The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Colin Cowherd Podcast - Jason McIntyre on Dalvin Cook to Jets, Harbaugh NFL Return,  Darnold/Lance Battle

Episode Date: August 15, 2023

First, Colin reacts to the Patriots signing former Cowboys All-Pro Ezekiel Elliott, Aaron Rodgers and the Jets adding Dalvin Cook to the mix, and the Cowboys and Zach Martin agreeing to terms to end his holdout.  Then, The Herd co-host - and host of the Straight Fire - Jason McIntyre joins Colin to discuss how the Dalvin Cook signing impacts the Jets offense, why it’s so important the Jets get off to a good start to the season, if the Niners should go with Sam Darnold over Trey Lance as their backup, which team could Jim Harbaugh could target for an NFL return, if the Packers believe in Jordan Love, and how the drama between James Harden and Sixers President Daryl Morey will play out. Follow Colin and The Volume on Twitter for the latest content and updates! #Herd #VolumeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. 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. 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. The Volume. Hi, everybody. Welcome in Jason McIntyre, J.Mack, part of the herd ensemble, also part of the volume. He's got his daily morning podcast. We'll be joining us. He's all fired up for Dalvin Cook to the Jets, and we'll get to that in a second.

But, you know, I was thinking about something today because Ezekiel Elliott, Zeke, signed with the Patriots. that there are things in life that I seek value with. I've got very flat, wide, size 12 feet. I'm looking for comfort with shoes. I'm not going to spend a lot on shoes. I want comfort. And I'm not looking for the ugliest pair available, but comfort trumps style and fashion.

Same with cars. Cars to mere transportation. I know many of you have that testosterone car gene. Nothing wrong with it. My wife's a Michigan girl. She loves cars. I don't care. So I seek value in cars.

I probably own, you know, 10 cars in my life. Eight have been used. And then there are things I just won't go cheap on. I tell my kids all the time. Education and experiences. You know, if we have to pay for an expensive college, prep school, we were going to do it. And experiences. If I'm going to go on two vacations a year, you know what?

We're going to stay at a nice hotel by the beach, walking distance. So that's important in my mind. life education for my kids and experiences because when dad's gone you know i want those to be great memories and i think most of you you know there's certain things when i go to the store i'll do value in paper towels uh i'm not going to do value in certain things like coffee and i think it's interesting that the patriot sign ezekiel elliott again going for a guy they can get value with um past his prime He can be a three downback, but he's lost a lot of his horsepower. And, you know, they signed Devonte Parker.

There's not a big market for him. Signed him to three years. Juju Smith-Schuster, not a huge market for him. I just think in 2023, Kyle Shanahan's not seeking value. He went and he spent a lot of money to make a move for Christian McCaffrey. And they signed Debo Samuel and George Kittle and left tackle Trent Williams. They're not seeking value. they're seeking greatness because the game has changed.

And I think if you start looking at the teams at the top of the AFC, Odell Beckham wasn't cheap. Baltimore went and got him. Go look at Cincinnati, running backs, wide receivers, Joe Burrell's going to cost money. I think if you're going to seek value in the NFL, safety, linebacker, interior offensive line, if your quarterback's got a little bit of mobility.

But, yeah, I think Zeke is fine. but he's not close to Dalvin Cook. Dalvin Cook is still got, I think, traces of his prime left. And I don't think Zeke is a bad signing, but I don't think it's a significant move. I think Dalvin Cook's a better player. But we've seen, it didn't matter if it was Hunter Henry, Nelson Aguilar at one point, Bill's always seeking value. And there's just not a lot of it on the offensive side of the football.

The best talent evaluators, you're never going to get Justin Jefferson or Jamar Chase or Devante Adams. You're never going to get those guys on the cheap. Certainly not in their prime. So I don't think it's a bad signing, but I feel once again, in New England, I feel like they have most of their offensive weapons have moved out of their sweet spot athletically. Now, Dalvin Cook to the Jets. my gut feeling on this. And he's a guy that can catch.

He can run. I think he's just out of his prime, but close to it. He can also block. So he's a three down back. But I think when Aaron Rogers took some money off the table of his contract, it wasn't just altruism. You know, Aaron was like, okay, I'll give some money back. What are you getting me?

Get me another weapon. So, you know, it's, it's, I do think it was a bit of a brand pivot for Aaron Rogers who always sort of took the most money in Green Bay. And I do think it's, it's, it shows real growth for Aaron Rogers and kind of a community team feel that's cool. But he had to get something back in return. And this is it. Dalvin Cook's a one year contract. These are really good player. I don't think it's their number one need, but it does allow them to bring back Breeze Hall.

slowly. And listen, we have an extra game now. There's 17 games. You don't want to give any single running back, 275, 300 carries. They age fast. So I do think over the course of a season, Dalvin Cook allows you to bring Breece Hall back a little more slowly.

If they could, you know, they both get over 100 carries, but neither gets to two. That's probably a very good thing. The Jets now have Aaron Rogers. I still think the offensive line is the primary issue. I don't think running back. is the number one issue, but you got to give Aaron something, a toy, a weapon for him taking a fairly profound one-time pay cut.

The Cowboys also ended their holdout with elite offensive guard, Zach Martin, kind of surprised that they cave. Now, they didn't give him top of the league money. Top of the league money is about 20, 21 million for a guard. He got about 18 from 13. I thought he'd been very well compensated. You know, the Cowboys get into a space, and I think they know the reality with DAC

is the more you ask DAC to do, the more mistakes you have. And last year, again, Zieg passed his prime, offensive line in a rebuild, Michael Gallup was slow in the rehab coming back. They asked Dak to do more, and he tied for the NFL lead in interceptions. And so I just don't think the offensive line

is good enough now to lose their primary offensive guard. And Zach Martin's a first ballot hall fame guy. He's arguably the best guard in the NFL. Certainly has been top one or two for the last eight, nine years, eight-time pro-bolder. So I'm a little surprised they caved. Jerry has often done that with older players that he or star players that he likes. Jalen Smith, the linebacker, it didn't work.

Zeke, they paid him two years early, probably shouldn't have. So, you know, the Cowboys, you got Brandon Cooks is new, Dalton Schultz is gone, Zeeke is gone, Zach Martin out, kind of a drip, drip, drip, leading you to believe, are we putting more on Dak's table than he's comfortable with? Also, Kellynne Moore, the offensive coordinator's gone. So there's a lot of things you've taken away from DAC. My guess is they sat down Stephen Jones and Jerry Jones and said, you know, a lot of things have been taken away.

Let's insert something back into the mix. the best interior offensive linemen the Cowboys have had since Larry Allen. Been a long time. This baseball season continues to heat up. You can watch it on TV, but what's better than going to the park on a beautiful summer day with friends for last minute amazing deals on tickets? Check out game time. The fastest growing ticket app in the United States.

And it doesn't stop at just sports. Summer concerts, comedy tours, all across the country. Game Time has your tickets. Download the Game Time app and the Redeem code is Colin. That's me, C-O-L-I-N, $20 off your first purchase. 20 bucks. No matter where you live, go out end the summer in style, comedy, baseball, concerts. It's the game time app.

Last minute deals. Lowest prices guaranteed. $20 off your first purchase. 20 bucks. Terms apply. All right, we bring in J-Mack. So how fitting Dalvin Cook signs with the Jets. He can block.

He can catch. He can run. I still feel like he may have one more year of his prime left. Whereas Zique, I feel like is three years. out of his prime, at least two. I feel like Dalvin Cook, it feels like he's closer to his prime. Is that fair? Oh, certainly. I mean, Colin, listen, let's be realistic, okay? And I'm not just saying this as a hyperbolic Jets fan. You know, we had this interview schedule before the Dalvin Cook news. Tell me who has the best skill position players in the AFC East between the bills, the dolphins,

the Jets, and the Patriots. I've looked at the Cook numbers. There wasn't a drop off last year. The reason the Vikings had to get off of him was because of salary. They simply cannot afford him and to build a team when you got to pay just to Jefferson, the salary of Kirk Cousins, the offensive line. They could not afford Dalvin Cook. I don't think it had anything to do with the numbers and the drop-off. He instantly makes the Jets have the best skill position players in the division. And if you want to zoom out and look at the conference, I mean, we're not far, I can say we, right?

We're not far behind the Bengals, who are obviously elite at receiver. and Joe Burroughs better than Rogers. But you look at that Jets team, Colin, I'm being real here. Dalvin Cook, Garrett Wilson, Aero Rogers. They're stacked. Okay, who's your number two receiver? So when you look at the depth of the Jets receivers, I think their depth far surpasses anything Buffalo has.

Buffalo's top heavy with Stefan Diggs. Miami's top heavy to top two guys are great. The Jets depth, Alan Lazard, big 6-5 guy can go up and get it in the red zone. Mikul Hardman, a gadget guy who they can do a lot of things. with you line up on the slot outside. Like I know, we know Garrett Wilson's the one. After that, there's a lot of threes. But Colin, like I like the depth idea above, you know, you got a one and a two.

One of those guys goes down. You don't have depth. The jets are so stacked at receiver. And this Dalvin Cook thing, listen, we don't know how Breece Hall is going to react coming back from injury. And Breeze Hall, if he can sit out the first three, three, four games, if he's on the pop list, you know, Michael Carter was good, but let's be realistic. Okay.

Dalvin Cook is a massive upgrade. And I'll challenge you, Colin, to find a team that got better at quarterback and running back in the NFL this offseason. It just doesn't exist. Yeah, I mean, Breeze Hall, Dalvin Cook, Aaron Rogers, Garrett Wilson, Corey Davis, Alan Lazard. I don't like it as much as you. I think depth at receiver sounds good, but I like really great playmakers. My argument for receiving cores is when your one goes down, Jamar Chase, can your two be a one? You know, if Mike Williams goes down, Keenan Allen has been a one.

Jamar Chase went down. T. Higgins looked like a one for Cincinnati. I don't think the Jets have that. I mean, if Cooper Cup goes down, Rams don't have a two. Van Jefferson's a three. So, you know, I, my takeaway was that Aaron Rogers took a pay cut. It wasn't all for altruistic reasons. In the end, he made a deal with a team.

You got to get me a toy. You got to get me something fun. And this is, you know, they could use another tackle, but there's just none on the market. But there are running backs on the market. And Dalvin's the best running back. This feels like one of those handshake deals all take less. You got to get me another playmaker. That's what it feels like to me.

Certainly. And listen, I'll just remind you, the Jets went in the last season with, hey, our guy, Zach Wilson. and our running back is Michael Carter. They just did not have a lot last year offensively and still managed to win seven games. Like, you've got to feel like the arrow is pointing up with the Jets. There's only, the only way it could be pointing is up. And I just cannot stress enough. You're going from literally bottom three quarterback situation in the league, arguably 32nd,

to instantly one of the best with Aaron Rogers. And I know he wasn't amazing last year, but he was very good. And Wilson and Cook, this is the most exciting time for any. Jets fan since Rex Ryan was dropping F-bombs on hard knocks over a decade ago. You know, I talked about this on FS1 today about I couldn't tell you the last New York team that overachieved. Like, I mean, I guess the Giants last year making the playoffs, but I mean, the NFC was so weak.

I don't feel like it was a triumph of any, you know, great historic standard. But the Yankees and the Mets, not good. Brooklyn, that's KD, mess, jets, underachieving. And I said, maybe it's just coincidence. But I tend to believe that as the media has gotten bigger and louder is that a lot of the front offices in New York are weaker and a lot of the ownership groups are weaker. And the Yankees farm system now is, you know, nobody has the patience for it. And that I do think there is a unique volume and pressure in New York. And I do think it makes it harder on athletes.

that it's just, I mean, you and I are not people that hang out in social media. I've worked with people who hang out on social media. And so they hear the noise and they react to it. You and I don't. We're more into our families. But I do think young athletes, average GMs, I don't think I'm unfair when I say this. You lived out east. I lived there for a decade.

Sports radio, they actually talk sports. I live in Los Angeles. Sports talk radio doesn't even talk sports. It's all guy talk. You can't do that out east. People care more. It's louder. It's more intense.

They call you out by names. I mean, like WFAN is calling out people by names. And those guys hear it. So like that my thing with the Jets is they've got to start three and three. They go two and four. It's ugly. Am I wrong? I think it affects teams.

Yeah. You never want to go overboard. But that Buffalo season opener is extremely important. And we touched on this on the show. So, Colin, Jets' offensive line is the biggest weakness. Buffalo Bills have a top five defense in the league. If Von Miller plays, we don't know if he's going to be back. And they obliterate the Jets' offensive line the way they did the Rams last year in the opener.

You saw the Rams season just snowball and corrine into a disaster. Well, in week two, the Jets then travel to Dallas and Michael Parsons, who's maybe the defensive player of the year. Colin, this is setting up as first two weeks, you have to get a win. There's no O-N-2. that Buffalo game under the spotlight of the New York media at night, Monday night football, I believe. Colin, that game is going to be enormous.

Now, luckily, Aaron Rogers, he's not the kind of guy who gets worried, right? He's used to the spotlight in the prime time. But I cannot stress enough how excited I am for that game. It's still a month out. But, Colin, you know, if the Jets lose and Roger stinks, throws a pick six, it's going to be, the media is just going to kill him. That's just what's going to happen. I was watching the Raiders, Niners, and I was really paying attention to the Niners, although it was interesting to watch this young Purdue quarterback for the Raiders.

It's like, is he this year's Brock Purdy? He was actually pretty interesting. I don't know. But, you know, it's funny. There's this old saying in the NFL or this belief is that when you get a new GM, you know, he's not loyal to the previous GM's mistakes. that sometimes a GM to preserve his picks, like Les Need, Wift on Tutu Atwell. If they had a new GM tomorrow, he'd bail on Tutu Atwell, right?

But, you know, less need is going to be more loyal to him. Logan Bruss looks like he can't play guard. They drafted him be a guard in the third round. Now they've moved into tackle. So, you know, there's the sense is you're more loyal to your picks to preserve your reputation. And, you know, when I watched Trey Lance, it just doesn't work. He's just overwhelmed.

He's not accurate. He's not as twitchy or athletic as they thought. And I think Kyle Shanahan is ready to just completely move off him because he didn't want him anyway. Whereas John Lynch is John Lynch. But it was funny watching that game. Sam Darnold looked really good. And I thought they're going to go with Brock Purdy because he's a more accurate

thrower. But when I watched Darnold and you know I love Darnold, I thought he, there were moments when he was with the Jets, he made some incredible plays. Do you think Sam Darnold could start and win games if Brock Purdy's elbow didn't recover? Do you think Darnold, like Baker, we kind of believe it's over? Nobody's going to, do you think Donald, as a Jets fan, do you think he has anything left in the tank if he was a starter? Yeah.

What is he like, 26? I don't even know how he's in his mid-20s. He's got plenty left. I think the scary thing, just listening to you break that down, Colin. And it's like, wait a minute, Purdy got hurt in January, okay? Even if it's a seven-month injury, the season was still nine months away. You're telling me that they had to go pick up Sam Darnold? It's almost as if, hey, hey, what if we got Sam Darnold?

And this Trey thing doesn't work out. Oh, no, Sam was just insurance for Purdy. And then Sam picked it up and we just lucked into Sam Darnel. And that's an easier way to kind of write off Trey Lance. Like, Trey Lance and his agent should have put his foot down. Why are you bringing another quarterback? I'm ready. I'm back from injury.

It's my job. You guys drafted me. Why wouldn't Tray Lance put his foot down? And I think he's like a young guy. You know, there's got, I think somebody put up the stat, I don't know, on social media if you saw this, that Tray Lance, when you look at his college in NFL, has like fewer pass attempts than Gino Smith had in like the last two years. Something obscure. Like he just hasn't played a lot of football. And Colin now opening his third on the depth chart?

Yeah. I don't think loyalty exists. in sports. I know you and I kind of defer on this. What's the saying you're only loyal, as loyal as your options? I don't know that Trey Lance has many options right now. And I think the headline that I did was Trey Lans to the Vikings. Let's just keep an eye on that as this Viking season unravels. From Minnesota. Stuff I've been reading. Yeah, stuff I've been reading on Minnesota, maybe not looking as great as we thought. Like 13 wins. Okay, they'll go down to nine or ten. Will they?

I don't know. You just start to look at, like, Dalvin Cook, to the Jets. You start looking at his numbers. You think Alex Madison can really replace those numbers from Dalvin Cook in the past and run game? I don't know. Madison's a good, I play fantasy football. He's a good handcuff guy. He's not a great starter.

Like, I don't know. There's a world where the Vikings are like, oh, eight and nine. Yeah, let's move on from Kirk Cousins. Who can we put in here on the cheap and then rebuild and fortify around him, the way the Niners have really built what is kind of the blueprint for the NFC? I feel like I've got most of my divisions down. And in most instances, I'm just taking the best quarterback. And I think you've talked me into taking the Saints, although they're going to be thin at running back, probably take the Saints to win that division. I'll take Carolina as a

wildcard team. Is there a team to you that won't make the playoffs and it will shock people? Because we generally, you and I are both sort of more optimistic early in a season. Nobody wants to wants to be a downer. After watching the Broncos, I don't know if it would be a shock, but watching them struggle in the first three series against Arizona, I'm like, man, this is not plug and play. Like, this is really choppy. But that wouldn't be a surprise because I think we all understand the Chargers and the Chiefs are really stacked rosters.

Yeah. Do you have a, oh, crap, they didn't make the playoffs team? I was going to save this for the herd. It's probably too hot for the volume audience, Colin. But you look at the Chargers and year one in Brandon Staley. They were in week 17 against Raiders, national television game. All they needed was the tie to get to overtime. A game ends in a tie and they both teams go to the playoff, right?

And Staley messes that up, calls timeout, Raiders kick the field goal, Chargers missed the playoffs. But everything's looking great. We got Justin Herbert. Year two, Herbert's injured. really gets less aggressive. This is kind of an underplayed story. He started to get more cautious. Remember, first year, he was a head coach, led the NFL in fourth down conversions. One of the most aggressive coaches was very good. But the media got on his case. He started to dial it back last year,

started to coach maybe a little scared. They make the playoffs, he blows a huge lead. He enters year three. And they drafted a receiver who you seem to like, the kid Johnson from TCU. Quentin Johnson. Yeah. We like the offensive coordinator in Kellan Moore. But as you said, the division is loaded, the schedule is not easy, and the AFC is a gauntlet. If I'm picking a team to miss the playoffs, here's a crazy scenario. Chargers missed the playoffs, decide, man, we ruined Justin Herbert's rookie deal. We have no playoff wins, one playoff appearance. Staley, you're out of here?

We're going to make a run at a big time coach. And you happen to talk about a coach Monday on the herd that, you know, is facing some battles with the NCAA and had dabbled in the NFL last summer, I think, last February. He interviewed with the Vikings. And he was, you know, I guess chatting with the Chargers, the Carolina Panthers owner. His name is Jim Harbaugh. Jim Harbaugh, obviously loves California. It's time with San Francisco.

What if the Chargers miss the playoffs? 7 and 10, 8 and 9. That's not going to get it. You're not getting to the playoffs in 300. 9 and 8 is probably going to miss the playoffs. playoffs in the AFC. So they miss the playoffs. Chargers do.

They say, you know what? Sorry, Staley. The ship has sailed. Oh, Jim Harbaugh's on the market. And Jim Harbaugh sees, I can get Justin Herbert. You're telling me that's not getting Jim Harbaugh to the NFL in a heartbeat. Now, the only hiccup here, and you know, the owners of the Chargers have been kind of notorious cheapskates.

Maybe one of the kids gets his dad. Hey, dad, open up the book. We got to get Jim Harbaugh in here. And Chargers missed the playoffs, but it's a blessing in disguise. bring in Jim Harbaugh to work with Justin Herbert. How do you like that? We talked about this today. Harbaugh's never failed.

That doesn't mean you want a national title at Stanford or a Super Bowl, but he's never failed. And I mean, Saban Spurrier, great coaches, Urban Meyer, great coaches, struggled in the NFL. You would leave Michigan and it would be deemed a success if you finish with three straight wins over the Buckeyes. I don't even remember the last time Michigan did that against Ohio State. and you got to the playoff and even won a playoff game.

And so if Jim Harbaugh, let's say they'd lose to LSU or George in the final. Harbaugh could say, I took over for Brady Hoke. It was a mess. Won 10 games the first year, ended up in the last three years, getting to the playoff twice, three straight Ohio state wins, and losing to an SEC power in the final. That's absolutely a success story for Michigan. Absolutely.

Jim Harbaugh can leave with his head high because what forced like Jimmy Johnson Pete Carroll out and I think this has happened to a lot of coaches they get worn out from kind of the hypocrisy the NCAA where they sort of pick and choose

who they punish I think Jim Harbaugh would look at it and say enough. I mean guys we're doing cheeseburgers here you've got SEC schools paying players through the churches for a thousand years. I could see Harbaugh if they beat the bucket.

It's one of those things where Ohio State fans would privately have to admit Harbaugh beating us for the third time in a row is a good thing because he leaves and then who's on the market. So kind of my takeaway is it would be the time NCAA breathing down your neck, playoff second year in a row, Buckeye win, I can see it happening. And think about the options that Harbao was thinking about. the Carolina Panthers who had the number one pick.

They got Bryce Young. Like you like Bryce Young more than I do. He's probably going to be a fine quarterback. Under no circumstances, is he ever going to be as good at any NFL as Justin Herbert? Let's just be obvious. And then he talked to the Vikings. Kirk Cousins, very good quarterback, won a lot of games. I think if you and I and like 32 NFL GMs were pulled,

they'd rather have Justin Herbert than Kirk Cousins. So this is one of those jobs where it's going to be a feeding fronting. We had Sean Payton ticketed for this job and then Staley makes the playoffs. and it looked like up, what was it, 27, 3 or whatever, in the playoffs? Like, it looked like Staley was fine. Then he blows the game. He thought, oh, he's going to get fired.

And they kept him and replace his offensive coordinator. So we'll see. But Jim Harborder of the Chargers would sure spice things up, especially Chargers, right? You know, dealing with the Rams out here and the Rams are like the big deal. They win the Super Bowl. We got to do something, right?

Well, he'd have his left tackle in Roshan Slater. He'd have a star young receiver. He'd have his center and Cole Inslee. Corey Lindsley, he'd have his quarterback. The Spanos's are not big meddlers. They're really not. You can say they go cheap. They're not meddlers.

And Tom Telesco is considered a very solid top 10, 12 general manager. That's about as well as you can do. I mean, if you go look at most job openings in the NFL, Washington could have one. You've got Sam Howell. Dallas could potentially have one. You've got the meddling of Jerry Jones. That's a good point. You start looking around and you're like, who else?

Well, the Raiders can have one. You don't have a quarterback. Tampa could have one. I like the GM, but right now you don't have a quarterback. The Chargers, I get a left tackle, star receiver, quarterback center, excellent GM, quality of life. Harbaugh is going to have choices. And my takeaway is, with the Spanos has opened up the checkbook. Their history is no-on coaches, but Marty Schottnheimer wasn't cheap.

So they deserve credit there. Marty Schottenheimer wasn't cheap. I don't think that's a crazy. I mean, one of the things you and I like to do is theorize, you know, make predictions, and I don't think that's a crazy one. Yeah. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games.

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

A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes,

creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream,

this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people.

I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack.

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

For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. When one of the things that I watched this weekend, and I think it's really changed in football, is, you know, like if you go, if you have a real. stable life. You have really good parents and you go to a prep school and you go to a college. Then I'm going to expect you at 23 years old to kind of have your act together out of college. If you're a child of divorce, went to a junior college, have no money, chaotic family, you know, I'm going to view you differently. So your journey is going to basically change my expectations of what you should do as a young quarterback. Like I watched Jordan Love

sail a ball over Musgrave. I watched a less than five-yard an attempt offensive game plan by the Packers. Seriously, Jason, I think the Packers know he can't play. I think they know it. And I think they're just trying to have him manage. I sat and watched that game. I'm like, this feels like, Kenny Pickett average double per attempt.

Can he pick it? With an offensive line you can't trust more than double, Jordan loves passing attempt yards. I mean, I just watched it. I watched more preseason than you, and I'm like, this ain't it, man. This is not going to work. I'm mostly with you. The only thing giving me pause is that Packer's schedule and just how soft and easy it is.

Could they gum it up with defense and running and win some 17, 13 slug fest against C.J. Stroud and, you know, young quarterbacks, sure they could. Like, overall, the Packers have talent. I mean, Colin, that defense has a lot of names, a lot of first-round picks. Offensive line will see. We know they have two good running backs. Like, even if Jordan Love's not that dude, and I think you and I probably both, I think I'm on board with you. He ain't the guy.

But there's a world where they say, hey, let's rate it in. Let's just do a lot of play action, a lot of bootleg, and nothing. You talk about 30 throws with Dak. Let's kind of limit Jordan Love to like 20 passes. We'll come out early, be aggressive on first down, throwing to make manageable second and third downs. And let's get a 10-0-0 lead. win with defense. I don't think this is going to be

anything long term with Jordan Love and the Packers. It just doesn't feel like a marriage made in heaven. So when I first met you, I knew you were a huge NFL guy and a huge college basketball guy. I don't remember. I've always been a college football guy, NFL college football NBA. And I have an emerging love for UFC, which I find it wildly entertaining.

So I love college football. one of the things that's not good for our business is regionalism, which is why baseball is a hard topic for us. People say sometimes, not very often, but somebody will come up and say, you guys don't talk a lot of baseball. And I always say it's regional. Like nobody that in Minnesota is going to watch the Mariners and nobody in Seattle is going to watch Tampa Bay. Like people watch their team and that's it. They don't want now in the NFL or the NBA, you'll watch other stars and other teams. And so I think this is the best college football year potentially that I remember.

USC, Texas, Clemson, Michigan, Ohio State, LSU, Georgia, Bama. I think all are fairly similar. Bama and Georgia have better rosters, don't have the quarterback. Texas, USC, don't quite have the rosters, but have great quarterbacks. Are you a huge college football fan? Because we've... I love college football. So, you know, you talked about having when you had kids.

So we had kids when we were in Pennsylvania. and I would like wake up Saturday, you know, the usual, hey, got to watch the college football pregame shows, then I'm sitting around watching the games. Well, you get the, you got a wife and then you get kids and you got to make decisions. I'm like, hey, I'm going to do this all day Sunday. Can I still do it all day Saturday? And that doesn't totally work. And so I didn't abandon college football, but I stopped watching the pregame shows.

This is like, you know, 10, 12 years ago. And then once you stop like getting into the pregame shows, then you're, okay, well, I can miss the kickoff, you know, the early. games and then it's like, oh, they're putting all the good games at night. I'll just, I'll just punt until the night games. And then it's like, wait a minute, Saturday night, I kind of want to go out. So yes, college football has gone, taking a backseat to me, but Colin, what I'll say is interesting is this. When I got to Fox, you know my history as like a worker in media. I'm like finding any angle I can succeed in, collecting whatever domain

expertise I can and then just going full hell. So college football season starts. I think this It was 2018, and I went to our digital team, and I was like, hey, why are we not doing any college football gambling, guys? I'm watching the games. I'm betting on the games. Let's do some videos. So I started doing videos on college football. We do like a pick six and a Texas, Oklahoma, who you got?

And I break it down for like 30 seconds. And we start to post these videos online for Fox Sports. And they're like, holy cow, we got to do this big. So we're doing all these gambling videos. And that fed my college football even more, the gambling. And then I started to do draft stuff. So in a weird way, I don't watch as much. but I'm definitely reading as much because I've got to pay attention to injuries and the coaching moves.

And I do have some friends who are in the, let's just say, executive search firm world. And they like to feed me who's hot, who people are coveting. And so I'm definitely paying attention, but I'm not watching as much because, you know, time is tough when you got two young kids. No, listen, it's a reality. So my kids are out of the house now, so I have nothing but time to watch sports. So I did go through about it. I would say about an eight-year period where college football, was harder for me. I had to kind of make a choice.

Yeah. So I would pick like two early games. When I first started watching college football years ago, they'd put the best games of the day on at nine in the morning, 30 years ago. But now there's so much money to be made. Most of the good games outside of Fox's noon game, most of them are 3.30 Pacific on. And so, you know, I had to watch that early game, but Anne wanted to go out by like 7.30. And it's like I had to make that choice because Sunday night football, you know, is top of the chart. So I, I do think you and I both put our family first, but I think college football this year is really going to be, it's going to be, I think, as captivating as college football has been in probably 15 years.

I think one of the things that's interesting is the NIL is a bit of an S show. And so is the transfer portal. And for a long time, college football coaches would tell me that they preferred college over the NFL because you had more off time. Well, now there's two recruiting periods and now the transfer portal. And the truth is the NFL job is better than the college job and now pays more with a better pension. So I wonder how long college football can keep Lincoln Riley and Jim Harbaugh and some of these very clever offensive. coaches Ryan Day because it was always understood you had control of your personnel in college. You were the richest guy on campus.

You didn't have a crazy owner. And you had a really nice offseason. That offseason's over. Lincoln Riley may get six days a year. He's got NIL. He's got transfer portal. He's got two recruiting periods. He's got boosters.

So I think one of the trends to keep your eye on over the next three years is can USC, they can pay. Lincoln Riley, can they keep him? I think it's become a miserable job. Now, you're plane flights if you're Lincoln Riley. Now, you've got longer plane flights. Harbaugh's got longer flights out west. That's less time with the family. You have to leave earlier. We're putting a load. I know they make a lot of money, but we're putting a load on college coaches. You and I have always known a college basketball coach doesn't translate to the NBA. But college football coaches have translated for years to the NFL. I don't know. That's my kind of next five years thing to keep your eye on. It's interesting because I was just thinking like, well, wait a sec, the college football

playoff is expanding. So more coaches are going to be able to say, I made the playoff. Hey, I'm in the playoff three of the last five years. He can't fire me. So it's almost like coaches will have more security. And though some of those guys you name Brian Day is not going to be missing the playoff when they expanded. He's not. The best out, Lincoln Riley is not going to be missing the playoff. And so they'll have to be. security, but at the same time, they'll now have a better resume to the NFL. Hey, man, look what I'm doing. Every year, I've got one of the best teams in the country and not just in the rankings,

but we're in the playoffs, the big money games at the end of the season. So yeah, I think I would agree with you that they're probably going to be worn down because remember, you used to, recruit a kid, you sign him, he's yours, unless he wants to leave because he does that playing time. Now you've got to keep him. I don't even know the pit coach's name. All he does is complain because he finds these diamonds in the rough. They look awesome. And then the big schools, coming or poaching, like treating Pitt and some of these other schools like they're like AAA farm clubs. Hey, hey, you get the guy out of high school and juco, pump him up for a year, then we'll take him over here to our big boy school. So like, that's going to get old,

quick for a lot of those schools. Yeah, that's another wrinkle in college football that's going to get good. And I will think, you know, we talked a little bit about the quarterback situation, how good it is this year. If you look at the ages of some of these guys, Colin, because of the COVID year, you've got a guy sticking around much longer. Almost all. these prospects, even like Hendon Hooker. They're like 22, 23, 24 years old coming into the NFL. Can he pick it? I mean, he really

only showed for one year in college. That's it. And now here we are year two in the NFL and he's like, oh my gosh, this guy's going to be 26 in a minute. And it's like, wow, he looks kind of poised and mature. You're not getting these young Johnny Mansell dudes anymore, which is kind of a benefit of COVID. Quarterbacks sticking around a lot longer.

All right. What side are you on one NBA topic? Are you on the Darry's side, who sometimes can be addicted to stars and personalities, or the James Hardin's side where promises were probably made financially and Darry now doesn't want anything to do with him. I think Hardin is trying to pressure Darry to make a deal with the Clippers. And by calling him a liar, it's personal. Darry will suck it up, lose the deal to the Clippers, won't demand Terrence man. I guess that's one of the guys that Darry wants and the Clippers don't want to give up. Hey, he's a rotational player, good player.

What is your takeaway? Who's at fault here? So I think I'm going to side with James Hardin, Colin. And I understand his unhappiness. I have like an incendiary take on Hardin. I want to be careful with what I say here. But when you call someone a liar in a public banner like that, like you better have stuff to back it up.

And apparently, Daryl Morey made a bunch of promises. And none of them were delivered. Now, I don't know if that's a result of something that happened during the season, after the season, but Chris Paul, if you remember a couple years ago, Chris Paul came out and said, yo, Daryl Morey told me I was going to be with the organization like two days ago. He's like, I'm not trading. We're keeping. And then two days later, I read on social media, I got traded. So this guy's a liar. So Chris Paul is saying that Darry historically has not kept promises. Now James Harden is saying the same thing. And do you know who, Colin, who's one of the most popular NBA players in China? James Harden. And you know how that is? So when Yao Ming came to the NBA, they started to broad, or they had been broadcasting games at China. Obviously, everybody in China loves the Houston Rockets.

Tracy McGrath is a huge, huge guy. Yow Ming's a huge guy. Well, when they leave, they're still a billion rocket fans. James Hardin arrives with Dwight Howard. Oh, by the way, you know where Dwight Howard played last year? China. I wonder if James Hardin is seeing the writing on the wall. I don't have a market.

These guys want to pay me on the cheap. I know I'm making my money because I opted in. But where's my next deal going to be? I'm not getting three years, 60 mil. I'm not getting one of these Anthony Davis deals. I'm not getting a LeBron deal. And I start to wonder, we just saw Leonele Messi turn down a billion dollars in Saudi Arabia. Okay?

Lennel Messi said, I'll go to the MLS. I'll get a chunk of the team and the Apple profits. What if James Harden said, I'm sick of this Daryl crap? No teams want me. that's fine. I'll go where I'm loved. I thought Houston loved me. They went after Fred Van Vleet. Fred Van Viet. Free agency opens up. Let's get Fred Van Vleet.

Hardin had been saying for months, that's where he would love to go. So where does James Hardin feel to love? And the answer's China. He's one of the most popular NBA players in China. Steph Curry and the Warriors obviously have been dominated, so they're number one. But Hardin's right up there. And you start to see, hmm, some of these older NBA players, if they don't have the market that they want, do they explore

international options. James Hardin could still do really well in China. He average 21 and 10 this past season in the NBA. He's a good player, but if he feels unhappy and he's getting lied to and nobody wants to pay him, I'm just going to go where they love me, Colin. And I think you would agree. Sometimes

you've got to feel the love, man. It's an interesting, it really is an interesting take. Saudi Arabia is now a real player, Namar. Yeah. I mean, so I don't think that's the craziest thing I've heard today. I think that's an interesting take. And you know who would be right behind him? The guy who commented on social media about

Adrian Wojano Rowski, and that's Kyrie Irving. We know Kyrie Irving is as out there as anybody in the NBA. And you look at sneaker deals gone awry and where he would go to, you know, middle finger the NBA and get paid and feel the love. Kyrie Irving following James Hardin would not shock me in the least. Now, he's a little younger than Hardin. Now, he's a little younger than Harden, but I think he only signed like a two-year deal with Dallas. He's persona non-grata for most NBA GMs. There you go. I mean, you don't want to deal with these guys and you're not going to pay him the 30

million. Well, where can you go get the money and hoop where everybody loves you? You think the media is going to crush James Hardin and China? No way. They're not going to do that. So let's just keep it in mind a year, 18 months, if you start hearing James Hardin, China rumors. Jason McIntyre, buddy, it was great.

doing this every week, getting some picks on Thursday. Love having you back from vacay. I know how much your family means to you and I appreciate it. Thanks, pal. Volume. 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 acapella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? some retirement homes.

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10. pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Heart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.