The Herd with Colin Cowherd - 'Boys and Girl - Cowboys 'State of the Team' 2021

Episode Date: July 22, 2021

On today’s episode of the 'Boys and Girl Podcast, Jane and Bobby discuss the Cowboys’ “State of the Team” address at the opening of training camp in Oxnard, CA. Follow Jane and Bobby on Twitter and subscribe to get all the latest inside information from two of the most connected people in the Cowboys’ community. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s.

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You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Did you know Amazon provides ways of working that fit your lifestyle? They know you value your time outside of work, juggling families, school, friends, or other

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with Cowboys NFL Network reporter Jane Slater and NFL network producer Bobby Belt, a Cowboys community with the inside scoop on the Dallas Cowboys. Now coming straight to you from the Lone Star State, here's Jane and Bobby. Well, after what was a longer hiatus than Bobby Belt and I expected, we are back and excited to be talking to you about training camp. And I am literally coming right off of the practice build here in Oxnard. And Bobby, we talked a lot about vaccinations today. And vaccinations are what held you up from being my right-hand man to camp for those wondering.

Yes, yeah. No, it wasn't a decision not to get it. I'm still just waiting on the second. I got held up logistically. And so it didn't time out right. And I'm frustrated, but, you know, Jane's there kicking ass and beautiful mood lighting there. I don't know what you're doing with the lighting in that room, but it looks great. You've really got it set up good. You know, it's my days and local TV, Bobby, for those that aren't watching on YouTube. I've got us backlit back here and, you know, trying to do the best I can to make my hotel here in Oxford. feel like a video set. But as I said to you, we haven't done a podcast in a while. Quite frankly, we didn't have a lot to talk about. I think you and I felt the same way. A lot of people felt after last season just sort of exhausted the way we do business, the way they do business, the, you know, the countless amount of injuries and

setbacks and, you know, the death of Marcus Paul. I mean, it just seems like, and I've said this over and over in Murphy's Law, anything that could go wrong did. And so I think you and I just felt like, We needed to walk away of it, come back fresh. And today at the presser running into the media, Jerry, Stephen, Mike McCarthy showing up with shades and a fresh, fresh beard cut. It almost felt like they cleaned him up for a second year. Like he felt like he was a Dallas Cowboys head coach.

So it, look, you never know what the season is going to look like. I mean, when we were talking about this team last year, they were poised to make a run, Super Bowl winning coach, Dak Prescott, this offensive line. They've got C.D. Lamb and all the spoils and all these free agents that gave him to Dallas because of Mike McCarthy, and it blew up in their face. And I think I appreciate the honesty. They weren't exactly selling us rainbows this year. I think they wanted to manage expectations, and I think that's good.

Even Jerry admitted he's naive. He's got to be got emotional as he talked about that. but Mike McCarthy was almost level setting when he said, look, it takes time to build this thing. And he did say, and I agree, they finally have a defensive line that matches their offensive line in terms of how big they are and how strong they are at front. Yeah, and that'll be one of the things I'm really interested to see about camp is,

you know, we heard about how much Dan Quinn and we all know this, how much he likes length. And that's a big thing that they talked about leading up to the draft. And then here in training camp already is, well, we've gotten so much longer on defense and particularly on the defensive line. And so I just wonder how that maybe is going to work for a guy who's a little bit of a shorter player and who struggled last year like Neville Gallimore. Like, is Neville Gallimore a guy that's going to be on the bubble, even though he's a, you know, two years removed from being a third round pick or a year removed from being a third round pick? He wasn't necessarily Dan Quinn's pick and he doesn't necessarily fit Dan Quinn's measurables.

And how does Tristan Hill fit into this? And Bradley and I, a guy who a lot of. fans were excited to see last year who got picked in the fifth round and was somebody that people thought could impact the game. He's on the smaller side. So I just wonder how some of these smaller defensive linemen, if they're going to survive this camp with Dan Quinn. But there was certainly was a lot that they touched on. And, you know, specifically when we talk about the changes on defense, Stephen even acknowledging at one point saying that, you know, this is, you'd be naive to say it was just injuries. And you can't just say it was injuries last year. Otherwise, we wouldn't have

make changes to the defensive coaching staff and basically drafted it and, you know, all defensive players. So I thought it was a, you know, at times an optimistic press conference as Jerry tends to be. But I mean, I feel like it was a much more sobering and realistic one with Mike McCarthy talking about last year was really difficult and, you know, everybody's talking about the challenges that they faced. And so I do think that there was a lot more realism at this year's state of the union address than there typically is from the Cowboys. And there has to be right. When you go six and ten, And you've had the myriad of amount of injuries and you had this new coach that you're supposed to win in spite of these things. I mean, we certainly saw teams do it last year when you look at Cleveland.

When you look at, you know, even the Saints at times when they didn't have Drew Breeze and they had to put in, you know, Taysam Hill. And so when I look at some of those other teams, I don't think they're necessarily looking for excuses, which I appreciate. You know, I asked so, you know, I kind of touched with Mike McCarthy on, you know, he said, you know, we reached a lot of the targets. that we were looking for. When I asked him to explain what those targets were, Bobby, you know, he talked about the buy-in of this team, this buy-in, this off-season, and having those guys there.

And he said some of his targets were, you know, participation. And he said the last five weeks since they broke mini-camps and OTAs, the buy-in has been incredible. They did a significantly better job virtually. It felt like, and even Mike McCarthy admitted at points last year, it was something he absolutely hated. And so I think when you were trying to change that defensive scheme, A lot of the players, we heard Leighton Van deresh say it during many camps in OTAs.

It wasn't that the scheme was hard. It was implementing the scheme. And even they said they tried to do too much too soon on that front. Mike McCarthy also touched on the fact that they were able to get in all of their installs. And I couldn't figure out if he's, I want to say he said virtually all 80 installs. Does that make sense? Is that the amount of installs? I don't remember that reference specifically.

I'd have to go back and listen to it. But I mean, I was like, are we talking eight or 80? Here's the thing. as much as we always used to complain about Jason Garrett being cagey and like short on details, Mike McCarthy has taken that to a whole new level. So I'm not certain that even whatever he said, even if we could go back and listen to exactly what I said, it probably wouldn't make a ton of sense. And I think that's on purpose.

Well, listen, I do think, you know, when I talked to some of these other teams that didn't have, you know, the total buy-in for some of the OTAs, you know, I was even questioning, okay, you're getting the opportunity to get back around each other. Why not seize it? Well, the Cowboys certainly did. I mean, we talked to a lot of these players, and I had asked at one point, did anyone push back? And I was told the participation was, everyone was on board. They were trying to build something here.

And as a result of that, I was told training camp is going to be about reviewing those installs. It's going to be about game management. You know, as Mike McCarthy said, in a lot of ways, this feels like the first year. And it will certainly be that way for guys like C.D. Lamb, who didn't get to come to training camp in Oxnard and have the experience that, say, the rookies like Micah Parsons and those guys, well. So we said, those are going to be the things that they're going to focus on. the biggest thing I thought that stood out to me, he said even with a young quarterback when he had Aaron Rogers was situational football. And also the fact that they needed to work on complimentary football. They weren't playing that last year. So I got the sense that it was a tough season for

Mike McCarthy, but they went back to the drawing board pretty quick. They made immediate and swift changes on defense. We talked about this when the season was over. I can't remember a time where they literally said goodbye to defensive coordinator or an offensive coordinator, for that matter, after one season. They might have been demoted. I mean, you and I kicked around Monty Kiffin, but we haven't seen them say goodbye. And the thing that stood out the most to me about Dan Quinn's hiring,

you don't have to ask these players to tell you about Dan Quinn. They tell you about Dan Quinn. There seems to be a genuine excitement around what he is bringing to the table, the way that he gets these guys going, the way he gets them to buy in, moving guys like Layton and Vandreche, who seemed hyper excited about the fact that he's moving back to that will position that he felt more natural at,

the fact that you've got a guy like Micah Parsons, who we might see involved in some of the pass rush, and then seeing guys like George Edwards working out with the linebackers more. When I talked to Harrison Smith at Pro Bowl about George Edwards, those guys felt his loss. And if you looked at the defense last year, they felt lost.

Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds.

I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you'll say. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football,

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Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we picket here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because. of crack.

I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really?

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Keer 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.

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on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free, our heart radio app. Search learn the hard way and listen now. Without George Edwards. So I think there's some signs of life, but I'm going to be like Jerry and Mike McCarthy and Stephen here. I'm going to manage my expectations because even if they were to make a run, there's still that team in the NFC South who didn't lose one piece.

They just added through the draft. And that's Tom Brady and the bucks. And you're going to have to get through them as long as Tom Brady decides to keep playing football. You're going to have to get through them in week one right out of the gate. you're going to have to test yourself against them. I do think it's funny. You kind of reference this. Did you know Amazon provides ways of working that fit your lifestyle?

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They see the wrinkled face of a wizard with arms outstretched to the sky. They see treasure and pebbles. They see a windy path that could lead to adventure. And they see you. Their fearless guide is this fascinating world. Find a forest near you and start exploring at Discarriage. Overtheforest.org brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the ad council. There was the, you know, Mike McCarthy's talking about, well, this is kind of like year one, actually,

because, you know, we were doing all the virtual stuff. This is kind of the first year for us to do this. And, you know, he made the point of saying like, well, you know, when we get out there to those practices, I don't expect them to look perfect. It's almost like there's kind of this little couching like McCarthy saying, like, hey, y'all need to just forget about last year. I should get a reset over here. I thought that was funny.

I don't know if I'd say damage control, but I do think that he was. owning up to there were a lot of challenges for me through that way of operating and that way of coaching and this is more you're going to finally see me like the way I can coach is through this way. This isn't the way that I do it. And so I do feel like Mike McCarthy took this as an opportunity, which this is only the, what, third or fourth time he's sat in front of the media face to face. I mean, it's not been many times. So I feel like this was his chance to kind of speak directly to,

some of the criticism that came last year and not you know totally brush it off but say look those were different circumstances I think you need to judge me now based off of how I coach in this setting here I'm hoping he gives me a reset today too you know I had asked him about a postmortem with Ezekiel Elliott given last season you know and he he didn't like postmortem he wanted me to use exit interview so here's what I'll give Mike McCarthy on his exit interview after last season I do believe you've got to give him another year to give a full analysis of what he is capable of. Of course, he's got Green Bay staring at him in the back.

That didn't end well. Last year was a disaster. I mean, it was a disaster any way you want to look at it. But I do think, like, jobs that I've had, you know, when I joined Longhorn Network, I started after the season, it had already gotten underway. And it's like you think you know what you're getting into at ESPN. And I went up there for rookie minicamp. but it was so exciting. But no one really told me what I was expecting from what I had done on the sidelines locally to what's expected at that level. And it wasn't my best season. In fact, at the end of that season, I'll never forget, we had a consultant at ESPN

that came in and questioned whether I even knew sports, swear to God. And the consultant was from Dallas and said he was shocked when he was asked to come in and talk with me about my sports knowledge because he listened to my sports talk show what I was in Dallas. And so I had a little bit of a chip on my shoulder after that year. And so I just felt like, you know, I'm going to give him the amount for the doubt. He deserves a reset. And he's added, you know, some other piece he bought Scott McCarley with them from the Green Bay Packers to help with the linebacker group.

And ran into Ben McAdoo today. Everyone wants to know what Ben McAdoo is going to do. How's his hair these days? He's trimmed up. At first, I didn't recognize him, Bobby. Does he still have the like the parted down the middle? look or is it? He looked clean. He looked like he'd just gotten done working out. And it's my understanding he's going to help Mike out, you know, with the offense and being an extra set of eyes,

so to speak. We didn't get into any real football talk, but he did remind me that these two have worked together in several spots. And so, you know, Mike, I think, is finally getting a team around him. Because keep in mind, he had a lot of staff holdover, at least a few guys from Jason Garrett. but he's slowly but surely bringing more guys around him and I think this draft was a lot more reflective of both what he and Dan Quinn want from this roster.

Yeah, and I, you know, you just hope that and this is not something that we can, you know, you got to give him a fair chance, but you just hope that these, the Ben McAdoo type of hire or the Scott McCurley hire, where it's not something where a lot of people

were critical of the Mike Nolan hire, where it's, you went out and hired your buddy and you didn't get the best man for the job. And so I think that, that it's fair to wonder if, you know, Ben McAdoe is somebody that can come in and help and be a or is it an issue of surrounding with Yesman. And I think that it's fair to ask that of Mike McCarthy. Is, are you actually putting the right people in place or are you doing favors? Were you out of the league for that gap? And you lost too much time to know who are the good up-and-coming coaches that you can

go out there and hire. Ben McAdoe, obviously somebody who was a, you know, desired coach at one point and was hired by the Giants to be a head coach. So he's got a track record as a good assistant. you just hope that they don't make the same sort of mistakes that they did with Mike Nolan last year. And I think that Mike McCarthy even kind of tacitly acknowledged today that, you know, we had to make some changes on the coaching staff. And Mike Nolan's a good friend of his, somebody who gave him a job when he was a head coach. And so I think that it's big that Mike McCarthy was able to recognize that. And you hope that he's going forward with that same sort of mindset about these other hires.

And let's be honest. Well, I haven't unpacked everything that I was told about what. happened last season, there were a lot of players to blame too for a lot of in like locker room fighting. I think it hurt. They weren't able to build the chemistry that they typically will, you know, at camp or participating in OTAs and training camp. You've got a new staff. So there's going to be teachers pets for the guys that have brought them in. And when you've got a nucleus in in Dallas that a lot of them are homegrown, they typically don't bring in a lot of impactful outside free agents. I think it was all just trying to do too much. Again, I've

equated this to like the pH balance in the pool, it just was off. So I think for cowboy fans, for those of us in the media, you know, we're looking forward to, you know, hitting the reset button. And for Jerry being one of five teams that decided to take, you know, this show on the road and go to training camp, it comes with scrutiny. It comes with challenges. We've even been told like things are going to evolve as we're here. The way we operate here is so different. But kudos to Jerry, because I got to tell you, when we did the presser with Dak Prescott, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys were one of the first to put the media altogether, albeit socially distanced, in a room for that presser.

And it was then that he told us he was going to training camp. Yeah. We're going to have fans in the stands this year. And I loved the optimism. And I've seen him, you know, we talked about this for. Star in Friscoe, it was an idea that he had. And from idea to conception took him three years. I mean, he's almost like Walt Disney in that sense.

Like, he's a true Imagineer. When I used to have him on the fan on 105.3, you know, he talked about, you know, having a notepad by his bed at night in his truck. Like, the guy is always thinking, moving. What can we do next? And so love him or hate him. I know so many fans today when he said, I would do anything, you know, to win a Super Bowl. And I believe that short of naming a GM, something that he has done.

not done since he has been the owner of this team. This is a guy that wants to win. This is a guy that's hyper-focused on winning a Super Bowl and bringing the championship back to Dallas. I think that's something you have to respect about Derry. Yeah. And I think one benefit that they have heading into this year that isn't talked about, you know, David Hellman had a tweet today that I don't remember the exact specifics of

it, but he said, no DAC contract question, nothing else. This is about the most boring state of the union we've ever walked in. into in a long time. And when you think back on it, you know, there was the DAC question heading into last year, like Dave references, there was the Zeke holdout heading into the office or the training camp before that. There's been questions about, you know, you know, 2018 was the first training camp without Des Bryant.

And, and Des had, you know, tweeted out some stuff that then Travis Frederick and Sean Lee were having to answer after like the first practice. And that was when the Stephen Jones quote got a little taken out of context from the serious XM interview. And so you go into all these things, or you have the, all these issues that have been going on heading into these off seasons or heading into these training camps that this, they do have the benefit of the least amount of questions they've ever faced heading into camp. I feel like in terms of off the field questions or peripheral issues. There, there is no head coaching question in terms of new guy in here or is this guy getting fired. I don't think anybody feels like McCarthy's on the hot seat the way Garrett was heading into his last couple training camps. and there's none of these lingering contract questions anymore. They've pretty much got everybody sewn up that they need to. And so this is the first camp that can kind of do football. I disagree.

It's almost like we've gotten so greedy here in Dallas that you need those flashy headlines. But I feel like there's more questions than answers heading into the season. Do they have the right head coach in Mike McCarthy? I absolutely believe they've given him all the staff that they want around him, all these extra consultants that we haven't typically seen with other head coaches. I felt like they protected him in a lot of ways last year. They didn't throw him under the bus. When we look at this draft and some of the players,

the departure system of the free agents, that's also got his footprint on it. So that's one question I have. My other question is, what's the future look like for Layton Van derrish and Jalen Smith? What does the future look like for Zeke? What does the future look like for Amari Cooper? A lot of those questions are going to be addressed this year.

I mean, when I looked at the list of all these injured players, last year, that Prescott went down. Tide in Blake Jarwin, your guard, Zach Martin, tackle Tyron Smith, Loud Collins, your defensive tackle, Tristan Hill, linebacker late in Van deresh, and then your two corners, Trayvon Diggs, and Anthony Brown, that's just,

that's unreal. That's not even including the long stretches, Vander, S, Sean Lee, Tyrone Crawford, all those guys were missing. And so they certainly, where, and I don't mean the sense that, yeah, of course, everybody's wondering is Mike McCarthy the right guy? But, I mean, it's not the same question as, you know, the Jason Garrett issue was when it was like, you're heading into the last year of your contract and then those sorts of questions.

And I mean, there's more stability in terms of on the offensive coaching group that DAC is heading into this offseason. I mean, I think I'd have to go back. I think this is the first time since his second year that he hasn't, that he's going into the training camp, a consecutive training camp with the same quarterback coach, offensive coordinator and head coach because there were all those changes of Linnehan and Kittna and Wade Wilson and Kellyn Moore and so these changes have been going on for DAC and so this is the most stability he's had and so I do know that you know we've always heard Jerry talk about continuity and how big continuity is to him I think that there is a stronger amount of continuity heading

into this offseason and there is not the big question of contract that there has been with Zeeke and Dak that seem to distract so many people and so many players that I just not that they have no questions, but I think some of those big overarching questions that seem to be distracting at times are now out of the way at least. There are different questions, but it's not the same intensity

and white hot spotlight on some of these contract questions. One, look, the Cowboys have to be very careful here. I think growing up in the 90s, when you looked at, you know, the options you had to catch games, America's team was always on. We didn't have fantasy football.

but there have been plenty of other teams that have emerged in recent years. And then when you look at this team who hasn't seen the Division Championship since 1996, there's only two other teams in the NFC who have also not made a return, you've got to be careful about how relevant are you as an organization. I think they're always going to be relevant because of the star. It's iconic, the brand. But in terms of wanting people, you know, we talk about like who are the big names on this team anymore? you know, who are the bright stars.

That's why the DAC signing was so important. And I do believe what you get with DAC is he feels respected thanks to the contract. And I do feel like he authentically thinks this is his team. And I think you're going to see a couple of other guys feeling like they can now step up, you know, as leaders. Because remember, this was an aging team. And then in 2016, when I came in, that's when you saw the departures of all those guys, DeMarco Murray, Tony, Tommy Romero, they were out. And then when we finally saw Jason Witten and now Sean Lee gone,

this is now them turning the page. This is a different iteration. This is a different decade sort of team. And you sort of feel like it's finally jelling together some of these veteran leaders. Will Randy Gregory step up and be more vocal the way that he said he would during mini camp and OTA? So look, I agree with them when they think that there's reasons to be optimistic. But I do believe it all begins with the health of DAC. I mean, he started 69 games prior.

to that injury. I mean, even this team before he got hurt when I was looking at, you know, some of the numbers. They had one of the top five offenses. I mean, it's second, let's see, he was averaging 371.2 passing yards per game. That was the highest in NFL history, 99.6 passer rating before the injury. And he was averaging 44.4 points per game. And then when you look at what all your wide receivers were accomplishing amongst the three, and then if you get Ezekiel Elliott back to the form, he was two seasons ago, this could be something special. And then, but you just can't go through the onslaught of injuries that you dealt with last year. Well, and the defense has to be better.

And then they cannot be worse. They were the worst defense in franchise history last year. They were terrible. But to that point, you're talking about all this changeover that's taken place and you see all these long tenured guys going out. I've got a trivia question for you. Do you know who is the second longest tenured member of the Cowboys defense right now? Ooh. Second longest.

Anthony Brown? Randy Gregory. Well, and what's crazy is, Marcus Lawrence is the logist. So Tyrone Crawford, Sean Lee, Barry Church, these guys have exited over the last few years. It's now Demarcus Lawrence and Randy Gregory are the old vets on that defense.

Which is crazy to me too because he said, you know, right as we were wrapping at minicamp, this is only his second mini camp, it was only a second mini camp, his second offseason with this team since his rookie year. I even asked Jerry about Randy Gregory. This might be an interesting time to play that clip.

about Randy Gregory, and he brought up a really great point as we talk about Randy Gregory, not ever a distraction for them off the field. And there is absolutely an upside to him if he can get this thing all together this year. Given your investment in him over the last couple of years, does he seem a little bit more in this offseason? He felt a little bit more clear of mine in mini-camp. What stands out about him? Well, Randy, I have been really impressed. by the way he's stayed the course with legitimate life challenges. And he addresses them exemplary. He has to fight the kinds of things that make those challenges for people.

He has to fight that. And I'm seeing him take him the logic and the mentality of using what he's been through there, and I'm seeing it bring it over to his game and bring it over to his being the professional that he potentially might have a chance to be. He's got a lot of tread left on his tire. He hasn't, he really hasn't, if you think about it, he hadn't had a lot of wear and tear relative to as many years as he's now been with the Cowboys. I like that. That's always excited me that even as we speak today, it's the what's out ahead of him that excites me the most. I believe that the structure that we now have in the NFL as a part of this new, our new labor agreement, relative to how we handle with players, we being the teams in the league, how we handle the players, really helps Randy.

And so that that helps him have a plan that is realistic for him and will be realistic for others too. It's not called the Randy Gregory plan at all, but it is absolutely complements what Randy needs to be operating in. And of course, he has a great way with his teammates. He's not an issue. As far as issues as a teammate or a player, he would be at the top 5% of not having issues. So all of those things give me a lot of optimism.

And then we've never questioned his talent and his uniqueness. And so I look forward to him buoyed by his confidence level. I look forward to him really having a big year. Jay, was there a time where you thought it may not work with Randy? And what did he show you throughout that sort of time period of it existed? Well, we kept talking and we kept trying. And that's 99% of it in my mind about most things. We just didn't quit.

And he had, when I say we, I'm talking about Randy. And we just didn't quit. He's always been worth in terms of just being a person. He's been worth the extra, if you will, investment of time, interest, everything it comes with building a roster. The next question is, I've never seen any. time when he was a takeaway from being involved with the team. Not one time. Now you say, well, boy, you'd like to have him out there sacking somebody right in the fourth quarter. If that's

a takeaway, that is a takeaway. But certainly he kept it at a level that, frankly, he had a lot of experts that would basically attest to Randy needs a different system. And so he's a he's a he's all right. I'm just telling you when I listen to Randy Gregory, and I know you've got a great relationship with him as well, the thing that used to just, I felt for him. He once said to me,

people just want to see me fail, and I just couldn't understand that negative thinking, right? Like, I don't deal with the demons that he deals with. He was of such clear mind, a such clear focus. And he said to us, he doesn't want us talking about that narrative anymore. He wants to move on from that.

I want to move on from it too. And I'm sure Jerry does and everyone else. And I'm sure he'd like to have a real contract finally. Yeah. And I know he's got bills to pay. I think that what you saw at that mini camp press conference when, you know, he was so charismatic and people could see what a great guy is. You see what the Cowboys have seen behind the scenes and why they've stayed invested in him. Outside of just the talent, why they're willing to put up with some of the growing pains that they weren't willing to put up with David Irving.

even though they're both massively talented. I didn't always buy in just being candid here to what David would describe as his problems. It felt very calculated. There were people in the organization who didn't buy in either. Right. You're not alone in that. Right. And so with Randy Gregory, I do feel like it's authentic.

I do feel like he's done the work. And look, again, going back to Jerry, say what you want about him. he's loyal to people to a fault. In fact, today, sort of taking you behind the scenes, Clarenthill and I were kind of in the doghouse of Jerry last year. No secret. Yeah. I think everybody on Twitter knew you were in the dog house.

Yeah. I'm hoping to get out of there. You know, like, I read this interview once. It was Jennifer Garner talking about Ben Affleck and her and head of their divorce. And she talked about him being the most charismatic guy in the room. And when he shines on you, you brightly, it feels great. But when he turns cold on you, it's tough in the shadows. I mean, it's kind of how it felt last year with Jerry. But today, there was like a spring and a step.

Like, he wanted to turn the page too. And I thought there was this really great moment. Clarence Hill of the Fort Worth Star Telegram lost his mother. And this guy last year was taking care of his dad, his mother, his two daughters, broke my heart for him. And Jerry, apparently, Clarence told me this. I don't think he'll mind me sharing this. If you were watching the presser some people saw before jerry goes up the stage he walks up he says hi to christie uh makes note of mike ducy and and he hugs clarence and apparently he sent flowers to clarence's mom's funeral and basically sent him his condolences and so jerry's always watching he's always reading he's tapped into people like that and i think that's what you have to appreciate about him and i got

to tell you i've seen him get emotional i mean every time we do what is it the uh the cowboys are going to kill me if I misquote this. What is it? There something farms deal that they do. Oh, Happy Hill Farms. Happy Hill Farms. Yep. Jerry has literally told the story about how he acquired the team and Jean letting him sell the Cadillac and gets emotional when he thinks her.

And, you know, bless the matriarch, Gene. But it's always like the tears on cue. And I'm always like, ah, here it comes. Today it felt different. Oh, and I want you to listen to one of these, I want you to listen to one of these clips of him sort of talking about the season, and you'll get... Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games.

Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcast. or wherever you get your podcasts.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football,

or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not

not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Cliverts Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jett. And I'm Alex English.

Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont. Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so you know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now.

Then you're finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. to look back at it on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist,

Keer Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough because people scoreboard watch life becomes about wins and losses Steve Burns Dustin Ross because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth

or are you a good person because you're afraid because that's two different intentions bro absolutely and that that's two different levels of trust I want you to just really be a good person Join me, Keir Gaines, as 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 I'm talking about. I've had a lot of people tell me you're naive and or say that he's naive. Well, it's a beautiful world. It's a better world to be naive than to be skeptical and be, uh,

negative all the time. And so I do my best work, I think, when it's more positive. And so I need it to be promising and I need us to have a way to go. That causes me to do stupid things or it causes me to do excessive things that sometimes really work. And that's been the way I played the cards. When things just kept working against you guys last year, do you feel like he was cashing in? And how anxious are you to get to Thursday night football and put last year behind you? Well, I found that he's not quite as responsive

to one's individual ass as you might think. And I'm not trying to be sacrilegious here, but the facts are that I would right now if I could and I knew had a good chance to do it. I'd do anything known to man to get in a Super Bowl. That's a fact. And there's nothing in my mind that can have a higher priority than that. You know, people always ask, he's the window closing for this team.

Of course, the windows closing every year for this team. But, you know, Jerry's turning 79 in October. he's not getting any younger, and I hate to say that. You know, nobody wants to talk about father time. I certainly don't like to be reminded in my age, Bobby. But how old are you 28? 28? Exactly.

Yeah. We're going to stay with that. Thunderstruck, adjective. Shocked and amazed by the power of fun on carnival. Riding Bolt, the world's first roller coaster at sea. Brian got thunderstruck so hard, his 93-year-old grandmother felt it 3,000 miles away in Nebraska and immediately booked a cruise. Hooray!

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Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Ad Council. And we're live here outside the Perez family home just waiting for the... And there they go. Almost on time this morning. Mom is coming out the front door strong with a double-armed kid carry. Looks like Dad has the bags. Daughter is bringing up the rear. Oh, but the diaper bag.

wasn't closed. Typhers and toys are everywhere. Ooh, but mom has just nailed the perfect car seat buckle for the toddler. And now the eldest daughter who looks to be about nine or ten has secured herself in the booster seat. Dad zips the bag closed and they're off. Ah, but looks like mom doesn't realize her coffee cup is still on the roof of the car and there it goes. Oh, that's a shame. That mug was a fam favorite. Don't sweat the small stuff. Just nail the big stuff. Like making sure your kids are buckled correctly in the right seat for their age and size. Learn more at NHTSA.gov slash the right seat.

Visit NHTSA.gov. Slash the right seat. Brought to you by Nitzha and the Ad Council. You tend to forget Jerry's age because he has the energy and enthusiasm of a person half his age. Stories that I can't share on air. But I'm fascinated with it. this felt very reflective.

It was almost like the hourglass. He felt like the sand was running out. I don't know how else to describe it. Again, I'm not trying to be dramatic here. I was second row. I saw the tears. I saw him getting choked up. He's always an emotional guy, but this, it felt different.

Maybe it's because he got the ball taken away from him last year. He wasn't talking to the media like he used to. I feel like he gets it. He's like Tinkerbell. Like he lives for the applause, right? Like he gets his super. power is his charisma and his energy. But it felt not even urgent.

It was almost like reflective, bittersweet. And then here's another story to support that argument where he talks about Jimmy Johnson and Barry Switzer and almost regrets, Bobby. When I look back at the time that we got to enjoy and what happened to us during that time, I go back to what Barry Switzer. said, Barry Switzer came in the office and Jimmy had just left. And so Barry came down from Norman, Oklahoma to talk about getting the job. And he comes in and he said, where's Jimmy? Now, Barry had coached us both. He said, where's Jimmy? And I said, Jimmy's gone. He said, well,

that's not right. Get him. Get him in here. I said, where's Jimmy? I said, Barry, Jimmy's gone. We're sitting here talking about you being the coach. I said, what in the world are you so anxious to talk to Jimmy about? He said, I just wanted to get both you little assholes on this couch and ask you both, how could you bump this up? That was Sweetser. On the way. You think about how you could do that now?

I mean, well, I just think of those great times. And Jimmy's great coach, great coach, and really, really. Dickless that my role here was my job to keep it together. It was my job. It should have deference, should have had deference to something that was working good. So those are the things that come to my mind. We had a great run of it. He's a great coach, and I'm proud to have him as a friend and proud to have had the times that we had. We just had a great experience. What? Do you think he to answer Barry's question now?

I've never been able to know why. I fucked it up. That, not just that, but anything else. No, I can't answer those questions. Will he go to ring a honor this year? What Jimmy going to ring of honor this year? You know, I don't want to do anything that takes away from this year. You know, he'll have a year, provided everything goes good.

He'll have a year that we also, honor his Hall of Fame and it will be this year and during the season at some time David Baker will come down so we don't want to do anything that makes that happen I'm excited actually I was the one that with David Baker when Jimmy was put in the hall there two years ago or last year not this year but a year ago I said, look, the Cowboys need to play in the Hall of Fame game, and he agreed, and he wanted that to be done. That was a condition.

Well, when they canceled the game last year, David said the first thing he did was call and say before, not that it's a condition because we need to cancel it anyway, but will you commit to play the next year? So really, we've been standing there waiting to play this game relative to this time when they come in the Ring of Honor, and of course we've got two other absolutely great Dallas Cowboy players going in up there too. So it's really propitious that we've got that, that we've got that game.

Let's don't let knock all the fun of it out of it. Of course, he's not talking about the Ring of Honor. I respect it because he says he doesn't want to take away from, you know, the Hall of Fame. But to admit that he effed up, I loved that he dropped the F bombs. It's one of my favorite words. I mean, I literally could use it. as a verb adjective now and I have to catch myself so I don't say it on on air but I don't think

there's any fan from the 90s that would disagree with them but for him to admit that and to be able to say like he still can't figure out why he effed it up I thought was fascinating I feel like that's the most direct responsibility he's taken for the breakup I mean not that he hasn't taken any in the past but I think he's always I remember him giving an interview I think it was to Fox a couple years ago where he had referenced that, you know, it was about respect and loyalty and being disloyal and you just can't let disloyalty go by. And there was just still some pushing off of responsibility. And I think that it's not fair to say it was all Jerry. There were, you talk to a lot of people who were around the organization at that time,

who are not Jerry loyalists or anything. They're just neutral parties. And they'll tell you that Jimmy had a big hand in that divorce and how ugly it got. But I do think that, yeah, you're starting to see a more reflective Jerry Jones here. And it's getting so far away from those memories being a day-to-day reality for him that I think he's, you know, as people tend to do as they age a little bit, they start doing a lot more looking on the inside and what their responsibility is and feeling remorse for that. not necessarily that remorse is the best word,

but he definitely seems to take a lot of the blame for that breaking up. I'm going to tell you, I actually found myself at one point during the presser thinking of myself, I don't want to envision covering this team when Jerry's not leading that state of the Cowboys address. It'll be different. When I think of this league, I don't think we'd be traveling on the road or necessarily have fans in the stance if it wasn't for Jerry.

I don't think SoFi Stadium would be here in L.A. and there would be two teams if it wasn't for Jerry. I don't think the contracts, the Cowboys, Jerry Jones rather, was 1,000 percent, I'm sure a part of, would be doled out the way that he has literally made this league profitable. You don't have the Nike partnerships that they have without Jerry. You don't have, you probably, if you may not have a season at all last year without Jerry.

you definitely don't have a 16 game season last year without Jerry. Jerry did a lot of the work behind the scenes to make sure there was a football season last year. And I think that's also why last year was. Where does he find the time of it? Between the brand endorsements, the star and first go, we talked about this before in the show. When he goes to events, he knows the names of people. And sure, Rich Downermanful, I'm sure helps him and perhaps him on some level. But I mean, hell, I can't remember half people's names that I've met last week.

I literally find him fascinated. I bet he does similar tricks to, I think I've told you this off the year before. I don't think I've ever told you on the year. Have you ever heard Ronald Reagan's old chocolate cake trick? Ronald Reagan used to tell his staff anytime they were traveling on Air Force One to have a chocolate cake on there. So they would have a chocolate cake.

And for a long time, people just thought like he just brings a chocolate cake and then he doesn't eat it. Why is that? The reason why he did that is because when they would land in another country and they were talking to a foreign leader, if he found out from somebody, oh, it's the foreign leader's birthday to day. He would go, oh yeah, you think I forgot about you? Go get the cake.

And he'd bring the cake out. And he didn't remember it was their birthday, but he'd always have the chocolate. I feel like that's how Jerry kind of operates in his space because he must have several tricks up his sleeve to stay abreast. Because as you mentioned, the thing with Clarence, and you hear so many stories from people who, not even just players and staff,

or you hear stories, you know, from people who have worked at the stadium for years about Jerry being nice to them and doing things for them and knowing what's going on in their world. And it's going to be, as reflective as he's getting and not necessarily like a father time drawing out on thing. It may be

a thing where he's just realizing it's about time to step away from day to day operations or something. We've talked about secession the show. It's going to be a much more depressing. It's going to be a less fun NFL. It's going to be a less fun Dallas Cowboys when Jerry Jones is not involved in the day-to-day

operations anymore. I agree. I don't want to think about it. And literally today I found myself sort of thinking about that. And look, I'm not trying to put you in the ground, Jerry, or write your eulogy because if there's anyone that I'm not counting out, it is certainly that guy. It's just I found myself thinking, yeah, it's going to be, it's going to be different. And then we'll see as it's Stephen Jones or Charlotte Jones, who takes the reins. That'll be the next interesting thing. Just going back to this podcast, we know that we have been sort of taking time off.

We're excited to be getting more regular again. We're excited for a new season. So we appreciate those of you that have hung out with us, who has stayed loyal to us. In fact, my producer today said he went to go download one of our episodes to prep for camp and they weren't there. We haven't had him for a while. We hope you know that when we come to you,

we want to make sure that we've got your content. We've got good analysis. We've got good insight. And it's been a hot minute since I've seen you, Bobby. Are you channeling Pat McAfee? Again, for those of you that are not watching. on our YouTube channel. He's literally gone Bill Belichick, sleeveless hoodie.

He's wearing this really like... Look at that tan line. I mean, I kind of love it. It's like you're, you're rocking like the California, like flat bill. Shout out. Shout out to our long time buddies, Ben Rogers and Jeff Skinway. This is their brewery. They open in Salina, Texas, Rollertown brewery.

So that's just supporting the fam there, which I guess I'll tell you now. I may have said, told Ben and, skin like hey we'll make sure to record one of our podcasts out there sometimes so you may have to drive to salina at some point uh and then this is this has just been my go-to uh i'm trying to do a lot more of the you know cardio and stuff like that so i've been doing a lot of like morning running and so this has been the the go-to for it and that's why that tan line is so aggressive there is because uh is because this is what i've been wearing when i go out and he it helps it's got pockets and it's been too hot to wear a long sleeve hoodie so i got a short cut off hoodie so that i could

carry like my sunglasses if i would have worn my sunglasses if if I knew the glare. I know. I'm pasty white right there. Yeah. It's aggressive. It's usually worse. It's usually up to here.

But this year we're actually getting, you know, sort of the tricep covered with fun. So that's good. Well, listen, if anything I learned today, a cautionary tale from Jerry Jones, when you've got a dream team and you're winning with somebody, don't eff it up. So I'm not trying to eff up our relationship here on this show, Bobby.

You are my MVP that will never, ever change. And I am excited for a new season. excited to be hanging out with you again and thank you so much to our loyal fans you continue to tune in and feel free to tweet at us. You've got questions you want answered we will get to the bottom of them.

How could you bump this up? Are you ready for the big day? Not your big day, her big day. Valentine's Day. If not, you better rush to FTT.com to order early and save on a winning combination of flowers and gifts for Monday, February 14th.

Looms and gifts are the perfect way to celebrate the one who caught your heart. So go to FTT.com and save 15% through February 14th with Code Crush 15 on fresh, florist delivered flowers when you order early. See website for details. FTD, give with meaning. 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. 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. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman, documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media.

I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. On the Look Back at a podcast.

From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. It was a wild year.

I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.