The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Colin Cowherd Podcast - MNF Reaction, Steelers Outdated, Watson Not Elite, Stopping Miami

Episode Date: September 19, 2023

Colin reacts to the Monday Night Football doubleheader. He identifies why Bryce Young is going to have a limited ceiling, a problem area the Steelers just can’t seem to fix, and why DeShaun Watson��s days as an elite quarterback are behind him. Former Bears and Dolphins head coach Dave Wannstedt joins Colin to debate whether Justin Fields’ time is running out in Chicago, if the Steelers brand of tough football no longer works and they point out the blueprint to stopping the Dolphins’ high flying offense. Follow Colin and The Volume on Twitter for the latest content and updates!  #Volume #herdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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All right, welcome in Dave Wonstat. The former Bears head coach has thoughts on Justin Fields. You know he's from Pittsburgh. He's going to have thoughts on the Steelers. My takeaway in the first game is, boy, that was ugly. The Saints are now 2-0, undefeated. Derek Carr comes through in the fourth quarter, through his career. He's been a pretty good fourth quarter quarterback. young is small. He's never going to be a dominant player in this league. He's accurate. He moves well. They just don't have any playmakers. They gave up DJ more to get him and they need receiver DJ more back. That was the downside of that move. But if you wanted to control the draft and get your quarterback, then that's what you do. Smallish, accurate, moves well. He's tiny, though.

And I think, you know, he's not going to ever push the ball down the field. It's not what you're going to get. But he's got an offensive coach. had a very, very vanilla game plan for him. So, I mean, it was a remedial game plan, not a lot of motion. They didn't ask him to do a lot, but they don't have a lot to work with. So they tried to kind of play, you know, field position and eventually gave up a huge play down the sideline from Derek Carr. That felt like a big advantage in this football game, a bobbled but caught ball on the left

sideline. And they hold on, you know, push. I didn't have a great first two weeks. got a push on that, had Carolina plus three. Carolina, I'm so glad I was talked out of it. I had the Saints winning the Division, Atlanta, a wild card team. I like Carolina through the summer, but I did have questions about the offensive line and their skill people, and they just don't have any juice. Both of these were ugly games. I would prefer we had more Sunday games, one Monday night football game. I'm not a huge fan of Thursday night football. Most of the games

are uninspired. Al Michaels and Kirk Herbstre sometimes seemed like, you know, they're They do a good job, but I mean, the games just don't have any juice, any energy. As far as the Pittsburgh Steelers, they won a game tonight with nine first downs. I don't know how long Matt Canada is going to get in Pittsburgh. I don't get it. Five years, the offensive line still suboptimal. The run games hit and miss. I don't see clever, but Mike Tomlin and the Steelers, they're all about continuity and loyalty.

So Matt Canada retains employment. I just don't see it. When you watch the Rams and McVeigh and the Niners in Kyle Shanahan and the Dolphins where they spend their money, the coaching, the schematics, the adaptability, they're just playing a different game than the Steelers. They won a game. It never breaks my heart when Deshawn Watson, who I think the creepy guy loses a football game. I just don't think he's, I think you take a year and a half to two years off in the NFL. I mean, you can make it as a coach.

I don't think you can do it as a quarterback. I just don't think he's that good. I don't think he's a top 12 quarterback in the league. I never loved how he threw a football. He was a playmaker in his best years. But we've had so many young quarterbacks get drafted in the last three years and emerge in the last year or two. I just don't consider Deshawn Watson an elite quarterback.

You know, he probably should have gotten the benefit of a pass interference call and that one that sailed out of bounds. You're on the road. You don't get the call. But the Steelers won with nine first downs and being dominated in time of possession. You're not supposed to win that game if you're a star quarterback and you're Deshaun Watson. Nick Chub injury is gross. I saw the video once. That was enough. I don't want to see it again. But, you know, Pittsburgh, one and one, they find ways to win. But I just, I feel like

they're playing a different game. They feel very much like New England with better players. I just don't think there's much of a ceiling offensively. And if you don't have home run plays, If you're not creative and clever and adaptable, I just don't think you can get to conference championships or beyond. For a limited time, you can save up to 40% off on an NFL Plus Premium annual subscription when you sign up through Plus Play from Verizon. Plus Play. It is a platform where you can shop, manage, and save on the subscriptions you already love, like NFL Plus. With NFL Plus Premium, you get access to live games on mobile, NFL Reds, NFL Network and more.

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A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast.

Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tontons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Let's bring in Dave Wanstatt, former Baron Dolphin coach. All right, Dave, it wasn't pretty. Nine first downs, barely had the football. It was very much, I guess this is my takeaway with the Steelers. So this is an organization that Chuck Knoll, Bill Cower, Mike Tomlin.

I mean, it doesn't even make sense in the NFL. They're all about loyalty and continuity. How many years does Matt Kennedy get the OC job? They can't get the O line right. They can't run the football. I mean, I just look at this and I think to myself, yeah, they'll win eight or nine games. They'll finish above 500. I just look around this league at the Dolphins and the Niners and Philadelphia and some of these clever

offenses. And coach, this is a tough way to make a living. I just, I think there's a ceiling to Steelers football when I see. Your thoughts? Yeah, I, I, uh, offensively, it is. It's tough to watch. And, and we know that Kenny Pickett, in my opinion, and I'm a little bit partial, because he's a pit guy, and I'm a pit guy call him, but, uh, the guy didn't have much of a chance. And the minute that you see your quarterback running for his life like he did, my first instinct is we got to slow that down. And how do you slow it down? You're running a football. And with three minutes to go into the third quarter, the Pittsburgh Steelers had 12 yards rushing.

I know it. I mean, I can't comprehend that. I mean, you could go up and take a knee, you know, 15 times at that point in the game and make more than 12 yards. I mean, it really makes no sense. And at the end of last year, and I go back to Art Rooney, who's a friend, you know, he made the statement. Mike Tomlin has, but at the end of last year, check it out. Art Rooney, the owner said, we will run the football next year. We're not going to put up with what we did this year.

We're going to get back to Steelers football. and here we are and nothing's changed. Nothing's changed. You know, thank God for that defense. Thank God for playing at home. Unfortunate injury with Nick Chubb. I mean, he's their lifeline. He was averaging six yards of carry before he got hurt tonight.

So I think he would have made a difference. But yeah, Kenny Pickett right now, I think he's really as concerned about the rush as he is sitting back and reading the coverage. He doesn't look. He truly looks like his focus isn't on reading one, two, three. What's the coverage? It's where's the rush coming from? And do I have to scramble?

Do I have to get the ball out? It's tough for a quarterback to operate under those circumstances. A lot of young quarterback struggling, Justin Fields, Mack Jones, Kenny Pickett, have defensive head coaches. This is not a shot at them. But I do think there's a sensibility in a language. offensive coaches speak. And I feel like, you know, defensive coaches, you know, they're not going to be quite as creative. They're not going to be quite as risk-taking. And frankly, a lot of offensive

coaches played quarterback. They were offensive players. And is it a fair criticism to say Pittsburgh's a defensive culture? And unless they get a young progressive, that's its culture, is toughness and physicality. And I just look at it and I think, that's not doing Kenny Pickett. Same thing for New England, coach. Mack Jones had a defensive coordinator, Colin plays last year. Is that a fair criticism? Well, I think to some degree it is. The problem that you have in Pittsburgh is it tomorrow it's going to be the terrible

tiles, did it again in the defense, and they go on to the next week, you know? I mean, it's nothing going to change. You know what's crazy you talk about, and we're going to get into the dolphins in a minute. When we do, I want to bring up a point to you about defensive. head coaches because we have them to do with San Diego when they played the dolphins in that first game. But yeah, back to Pittsburgh, I don't see, I don't see it changing. I really don't.

That's their identity. That's who they are. If they face a team that doesn't have the pass rush with Desiria Smith and Miles Garrett, like Cleveland is really good on defense, then Kenny Pickett will have a good game and he'll throw for three touchdowns. But against the quality pass rush defense, nothing will change. All right. Let's pivot to Chicago where you spend a great deal of your time.

You know, I came into the season and I said, I think I'm kind of 55, 45, 65, 60, 40, Justin Fields will work. I thought DJ Moore was a huge get for them, and he's been kind of their receiving core. But Dave, I just don't think he sees the field well. He reminds me a lot of Zach Wilson. He's got a good arm. He moves well. and he just doesn't anticipate the play.

I think Justin Fields, I mean, I watched him on a lot of different views, almost like drone footage or behind him. There's wide open guys everywhere. He has time on certain plays. Do you think in the, you know, you know this, the GM and the head coach can say, we didn't draft him. He's not our guy. And next year, there's six to seven first round quarterbacks. The Bears could have two top six or seven picks. Coach, I think it's really hard.

If he ends up, I mean, he's 5 and 22. If he goes 7 and 10, 6 and 11, they're not sticking with him in Chicago. There's no way. No, they have two number one picks next year, as we know. Theirs and the Panthers with the trade, Carolina. So they're going to be, they could have 2 10 top picks. I mean, maybe 2 5, top 5. Who knows the way this thing is.

unraveling. But, you know, the whole plan here, and I'm close to all those guys, Ryan Fools and Matt Eberflers, I'm up there all the time, OTAs, training camp. And the blueprint was the Philadelphia Eagles. You know, two years ago, people were uncertain of Jaylon Hertz. That's when they went and got A.J. Brown. That's when they kind of changed their philosophy, and they Barry Don, it's going to be a quarterback O.T., you know, quarterback run pass option offense. Jaylon Hertz can execute to a high level. Well, the difference is. So they go out and they get DJ Brown here.

Absolutely. Outstanding. The problem is Philadelphia Eagles got one of the best offensive lines. And last year, they led the NFL in sacks. The Bears can't, but they, no strong safety was the leading sacker for the bears last year. And you saw him against Baker Mayfield, even when they got in there, their defense couldn't get Baker on the ground. I mean, they make no plays on defense now. So my point is this, that Justin Fields, yes, he did have time.

He held the ball for once out of his time, and over three seconds, one time it was four seconds, one time five seconds. and he's trying to be not a running quarterback. Last year he needs a league in rushing, Colin, and there was an outcry. We can't win a Super Bowl that way. He's got to throw it. And I'm afraid to say, I think my, you know, I think Luke Getsy, the offensive coordinator,

fell into the same trap as Justin did. Okay, they had one quarterback run in the opening game. It was a quarterback sneak. That was it. That was the only call for it. And they were average in about 10 or 12 a game last year. I thought it was too many. But they were moving the ball.

And the offense was generating a rhythm. That's all gone. In this game, the opening drive, the second week against Tampa, they have the run pass option on the rollout. Justin keeps it, runs it in. DJ Moore was open for a pass across the middle. Never saw it again. They go back to the drop back.

They're kind of running. Luke Getsy came from Green Bay, and it almost looks like a green bay. Bay Packer type of offense, and we can't do that. They've got to abandon that their only chance and go back to the run, quarterback run option and hope that their defense gets better. Otherwise, this kid's got no chance, no chance. Listen, it's like right now the Philadelphia Eagles are a good team that doesn't have an

identity, and they won't embrace that Jalen Hertz is a power running quarterback. That's what he is. Baltimore, to their credit, is allowing Lamar Jackson to be Lamar Jackson. Russell Wilson last year in Denver stopped running. Kyler Murray doesn't want to run. To me, it doesn't matter if it's basketball, football, or baseball. Lean into what you do. And I look at this.

When I watch Justin Fields, listen, it's Zach Wilson. He's got some gifts. But he's a big, strong kid who moves well. You can't happen to it. Guy, this, what's happening now is he's dropping back. If he doesn't like his throw, rather than running and making something positive, DJ Moore twice was open clapping his hands during the game, trying to get his attention to throw him the ball.

So, you know, it's, your only chance is to go back to what they did last year and turn them loose, get them on the move, and in passing situations, hope that he has improved. Now, their offensive line might be worse than last year. The draft pick is a player. Darnell right to right tackle. But the right guard, the right guard, they're in their third right guard. Dave, they sign him.

He don't practice. Then he had personal reasons. I think it was a family thing. So they started a guy. They drafted in the seventh round last year. He never played. Lucas Patrick, the center. He didn't take one snap in the preseason.

He's starting at center. The offensive line, too, is struggling bad. And so again, by the way, another defensive coach, Sean McDermott, Mike Tomlin, Matt Iberflux, struggling with the O-Line. Do you know in week one, 10 of the 11 top-rated O-lines were offensive coaches? Andy Reed fixed his in an off-season. Sean McVeigh this year fixed his in an off-season. I think we have to be honest. Defensive coaches can fix D-lines quickly. Offensive coaches can fix O lines quickly. How many years in a row can. the Bears two, three years in a row. They can't get the offensive line right. And by the way, they've used a lot of draft capital and money on it. They've drafted a lot of offensive linemen. Yeah.

No, they have. Yeah. I just, I think. No, it's their first round pick this year, darn out of Tennessee. He's going to be a player. But from there, they've got some guys that need to develop and they've got some older guys now. It's not conducive to giving your quarterback a lot of time and having him sit back

there and be able to read the field. So they can't, they can't do what they're doing now. They got to go back to the run offense, abandon this, hope their defense comes up in a few plays. You know, we get no help from our defense in Chicago because, you know, the ball's on the ground. We don't get it against Tampa. We had chances for receptions. We don't get them. So the offense never gets a short field. You know, they never get a, it's always drive 80 yards to score a touchdown. And that doesn't happen in the NFL. We're back with another week of football, and Draft King's Sportsbook is keeping us in on all the NFL action.

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an official sports betting partner of the NFL with the code Colin. The crown is yours. Let's transition to Miami, which I think is as good as any team in the league. I mean, they're just, they almost look like a Canadian football league with all these motions, pre-snap motions. I will say this. You know Miami wants winners because you have the aqua water in the beach. If you win, they care. If you don't, they're out.

I worried that this team couldn't play physical football. It would be a finesse speed team. I watched them in New England coach. They played between the tackle, run football, power football. And I was like, okay, plus you love Vic Fangio. Almost every defensive coach I know likes Vic Fangio. He's dialing up pressure. I got to tell you, I don't see a big hole.

Sometimes I worry when a team spreads it out and they're a speed team, that's what they practice. And they lack a physicality. Tough teams, tough practices. I worried a little bit about that with Miami. But, you know, it is San Francisco's offense. And San Francisco plays a power game, actually. So it feels like it's a bit more finesse than San Francisco's version. You know, this Mike McDaniels and Ivy League, Kyle Shanahan, it's a little more spread out,

little more motion, a little more finesse. But I was impressed with their physicality against New England. Your thoughts? Yeah, I, yes, anytime you can, you can go shoot a shoe with the Patriots, that's saying that you're a physical football team. So they did that. You know, the two thoughts. Number one, two is doing a fabulous job. When you talk about physical and running the ball, the two things that I get to see from the dolphins, McDaniels, got to stay and try to be as balanced as he can. That's tough for him to do. You got to remember back last year, Buffalo, up there, playoffs,

they had their third team quarterback, Skyler Thompson, the Dolphins, Redonda their third team, and they threw it twice as much as they ran it. They threw it 45 times, they ran it 20. And I'm thinking of myself, run the football, and you're going to beat. the Buffalo Bills. You're going to beat these guys in a snowstorm up there. And for whatever reason, they didn't do it. I think that is one thing that McDaniel's got to

keep going back to trying to be balanced. As many weapons and explosives trying to be balanced. I think, you know, the game plan, I love the game plan that the charges had. If I'm playing the dolphins tomorrow, I'm going to do what they do, except that how do you leave Tyree Kill, you know, one-on-one. That was the only thing I would have never played man. I would have played zone. But their philosophy was, Herbert, they ran the ball 10 more times than Herbert passed it. Yep. And they took the air, took, they ran the ball in Fangio's defense for what, 180 some yards? Yeah. I mean, that's, that's the way you beat these guys. And you, you take the era of the football, but you don't let the most, the fastest guy in the world be one-on-one.

that was the only thing that made no sense in this game plan. He's supposed to be a defensive guy. But I thought the big picture plan on offense was perfect. You want to beat them? That's what you do. Yeah, you don't want to get into a track meet with Miami. What you want to do is you want to have, and I thought I agreed with you completely. Brandon Staley drives me nuts.

I've never seen a team give up more third and longs, but their game plan was sound. It was, we're going to run the ball, eat the clock. give them probably two fewer possessions and take our chances late. That's the way to beat Miami. Nobody's going to beat them and attract meat, especially in South Florida. It's not going to happen. No, no, no. So, you know, I agree with you.

And it's just that the coverage, you always got to stay on top of Hill, you know? And if he curls up and catches it in front of you, then you've got to come up and tackle with a guy. But you can't get into a foot race with him. You just can't do it. And that's what they did. And they lose the game because of it. But I like the game plan.

I thought it was very good. And all the players bought in. And New England tried doing the same thing, but they didn't have as good players. Didn't have as good receivers. Didn't have as good a quarterback. So, you know, obviously the plan didn't, wasn't effective. Almost, almost. One of the things I think I've noticed in the first couple of weeks is there was a reluctance.

Now we have instead of four pre-season. season games, coach, we have three. And there is this continued reluctance to play starters. So I think it's really hurt offensive line play. I think some of the best offenses, Kansas cities, Cincinnati's really sputtering when you have these star quarterbacks, they want to protect and not play. I wonder if we have a little bit of a move back to playing starters in the preseason. Because you know, defensively, you could probably use a lot of. little less practice. But if you're all line, if you've got new starters and you don't play it all together in the preseason, you're going to be a mess in September. And I think that's one of the

things I've noticed. My kind of macro view of the NFL two weeks in is, are we going to go back to playing starters in the preseason? I think the offenses, a lot of the better offenses in the league have completely struggled. That's my takeaway on what I've seen. Your thoughts? Yes, 100%. And I think Nick Seriani from the Eagles, what was the first thing he said in his press conference and they won the game in the opener. I will never let this happen again what happened in the preseason. Our starters are playing next year. Write it down because I didn't do a good job in the preseason. We were physically not ready to play. He totally agreed with them. I looked up when the Bears lost their opener to Green Bay, I looked up to see the number,

Justin Fields played 11% of all the preseason snaps. And Green Bay's quarterback, Jordan Love, he played over 30%. So this kid played, you know, more, considerable more. But Justin Fields had 11% of the snaps. Are you kidding me? This kid needs to play 80% of the snaps. He needs to play. And so does that offensive line, like you said,

I definitely think that there's going to be a movement back to that just because of the reasons that you said it and Saria and you hear coaches say it already. I want to move back to the Bears on this. I spent the weekend in Chicago. You spent a lot of time there. It's my favorite American city. I just love the architecture, the people. It's so passionate politics and sports. It's like a nicer version of Boston, a friendlier version of Boston.

politics and sports rule today. The GM has had some whiffs, but also had some hits. The coach has a lot of detractors, but with the draft being as strong as it is for quarterback, if there has to be a choice made, go back and you tell me the history of the bears. Will they stick with a coach and move off the quarterback? That's my gut feeling today, that Iber Fluse only has two years. he didn't pick fields. The GM didn't pick fields.

My guess is they're going to keep the GM and the coach. Are you backing me there? You know the history of the organization. Yeah, I definitely think that if they make a change, it would be a quarterback, not the coach or GM. I really believe that. And I think they're sitting there with,

just for the reason you said, it's probably not fair to Justin. you know, that he wasn't drafted by them. He couldn't control that. But if they make a move, I definitely believe that's the way they would go. I do think that, you know, they got a new president of the team.

I know the owner, George McCaskey. I think everybody's working well together. So there's not an internal conflict right now. So I definitely think if they do make a change, If something gets major shakeup at the end of the year, it would be the quarterback. It would not be the head coach. Do you hear to players like Justin Fields? How is he?

They do. They do. And he's tough. I watched that kid last year in December, getting ready for the Packers with a cold. They can't win a game. The fans are booing. He gets a separated shoulder. And he walks up to the podium in a sling.

and they said, how are you going to be next week? And he said, how am I going to be next week? It's Packer week. I will be ready to go. And to me, that's what you need. That's Chicago, that's Chicago right there. Knocked on shoulder. It's snowing out.

It's freezing cold, but I'll be ready to go next week. So, I mean, he has the toughness. He has the commitment to be successful. Why? I don't know. You know, if you go back to his. college days, Colin, you know, because I took a look at this. He started two years at Ohio State.

In two years, he was sacked like 49 times, like 28, 28, 29 times a year. And then he leaves and C.J. Stroud takes over, quarterback now down at Houston. And they actually threw the ball a little bit more. And I think he was only sacked 12 times. So this holding the ball syndrome or making a decision syndrome or whatever. it is, whatever it is. It was there in Ohio State a little bit. And I don't think anybody wants to admit it, but it was there. If you look at the number. Kyle Shanahan had told people inside the building in San Francisco that he was concerned that that was his knock on Justin Field, that he

just didn't see the field and that he just held on to the ball too long. And I think that's a great, that's a great nugget by you, is that they threw more with C.J. Stroud and he was Sacks, significantly less. Now, some of that can be personnel, but Ohio State's always had, you know, four and five-star, you know, it's Ohio State. They got guys as big as that door blocking guys from Northwestern who want to be doctors. I mean, think about it, right? I mean, come on. Yeah. I mean, he has time to throw the ball in Ohio State. Okay, finally, you love the Big Ten. I love college football, Notre Dame Ohio State this weekend, but I want to ask you about Dion Sanders. Now, Travis Hunter won't be available for Oregon or USC, and I think that'll be.

be their undoing. I think he's such a special player. That gave them a real shot in those games. How surprised are you? Not that he drew attention, but I mean, 70% of his roster coach is transfer portal, and they've been pretty efficient, not heavily penalized. Now, I think, you know, looking ahead to Oregon and off a Nebraska game that was highly emotional, I just think they were flat. You know this in college football. You don't get the same. They were just, they got USC, in Oregon coming. They play Colorado State. They were completely flat. Are you surprised, though, at the immediacy of the efficiency, and they looked like a fairly well-oiled machine offensively. Are you surprised by it?

No, because I know a couple of the coaches on the staff there, and the guy that's an offense coordinator, who was a head coach at Ken State and did a heck of a job, and he went there, and then he had a chance to go to Notre Dame. A week after he took the Colorado James job. Reese left Notre Dame and went to Alabama and they tried, hired him away from Dion and come into Notre Dame and he stayed because he was committed and that told me something right there. You know what? Because this guy's a heck of a coach. And I agree with you. I was waiting to see 12 men on the field, right? Guys jumping off sides. Too many men on the field for a punt. Can't get the field goal team out there. They were smooth. They were.

as smooth as anybody. You've got to give Deon credit for that. And, you know, with this transfer portal, the one thing that's happened, you know, very few kids go into the transfer portal unless they got another place to go. Now, it might be a level below or whatever it is. So, you know, it's not like it was when I went to school. And Johnny Majors took over a pit. They opened the doors.

He brought in almost 90 freshmen. In fact, there was a story in Sports Illustrated a month ago. That was the biggest turnaround. behind what Deion did. But we had no choice. We either played and we jumped on board or we were out and lost our scholarship. So there was no transfer portal.

Where now these kids did leave, they didn't fit in or whatever the circumstance it was. I was a little reservations because you kind of say, is this the right thing to do for college football? But the more, and I know Dion a little bit from the Florida State, Miami days, and Dallas days, and the more that I hear Dion talk, you know, he talks about his faith.

He talks about his family about making these guys father, good husbands. I mean, he talks about the right things. And then you know you're going to be in a pro system. Nowadays, you know why these kids go to college? I mean, I hate to say this, when I went to pit my first year, I remember going back there because the first time I was a pit as assistant with Johnny majors when we won national championship. You know, kids went to school.

somewhere because they wanted to get a good education. And like myself, as I'm a junior now, of a sudden, someone said, hey, you might be good enough to go to the NFL. And I said, really? I mean, you know, there was no social media. No one talked about it. You just went there to try to get a degree and play football and hang out with the guys. Now, so I go into my first home.

I go back to Pitt in the mid-2000s there. And I go into a home, and it was us in Notre Dame. And Charlie Weiss was at Notre Dame. name. And he was coming out and I'm getting ready to go in. And I'm wearing my Pitt National Championship ring. And I'm going there and I'm talking about why he should come to Pitt and our great business school and on and on and the tradition of Pitt and Tony Dorset and Dan Marino. And I walk out and I said, did you see what Charlie was wearing a Super Bowl ring? And my assistant coach said, coach, you've been in the NFL for about 15 years. These kids, unfortunately, don't want to hear

by getting his degree. They want to hear how quick you're going to make them first-run draft picks. And I took that national championship ring and put it in the drawer, and I put my Super Bowl ring on. And that was the end of it. And my point is with the story is that these kids nowadays, how quick can you make me a first-round draft pick? And can you get me into the NFL?

And if you're running a pro system like Dion runs on offense and defense, and you have the NFL pedigree, it's attractive. It really is. And he's going to do well and he's going to get great players and great talent. And I can just hear Dion in the house with the mama. You know, you're talking to someone's mother and he'll win the mothers over in the household. I promise you that. You know, they're going to love them.

They're going to love them. And no, so it's just be a matter of if he'll stay at Colorado. That's the only question. Yeah. Because he's going to be successful. And he's good for college football. You know, there's so much negativity out there with, you know, with obviously realigned. You know, there's so much stuff that people are complaining about.

You know, I think he's just a fresh breath of fresh air. You know, I really do. No, I mean, I've, he's bringing new people into the tent. I love college football. This weekend's a great game. Alabama, Ole Miss, Notre Dame, Ohio. State, Colorado and Oregon. There's, I think, well, there's a, there's a West Coast game. Is it UCLA? Utah, could be. I could be wrong on that. Dave Wanstatt, we talk bears,

we talk dolphins, we talk Steelers. Well, listen, you win in the NFL, you win. Pittsburgh 9 first down is going to W, so that's good. Coach, goodsteenia as always. All right, call me. Be safe. The volume. Football is officially back. more preseason games, the regular season is here. Listen, we all like watching football on TV, but nothing's better. Live and in-person. And the best way to get tickets to any of these games is at game time, the fastest growing ticket app in the entire United States. For last minute, amazing deals on tickets to see your favorite football team in September. Go download game time.

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