The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Colin Cowherd Podcast - Darnold Dazzles, Joe Burrow Is On FIRE, Big Pressure On Bills, Trade Kyler Murray? CFP Picks

Episode Date: December 30, 2024

Colin’s joined by John Middlekauff, host of “3 and Out” to break down all the week 17 NFL action! They start with the Vikings hanging on to beat the Packers and Colin argues that Sam Darnold’s brilliant play has earned him a contract in the 50m+/yr range and Minnesota would be crazy not to give it to him (3:00). They debate whether the Patriots should look to make a coaching change now that they’ve found their quarterback or whether they should stay the course with Jerod Mayo (21:00). They heap praise on Jim Harbaugh and highlight the incredible improvement shown by the Chargers in his first year as head coach (27:00) and they debate whether Bills head coach Sean McDermott should lose his job if they make a playoff exit prior to the AFC championship (36:15).  They discuss Aaron Rodgers taking not-so-subtle shots at Jets owner Woody Johnson and what the Jets should do at coach and quarterback in 2025 (41:45). They argue that Joe Burrow is playing quarterback better than anyone in the league after the Bengals beat the Broncos (52:30) and debate which wild card teams are capable of winning a playoff game (58:30).  They try to make sense of the incredibly up and down nature of the LA Rams (1:01:00), and Colin offers a Mea Culpa for spending so long defending Kyler Murray and wonders if the Cardinals could look to trade him in the offseason (1:05:30). They also address the disparity between the top and bottom teams in the league and the large number of really BAD teams at the bottom of the standings and debate whether it’s a one-off or a trend (1:17:00).  Finally, they pivot to college football’s top stars and try to project where players like Shedeur Sanders, Cam Ward and Travis Hunter will land (1:22:00), and make their picks for the College Football Playoff games (1:30:00). (Timestamps may vary based on advertisements.) Follow Colin and The Volume on Twitter for the latest content and updates!  #Volume #Herd #3andOut  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas.

We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you.

you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the ice. Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast, Point Game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was crying. You just understood.

That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis'clock, he's like, you know, I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the, iHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Hey, I'm Deanna Maria Riva, and on my new podcast, How Hard Can It Be? I call on my Gen X squad from Ohio to Hollywood as we navigate Midlife's most fantastic BS. Unfiltered conversations from night sweats to futas to scheduling sex. Wait, what sex? Is it just me or does every woman my age want to look at Pinterest instead of having sex sometimes? They say we can't polish a turn, but we're sure going to try. so let's get blunt with laughs, tears, or tears of laughter. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Diana Maria Riva

on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And here's Heather with the weather. Well, it's beautiful out there, sunny and 75, almost a little chilly in the shade. Now, let's get a read on the inside of your car. It is hot. You've only been parked a short time, and it's already 99 degrees in there. Let's not leave children in the back seat while running errands. It only takes a few minutes for their body temperatures to rise, and that could be fatal.

Cars get hot, fast, and can be deadly. Never leave a child in a car. A message from NHTSA and the ad council. The volume. Our week 17 reaction is presented by Uber Eats. Get game day deals all season long on Uber Eats. All right, here we go. Former NFL scout.

John Midlakov, he has a podcast three and out. It was a very busy weekend Sunday, especially the early window, didn't give us much. But let's start with Minnesota 27, Green Bay 25. So I had a conversation yesterday with a general manager in the league who said, yeah, you can forget, you can forget Sam Darnold at 40 million. He said, you're not getting Sam Darnold at 40 million. Sam's moved into the five, 50, 51. and I watched him today, even after his pick, five for five, 55 yards touchdown. Final drive, you know, he got a little bit lucky.

Some play calling, you know, let's just be honest here. Kevin O'Connell's development and play calling is substantial. And between Jefferson, Addison, and Naylor, the Michigan State kid, they have incredible wide receiving group. So I'm not taking anything away. But Sam, here's the thing I take away, John, and you, as a former scout, they're asking him to make big boy throws. Some of this shit, these are hard. Even when they were leading late in the fourth, I'm like, guys, screen passes, lighten up. They're asking Sam, this is not dink and dunk.

These are tough throws. Yeah, I mean, he's treating this guy like Mahomes meets Joe Montana in terms of his play calling, complete trust. I mean, honestly, you removed two throws, the interception, where he got greedy, and the throw toward the end of the game that he airmailed at us. sin that could have been a disaster. Yeah. He was as good as the Josh Allen, Mahomes, Lamar. I mean, that's a dominant, dominant performance. I thought, given the hype in this game and the pressure, and we know,

Minnesota's got to be one of the better home field advantages, how loud it is. Maybe the best. You know, sometimes you can be overjuiced. To go 17 of 22 in the first half and just slice and dice this team, you know what I had to do immediately? I had to Google Jordan Love's contract because I'm thinking, and listen, Jordan Love for whatever a reason for a good player. He is a slow starter in these games. Yeah. But I googled he got a $75 million signing bonus and $160 million guaranteed. And if I'm Sam Darnold and we beat Detroit next week and we're the

number one seed, I don't see how you could take anything less than that. It's like because Jordan Love got paid really off eight games. Remember the first half of the season, he was atrocious. And obviously he had been there longer and they liked him and they know him. But every time I hear Kevin O'Connell talk about Sam Darnold, it's like the way I hear Andy talk about my homes. I mean, they love it. They love. the guy. And listen, they didn't, this is not a clunky Atlanta Falcons situation. This was good business. They paid a guy $10 million and they drafted a guy who essentially fell into their lap that they liked as well, J.J. McCarthy. Things changed throughout the course of the year. This is not a 35 year old strike and oil late in his career, right? This is not a Gino Smith situation, 27 years old. He was one of the younger players

to come in the league, right, when he was drafted. Today was, and they've been doing this all season. I was like, this is not, it's not like they've peaking. They were blowing out teams immediately. The Giants, they destroyed, they destroyed the 49ers, they destroyed the Texans. And in their fourth game, they were up 28 to nothing on this Packer team in Green Bay. And the Green Bay came back, but they've been dominating start to finish with him at quarterback. Look at the 2018 draft class. Baker, Darnold, Josh Allen Lamar, all having their best years.

And it's funny. Like, we used to always talk about the Marino and Elway class. We've had two classes now that have been like four star quarterbacks out of it. You know, and it's funny, John, because in baseball, we understand even if you're Bryce Harper, you go to the minors, and it takes a while to get it going. In the NBA, even if you're Janus, it takes three to four years to build into something. But in the NFL, we figure, well, you know, you're 22. You went to college, but it's very similar.

If you don't get a good fit, I mean, Mahomes didn't play his first year. You know, Josh Allen was rough his first year. And if you go to a bad organization, I mean, so it's like you look at Sam now, you're like, Sam has four to five more minimum peak years. Here's the other thing. I'm never going to talk about a guy's money, right? Like, but if you could take a little less to stay with Minnesota, even though they have Jay, Jay McCarthy in the offing, it's weird.

Like, like, I mean, listen, again, if somebody offers you a 52 and, you know, I'm Minnesota, I don't let him go. I think you and I agree. I'm not letting him go. But if he goes to the, if he goes to the market and somebody offers 51, but it's like the Raiders, or you can go to a place that's got better players and better personnel, because I think what Sam has learned is, wow, coaching and weapons really matter, really matter. Because I think, I mean, we can talk about Justin Jefferson, but hell, Naylor today, T.J. Hawkinson, the run game, Addison, Kevin O'Connor, you know, we haven't talked about this. Is Kevin O'Connell the coach of the year? You know, I'm sure we'll talk about Harbaugh a little bit later, but to me, it's Kevin O'Connell or Jim Harbaugh.

I mean, Jim Harbaugh took over a five-win team. Kevin O'Connell, they started slow last year, but before Cousins Torres Achilles, they were really coming on. Yeah. And two years ago, if memory serves me correct. I think they were the two seed. Now they lost the Giants in the first round, but this team has been good

for a couple years. Yeah. This is the best version of it. But, you know, I always say about play callers, you know, certain people in any industry, obviously you get better

at whatever you're doing with reps and experience, but certain people are just much, there's like an innate quality to them at what they're doing immediately. McVeigh, Kyle Shanhan, LaFour, you could just see it.

We see some of these guys become play callers, and you're like, yeah, this is just not going to work. Right. Not because if you got him on a whiteboard, they would know any less than Kevin O'Connell, but the flow of a game,

maybe they freak out, maybe they get stressed, maybe they lose it, whatever it is. He today was, it was like, he would call the screen at the perfect time. He would call a perfect zone beating route

in the perfect time. And obviously him and the quarterback, I don't see how you could ever pivot off when you're a play caller and you get a quarterback who's young and has these physical skills and it's working with your weapons who were all under contract, why you would want to mess with that, just because you drafted a quarterback guy, who cares?

I thought the play call of the game. It was 2725. Minnesota needed two first downs to win the game. And the very first play, no defensive coach is calling this. The very first play was a bootleg first down pass. It was like a bootleg screen to the fullback. And there's not a defensive coach in the world that's calling that. he pack because you're thinking to yourself keep it on the ground eat the clock get a first down

he goes bootleg for and picks the first down up on the first play which doesn't eat clock but what it did it set the tone like and by the way that's the play they used on the other side to get the game clinching first down but and i love lefleur but boy early in this game when they dug a hole he was really leaning on the run game on early dashed And again, I think we both like LaFleur. But I think maybe because he was a quarterback, I think Kevin O'Connell would rather throw. And I think Matt LaFleur's DNA, he would rather run. And I thought in the first half, you saw a little bit about that.

Yeah, I think Kevin O'Connell's drawn more to Sean McVeigh were at their core that they do like slinging it around. And I think LaFleur at his core is more drawn toward Kyle and his dad, where in this game, you know, on the road, we want to come out and establish we're tougher than you. And the one thing is this Vikings team is really, really tough. Yeah. And I don't know if their personnel is great on defense, but they're fundamentals in terms of you're not getting guys out of gaps running the wrong way. That's right. Flores is, I mean, what him and Fangio have done to their units this year

have just been dominant start to finish. And I think, listen, I appreciate because I've watched Kyle win some big games by leaning on the opponent. because when you can run the ball, you slow down the game and take the crowd out of it a little bit. And listen, it's happened to LaFleur before as the Green Bay Packer coach. Kyle kind of did that essentially, you know, in Green Bay in that cold game, you know, in the playoffs a couple years ago where it's just like slow the game down, keep it a lower scoring game. Watson's out.

We're not looking for a shootout. You know, Josh Jacobs is a tight back where I bet their game plan coming in was, hey, like 120 yards on like 30 carries and we just control the, you know, the time of possession because we're not going to be able to cover these guys. I mean, those two, I mean, Jordan, Justin Jefferson is, I mean, as talented as of a wide receiver as there's been of my adult life. I mean, obviously the Randy Moss is, I mean, there's some all-time great, but his physical toolbox of deep speed, break tackles. He were lower his shoulder on defenders, one-handed catches. I mean, he's a total package. And then Jordan Addison was a first-round pick to USC once upon a time.

gave a million dollars to transfer. That's a big time player. Yeah. So I think that they knew that was a little disadvantage to him. We can't get in a shootout, even though the Packers can against some teams. Yeah. So they tried to slow the game. And it blew up in their face because I couldn't, you know, they just weren't explosive

on the ground. And, I mean, Sam Darnold looked. I just, I can't get over. Like, it's just every single week he answers the bell. Like, there's no more even conversation to have. It's just how are you going to approach it? Are you going to franchise them and then try to get the deal done? Well, that screws you a little.

bit because you can't, that takes up a lot of your cap space, so you can't sign other guys. I think by the combine, they might have a deal worked out. I don't know what else there is to see at this point in time. Yeah. I mean, he really gives you size, arm, playmaking. I think the year in San Francisco, cognitively, I think he's better above the shoulders. He can still be a tad reckless. I don't think he's naturally, naturally accurate like Burrow, but he's accurate. He's actually strangely, I don't know if you've noticed this. He's almost more accurate on like a 25-yard seam route than a six-yard swing pass. Well, throws it behind guys in a zone 30 yards down the field. He just throws a dart. He is better. You know, his fastball is better than his off-speed stuff. When you're asking Sam, who's hyper-aggressive,

to throw a little lob out 12 yards. Like, that's the stuff where it gets, it gets a little dicey. But you ask him to throw that, that ball down the middle of the field. Dude, he has got a rope. One thing that really jumps out is some guys, they'll just play very conservative, what the game plan gives you. Like, they won't try to push the envelope even good players. You know, Jared Goff can play like this.

And it works. And Jordan Love operates like this a lot of the time. This guy comes out like early Mahomes or like Favre, where it could get you in trouble too, but he is looking to throw 50-yard bombs. Every time you watch them play, regardless of the opponent, it feels like they take a legit shot,

minimum once a quarter. Yeah, sometimes more. And I'm not talking 20 yards. I'm talking he is letting it rip. Yes. And that is, and clearly him and the coach, and obviously their weapons,

it all kind of works. Like you said, because the coach wants to throw bombs. Yes. There's a certain symmetry with Kevin O'Connell's DNA and Sam's ability. They, you know, you don't, and I do hope Brian Flores gets a head job because I really think he is taking, I think it's fairly average personnel, and he's making it a B plus defense, and it's probably C plus personnel, most of their talents on the offensive side.

So we're going to go in a different order today. We're going to go back to a Saturday game because we're going to talk some Cam Ward. We'll get to the Jets Bills. We'll get to a lot of games, but it was a pretty light Sunday menu. because of all the games on Saturday. Well, it's the most wonderful time of the year for getting in all the basketball, football, hockey action at Draft King Sportsbook. It's the season of giving, so we're being gifted college football and basketball,

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Bet must win to receive reward. Bonus bets expire 168 hours after issuance. Four additional terms and responsible gaming resources, see dkng.com slash B-Ball. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, name? Huge news.

We created our own podcast. called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts. We're starting a trend.

But this one's extra special. So how did we actually come up with a name, Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. Well, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band. Before Jonas Brothers was...

This is how you guys remember it going to. down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, people could call in and say, Hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and Friends. me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and headwriter, 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. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in.

I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you content. and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them.

Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible. incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing.

And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth. Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Keir Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing,

growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the hard way and listen now. 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, Podcast 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. So I want to talk New England, getting thumped by the Chargers Saturday 40 to 7, because we'll get into the Harbaugh stuff. I want to start with New England. So the Boston media is a bit spoiled with a Celtic success.

of Great Red Sox teams and the Patriots 20-year dynasty. So they want to get rid of Gerard Mayo. But Dan Campbell went three and 13 and one his first year. And then he went one in six to start his second year. This shit's hard. And Elliot Wolfe is the VP in terms of personnel. They want him out. Well, he got the quarterback. Like Drake may can play. Now, I don't think at this point, remember, we had real reservations about Dan Campbell. The kneecap press conference, he came across as Fred Flintstone. But in the end, he found a really sharp connective tissue to the quarterback named Ben Johnson. So it works for him.

If he doesn't have Ben Johnson, it may not feel the same. And we still think he takes too many risks and big spots. But my take is New England now has the number one draft pick. And they have their quarterback. So they could move down to five or six and get a Travis Hunter level player. They could get two first round picks, two seconds. And my take is, I think we're forgetting. We're not talking Jim Harbaal.

We didn't expect that. But if you look at a lot of these coaches who turn things around, that first year is not always Urban Meyer and Bill Parcells. I don't think Gerard Mayo is who I would have hired. Can I not argue? They got the quarterback. They're number one. Josh Allen's going to own this damn division as long as he's in his prime. Don't run through coaches because you can't beat Josh Allen.

You're not going to Brady own the division. Marino, I mean, most great quarterbacks, Malhomes owns the division. Or are you a, it just doesn't look like it works. Let's go get the right guy. I think after watching yesterday and the way this is, I mean, they were terrible last year. They had the third overall pick. And they're worse this year. And his unit, the defense, like he was, quote unquote, the defensive coordinator.

They were good last year. They're atrocious this year. it turns out, well, Bill is kind of his baby, right? Right. So now it looks like how much with Bill. The other thing is the Dan Campbell comparison, Dan had been an assistant for a long time post player. You know, he had been an interim coach for a brief stint with Miami. Then he became Sean Payton's right-hand guy.

This guy wasn't an assistant coach long. You know, him and Antonio Pierce, I have no issue with former players, you know, jumping people in the ring to, you know, to become position coaches, coordinators or whatever. but like that is pretty valuable. You know, this guy hasn't been a coach very long. So you're watching him, you're like, who would you rather have next year, Mike Vrable or Gerard Mayo? And some of the press conferences,

the whole situation's been clunky. You know, the reporting coming out of Boston about the interview process last year when he was interviewing assistants, it's been weird. They showed a graphic yesterday as they're getting their ass kicked of the Ladd-McConkey trade,

how the Chargers came up a couple spots to get Ladd-McConkey. they took Polk, who all my scouting buddies called the third best receiver on the Washington team, McMillan, who's having a solid rookie season for Tampa. He's got 12 catches. And it's just, you watch this team and you go, this is really, really bad. Yeah. And it's like last year, it was like, okay, Mac Jones is an atrocious player.

Now you got Drake May and who's talented, but the games are just, like him and Caleb playing just meaningless games. Yeah. Even their passes are just in meaningless situations. You know, you watch Bo Nix playing in real games. I'm watching the Patriots. Personally, if Mike Vrable wants it, he got inducted last year into the Hall of Fame. Obviously, he's a, you know, a major piece of the Patriot story and proven that he could coach. I think I wouldn't even hesitate doing that if he was interested.

And I would have been reported. He's interested. By the way. It's a better job than Chicago or the Jets. If I got Robert Kraft and Drake May, that's a better job in the Jets in Chicago. if you consider all the politics. Another thing, it's familiar. Bob Kraft loves you, Stephen Kraft.

So I will argue, I, you probably change my mind on that. I will say this because I, it's funny, I know. That was really bad yesterday. Oh, no, I watched.

And it's not like the Chargers. This isn't the 07 Patriots coming in with Jim Arno. I mean, they're solid. And they might compete in a playoff game, but that, they shouldn't be beating anyone 40 to 7 on the road. You know, I was thinking about this with Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey of the Chargers coming in and dominating.

When you're at Georgia, every day at practice, the tight end faces first round safeties and Ladd McConkey faced first round NFL corners. It's not a coincidence that Ladd McConkey and Brock Bowers walk into this league. They look like eight-year veterans because the last three years, four years, they've been at practice at Georgia. That's why I've always had misgivings about drafting guys from smaller schools. An SEC guy, Georgia, Bama, Ohio State, these Ohio State corners. Caleb Downs is facing these receivers. They're the best players in the country every day at practice.

And, you know, like Justin Jefferson, Jamar Chase. Well, Stingley's on that team. I mean, these guys are going up against each other day every day in practice. But I think what's amazing about Harbaugh, not only did he take the same defense and make it number one in the league, and it was atrocious last year, But Quentin Johnson's fascinating because Telesco just thought they needed to move off eventually they would move off Mike Williams. They knew it because Mike couldn't stay healthy. They wanted Mike's prototype, a big, strong, long. And he was a bus last year.

I mean, could not get on the field, forget targets. And he's been inconsistent this year. But about every other game, this game, McConkey had eight catches, he had six. About every other game with Quentin Johnson, who was a bus coming into this year? He's a really valuable player. And I think it's not just wins and losses, John. A really good coach squeezes all the juice out of a player. Quentin Johnson probably will never be a first-round NFL talent or first-round productive.

But about every other game now, you look up and you're like, boy, he's a different body type. His ability, I mean, Derwin James is good regardless of the coach. McConkey would have succeeded. but it's not just winning and toughness. I think the really good coaches, I mean, Kevin O'Connell and Darnold, they just get more out of each individual player. There's not a single charger this year

that is not playing better than last year individually. Yeah, I think, you know, did a podcast last night, and I was thinking about Jim Harbaugh, and this solidified it. There's just, there's no one else in football. I mean, we'll see what Bill was. looks like in college, who can just go back and forth and kick everyone's ass. Stanford, they were one and 11.

By the end, they're in a BCS game. The 49ers, while he inherited a lot of talent, they were six and ten with Mike Singletary. And I know those guys that cover that team really well. And Matt Mayoko told me, even Jim Tom Sula and for as ugly as the Chip Kelly year, nothing will top that Mike Singletary year. Yeah. I mean, he was dropping trow at half time trying to motivate. It was a disaster.

Immediately 13 and 3, and they were hosting the NFC championship game. And if you remember, the White Sox GM, Kyle Williams fumbled a punt or they probably beat the New York Giants and Eli Manning and go play the New England Patriots with Alex Smith as a quarterback, whoever wanted to written off. And then obviously what he did at Michigan, but then comes to the Chargers. I think the Chargers, even more than Niners, because they got a bunch of good players, people like, that's not as hard of a job. That team won five games last year and was atrocious. Worst team in the league by the end of the year. And then they get rid of Keenan Allen, who was one of the bright spots. And do you know what?

And I got talked out of this. I thought, I'm going to make one of the biggest bets in my life on this team making the playoffs. There are seven spots. You look, the AFC will get weird. Some of these divisions will eat themselves. I think Jim Harbaugh can get to nine or ten wins. And everyone, even people in the league is like, they don't have enough offensive talent. They don't have this.

They don't have that. He never has great offensive talent. He runs the ball against the quarterback and he plays defense. He's doing the same thing again. And he's going right into the playoffs. and who's going to want to play him in the playoffs. Nobody. Nobody, because he will ugly up the game. What LaFleur tried to do today, he actually can execute that. He doesn't win them all, but he can make that game look like that. Yeah. Well, I mean, at Michigan, the Natty

team had one big-time receiver. His Niner teams had Crabtree. This team has McConkey. If you go look at his history, Stanford was mostly a run game and a Andrew Luck team and a tight end team. Harbaugh, I heard the two people I was told, good source inside the building, the two players that Harbaugh loved in the first round, Brian Thomas and Joe Alt, they're two of the best rookies. It wasn't Roma Dunze. It wasn't. He loved LSU's LSU kid, and he loved Joe Alt. And he decided to bookend it with Herbert and say, hey, we got two tackles for the next decade. But, and people forget about this. The Chargers also got two fifth round corners, one from Maryland. So Jim's going to have, I mean, go look at their draft.

I didn't miss on anybody. I mean, they just, boom, boom, everybody can play. So, and he's going to have, this is very Pete Carroll out of USC. He knows all these guys. Yeah, the next two drafts, he has an advantage over the league. Now, by about year four, he's not going to have the same advantage. But it's very Pete Carroll when he came out and he was getting Richard Sherman out of Stanford in the fifth round. Everybody's like, how's Pete?

No. He's taken over two NFL jobs coming through college. Stanford where he was in a BCS game in Michigan where he won the national championship. The Niners had six wins, the Chargers had five wins. That's a combined 11 wins. If he wins next week, which I imagine if he plays his starters, he will beat the Raiders. He will have taken a total of two teams, 11 wins to 24 wins. More than doubled it.

Coming from college twice, two different times. He just jumps back and forth. Who could do that? No, I think it's crazy. There's an argument to be made. That if you, you know how basketball Hall of Fame takes referees, it takes ambassadors, it takes college pro, it combines everything. If you combine college and pro, Harbaugh and Jimmy Johnson, you know, I mean, now, so Reed and Belichick, because of all their wins are like the top,

you could start making arguments that Jimmy Johnson and Harbaugh are like the only two guys ever that were literally elite. Now Pete Carroll won in both, but Pete's also been fired three times. in the NFL. And I like Pete, but that's the reality of it. He's always been viewed by my front office friends. It's a little quirky and different. Harbaugh is A++ college, A++ NFL. And Jimmy Johnson's about the only guy I can ever think of that was both. And I, you know, it's for years and years I had people in, I know Jim pretty well, and I know people that have been really close with them. Eric Mangini talks about this. So much of what we do for a living, what people do for a living.

And I've told my kids this before. How badly do you want it? And Eric Mangini has always told me, I've never met a coach who loves football more than hardball. In his vacation, he'll be looking up old NFL rules. That literally we saw it this year right before halftime when they kicked that field goal against Denver. is that he loves football. He's not going to golf or go to a water park.

I mean, I'm sure he's a great dad and a husband, but he has such a zeal for it. And it's really, and that's the difference. He just, he is one of those guys. There's everything. He likes the aura, the essence, the power, the physicality, the schemes. And he'll sit in meeting rooms for hours and try to make his assistance and coordinators figure out the Rubik's cube, and he loves sitting in there.

And he's just an advertisement in any business. If you want it bad enough and if you love it enough, you will just succeed. It doesn't matter where you went to college. It doesn't matter the criticism. Willful, passion. And everybody I know that's ever worked with him is like, this dude, it's not even, it's just the hobbies, they don't know what they are. It's football. Well, and the other thing is, and I get asked a lot of, you know, just get DMs on Instagram, people asking,

questions and someone said, I'm a big Charger fan. And there's always been this narrative around Jim that he rubs people the wrong way and he has a shelf life. And I think at Stanford, you know, I think that mentality was a lot for people with the 49ers. It definitely was and he butted heads with the owner. Yeah. I think the guy and you and I've been talking about is a different human being than that guy. Yes. Much lighter with still the same drive. Like Andy is a very light. He's not like just what Jim was, that, but he's very football intense. When you talk about the way you described, I didn't ever work with Jim, I would describe Andy Reed that way, his love and passion and unwillingness to just slow down when it comes

to football. Vacation, offseason, and I've heard since he's been winning Super Bowls, you wouldn't notice any difference. He'll drive by his cars in the office on Saturday, just doing some miscellaneous shit on an April day, three weeks before the draft when they're not, they have three picks. You know, it's just his pure passion. And I'm sure you give this advice. Anytime that passion, you can turn it into something you can monetize as a profession,

you are much more inclined to be successful. But I do think Jim had to learn to relax a little bit as the head honcho is the guy's top of the org chart. And I think he clearly has. Yeah, I think it shows. And this is the worst his team's going to be, right? And I'd say the same thing for Sean Payton and Denver. Like both those two teams are going to get better. Like the version of the chiefs, and they're going to maintain being good because they really know what they're doing.

But it's hard. I mean, they've got to fit around some money. Like, this is the worst those two teams are going to be. Now, Herbert is a much better player than Bow Nicks right now. Yeah. So I would just say, like I think the Chargers are going to be better next year. And like you said, he knows the draft really well. There will be players, Nico Collins.

I remember last year, it's like, who is this guy? Is it played at Michigan? I'm like, I watch you don't even realize. He has wide receivers. in college that will play for him. Like, I didn't quite realize that guy was there because it doesn't even use them. I mean, that's how it's always been. Yeah.

So 40 to a 7, a Chargers Hammer, New England. It's time to look at this weekend's tastiest matchup. And this week's Sunday night foodball brought to you by Uber Eats. Okay, Bill's 40, Jets 14. Jets had 16 penalties. It's over. So, you know, I will say this about Buffalo. I think these are the Sean McDermott.

playoffs. So Josh Allen, I looked it up today in 10 playoff games, has a passer rating of a hundred, 21 touchdowns, four picks. This is not a Lamar Jackson situation. He has been a B plus to a minus quarterback in the playoffs. And again, I don't expect you to be as good as you are in the regular season because you're not playing Carolina and you're not playing shitty teams. So if you're a hundred passer rating quarterback in the playoffs, that's exceptional. And Lamar has gotten tight. Like, you can see it. He's tight. That's not Josh. Josh has been excellent. If they get bounced early in the playoffs,

and I know this sounds crazy, and I like Sean McDermott, John, if they lost, if they got, if Cincinnati got in and played Buffalo in the first round and Cincinnati won, I'm telling you,

I think McDermott's in trouble because when I watch this team, I don't want to hear about Josh Allen. This is not a Josh Allen referendum. He lost a game because he scored a touchdown with 13 seconds left of Mahomes. He's been fine. in the playoffs.

This team, this coaching staff, has real pressure on. I mean, think about this. Harbaugh's not going to get fired if they lose in the playoffs. And he's not. I mean, think of a coach that we get Lafleur safe. You know, I mean, Siriani, real pressure, Sean McDermott, real pressure.

I am fascinated to watch Buffalo. They have to, at minimum, get to the conference championship, at minimum, in my opinion. Yeah, I mean, well, they're going to be more than likely, I think Denver's going to win next week. If Andy rests everybody, and it's a kitchen sink game for them, they would be a huge favorite in that game. I mean, we're talking touchdown plus, maybe eight, nine points. I'm pretty confident Buffalo wins that game. Same.

The next game, though, it gets real. I mean, you're playing Baltimore, who feels like they're really coming on. Right. I don't know what Baltimore did. Their defense looks better. That would be a maker breaker. Because then if you win that game, all of a sudden, you'd have a lot of momentum going into Kansas City, right?

And you've beat them already this year. So I think it'd go one of two ways. I think they're winning week one, or, you know, that first in Buffalo no matter what. I'd have a hard time. But that week two game against Baltimore is a massive, massive game. That's going to be. Because I would say this, if they go to Kansas City and they have another one of those,

and listen, he's had some weird moments with clock management. If it feels like he blows a game, maybe. But if you get beats, like some people just couldn't beat Michael Jordan. Some people just couldn't beat Tiger Woods. I don't think it, I think losing to Baltimore, you already lost to him this season, you get them at home in the second round. I think you've got to be in the conference championship game. I think you can lose to the Chiefs and keep your head high.

Yeah. Even though it would start to feel like, are we just always going to be second fiddle? Or us in Baltimore is always going to be second? And the fact is, yeah, you might. You know, that was kind of like Pittsburgh and some of these other teams to Bill Belichick and Tom Brady. You just play for second in your conference. But I think they'd have to win that game or else it could be weird. Because, and listen, I think it's hard.

I mean, what do you even make of the jet? The jets are a joke. I mean, and I give the bills credit. It was a little weird early, and then it was 40 to nothing. And it was like, okay, you guys were just toying with them. Well, we learned this. Matt Eberflus and Robert Salah got fired, and their teams got worse. So I always believe, be very careful about firing a coach in season because if the interim coach wins,

you get fan and player pressure to hire interim coach. And if he loses, then you lose the locker room. So they're two and nine since Robert Sala left. But I always felt that Sala wasn't the problem. There's an argument he was not the solution, but I never thought he was the problem. But really quick before the Jets, on the bills, if you and I own the team and we were sitting down, like going to the playoffs, like what are our different options if things go south? Our division is a disaster. The Jets couldn't be any more of a laughing stock.

the Patriots are not even a year away from being a year away from winning nine games. And the Dolphins, I mean, I just don't really take the franchise seriously, and we own them. So it's like, now, you know, trying to go from really good to great, totally admire anyone who's willing to do that. But it is a pretty risky proposition. Now, if that job became open, everyone in their mother would be calling them. But I just think that like you do have a pretty good thing going. Yes. And to me, especially if you lose the Chiefs, you're going to keep winning 12, 13.

games every year in this division. And you know you have a capable guy. I'm just saying it's pretty risky. Yes. I get it. Do you just stay? Do you ride the course a little bit? Because the Jets could go backwards from here and the Patriots could be stuck here for a couple years. Yeah. No, I think, I think it's something you got to take into account. Yeah, I'm, I'm not saying I'd fire Sean McDermott, but I do believe the pressure is on Sean McDermott. Yeah, I agree. Whereas in Baltimore, the pressure's on Lamar. John Harbaugh's got a ring. The pressure with Joe Flacco. Lamar Nehner. Lamar needs to play better. That's indisputable. He's got to play better. Josh has played very well in most spots. I would agree, but that organization, I think most people would choose the Ravens roster

over the Bill's roster. I think there's going to be a tough. That game, I mean, we have to play it out to look at all the different games. That's got to be one of the better playoff games of the entire tournament, right? If I tell you Ravens at Bill's what's on the line for those two guys, it doesn't. I mean, that's Saturday or Sunday night, week two, right? That's as good as it gets. Yeah. One thing on the Jets, Aaron, you know, 12 completions, two picks. He's about the 15th or 16th best quarterback probably in the league now. Maybe, you know, maybe 13th, 12th. It's interesting this week, though, and Eric Mangini pointed this out to me on television, that when Aaron referenced Woody Johnson's kids, I've never been fired by a teenager, it was almost as if Aaron, was saying, I want out of here. And I do think, I'll say this. Russell may leave Pittsburgh, don't know if he will.

Kirk Cousins could be on the market, probably will. I think Aaron's got about a two-team market. I could see the Raiders, because they won again today. I could see the Raiders if they're like, we're not going to move up for Camer should do her. We're just not going to move up. I could see them going with like a Kirk Cousins or an Aaron Rogers for year. I really could for one year. Yeah, when I saw the story today that rap sheet said that Garrett Wilson has basically let it be known. If this guy comes back, I'm going to want out.

Yeah. I was dominating and then you begged for your friend to come here and then I just became kind of irrelevant. Yeah. And we know how wide receivers can kind of turn into divas that way. So that's gotten weird. And I would choose a young Garrett Wilson over a 41-year-old Netflix star at this point in time. So I think this, Roger, this thing's over. Who would you hire? is a coach? I mean, to me, you just, Ben Johnson would be, obviously, a guy you'd interview just because, and I'm always hesitant with these coordinators, but there have been enough coordinators excel on the offensive side of the ball, and he's been so good that he's, to me, him and

Vrable. I mean, now that Bill Belichick would have been a guy, I would have hired if I were all these teams, but I think those are the two guys. Who else are you really option? Now, one, we got a curveball here because, and I know he got his ass kick today, but, you know, C.D. Lamb was out. McCarthy, these teams are going to want to talk to Mike McCarthy. Sure.

So Jerry has played this out like, yeah, we'll just date a little bit more before we really get married. It turns out, Mike's actually helped himself out. So like if Mike McCarthy's available, I know this, the Jets could do way worse than just to get a grownup, a guy that knows what he's doing. Yeah. And would be guaranteed they just get the train back on the tracks. So like, to me, McCarthy is an intriguing option. If he goes, yeah, Jerry goes, yeah, I want to bring you back. And what if Mike goes, yeah, you know, I want to talk some other people as well, as you kind of played me out.

And I worked my ass off and worked with these quarterbacks. So you have to wonder if Mike, you know, by week one of the Black Friday set up, like, is it Mike McCarthy's meeting with two teams? Like, is that possible while he's still dealing with the Cowboys? Oh, keep an eye on that. I think that's happening. Listen, I said this last week. If you flip the telescope on Mike McCarthy, he gets older, stubborn, rigid, at Favv, two years, goes 13 and 3 NFC championship, wins a Super Bowl with Aaron. We now discover

that Aaron's difficult to coach. Both Lefleur and Robert Sala discovered that and Mike McCarthy, three for three. He then goes, not only wins 12 games a year with the best B plus quarterback in the league in an O-line rebuild DAC, he's winning with Cooper Rush. And so it's like at some point he won with Fav. He won with the Southern guy. He won with the prickly, passive aggressive Cali guy. He won with a guy that kind of is kind of an overpaid B plus guy Dak. He's not winning with a backup. You say what you want about Mike McCarthy. He's won with everybody. And all his quarterbacks put up their best records and their best numbers with him. So sometimes, I know what I always said this. Aaron was this good looking cool guy in Green Bay and Mike

looked like a Milwaukee cop. And just the aesthetic of it, sometimes Mike came across as sort of, you know, unsophisticated, little heavy, and Aaron was the hip coelster on TV. And I think that played into it that Mike was sort of marginalized. But we have to be fair about this. Every quarterback that plays with Mike McCarthy flourishes. All of them. Cooper Rush, Dak, Farr, Aaron, all of them flourish. And so to your point, I think he'll have options.

And he's calling the plays. So it's not like, well, he's like Tomlin or Dan Campbell or Siriani. you know, he's rallying the troops. No, like, he's the guy in the meeting with the quarterback calling the plays from the sideline. So he brings a value. So it's like, wait, he can lead the organization. He can handle crazy shit because like the end of Aaron.

But the last couple years of Jerry could not. I mean, he's dealing with Jerry Jones in his 80s. Nuts. And then once he got rid of Kellyn Moore, I think people thought did he lose his touch at the end of Green Bay? You watched last year, Dak had the best year of his career. Yeah. And then this fight, I mean, if the guy doesn't screw up, up against the Bengals on Monday night football touching that ball, he would have won five straight

games with Cooper Rush. So I think Mike McCarthy, if you removed the day, which I think it's fair to say if you just took every team in the NFL and they just nobody had a quarterback and everyone got the same quarterback, you might choose the Eagles team, right? If every quarterback was the same, the Eagles probably have the best team. Like, it was bound to happen to them. They were missing a couple players and they got run. But I think what else is Jerry going to do? Like, Jerry going to hire someone else. I think he's going to want McCarthy back, but I do wonder if Mike, someone plays you a little bit in business and you got some leverage, I could see Mike screwing with him back a little bit. This week, Sunday Night Football, brought to you by Uber Eats as the official on-demand delivery

partner of the NFL. They have the best game day deals all season long. Order now for game day. I do every week. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers. And guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, huge news? We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there.

But this one's extra special. So how did we actually come up with a name, Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. Oh, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band. Before Jonas Brothers was... This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes.

I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say, hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. 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, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying,

and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athletes themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real.

From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaders to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports slice brings you closer to the action. with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit,

of the thing. We get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me. Kear gains is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. 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. All right, so the Bengals beat the Broncos 30 to 24. Bow Nicks, one in six and one possession games. Rookie quarterbacks, as you'd suspect, aren't going to beat Joe Burrow in games like that. So Burroughs the only great quarterback in the league that may not make the playoffs. And he's fricking on fire.

And I mean, they had 500 total yards, 34 first downs. And by the way, Bonix didn't play well. 24 or 31, 311 yards, seven rushes. He looked so average compared to Burrough. I mean, a couple plays, Beau, like he threw a ball. he should have thrown it into the dirt. He threw it to his running back who got smoked. Some of that stuff is just, the NFL,

some stuff just doesn't work that worked your entire college career. Like, you can see sometimes he'll make a throw and you're like, yeah, that's not going to work here. And I think Bow Nix tends to get locked into his number one receiver and he's going to force the ball. But 24 for 31 in every decade is good quarterback play. I'm not saying MVP, but I, now that Herbert has legit coach, if I said to you, these are the five best.

quarterbacks in the world. Mahomes, Alan, Lamar, Burrow, Herbert. If I just said, you get five in the world. Those are my five. Are they yours? Yeah, I mean, there's not anyone in the NFL that wouldn't pick those five. They have clearly separated. And the crazy thing is that if you were picking quarterbacks, we wouldn't even get to the NFC. And that these guys, like, listen, Bo Nix, he hit the awesome deep bomb for 80 yards. And he hit the incredible. credible fourth down play. But for the most part, he was not. They weren't sustaining drives. That's right. That's right. And Burrow is playing, I mean, it's as good of quarterback play as you can have. Now, he's got, Jamar Chase is good of a white team. But their old line, their old line is bottom of 10 in the league easily.

You know he, you know he reminds me of? You watch, like, Sam plays more like Josh and Mahomes, where they are quick to scramble to throw. Yep. Joe Burrow actually plays a lot more like Andrew Luck, where part of the reason he gets hit a lot is he stays in the pocket to the last possible. It's a very old school characteristic. Philip Rivers used to play like this. Now, he didn't have the arm of those guys, but they would wait for the last second to get their guy that extra step and throw the ball. Most guys, half the league doesn't want to get touched. So they move because they don't want to get hit. Joe is taking some of these hits because he's an old school pocket quarterback. I mean, Joe Burrow would have thrived in like the 70. Now, he gets

absolutely destroyed. Now, his offensive line's bat and he holds on to the ball. to the last possible second, which I admire. But his, the way he's played this year, and listen, they're going to come up short because I even saw that the, they don't even, I think the dolphins, if Denver were to lose and the dolphins win, don't quote me on this,

but I'm pretty sure they would be in. They did the dolphins to lose too. Yeah. They lost a game, Colin, where he threw five touchdowns against the Ravens, the first time they played him, where they had multiple double-digit leads in the fourth quarter.

It's like, you know, they lost to the Patriots. it's in week one or they wouldn't be in this position. So it's like their defense half-way, even yesterday's not great, but it was so bad at points and time earlier this year. No, I mean, Denver has components to a playoff team if you think about it. Hall of Fame coach, elite left tackle, best corner arguably in the game, one great weapon, and an elite pass rusher. That's mostly, John, the six checks boxes.

Now, quarterback, Bo is a B to a B minus right now. If this team, if Bo had one year in... I might go C, depending on the, you know, C plus, yeah. But if you look at what wins in this league, it's basically coach, quarterback, left tackle, one to two weapons, at least one good cover corner. That's why the Rams can't win.

The Rams just don't have an elite. The Rams are going to draft a corner one or two. They have to. But when I look at Denver, Cincinnati is one great quarterback, a good edge rusher, and one great weapon. I don't even know if Zach Taylor's it. I don't like his clock management at the end of the game was atrocious. It was crazy.

I can't believe that he wouldn't kneel the ball. I didn't get it. When the guy got hurt and they have to blow the timeout and Denver gets it back. But if you just kneel again, you give a rookie quarterback 40 seconds on the road to get in a field goal range. That's pretty hard. With no time out because they would have a- college. Yeah.

So it's like, here's what I would say about Bo Nix to defend them. Of all the rookies, this guy's on the road, Cincinnati, after Christmas, their season on the line against one of the best players we've seen in recent memory. That's a tough. That's a real game. Caleb hasn't played in a real game. They've lost 10 straight games. None of his games matter.

You know, Drake May, nothing he does really matters besides their health. So it's like Bo Nix is playing in real series. Like there are real stakes, right? He's playing to get into the playoffs. And between the Chargers and Denver, would you lean that Chargers are more likely to win a playoff game just because they got a better quarterback? Yes. Yeah. I think, listen, Burroughs the only great quarterback that won't make the playoffs.

I think, in fact, I did this, John. Thinking of you, I did this today. So I thought about this is my, I have seven teams that I would call the trophy class that can get to a Super Bowl. Kansas City, Buffalo, Baltimore, Detroit, Green Bay, Philly, and I put Minnesota in today. Green Bay Mini, it's doubtful, but I do think, depending on environment, where they're playing, and the matchup. I think there are three teams that can win games, but are missing something. Chargers, Rams, and potentially Pittsburgh, if they got in, Pittsburgh's defense could win a game if they face the right quarterback. Rams are very puka reliant.

And I do feel like the Chargers in the AFC, you got to score 27 points in some of these games. I mean, if J.K. Dobbins isn't available, it gets really limited. And then I think there's four or five teams that probably can't win a playoff game. Denver or Sincere, Washington, Houston, Atlanta, or Tampa, Tampa maybe, but I just feel like they earn their spot. But I just don't trust them. Any of those you disagree with?

I think Pittsburgh's won and done. Okay, you do? As it's aiming up, like they're going to play. They play Cincinnati next week. I don't know about you. I like Cincinnati. And then they're going to play Baltimore in the first round. I'm going to take Baltimore.

Okay. I think they are a shell of what they were when they were 10 and 3. Injuries. Russell's coming back to Earth a little bit. I think Minnesota is pretty real. And we'll see Detroit. Maybe they're a little healthier tomorrow. We'll see who plays.

But then they're playing Minnesota next week, which even though it's not. like a winner get into the playoffs. To me, if that's for the number one seed, yeah, I would put that, I'd put that Sunday night over like winner of the division, Seattle Rams. I would go Minnesota, Detroit.

Yes. I kind of like Minnesota next week, Colin. You know, especially if Detroit still got injuries. Now, Detroit's offense is still awesome, but defensively, the amount of guys they're missing, if Jared Gough just has an off quarter against the way this Minnesota, plus they get that extra day arrest,

If you tell me Minnesota, like to me, Detroit, with their injuries, if you told me they were healthy and they had the number one seat, I would pick them to win the NFC. But with their injuries, if they're not the number one seat, even if they were, I think they could be beat. To me, if Minnesota is the number one seed, I think they're favored in every game they play, you know, whether they play the Eagles, the Packers.

Wow. The Rams are a good example of last year. Remember how much momentum and how well they were playing going into the playoffs? Yes. Detroit, this is going to be a tough first round game. And it was this team like them. is winning a bunch of games down the stretch, they look like shit. And maybe Cooper Cups gotten old, like you said, if Puka doesn't go for 12 and 150,

they're just off offensively. Luckily, their defense is good. Well, let's talk about that. Last night, I'm like, I, let's talk about that. I've done an awesome job, but they look, I can't pick them to win a playoff game to way they're playing. Rams 13, Arizona 9. I thought they were going to lose.

Very. I had 100% confident Arizona was going to score. They only had 12 first downs. The Rams had 12 first downs. So we talk about this game for a second. So it's really interesting, and I can't quite figure this dilemma out. So generally, I think you'd agree with me, the first half is a coach's half that you put stuff on paper, especially offensive coaches. First two series, Kevin O'Connell and Darnold, they're putting stuff on paper.

And then in the second half, coaches matter, but you get 12 minutes in the locker room to really talk to your players. And there's only so much you can digest. It's a bit of an adjustment, but a lot of times the better team, the better roster, the deeper roster wins the second half. That's why Philadelphia so crappy in the first quarter, they just roll over. They just got too many good dudes. You got too many players. And you can scheme up, you know, you're not going to beat like Detroit, Kansas City, Baltimore, Buffalo in a short week when you can't, you don't get extra days to coach or install things. They're just, I mean, you see these teams like Kansas City and Baltimore played three games in 11 days.

They weren't three and no. dominated. You don't have time to coach up your inferior roster. And I look at the Rams, and this is weird. They got time of possession, Arizona 36 minutes, Rams 23, only 12 first downs. I can't figure this out. They are a, they are sluggish in every first half. And I watched this game.

And it was almost like Stafford's not warm, like he looks old. And then his second half, it's almost like he's a pitcher that he needs to get to the fifth, the sixth inning. But as I watch him, I'm like in the second half, it just, he's more fluid, he's looser, he's letting it rip. But I think I can't blame McVeigh. They're healthy offensively. John, Puka, Tyler Higbee, Kyron Williams, O lines above average. I think some of it is, it's, I think Stafford looks old in first halves. Yeah, well, I think Cooper Cups gotten really old, too.

I mean, he's essentially a blocker now. Yeah. And he's had an incredible career and he was a badass, but it feels like it's over. Stafford, I think there was a stretch last year where he threw a bunch of picks for like a four or five game. He is leading touchdown drives where he could have thrown three picks on him going through guys' hands. And he did that in the Niners game. He did that yesterday. If you remove the Bills game where they scored like 100 points. They were perfect.

They played the Saints. That thing was a slug fest till the end. I think it was like 7-7 the majority of the game. The 49ers game was a number. embarrassment. I'm just saying for an offensive unit. Last week against the Jets was not very pretty and last night was pretty ugly. Like offensively, they just have no rhythm. And like you say, it's like their coach has kind of proven he knows what he's doing. And you're watching Stafford play. He definitely looks a little older. He just, when he gets in that mode of throwing it to other guys,

I don't know if he gets a little off kilter, but he has a lot of passes I feel over the month. Luckily, throws hard that are just going and those guys play defense for reason. If, Puka was playing defense, the guy he's throwing, he would have had 10 picks over the last month. Well, and they've gotten lucky. They've dropped a ton. It's a really, it's a one person receiving crew. Tutu Atwell was a bust for the first several years. He gives you about a catch a game. Tyler Johnson's a bouncer on the league guy.

Robinson, I think it was Demarcus Robinson. You get about one big catch a week. Cooper looks washed. It is incredibly reliant on Puka and Akua. And so to me, they're obviously going to go draft an ex-receiver. They need somebody up the sideline badly. They need another offensive tackle. They need a number one corner.

I feel like they're a draft away from being a really serious, serious team. They're just doing it now with McVeigh's coaching, Stafford's second half, and Pooka Nakuwa. And I do love the defense. But in fairness, these kids are all young. I mean, everybody's a rookie or a second-year player. There's no age on this defense at all. I also think these last two years are incredible additions to McVeigh's resume. Like Andy Reid's resume isn't all Super Bowl.

It's a lot of like, well, he went 12 and 5 with Jeff Garcia one year in Philadelphia. Like when you do things last year, one and four, or last year three and six, this year one and four. And to be win the division more than likely back-to-back years is just an awesome job with a bunch of young guys on defense. And like you said, and listen, you get credit for the third round pick. but they're lucky that Puka is like a top five wide receiver. Imagine if he had just been okay, they would be in major trouble. Okay. So I've been right on Darnold.

I got to take a wrong on this. I was always a defender on Kyler Murray because I thought he was, I thought he was a better version talent-wise or Russell Wilson. I thought he was more elusive and threw a better ball. He is historically small. He's five, eight and a half. He looks so. If you take the sideline shot when he's in the pocket,

Sometimes you get the sideline shot. You can't see him. I mean, he's smaller than two us significantly. But in the last six games, and this is post- Thanksgiving football is Big Boy Football, five touchdowns, eight picks, and a passer rating in the 70s. And he's got McBride is in all world. He's going to be a 10-time all pro tied end. Harrison is more than capable.

Conner's an excellent running back. The O-line's okay, not great but okay. This is not a franchise that's, bankrupt of offensive talent. There's players here. And you know what? I think work ethic catches up to you. You can make, you can go so long on talent. But John, I've always believed this. Kobe Bryant outwork people. MJ outwork people. There's a lot of guys in this league. Lack of work ethic. Curry is a workaholic. Yonis. Kyler Marie's not. And I've got it pretty connected. And the truth is it's caught up to him is that

the really good defensive coaches. This league punishes you. I mean, you can only coach 20 hours in college. You can just get away with being talented. You can't in the NFL. And I said this two weeks in a row. I like Kyler. He has a market.

If you got him the right team, I think Arizona's going to have a discussion to see if they can move him. I really do. To me, my takeaway last night was I would write it out another year and just keep building up the team. But if you are a. able to unload him for anything of value. I think you could justify it.

I mean, he has been a turnover machine down the stretch. Now, on the flip side, I'd go, is this team even that good? I mean, like you said, they do have some offensive pieces, but defensively, the casual football fans, besides Buda Baker, not going to be able to name a guy. I think the coach has done a really good job. Same. To just have them in position all year. I do think it's hard.

I do wonder if his market, like, would you just get rid of him for like a third round pick? I think you're better off just keeping them. Now, if you could get a high value, like, who else are you doing? Okay. So what else are you doing? I've made this argument. I think this year you can get a number one for Garrett Wilson, the Jets.

Why? It's a bad draft. It's a really weak draft. I think, I think Kyler Murray last year, you're not getting much. Kyler Murray next year, you may not get much. Kyler Murray in this draft, I think you can get a number one. I really do. I mean, listen, every year we have seven teams that need a quarterback.

There's Cam who will play immediately, and Shadourer. will play immediately. There's not another college quarterback that can play. And if the Vikings franchise darnold, it's Aaron Cousins, I mean, to me, Kyler's going to have a market. Yeah, he definitely would have a market. I don't know if you get a one because all the crappy teams and need quarterbacks are all drafted high. So would you trade like the ninth pick if you're the Raiders for them? I think you would, you know, if you just need to kind of get a little spark in your organization, would just give your second round pick, right, or something? And if you're them, Is it just time to pivot off this situation?

The irony about last night, I thought, was one of his better games. Now, he did throw, you know, the bomb picked. It was maybe a foot too high for Marvin Harrison and a great play. And the last play, it's just, I mean, a freaky unlucky play by both guys. Right. Honestly, here's where I will say about him, I had full confidence that he was going to lead him on a, that they were going to score a touchdown. I was like, the Rams are going to lose this game.

And I thought how he was going to score was one of his classic scrambles. everyone's in the back of the end zone, he runs it right in. And when they threw that pick, you're like, God, that has to be deflating because they had them right against the road. But that's kind of been his defining characteristic. I would say this last month of he has just had, I mean, turnovers have been a huge part of his game. And it's not like he's throwing up three or four touchdown. That's the one thing with Sam Donald. Like he had the pick today, but he also threw three sweet touchdowns.

Well, here's the other thing if you're Arizona. He won't age well. He's not a quarterback that's going to age well because. Like, Steph Curry age as well because he'll dribble and shoot forever. Certain guys, like Russell Westbrook's age poorly because he's hyper-athletic. Cam Newton age poorly because he was not pre-snap. Cam was about just sheer talent. Big Ben, I thought, age very quickly.

Kyler's going to age quickly. By the way, how many times in that game did he face pressure? That dude does not want to get hit. And Kyler, he'll trip over his own feet. Like, he didn't want to get hit. I had a pass rusher three years ago tell me. He said, he goes, I played Giner Murray. He said, I've never played against the quarterback.

This is an elite pass rusher. He goes, off the air. He goes, I've never played against the guy. He said, he winces when you hit him. Like, he's a baseball player. He doesn't like to get hit at all. Some guys like Burroughs like, hey, it's part of it. Darno.

Yeah. My own luck. I don't care. Thursday night football is on. It's only on Prime Video. Best season yet, pack with big rivalries and even bigger stars. Al Michaels, Kirk Herbstreet, Kaylee Hartung, every week. Games you can't miss.

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We have some big news. What's the news? huge news. We created our own podcast called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts.

We're starting a trend. But this one's extra special. So how do we actually come up with a name Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. And, well, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band. Before Jonas Brothers.

This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say, hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys.

Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. 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, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed the game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in.

I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered.

SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests.

I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it, and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch.

Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross. Because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth? Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust.

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human potential. Either way, the podcast 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. So I've been talking about this for two weeks. Nine teams right now have four wins or fewer. Less than half of that last year, four. This year, it's almost NBA-like. There is a lot of bad football. It is atrocious.

We also have three 13-win teams. So the top is bigger and the bottom's huge. Is it a one-off or is it the reality now of two things? The league is now so quarterback-centric that, again, Burroughs the only good quarterback, elite quarterback, that's not going to make the playoffs. If you have one, you get in, and Cincinnati may still, but if you have, you have, have when you get in. I mean, go look. I went, I'm going to go seven for eight, I think, potentially, in my division picks. Why? Because I took the best quarterbacks. It's never been easier. And because of every owner's a billionaire, there's more chaos and ownership. They're more

impulsive. They fire people quicker, which creates more chaos. So the bad organizations are worse. You know, like the giants have been bad for six years. Now they're, I mean, it's despite today, it's like, oh, my God, this is embarrassing. Chicago's embarrassing. I don't think it's a one-off. I think we're going to have a larger bottom because owners are getting wealthier, wealthier, writing $48 million to get coaches off the payroll as a rounding error. You used to just stick it out. What do you make of this massive bottom tier now? I feel like for the last couple decades, the quarterback thing has been pretty true. You know, I think you've been able to get away with it in the 80s and 90s if you built up your team.

But I think that's been a pretty consistent theme. like the shitty teams don't have a quarterback. That's why they're drafting high. I think the money aspect of it and the ability to fire whoever. And I think on the flip side, you have coaches and executives doing everything humanly possible for power. And I would imagine the league has always been relatively political. But when there is this much money on the line to be a general manager and pay five, I mean, how many gigs in America pay W2 jobs pay $5 million?

dollars. An assistant coach as a coordinator makes two, three million dollars. They're not the decision maker. They're not near the top of the org chart. They're way down. They don't have any responsibility, really, besides calling the plays in terms of when shit hits the fan. So I think you have a lot of like, I think it's much more difficult. We talk about this a lot with players, you know, building a team. I think young people naturally kind of gravitate toward each other and good teams, like everyone's kind of friends. I think coaching is just so corporate. Everyone's trying to take out each other. other. You can't trust anybody. I think the league, the amount of money that has come in for front

office and coaching has made this completely separate from a lot of politicians in the, just because you work in the NFL. And I wasn't there long, but I always had this as like, once you get there, everyone's such a high level guy. It's just not the case. Right. And then the longer I've been around this, knowing a bunch of people with a bunch of teams, you hear these stories. It's just like any industry when there's a lot of money, the cream will always separate, but people can still make a lot of money being shitty. And how often do we see, I mean, the Atlanta Falcons are about to play, like, McKay runs Arthur Blanks trust, you know, and he like runs the football. But, you know, it becomes like these family businesses, but these are billion dollar businesses. Most family, I've had some family

business, like close personal friends that run family businesses and got bought out for, let's say, $20, $30 million. Like, that's an American success story. They built this business. They sold it for $30, $40 million. These people have businesses that are worth not a billion. We're talking like six, seven. If Mark Davis put the Raiders for sale. I mean, could he get eight? Could he get nine?

I mean, how many companies in America are worth this much money? And the Raiders are a good example. They've always had these people that leaps their way in because it's just like a money train. I think it's hard for some of these owners. And we look at all the bad teams. It's all these owners that are listening to the wrong people. Yeah.

But you know who Steve Boshati listens to? De Costa, Ozzie, and Harbaugh. You know who the York's list knew? John and Kyle. It's like the, I think the chiefs, Andy and Veach are very simple. They operate like a small business. These others start operating like Fortune 500 companies where I want it on the board of directors. I got an idea for you.

The kids are involved. And it just becomes Wackoville. And obviously because it's so public and it's a fun thing. It's why Kevin Warren, Kevin Warren has a seven figure job. Yeah. But you know what? His job, no one cares when he sells. sells PSLs or sells the naming rights deal for hundreds of millions of dollars.

No one will give a shit. But you know what people care about? Your third round pick. Yeah. The offensive coordinator. And so when you can start getting involved with that, and I think that has permeated all over the league or at least, you know, all these crappy teams. And I think they struggle with that.

And these owners have money. Everyone's just trying to leach on because the money right now is, I mean, it's like outrageous. I mean, it's crazy. If you could bring back Lamar Hunt and Al Davis and Eddie DeBardo and I would have told these guys in the 80s what this would become. No one could have foreseen what it has become. I mean, we've seen it come in the last decade. But 40 years when I was a kid, football, I mean, the salary cap one point in time, I think when it first started, it wasn't like $30, $40 million? Yeah.

That was 30 years ago. John Madden was being paid $8 million making more than like all the players. So I want to touch on a couple of college things. So Cam Ward and Shadour Sanders in a very weak class are going to go one and two. Shadur did not play terribly well against BYU. They got run. Cam Ward, I would have skipped the bowl game instead of play the first half, not play the second. Just because if I would have played poorly, I would have wanted to play the second half.

I don't think it will affect, listen, if you need a quarterback, you're going to draft. I don't think it has any effect on Cam Ward's draft status. Do you? No, I pay. And I think most people in the NFL, non-playoff bowl games are pretty meaningless. What do you want to play, whether you play? Yeah. No one gives a shit. I would disagree.

I don't think he's a lock to be the second pick by any means. Well, I think these, I think Shadour and Cam will be the top two quarterbacks taken. Oh, got you, gotcha, got you. I just don't know. Like one and two, I think this draft is very up in the air, unlike last year, where it was pretty clear, guys, quarterbacks were going high. So I think New England's got the number one pick. I think somebody will trade up to number one just out of fear. I mean, Tennessee.

You know what I would do if I was them, Colin? What? Wouldn't you just take Travis Hunter and just try to get some positive momentum? He looks like a generational prospect. Yes, that's what I would do. Just don't overthink it. Get the guy and just obviously you could make a trade back. But is it one of those times just take Travis Hunter and just move on and put a smile on everyone's face?

Well, if I was, let's say, for instance, the Giants who are now third or fourth in the draft wanted to move up. And Tennessee is second. I could see both those team taking quarterbacks. I could see New England saying, okay, we'll move back. no later than third, no later than third, especially if somebody moves up to take a quarterback, if he's one of these four or five teams, like New Orleans could take a quarterback, Las Vegas is taking a quarterback, then I'd feel good. But I do think the player to take for New England is probably Travis Hunter. I think he's electric. This is a team for four years running, just doesn't

have playmakers. He's a playmaker on both sides. I think Cam is the better athlete with a bigger arm, and I think you could talk yourself into him being number one. He's going to be a playmaker. got a little bit of an edge to him, I've been told, but, you know, whatever. Shadur is more polished. I don't think either is an A prospect. I don't think either one of them is Caleb, Jaden, Daniels. I don't think either one of them. I like throwing the ball as well as Michael Pennix.

How do you view them as a former NFL sky? I think they're B plus prospects. Yeah, I would say Cam is the physically, more physically gifted guy. Shadur, I think,'s the better player. but Shadur has a little bit, and maybe it's just the team he was on, but we've seen this carryover for Caleb holds on the ball a little long.

Now, granted, I would too to try to wait for some of my wide receivers to get open. One thing I will say about Shadur is over the course of his couple years in Colorado, and I didn't watch much of BYU. I had it on a second TV, but every time I looked up, he was getting killed. Yeah. He's tough.

He can handle it. I think Cam Ward's grades are going to be all over the map. I think it's going to be, he's going to be a pretty fascinating prospect. I think when the dust settles, probably if I was a betting man, Shador ends up going number one overall, especially if New England, you know, obviously they're not going to take them, but, you know, trades back a couple spots. I can see Cam Ward going anywhere from two to like 10. You know, I think he is going to be a polarizing prospect.

I think Travis Hunter, one, and I'm sure you've heard this too, consistent theme. We've seen some drafts recently with like the Penae Sules and Jamar Chases and Mike Michael Parsons and just some elite players drafted in the top 15. I don't think this drafts viewed as like Hall of Famers everywhere up. No. I've been told you could be drafted at 18 and get the same player of the dude that drafts that four gets. Even last year, like it was pretty clear at the top, a lot of good players.

This draft is not viewed like that at all. I mean, there's not left tackle that I don't think anyone views. It's like Lane Johnson. My favorite player, my can't miss player is not Travis Hunter because I think if he comes in and wants to be a receiver, but he's a better corner, it could go sideways. The best player I've seen in college football is Mason Graham, the defensive tackle for Michigan. I think he is a 10-year all-pro. I think Mason Graham's the best player.

I think that receiver from Arizona, T-Mack, McMillan, is a can't-buss player. I think the corner from Michigan, Will Johnson, is not going to miss. I think he's really, I think two of the three best players. I think even Kelvin Banks and Texas tackle, I could see him coming in and just being okay. I think there's a lot of, I think there's a lot of LSU tackle too. I think people like them, but they don't love them. I think Travis Hunter, I mean, I think Shadur and Cam are as good as where they land. I think if Shadur lands with a team, like for instance, let's say Shadur, the Raiders now with another win probably won't get him.

And I don't think Telesco loves either one of these quarterbacks. I don't know that. but I just, just knowing, you know, that he drafted Herbert and what he looks for in terms of size and mobility is neither

one of these guys to me feels like that. No. Mason Graham's the best player, Will Johnson the Corner, Michigan, T-Mack, the Arizona kid. I think it was a down year

for the SEC. I think we have to be totally honest about this. Georgia now, I mean, Georgia doesn't have Carson back. I think they're very beatable. Jesus,

USC beat 8 and 4 LSU and 8 and 4 Texas A&M. I mean, and everybody out here has Lincoln Riley getting whacked. It's like, I don't think the SEC, I don't think it's your typical year. In fact, my two favorite players right now in college football in terms of talent are Caleb Downs for Ohio State and the receiver for Ohio State Smith. Those to me are not even draft eligible. No, yeah. I mean, to me, if they were draft eligible, and I'm not joking when I say this, in a bad quarterback year, if you didn't need a quarterback year, if you didn't need a quarterback, quarterback, like New England. They would take that wide receiver from Ohio State. And I think

who's taking number two right now, Tennessee probably needs a quarterback. If a team didn't need a quarterback in this draft, I would take those two Ohio State players over every single player in this draft. I'm dead serious. Yeah, I think Texas has a couple of players number 11 that's an underclassman that's not eligible. I mean, so I think some of their best players are not draft eligible. That's, you know, good thing if you're stark. I think the tied end at Penn State's pretty damn guy. Tyler, Warren. Or Warren.

Yeah. Tyler Warren. Yeah. Number 44. He's, he's the real deal. I think one thing, if we look at, you know, we're big AFC West guys. Denver and the Chargers, they need a running back, right? Young running back.

It is a great running back class. Listen, let me throw, let me throw one at you. And he'll probably be a fifth round running back. And I don't want to sound like a homer. Woody Marks at USC is, today I went and looked at the top 20 running backs in this. class. They had this kid up like 14. And I'm like, holy shit. He is the best running back USC has had. I'm serious since Reggie. He is in a, he can catch, he can block, he can run. And they had him listed, I think, 14th or 15th best running back in the car. I'm glad you brought this up.

It is the best running back draft I can remember in years. Yeah, I mean, that's the thing with, the, you know, obviously Genti, all-time great season, but he's 5-8, and it's like, okay, you're going to take him pick 17 or 22 when you could just take your starting running back the following round and get a corner or get a linebacker or get a better player. And that's where I think this, I was watching the Holiday Bowl, Syracuse had a kid. I'm like, this guy's really good. Every team you watch Carolina, Washington. Yeah.

Every team just has an NFL back. And they physically look it. They're just jacked. most of them are 210 to 220. They break tackles. They get down-hill. This running-back class, that's the one thing I've heard. Absolutely stacked with NFL.

The Chargers and the Broncos, you watch both those two teams. I mean, I know Jim, but I even think Denver, they will take a running back on the second day in the second or third round. And if they hit, that could change both those two offenses. Yeah. Okay, so we're going to have great quarter final games. We'll wrap it up with this. I'll take Penn State close over Boise State close, what's.

say you. I like Penn State pretty big, and I think they beat him by double digits. I'll take Texas over Arizona State, comfortably a couple of touchdowns. Yeah, I think that's a massive talent mismatch. Tough draw for ASU. I think Ohio State beats Oregon by about a touchdown. I don't know if the time off for a young Oregon team helped. I'll take the Buckeyes. I'm going to take Oregon here. I think everyone's going to Ohio State. I think we're going to overreact a little bit and listen, that game. They just got their ass kick by Michigan. I think people are sleeping on Oregon.

Best teams start to finish. Rose Bowl, it's going to feel like, you know, the Rose Bowl we all grew up on. I like Oregon in that game. Notre Dame, Georgia. Do it. I'm going to take Notre Dame. Same. Same.

Yeah, I think it's cool. Georgia hasn't been very good this year. I mean, for their standards. I mean, they have been a shell of what they've been. That's still good, but. I think Notre Dame, explosive in the run game, you know,

everybody's making fun of me. I like Riley Leonard. I think he's cleaned his act up. I think he came there and he was raw. I don't think he's as raw. I think he's going to get drafted in the fourth or fifth round in the NFL this year. It's a very weak quarterback draft.

I think Riley Leonard will go somewhere. But, you know, you don't have to have a great quarterback. I'm not a huge U.S. fan. I'm not a big Will Howard fan. I think Dylan Gabriel's good, not an NFL quarterback. I think Riley Leonard's good enough to win a national championship. I do.

Yeah, I actually think Penn State, I think Aller and that team, I think Notre Dame and Penn State are very similar. They're going to run the ball down your throat and play defense. And if their quarterbacks just play solid, I think both those two teams can win this whole thing, where most people, I think, are going to pick Georgia, Oregon, Ohio State. But I think people are sleeping on Notre Dame and Penn State. Running the ball, defense, historically, that wins in the NFL.

A little different. These games are all neutral sight, nice weather, which I would say neutralizes their strength. But I think Penn State going on a little run here. I would love it. I would like to talk about the draft. Carter, that rush end they have, that dude can play. He's a top six or seven player. Yeah, he's really good.

All right, John Middilcoff, the former NFL scout, his podcast is three and out. Hardest working guy in this business. As always, buddy, great talking to you. See you later this week. The volume. Hey guys, it's us The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what?

We created our own podcast called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

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

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your Podcasts. Hey, I'm Deanna Maria Riva, and on my new podcast, How Hard Can It Be? I call on my Gen X squad from Ohio to Hollywood as we navigate Midlife's most fantastic BS. Unfiltered conversations from night sweats to fupas to scheduling sex. Wait, what sex? Is it just me or does every woman my age want to look at Pinterest instead of having sex sometimes? They say we can't polish a turd, but we're sure going to try.

So let's get blunt with laughs, tears, or tears of laughter. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Deanna Maria Riva on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season.

And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was calling you. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come in. He's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love.

This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And here's Heather with the weather. Well, it's beautiful out there, sunny and 75, almost a little chilly in the shade. Now, let's get a read on the inside of your car. It is hot. You've only been parked a short time, and it's already 99 degrees in there.

Let's not leave children in the back seat while running errands. It only takes a few minutes for their body temperatures to rise. and that could be fatal. Cars get hot, fast, and can be deadly. Never leave a child in a car. A message from Nitsa and the ad council. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.