewed as kind of a prime regression candidate. According to their coach, Eric, I don't know if he's trying to temper expectations, or he's looking at the numbers and saying, yeah, we're not going to lead the league in takeaways next year, guys. Very fortuitous things, you can't live dancing between the raindrops every other week

and expect your quarterback to pull you out of the fire. Where are you on the Bears heading into the season, Eric? Well, that's the exact right approach that he should take. And I went through that in New York, went to the playoffs the first year, and then we regressed the next year because the schedule gets that much harder. people study you differently. They play you differently. You're hoping the rookies will hit a certain way.

Sometimes that happens. Sometimes it doesn't. You make personnel changes. How is that chemistry going to work out? And so all the things that you did well, the year before, you have to do better because people are treating you differently. So I like that approach, and he's absolutely right. Last year means nothing.

They should be starting at a higher point, especially a quarterback, because he's not learning the system. But in terms of wins and losses, you don't get to pick up where you left off. And the more he can preach that, and the more they buy into that and believe that, the better off they'll be. Look at the commanders.

NFC championship game and then a dramatic falloff. Nobody really saw that coming, but it's more common than not. Yeah, let me ask you, so that jet season, was that with Chad Pennington, a quarterback? Yeah, yep, Chad. Jaguarial was quarter at the second year, and then we played Kellynne some that second year as well.

But it's one of those things. The Giants the same way. Brian Dayball's first year, he's coach of the year, and everybody thinks, okay, we got our answer, and things are going to move forward here. And you take a step back. Kansas City last year, who saw them finishing with the record that they finished with after three repeat? Really? Did you?

I did call it. I was mocked roundly, but, you know, whatever. Well, it's nice that you nailed that one, but three consecutive. you know, Super Bowl runs pretty impressive and then to have the sort of drop off they had. I don't think people thought it was going to be as bad as it was. Okay, I wanted to slow play it so I could get to your Cowboys take.

Now, some people think Dallas is going to have a big year. Hey, your defense was like 31, 32. If you're 20th, you know, suddenly does that mean two more wins and now you're, you know, maybe an 11-win team, 10-11 win team? The offense is really good, should continue to be good. offensive line I like, I don't love it. The receivers are incredible. Are the Cowboys a team kind of being slept on here, Eric?

Well, when Brian Schottinheimer got the job, I felt like he was being slept on as a candidate. And he was my offensive coordinator in New York. So I hired him when he was with the Chargers. And he's really bright. He's put in a ton of years in pro football. He's from a football family, an outstanding football family. and he's open to doing whatever is best for the team.

And he has great chemistry with players and coaches. So all those things I thought made it a great strength of his moving into the head coaching role. And then he came out and they finished 7, 8 and 1. And as bad as that defense was, the offense was prolific for the most part. And they lost four, I think it was five games in a row. And four out of those five games they lost, their opponent scored 30 or more points. So that's, the bar isn't dramatically high in terms of what the improvements you need to make defensively in order for, you know, three or four of those games go the other way and now you're in the playoffs.

I also like the fact that Jerry, this has been a uncharacteristic Dallas offseason, right? It's not about splashy headlines. It's about what our needs. Our needs are defensive. Let's go do it in the draft. Let's do it in free agency. let's do it through trades. Let's try to improve this every way we possibly can. And then not set ridiculous expectations.

And there's not going to be the Micah Parsons drama at the start of the season. We didn't know where Pickens was going to end up in terms of was that going to be an issue or not. That's not an issue. So there's a lot of good things that you really like about Dallas, and there's no reason they can't take another step forward. Let me ask you about this. I'm seeing some Jalen Hertz comments. I think you guys probably talked about it on first things first.

but, you know, he usually Jalen Hertz very careful with his words, answering questions. He opened with a statement and said there is zero entitlement with the team. And that was, like, they didn't even ask him about it. He just came out and offered that. And I just wonder, you've been around a lot of players, you know about veiled shots. Was this a shot at A.J. Brown? I absolutely love this comment. A hundred percent alignment and zero entitlement.

he should copyright that. They should be making shirts with that because that is, that's exactly what every single coach in every single league is looking for from their players regardless of their ability. Because when you do have 100% alignment, you have such an advantage over everybody else. Because the NFL is so hard to win

when everybody's pushing in the same direction and it's almost impossible to win when people aren't pushing in the same direction. So to have the 100% alignment And the idea of zero entitlement, that's another amazing thing. In a world filled with entitlement, filled with, hey, I need to get mine. And where that's celebrated probably more now than it ever has been, the idea of moving into a season with those two things, it's huge.

And is it a bailed shot? I don't think it's that veiled. I think that it's well documented that there were problems. There were significant problems, whether it was, you know, AJ reading on the sideline or the comments he said after he left. And look, he is a great player, and he wanted out, and he was able to get out. And he's now on his third team, though. He's a great player who's on his third team.

So it's not always the organization's fault. Interesting. So do you think it could possibly be an addition by subtraction, losing a star receiver and going with a receiver by committee? I'm not of the belief that Devante Smith is like a number one guy. I think he's very good, but they clearly take a step back at the receiver position. They have depth, but no star. Yeah, it can absolutely be addition by subtraction.

And as I said, getting people on the same page, and sometimes with guys who have challenging personalities, it's like, how do we get him the ball in the first five plays of the script so he's not angry? And then the guy comes off on the sideline. And, you know, I've had players come off and say, hey, I'm open, I'm open. And you show him, you show him the picture and he's double team. And he's like, no, no, I was still open. So it's that belief of like, it doesn't matter how many people are covering me. I'm open, which I get.

You're confident and you want the ball and you want to make play completely understand. But the role of the quarterback is to figure out who is open and throw him the ball and get him the ball accurately. And that's one of the great things about Tom Brady. is if you didn't run the right route and you didn't do what you were supposed to do, you weren't getting the ball. And it didn't matter if you were a star or if you were, you know, down further on the depth chart. If you got open based on the coverage, he was going to throw you the ball. And you're doing the right thing.

I love that. He's going to throw you the ball. All right. Eric, we'll wrap up with this. Baker Mayfield, weird situation in Tampa. They don't want to pay him. He's one of the lowest paid starting quarterbacks, especially when you factor in playoff trips.

It's been to the playoffs. Three of the last four years. I know they cratered at the end of last season. Not totally his fault. This is just a weird situation. They're willing to move off of Baker Mayfield. He's still in his prime age-wise. I don't know.

Are you surprised by this and what do you think happens? No, I'm not surprised. I think it could actually be a really good thing for Tampa Bay organizationally in the sense that how has Baker Mayfield always been at his best when he's got some sort of chip, when he's got some sort of edge, when he's playing a little bit angry, and he's angry. And he said, hey, I'm going to play well, and I'm going to make you pay me more. Fantastic. We'll be happy to pay you more.

Go out and play really well. And, you know, for Tampa Bay's got some issues. They're top five guys in terms of salary cap, plus the dead money, makes up 50% of their cap. So they've got five guys plus dead money making up 50% of their cap. They were over the cap before the start of the league year. They had to redo some deals. and now they're only $8.5 million under the cap. So there's not a lot of room to do big contracts.

And I'm sure it's frustrating for Baker, but hopefully he goes, hits a home run and gets paid even more money. And then organizationally, you're going to be really happy if you take you deep into the playoffs or to the Super Bowl and, you know, be excited to pay him as much money as he wants. All right. Eric Mangini, first things first. Great stuff, man. That was outstanding. Eric, good luck today on the show and enjoy the weekend.

I'm Nick Totoro. You probably know me from NYPD Blue, the longest yard, or Spike Lease Black Klansman. And on my new podcast, Delivering Happiness with Nick Tatourl, I deliver pizza to a new guest. I've shared a slice with everyone,

from Seth Rollins. What are you doing, my belt? To Bill Burr. I don't think I've ever met somebody so exactly out of their mind as I am. And now, we even have more great guests coming up, including the great John Tuturo. It's called Happiness,

delivering happiness. And many, many more. Open your free High Heart Radio app. Search Delivering Happiness with Nick Tutoril. And listen now. This is Chelsea Handler from Dear Chelsea. Every week, the news gets worse. The world gets crazier.

And Yamanika is here to tell whoever's responsible, you're the problem. Do you know I just found out who Sidney Sweeney was? If he got a bunch of women, then I should have a bunch of men. Do better or do less so I don't have to do so much. I'm Yamanika, and I'm out. Listen to You're the Problem with Yamanika on the I Heart Radio app

Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. Hi, I'm Bob Pipman, Chairman and CEO of IHard Media. I also led the team that created MTV, and my co-founders and I are celebrating MTV's 45th anniversary this month. On my podcast, Math and Magic, stories from the Frontiers of Marketing, you'll hear the untold origin story from the people who built MTV from the ground up. Those are powerful words, my, something for me that felt like mine and want. What a powerful word.

Listen to math and magic, stories from the frontiers of marketing on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Nancy Glass, host of the Burden of Guilt Season 3 podcast. This is a story about a horrendous situation that destroyed two families. It's a scorched earth war that shows just how far someone will go to get what they want. Cindy said I had to choose between the truth and my family, and I had to choose the truth. Listen to season three of burden of guilt on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.