The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Colin Cowherd Podcast - Nick Wright on Belichick Brilliance, Mahomes Roller Coaster, LeBron/Lakers Struggles

Episode Date: December 8, 2021

Colin uses Bill Belichick and Nick Saban to push back on the haters bashing the recent college coaching moves (3:00), and looks at which new CFB coaching hire has the biggest challenge ahead. Then, Nick Wright (co-host of FS1's "First Things First") joins to discuss Colin's theory on relationships and what it means for Mac Jones and the Patriots (8:00), what the Patriots win over the Bills showed us about Bill Belichick's mentality (13:00), why Patrick Mahomes looks so different this season (18:00), what the Bills should learn from the Patriots (26:00), why Belichick and Saban have the best coaching staffs (32:00), why LeBron is having so much trouble getting the Lakers to click (41:00), and why Damian Lillard teaming up with Ben Simmons might be a terrible idea (46:00).Make sure to Subscribe and follow Colin and The Volume on Twitter for the latest content and updates and check out FanDuel for the best wagering and daily fantasy action! Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84's big to me. I'm Sam Jay. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it with our friends, fellow comedians and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Your Valentine's Day shouldn't start with a Hail Mary. We've got you covered on the big day when you order flowers and gifts from Pro Flowers early this year. Head on over to Proflowers.com to get 15% off our entire collection of blooms, gifts and more for your cutie with promo code Crush 15 until February 14.

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Fandul-Sports book app, sign up. Hi, everybody, Wednesday morning. How about a little Nick Wright in 10 minutes? So I've heard a lot over the last couple of weeks about people complaining about coaches who lack integrity. And I roll my eyes at this stuff, obviously. I've talked ad nauseum about this. But I wanted you to just remember this because I don't think you've probably thought about this. And I guess that's my job to bring up stuff you haven't thought of.

When Nick Saban, the greatest college football coach in the history of the sport that created, the greatest dynasty in the history of the sport, was head coached the Dolphins. He famously said during the season, I am not going to be the Alabama coach. Two weeks later, he left for Alabama. Hmm, integrity. He had three years left on his contract at 4.5 mil a year with the Dolphins. Kim Bo-Camper, former Dolphin turned sports talk personality, said, Wayne Hizenga, that's the Dolphins owner, was in the garbage business for years.

Nick Saban may be the biggest piece of trash he's ever collected. Integrity. Bill Belichick, the greatest coach ever. Before he went to New England, he became head coach of the New York Jets for a day. Then he bailed. He scrawled his resignation letter on a napkin that said, I resign as HC of the NYJ. So it seems like we should know the difference between integrity and somebody who has the smart

to chase a better opportunity when he sees it. Let's use a new word, naive, for those of you who don't get the business. Speaking of all these new college football coaches, as I talked about, I think the other day on the podcast, there is no perfect coach, right? Everybody outside of Sabin has a whole. Lincoln Riley doesn't have a huge presence, soft-spoken. Brett Venables in an offensive era where Nick Saban admits you can't stop anybody. He's all defense. Little dorky, little quirky.

Brian Kelly is a complete stranger to the south, a weird fit, and basically only got one coach from the Notre Dame staff. He's got to totally rebuild the LSU staff. Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame has no big game experience, no head coaching experience. And Mario Cristobald's never developed a quarterback. I would say Lincoln Riley and Mario Cristobal have the greatest chance to succeed. They both play in weaker conferences in recruiting hotbeds. So I think Cristobal and Lincoln Riley, by year two, will be building noticeably better programs. I think Marcus Freeman and Brian Kelly could be a little rocky early.

I mean, do you think Brian Kelly is going to build the perfect staff? he's harsh, he's not Southern, he can rub people the wrong way. And Marcus Freeman's going to take a while to figure out the head coach thing, right? It's going to take him a while to be on that sideline and realize he makes the big call. I don't think there's a bust in the group, although I think Brent Venables is in a weird space. So as he moves to the toughest conference of the SEC, that's a big disadvantage, they bail on an offensive system that's as good as any in college football, the Lincoln, and Riley system. Secondly, it's very much understood that if you go to the SEC, defense no longer dominates it, the best quarterback does. Cam Newton did, Joe Burrow did, Tua did, Mac Jones did,

Bryce Young did. It's no longer dominated by the best defense because the rules have all changed. So Venables has no history of being offensively clever, as I've said before, whatever side of the ball, you're on, those are your greatest allies and your greatest information. So I'm interested to watch Venables and his big roadblock, he's going to the SEC. We didn't know if this thing was going to work for Oklahoma and the SEC with Lincoln Riley and momentum. I think he's the one coach that could have a very, very rocky beginning. All right, my buddy, Nick Wright, co-host, first things first.

So I want to throw, we like theories. We have sort of our belief system. So men and women cheat in relationships when they don't feel like they're getting something. It can be intimacy. It can be support. It can be help with the kids. It can be a variety of things. But they don't feel like they're getting something.

And so they make horrible decisions and stray starting emotionally, then physically, in relationships. and New England's system is very interesting. So Brady took a pay cut most of his career. And I've noticed this in my career. When I feel I'm getting everything, I am much more willing to cut my boss as a break. And so Brady always felt I've got the best coach. I always had a top five defense.

I always have a top offensive line. I always have better than average running backs. I have a great owner. I can take a pay cut because I appreciate the support. Right. And New England does not ask their quarterback to wear a cape. They do not ask their quarterback to throw sidearm or left handed. Nor do they feel pressure with their quarterbacks to ask them to do that.

They don't feel like they have to validate his. contract. They don't feel like, hey, we have this super talented guy. We owe him, Josh Allen, Mahomes, Herbert. We owe him deep throws. He's too talented. Lamar Jackson. So as I watched Mack Jones, I thought to myself, if you base quarterbacks on how they fit the system and what they're asked to do, I can argue Mac Jones is a top 10 quarterback based on what he's asked to do. And he will probably take a significant pay cut. Because back to my original theory, if you feel boxes are checked in your life, you don't feel like you have to get every penny or every acre of real estate from your employer. And I think it's the secret sauce behind the culture of the Patriots.

Nobody's the highest paid because players innately feel we have a better coach, a better defense, better home field, better owner, better plane, better support, and all people are willing in that space to give more. Counterpoint to that, my friend, he threw three passes. That's the counterpoint. The counterpoint to all of that brilliance and eloquence is it's the fewest passes thrown in an NFL game in 40 years. Maybe, just maybe, I agree, we don't ask you if you're in New England to throw left-handed.

We don't ask you to throw, you know, a deep 60-yard seam route. But we don't trust you to throw 12 passes. You can't give us the Jimmy Garapolo playoff run where you threw a nice round eight. The idea, like, let's be fair. Now, do I think Mac Jones will be top paid? No, because you'd be insane to pay the 17th best quarterback, which is about his ceiling, top money. Like, come on, Colin.

love you, man. But let's be honest about what we saw last night. It took six hours, and Patriot fans wanted to mind-meld you into thinking this was Georgia Tech against a service academy running the ball 55 times and winning 35 to 3. Josh Allen had five separate throws to win the game. As effective as the running game was, they scored one touchdown. So why didn't they score more points? Because when you run the ball every single time your offense is capped. So why did they run the ball every single time? Because for as smart as Mac Jones is and is locked in and oh, he wouldn't even talk to Peyton Manning the week of. And that was very impressive. Wow, he did, by the way, have time to file two separate cringeworthy trademarks the week of. Like he had time for that,

but he couldn't talk to Peyton. Why didn't he throw the ball more? Well, maybe because the coaching staff didn't trust him to because there were strong wins. Now, luckily, for him, you know, it's the first NFL game ever played in win, Colin. And Buffalo and New England are just known for their perfect conditions. I see this. Can I tell you what I thought last night was about? I thought last night was about Bill Belichick understanding the job better than anyone in the business, which is Belichick, this is the analogy I used this morning and I'll use it again here.

Belichick coaches every individual game as if right before kickoff someone kidnapped his family and they said we're not giving them back unless you win. So he is not focused on, well, I need to get this guy touches. Well, I want to win this way. Well, what will the, no, what can I do to win in the moment? Oh, the Ravens playoff game, there's a rule I can exploit that people are going to afterwards, call me even more of a cheater. Don't care. Need to play this card. We'll play it. Oh, I've got to have Edelman start throwing passes. Been holding onto that all year.

Don't care. We'll play that card. Need to do it. Last night it was, I believe, I think Belichick went into that game saying if we have zero turnovers, we win. Now, they had one turnover, and because of that, they almost lost. Like, the one turnover led to a touchdown, and they almost lost because of it. And I think he said, I trust my running backs not to fumble. I don't trust Mack not to throw a pick. He threw one pass first three and a half quarters. And it was four yards high. He was an amazing catch by what was it, Jonu Smith. So I think Belichick went into that game saying like he does every week by any means necessary. I think it's his brilliance. I think other coaches want to win, but they also want to win their way. They want to win, you know,

and get things rolling for the next week and set things up. Belichick treats each game like it's an end of life event. How do I win this game? And then we'll move on to the next thing. That's where I thought the brilliance of last night was. The NFL playoffs are almost here. And to help you stay on top of the action, Fandall Sportsbook's giving you a $10 bonus when you place $20. That's it, $20 in same-gay parlay bets. Same game parlay bets are the very best.

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embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. 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. 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.

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Walk a mile in my shoes. Buffalo is one of those teams that I just, it's hard for me to not like them because I think, I mean, it shows you in their wins. Arizona and Buffalo, when they win, it's the Mike Tyson quality. If they sense weakness, they can just end the fight early

because they do have units and explosive and dynamic players and they have a quarterback who, frankly, is kind of a freak. Like he's just a freak physically. But last time we talked, we talked about Kansas City and Mahomes had a pass against Green Bay down the sideline. And you said, I think it's going to ignite something. And, you know, Mahomes is interesting.

So when he came out of college, Lance Zerline, who's the one radio host, Houston, who I trust when it comes to college personnel, he's really good at it. And he uses a phrase with Mahomes in his college review, which is fascinating because I was told this, I pose this to an NFL executive. He said, Mahomes doesn't have a repeatable throwing motion. It's angles. It's over the top. It's side. It's very clever. It's not terribly repeatable.

And if you look at Brady, he's obsessed by it. Breeze is obsessed by it. Russell Wilson is obsessed by it. Peyton's obsessed by it. in that it is just so wrote. It's memorized. This is how I throw it all times. When I watch the game against the Broncos,

he is getting, I don't know if it's mechanically loose, but he's getting into a habit where he's getting a little quirky, a little too often for me, that I'm seeing too much sidearm. And I think there's a part of Mahomes that Andy Reid doesn't want to overcoach him, but I almost feel like he needs to. Like they're scoring on script. Off script, Mahomes becomes more of what Lance Verzirline was concerned about. It's not repeatable.

It's very quirky. He gets mechanically loose. And I do think sometimes when players are gifted, Nick, they're harder to coach because you don't want to put them in a box. Mac Jones's Tua are very easy to put in the box. Much harder with Josh Allen. And I do think it could add a level. It has added a level of variance this year. we haven't seen previously.

I also think that you are, there is some of this stuff once again, the interception he threw against the Broncos, was a nearly perfect pass that Tyree Kill in the hands. Like so much of the Mahomes noise goes away. If just forget everything else that has happened. If just Tyree Kill doesn't have the most drops of his career this year. He has the most drops of his career and four of them have turned into picks.

That's an absurd number. Like so just and so, but I do agree there is an element of the layup throw that of all, if we lined up all the great quarterbacks in order. Yes. The homes might be the least likely of those of the 10 greatest quarterbacks ever to go, you know, 98 out of 100 by himself on a field on a layup throw because he, because he has some quirkiness, because it's not the same thing every single time.

That I agree with. It's funny. In my staff meeting Monday, I said that. It's just exactly what you said. I said, the best young quarterback at the layup is Justin Herbert. His throwing motion is the exact same.

It's almost like a javelin throw deep. It's like he's got the steps down. He's the best layup, young layup quarterback in the league. By the way, Tua is pretty darn good at it. is that it mechanically, two is limited. So he has a very repeatable throwing motion.

Herbert's not limited, but he is a little mechanical. I would say it's fair to say he's a, you know, Peyton Manning could be a little mechanical. He looked the exact same way. So I think that's, I think that observation is fair is that there are going to be times, it's almost like golfers who are long off the tea. They're going to, they're going to,

with their wedge. They're going to struggle with their short irons. And the thing with Mahomes was his first three years in the league, he's pretty close to perfect player. He's, you know, he's, you know, top, what is he? Like the sixth or fifth most mobile quarterback in the league. So there's Lamar, there's Kyler, there's Jalen Hertz. And then he might be the best, just running quarterback when he, Josh Allen's probably better

because he's bigger. So, Mono, like the fifth most mobile quarterback. he has the strongest or second strongest arm. He can make every throw on the field and was just pure raw accuracy numbers, the best in football other than Rogers. So it's like, okay, he's the best or second best at everything with, and by the way, he makes the most impossible throws of any quarterback in the league. And in back-to-back years, he threw five picks and then six picks.

So it's like, okay, he never turns the ball over, makes all the throws. So this year, he has had a little bad luck. He's had a few bad decisions. He's missed some open ratings. He missed some layups. What is so frustrating, and I want to, I please at some point, let's get back to the bills. Because the bills, you and I, I didn't end up with ketchup and mustard on my face last year. So I'm going to take something of a victory lap this year.

But on the Chiefs, here is what is frustrating to me. People have decided, and I don't know why, that the Chiefs have to win a certain way. The Chiefs beat a team that came into the game with a winning record by 13 points. And it was not as close as that. It was 22 to 3 with 5 minutes left. The Bucks played a worst team than Kansas City, beat them by 13 points, nary a word of criticism. Played the Falcons, read them 30 to 17, that's 13.

22 to 9 is 13. People have decided the Chiefs aren't, the Chief's defense, which, by the way, since week six, eight weeks. number one scoring defense in football that they're not allowed to win that way. That if the Chiefs win that way, it doesn't count. That like, oh, there must be a problem. And by the way, why would the Chief's defense be awful the first month of the year and then great after? Well, what if you got a whole new defense?

What if the first month, Frank Clark was hurt? Chris Jones was hurt. You didn't have Melvin Ingram. You were playing balding Daniel Sorenson instead of Juan Thornhill. And Chavarius Ward, next gen stats says it's been the best corner in the AFC. That's five of your, that's half your starters. So here's why I'm so bullish on the Chiefs. If going into the year, I told you, the Chiefs are going to be eight and four after 12 games,

what is the most dangerous version of them? They start six and oh and then go two and four the next six, or they start three and four and win five in a row. You would say, well, the more dangerous one is the one that's peaking in the moment. Okay, first point. Second point is, how are they winning? Everything's 3532. Same old chiefs.

Everything's 3532. Is that more dangerous? Or if I said, it's weird. Mahomes has had the worst month of his career. And they've won five games in a row, four of which through their defense. I think you'd be like, holy shit, that's a dangerous team. Because Mahomes is going to get better. And that's who they are.

Right. So the chiefs, a lot of the chiefs talk frustrates me. The Bill's talk doesn't, however. they might miss the playoffs. How about that, Bill's Mafia? Well, it's sometimes, like, I really like the Bills. I know you. You know, it's funny.

They were better, remember Tyrod Taylor, they made the playoffs with Tyrod Taylor. So the rebuild, they weren't mayhem. They just didn't have the right quarterback. When they got him and they got Brian Daibble to ramp him up, they were pretty good, pretty fast. Buffalo is interesting. And I think about this all the time, is that you have to build your team to some degree for your division, your conference and the weather.

You nailed it. They skipped the step. They built the team to beat Kansas City. They said it this offseason. We don't want to lose to the chiefs again. We don't want to suffer this pain again. They built a team to beat Kansas City. And by the way, they kicked the shit out of Kansas City when they played them.

So well done. they thought New England wasn't around anymore. And New England's like, okay, have fun beating Kansas. You won't get to play them. And also, in Buffalo, they have no running game. I know. Time out. You have to start with a running game in Buffalo because this is, the brilliance of New

England has always been. I tell people this. I don't know if I've ever talked about this on the air. When I lived in Connecticut, fences make good neighbors. It's always been a covert secretive state. New England's culture is perfect for the region. It's built on running the football, short passing. This is with Brady too.

Take the moss ears out. Keeping secrets. A tight culture, not letting any secrets out. Boston's a very weird city. if you look at the country's television ratings, it's the most provincial market in America. They don't watch anything about Boston sports. New York City will watch the Rose Bowl with a Pact 12 Big Ten team.

It gets a 10 rating every year. Ohio State plays USC. It doesn't matter. Boston watches nothing. Providence watches nothing outside of the region. So the culture in that region is private and covert and academic. And that's exactly what New England is. It's almost like they said, what's going to work?

Like, by the way, you can tell the Rams. The Rams are like, we're going to throw the ball down the field. Yes. Fun, Flash. We're going to attract star players. So that's what we're going to build a very high volume team. Buffalo plays in the worst weather in the league and is like,

we're going to throw the ball deep a lot and have no running game. It's like, time out, the opposite of what you should be. And I get it. You have this, you know, Josh, is a freak athlete. I understand that. What I didn't understand, by the way, speaking of running the ball,

I didn't understand Monday night why they didn't let Josh Allen run the ball more. Like if it's bad weather... Great point. That's how you should have been running the ball was with your quarterback, who's going to be, you know, the biggest guy on the field a lot of the time,

aside from D. Lyman, who can't catch him. I thought that was a mistake by dable. I thought you can run the ball a lot with Josh Allen, particularly when they got in the red zone. When you had first and goal from the 10, if you have four straight Josh Allen RPO's, like I don't know, it just felt to me like they left some meat on the bone there. But I do think that it is fascinating, that Buffalo, they prepared, and they said after they lost to the chiefs, they were on the record about they're building a team to give Kansas City problems.

So they're building nickel and dime defenses out, right? Because the chiefs aren't going to bloody your... Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifert 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 Podcasts, 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 taun tons 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.

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. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s.

To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. 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. Goes and run the football. They are adding even more weapons to the outside. They're going to bring a tight end involved who can catch passes because we're going to need to score 35 points to beat Cannes. and the Patriots are just sitting there like, guys, you got to win your division first in this league.

It's not the NBA that winning your division is hugely important or else you're on the road the whole time. And we are building a bully. And I do think one thing, Belichick has all, Belichick's as the GM, Colin. It's a, you know, it's a very mixed bag. Because the drafting at certain positions has been awful at certain spots. been good. You can't gloss over the fact that, you know,

Gronkin Hernandez, those were great picks, like, despite what happened when Hernandez. But it's also true that they haven't signed a lot of, it's a mix bag. But where Belichick's been great at is understanding the ebbs and flows of the league. And when the, and understanding what in the NBA would just, it be called because everyone thinks they're so smart, a market inefficiency. Belichick, I don't know if he's used in those terms, it's like, oh, in the early 2000s, when the passing revolution is really starting to take hold, what if I have two tight ends and I can still engage in the passing, but because they're big, strong tight ends, if everyone's going to, you know, play me like their wide receivers,

I'll just run the ball. And now this year, it's like, okay, the whole league is just worried about passing. Nobody plays a base defense. Nobody has a big nose tackle. Nobody has a big nose tackle. Nobody has big linebackers anymore. I'm going to have a rookie quarterback who's going to be somewhat limited. What if I just try to have a big, strong physical football team that in the long term, I don't think works year over year. But right now, when no one has the personnel for it, nobody, there is a, and you can because nobody's looking for these big thumping linebackers, you probably can get

better versions of those than if you're the 11th team trying to find a nickel corner in free agency. Well, somebody's getting the 11th best nickel corner. If you're the only guy who's like, I want the best fullback out there, you're going to get the best fullback. I think Belichick's really smart at seeing the direction the league's going and going the other way at times when all of a sudden it allows him to have a competitive edge. Are you ready for the big day? Not your big day, her big day. If not, you better rush to FTT.com to order early and save on a winning combination of flowers and gifts for Monday, February 14th. Bold blooms and gifts are the perfect way to celebrate the one who caught your heart, so go to FTT.com and save 15% through February 14th with code crush 15 on fresh, florist delivered flowers when you order early.

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Mom is coming out the front door strong with a double-arm kid carry. Looks like Dad has the bags. Daughter is bringing up the rear. Oh, but the diaper bag wasn't closed. Dipers and toys are everywhere. Ooh, but Mom has just nailed the perfect car seat buckle for the toddler.

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Let me give you a Belichick-Sabin theory. So smart people can spot other smart people. Because smart people see body language. verbally they can spot people. I mean, if you converse with people, you can spot pretty quickly. Nick, you're a bright guy. You can spot who's smarter.

Who gets you? Right people. So Saban and Belichick are both brilliant at spotting young coaching talent. Man, Jeannie. Josh McDaniel, Matt Patricia, Brian Flores. Saban's replaced seven offensive coordinators. He's yet to miss on any of them. And he's a defensive coach.

So they're great. I mean, go back to Belichick's staff that included Kirk Farrant, Pat Hill, Mangini, Nick Sabin. They're both great hires because they're highly educated guys. But one of the things you can't share is intelligence, unless you have a DNA, a genetic connection. So both lose assistance and the hit rate on success is 30%. Because of the many things, both can spot smart,

but you can't elevate people beyond a certain level. Correct. Even if they have the proximity around you for years. And so I think it's fascinating. Both have rarely missed. I couldn't tell you the last miss for Sabin or Belichick on a hire. I couldn't. He's turned his son into a good coach, but yet both hit about 30% on the coach leaving and succeeding.

And my theory is, you can't pass on intelligence. At some point, a college or pro coach is making 20 decisions a day. A smart guy gets 18 right. A less smart guy gets 12. And over the course of a month or a year, it just unravels quickly. Well, I also, I can't speak to. what's happened with Savin's guys, just because I'm not as, you know, in the weeds on college football as you are. But what has clearly happened with Belichick's guys, a lot of them is, and I'll use

the, this is an analogy I've used elsewhere. It's a little awkward to use to you because it's about you, but you maybe have heard me say this before, but it's a similar thing that happened in sports radio in the mid-2000 aughts to the early 2010s, which is, you maybe, you've heard me say this before, which is Colin, you couldn't drive cross country and listen to local talk radio. And not here, some 26-year-old who was, you know, getting his starter, you know, on a show in a mid-market, be like, I'm going to tell you why. Last night's Bill's Patriots game was like a bad divorce. And it's like, oh, I know what bit you're trying to do.

You're trying to do what you think coward would be doing. But you're not coward and you've never been divorced. So it's probably not going to work, buddy. You've never even been married. So a lot of people tried in our industry to do what you did because you had such success. It was so unique. They're like, well, I can do that, but you can't. The same thing happened with Belichick's assistants.

They're like, well, Bill does it this way. He is the best success in the world. Why don't I do the, why don't I follow that exact blueprint? And I think the miss on that is Bill did it. what Bill's in addition to all the natural brilliance, Bill was always being authentic to himself. And that's who he is. Who he is is this kind of gruff, oddly funny, introspective.

If you ask him the right question, you know, very drawl guy. But other folks, and, you know, coach me and Jeannie is one of my, I adore him. I think he would tell you, one of his mistakes was with the Jets, when it came to the media, he just tried to do what Bill would do. But that's not who Coach Manjini is. And it's, you know what I mean? It got him off to the wrong foot with the media,

all these things. Manjini's a funny, I think he's a far nicer guy than Belichick, all these things. But you were trying to follow someone else's path instead of your own. Instead of just taking, you know, to torture the analogy a bit further,

the things that people, you know, in our business, what you can take from, Colin, we're trying to do radio is, you know, your show starts at nine, you're, you're still in the office at six. You do it like fake show before the show in the meeting, like the prep, the still loving sports, those things you can take. And then you put your own character on it. When I see like what's happening with the Giants, it's like Joe, Judge, buddy, you've

seen six Belichick disciples try to do exactly this. And it's worked for the, here's what. one who did is being true to himself for us for is does not yeah be belichet flores clearly took some things from him but i've never seen a brian for his press conference training brine thoris i'm like oh same thing bill o'brien did the same thing charlie weiss did same thing all these guys do where they try to be bill he's not and i think he's successful because of me yeah the um i do want to ask you one nba question sure because it would be um regretful if I didn't because we got about five minutes left.

I try to make these about 35 minutes because that's the average commute in America. And so I was saying this the other day about the Lakers. They have three little dilemmas. So generationally, young players do not want to give their brand or their money to LeBron. That's why he can get on the phone with Mello, Dwight Howard, and Westbrook. and generationally, they will make less, shoot less, score less, because generationally, LeBron was their North Star. But young players are like, John Morant, Tray Young, like, they respect him,

but young players don't necessarily want to give their brand to LeBron. I'm not going to make LeBron rich. I want to make me rich. And so the first problem is LeBron's old expensive and doesn't have the quality he had in Miami and Cleveland where he just gets on the phone and says, bro, bring your game. You're not going to score as much Kevin Love, we're going to win titles. Young guys now, he's generationally, there's a, you know, there's a line in the sand. LeBron's crossed it.

He doesn't have that pull anymore. I think the youngest, like he got Anthony Davis to go with him. I think anyone younger than Anthony Davis is not going to do it. I think that, you know what? So AD is, what, 28 years old? Like he got AD. Yeah. And now all the guy's younger than AD, it's like, no, I want to, I want to beat you.

I want to be the guy to be thrown you. I want to be the guy with the next signature shoe. So I'm with you on that. Secondly, and this happens occasionally, and it happens a lot to Biggs. They age quickly, their feet, their back. AD is no longer an ascending player. Janus is, he is uniquely built and, you know, virtually never hurt. Yokic similar.

is that AD was viewed as the baton. LeBron would pass him the baton, and he would become the one. His personality is a two, and his body's becoming a two. And so now you're locked into LeBron and AD's contract. You have a player that generationally doesn't attract young players. The West, Phoenix is young.

Golden State is young. Denver is pretty young. Clippers aren't. So you have the LeBron issue, the AD issue. And the other issue is, frankly, as they've gotten old and the Lakers at some point are going to have to reboot some of this, the West is uniquely young. Like Phoenix is almost constructed perfectly. Golden State is old in spots, but is very athletic. But because they bottom down for a couple years, they have these draft picks, right?

Yes. Yeah. And so I look at the Lakers and I'm like, I said this about the Seahawks. and they got a lot of pushback when they were winning 10, 11, 12. I said it's a house of cards. Nothing works in that franchise not connected to Russell. So the minute Russell gets hurt, they're bad, comes back early, they're terrible. Now, this week, he was at like 90% they're back to being Russell leads them.

I mean, basically through 90% completion percentage. Even his pick was really a bobble cash. Lakers similarly, LeBron out or comes back unhealthy. They do nothing well like the Seahawks, not connected to LeBron. I think they're in rebuild mode. I think Seattle is and neither wants to admit it. Well, so I don't think they're in rebuild mode, but I do think that the idea that what I think is what they are their entire, I don't think they have a real plan. The plan is can, does LeBron have one more two month?

surge in him like he showed it forget the bubble playoffs 2018 cabs last year with the cabs that was when kairi was gone when he had the multiple game winners in the playoffs he had multiple game sevens the 51 points against golden state in the finals does he have a two one more transcendent playoff run in him that a d can play wingman for and then if and when lebron leaves or retires, will AD out of necessity ascend, or will the fact that the Lakers are still the Lakers and in Los Angeles, will someone if and when LeBron leaves, be like, oh, I'd love to be the best

guy in the Lakers and eight, but I don't think it's a real plan. I think it's a hope. I think the Lakers, it's a hope of can LeBron for two months be a top three player in the league still? You know, I'm me, so I think he's probably got one more amazing run in him. I thought it could have been last year if he didn't get his ankle hurt, so he might still have it. But he also played the third most minutes of anyone in league history. And by any, you know, the only context for this is Cream and Carl Malone. And for both of them, by the time they were at this level of minutes, they were a shell of what they were. I know I got to, can I ask you an NBA question real quick?

Sure. Because I still associate you with the Pacific Northwest. This story that Dame would like to play with Ben Simmons. I don't, I have no, I haven't done any research on this. I, I don't know if it's true or not. It is odd to me, though, because Dame obviously knows that to get Ben Simmons, they have to give up CJ. So that's fine. Like, you can still be friends with the guy, but, you know, think it's time to break up.

But does anyone in the world think Dame plus Ben Simmons, hits the Blazers 4% closer than what they currently are? That's the thing I don't understand. I get Dame wanting to be loyal, but I don't understand Dame thinking,

oh, okay, this would be the move. That doesn't make the Blazers a conference finalist, let alone a champion, right? If they added Ben Simmons to the roster as a free agent, lost no one, They still can't win the West, much less trade for him.

I don't understand the Portland Dame situation at all. I don't get it. Well, dame's a small, poor defender. I think the feeling has always been, and this is why Golden State, the room was split 50-50 on Ben Simmons at Golden State. And the reason it was split is because people said, Clay's a great defender, Draymond still can defend, and Wiseman is an athletic guy who can defend his length. And Wiggins, by the way, is a willing defender. So there's no reason to go there. That was the pushback in the room.

C.J. McCollum and Dame are both poor defenders. Yeah. Dame's small. So I think the feeling is Ben can be kind of a point forward. We don't need his scoring. But it's a team that doesn't have, I mean, Covington, it doesn't have like an athletic wing defender to compensate for how bad Dame is as a defender. No, I get it. I understand the basketball fit.

My point is that doesn't. move the needle. That doesn't, there's, that does not, if I'm, if I were Dame, like, I would just put it in a different way. If I, they're going to have a new GM president there. If that guy came to me, was like, hey, Dame, I know there's a lot of rumors about you might want to leave whatever it is. Guess what? I have Ork's traded trade. Daryl Morris signed off on it. C.J. for Ben Simmons. If that was brought to me and I'm Dame, I'd still be like, okay, who are we beating in round two. Like, okay, I'm happy you did that. But maybe it makes, I just, I personally think there was a mini controversy with the coach hiring. There's the, you know, all Shea's out.

I know Dame keeps saying, I'm staying, I'm staying, I'm staying. I'm staying. I think that Dame could be on the move. I just don't think that I know someone else will give him the contract he wants. I know he wants the massive contract. He deserves it. The idea that Dame is going to languish in Portland, a top 75 all-time guy, is going to just continue with first-round playoff exits?

I don't think so. I think Dame could be on the move. Well, you know, Dame should have a fairly long runway because he's a shooter. I mean, Steph could play forever. Dame could play for a long time. So that's the advantage to being a shooter.

Yeah, it's, you know, I'm a, I'm a, everybody's got a whole. Like, I didn't grow up with religion. So it's my whole. I didn't grow up with, I'm very mobile, transient. So I don't really get people that are loyal and screw their career. It's really, I don't really understand Bradley Beale or Dame. I don't get it because. It's nothing against loyalty, but as a kid, I had some chaos in my childhood.

You know, there was probably these deep psychological scars that my dad, the doctor, wasn't helping me enough with college. So I was always very self-reliant. And when you become overly self-reliant, you have one foot out the door and even good jobs, right? So I'm very transactional. I'm very willing to move transient move very quickly. So it's hard for me to speak of it. To me, I look at Dame and I think, Dame, there's so many places where you could be playing in June.

Of course. Where you could, by the way, where you could age better, where you would be, like, as it's constructed now, if Dame struggles, they lose. And they literally lose. And I think sometimes we're all in our own bubble. Dame is a guy that I think could be at least a somewhat crossover star. in that the the casual sports fan is intimately familiar with Chris Paul

because of the state farm commercials, right? So he gets those because he played not only in L.A. in big markets, but also played in big games, played in big games with the Rockets, played in semi-big games with the Clippers, obviously played in huge games with Phoenix. Dame, like, I think NBA,

fans don't realize how anonymous dame is to the sports fan who watches big events, watches football on Sunday, and turns on the NBA, you know, in early May. Dame's been around one time in their lives in that. And last NBA point, because I think you should mention it on your highly rated, very successful television show, because I'm going to mention it on my not as highly rated, not quite a successful television show, but I want you to mention it. I just want to remind America that Colin, Howard's picked to win the NBA championship last year, and Nick Wright's picked to win the

NBA championship last year, the Milwaukee Bucks this year, Colin, when Janice Middleton and Drew Holiday play, 11 and 0. So I know everyone's all a flutter about Phoenix and Golden State and all, uh, the defending champs with the guy that turned 27 yesterday and is still the best player in the league. They have not lost this year when those big three play. They won four straight finals games when they played and now they're 11 and 0 this year when the big three play well you as you well know once you win the title the regular season becomes less urgent and so phoenix is still crushing people in the regular season and they're really good and they're playing is really good by the way yes but milwaukee yeah they're very good under the

radar because they've had guys missed time and all this but you know philly's got the upheaval Brooklyn's got the upheaval. The Knicks were never real. Miami's good, but they can't beat Milwaukee. Milwaukee's just like, okay, guys, we're the champs. We got the best player in the league. We haven't lost with our whole core in months, so we'll see you. All right, Nikki.

So we give you what we give you probably a month off. I always tell my staff, Nick every five weeks, he's very busy. We don't like to bother. I really, you know, the holidays are coming up. But I think you and I, I think you should tell your staff, we should, we should shoot for a semi-monthly. A couple times a month, you and me, getting together. Okay. I'd like so, but because the holidays are coming up, maybe after the new year, once the chiefs have secured the one seat.

The next time I'll talk to you is when the chiefs have secured the one seed, Colin Cowherd. Good seeing you, buddy. That was great. Talk to you later, my friend. All right. Nick Wright. at the volume sports, YouTube channel,

rate, review, subscribe on Instagram, Twitter, all that shit. The volume. Your Valentine's Day shouldn't start with a Hail Mary. Don't wait until everyone's rushing the field for those last minute gifts

on February 14th. Be the MVP this Valentine's Day and go to proflowers.com to save 15% until February 14th with Code Crush 15 at checkout. See website for more details. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guide.

Not quite on humor. 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 I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encourage. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliford Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeard Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network, On TikTok. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam Jay. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it.

With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to Look Back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get Your podcasts. This is an I-Heart podcast.

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