The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Colin Cowherd Podcast Prime Cuts - Justin Herbert Is ELITE, Bears Need A “Culture Changer”, Betting NFL Week 16 And The College Football Playoff

Episode Date: December 21, 2024

  Colin reacts to the Chargers beating the Broncos on Thursday Night Football!  (4:00) He tips his cap to Justin Herbert for an elite performance, but also gives kudos to Sean Payton and the Broncos for exceeding expectations this season. He also weighs in on the firestorm he started with his rant about the changes the NBA needs to make in the face of declining TV ratings (12:00).   Then, he does a deep dive on the Chicago Bears, calls them a “broken franchise” and has the perfect coach in mind to fix them (21:45). He also reviews the terrific 2024 class of rookie quarterbacks and why the quarterback talent entering the league has closed the gap between the “haves” and “have not’s” (32:00). Finally, Chad Millman of “The Favorites” podcast, joins Colin for a round of “Sharp or Square,” to help provide Colin with the sharpest betting advice for week 16 of the NFL slate plus the College Football Playoff! 43:30- Texans vs Chiefs 45:00 - Steelers vs Ravens 47:30 - 49ers vs Dolphins 48:45 - Colts vs Titans 51:45 - Bears vs Lions 54:15 - Rams vs Jets 56:30 - Packers vs Saints 59:30 - Bills vs Patriots 1:06:00  - Indiana vs Notre Dame 1:08:30 - Texas vs Clemson 1:10:30 - Ohio State vs Tennessee 1:13:15 - Transfer portal hurting depth at blue chip programs 1:18:00 - Chad’s Favorite NFL Bets Follow Colin and The Volume on Twitter for the latest content and updates!  #Volume #Herd  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

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

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

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

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

Your husband is not who you think he is. Your body is not what you thought it was. Your identity is formed by a secret history. I'm Danny Shapiro. And these are just a few of the stunning stories I'll be exploring on the 14th season of Family Secrets. He kind of shoved me out of the way and said, move. And he went out the front door and he jumped in a car and drove off.

And that was the last time I saw him. Listen to Season 14 of Family Secrets on the IHeart Radio, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Every family has its secrets. But what happens when you discover that your dad has been living a double life? That is not the look of an innocent man. Is everyone lying to me about who they are? I felt such desperation.

I felt it was what I had to do. Listen to Deep Cover the Family Man. On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts. or wherever you get your podcasts. The volume. Let's talk about something really, really important. If you're ever injured, check out Morgan and Morgan to America's largest injury law firm. And they are there for you.

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Morgan and Morgan has a proven track. record of fighting for you to get a full and fair compensation if there's an unexpected accident in your life. This is a paid advertisement. All right, time for an instant reaction. I got to be honest, I've already sent Justin Herbert a text. I poured one tonight just for this 3427 Chargers win. Whoever won I was happy, although I did pick the charger, so I'm a little happier. You know, I've said this is when I started the volume, one of the things I really, really like, when I was in my 20s and 30s, I was probably just too selfish to help anybody else. I was into my thing and I didn't, you know, I was unmarried.

And then you get older and older and you have kids and you get married. And, you know, over time, you know, hopefully you have something in you that you want to see others succeed. And I love seeing young quarterbacks in the NFL get the right coach. and Boenix could have gotten, you know, countless coaches that couldn't help him. And he's still, he is still learning. But in that first half, that was all on script. Those first two or three series, and Bo Nix was great because he's now got his mentor. He's got his kingpin.

He's got Sean Payton. Now, the second half, it's not on script. That's about talent and Justin Herbert took over. Herbert's more talented, bigger, stronger. He's just a more talented experienced quarterback in the NFL. But both of these guys, these two teams last year were 13 and 21. I mean, think about that. And right now they're 18 and 12 and both are going to make the playoffs.

One got a coach and one Sean Payton got a quarterback. And tonight was a PSA for the league. You get the right coach, you get the right quarterback. You can turn it around in one season. It doesn't even matter in the NBA if you land Janus or Yoke. it takes years and years to build up to be viable. In Major League Baseball, I mean, there's just some teams that can't afford it, right? But in the NFL, Houston was a laughing stock, a bottom three team in the league to meet O'Ryan's C.J. Stroud playoffs.

The Chargers last year, I think by the end of the year, they had a team mutiny. They were one of the three worst teams in the league. This defense is all the same guys. Now, the offense got Joe Alt and Ladd McCawkey. No question. Upgrades. But they're so beat up now. They're using a defensive tackle, are the Chargers as one of their skill people, Matlock. me a break. They're using return guys and Quentin Johnson still can't catch. I mean, the second

half is, you know, Joel and Laddman Conquier have obviously helped, but the Chargers are so beat up on the back end of their defense, and they're beat up at tight end. They didn't have Will Disley. You know, they don't have J.K. Dobbins. And, you know, they're still a draft away. They're about six players away. They need a tight end, another running back, although Gus Edwards had a great, huge run of the game, but it just shows you why the NFL is king. You just either get a coach, get a quarterback, or Houston get both, and you're a playoff team. And it's just, I've always called the NFL the League of Hope. But let's first start with the Chargers. They were, what did Al Michaels say tonight? I can't believe Al Michaels is this good at 80. The guy is such a talented guy.

Al Michaels is still funny and quick, and he and Herb Street sound like they like each other. Al Michaels is so good at 80 years old. It's insane. He just signed for next year, by the way. But, you know, he had said at one point, the chargers were like, oh, for their last 11 and games decided by three points or less. They just don't know how to win. You know, they just don't know how to win. And they take this team at the end of last year.

It was a disaster at the end of the year. Could have been the worst team in the league. Same guys on defense. And, in fact, half the defensive guys in the back end are hurt. Derwin James is healthy and carrying them. But they're all banged up. And look at them. And it was such a testament to Harbaugh's coaching because, I mean, Harbaugh and Herbert tonight won the game. Harbaugh's

halftime adjustments and Jesse Minter and then Herbert in the second half, scrambling on a bad ankle for a first down. That throw for a touchdown in the end zone moving to his left, throwing it off his bad foot. It was just a Herbert Harbaugh's second half of just great coaching, smart adjustments. Herbert doing what he's doing. It's just, it makes me really happy. I feel really bad for Caleb Williams. None of it is his fault. I just feel bad for the kid. And maybe it's because in my life, I've had really, you know, I've been very fortunate that I've landed at good spaces, especially early in my career when I didn't know what the hell I was doing. It's just so important. I tell my kids this all the time. It's not just about you. It's you're going to hopefully find somebody that can mentor you, cares about your well-being. And, you know, in the job market. and they will make the best out of you. And I feel like that's what Jim Harbaugh is doing to Herbert.

And that's what Sean Payton's doing to Bo Nix. Both teams are a draft away, right? Denver doesn't have a ton of depth. The chargers need more weapons and a couple corners. But in the end of the half sequence was so perfectly Harbaugh. He's competing to the very end. I mean, Jim Harbaugh is competing to the very end. And some people say he's weird.

He's intense. Okay, it's the NFL. Belichick was intense. Dan Campbell's intense, Sean Payton's intense. So end of the first half, they get that field goal and that's just Harbaugh,

battling to the end. So there's a big difference between going down what they would have been and then the field goal, you got a real football game. And trailing eight at half feels a lot different than trailing by 12.

And, I mean, that kind of momentum into the locker room and change the energy and the juice. I thought Denver had all the juice in the first half, and the Chargers had all of the juice with that field goal going into intermission in the second half. And the Chargers outscored the Broncos 24 to 6. Once Harbaal called that timeout, end of the first half and got the free kick before halftime. 24 to 6. Just battling and fighting to the very end.

Herbert in the second half, by the way. Jesus. And he, again, he is working with return guys, a first round receiver that can't catch, a defensive lineman. Backup running back. Herbert in the second half, 11 of 15, two touchdowns, pass a rating of 142.8. Jesus. I mean, it's just, it is just, I just, isn't it crazy, is that, you know, Sean Payton takes this shipwreck. Denver, I think I like their GM, but it's a mess. They're in dead cap hell in the AFC. And before the season started, Vegas had them at five and a half wins. And I thought that, and I said it was my,

favorite double win total. I thought they would double that. I thought they'd get in kind of the eight, nine category. They're going to make the playoffs. They're in with nine wins now, and they'll win one of their final three games. And I think they're capable of winning a playoff game. I don't think Denver's capable of winning two or three, but I think they're capable of winning a playoff game. I feel the same way about the Chargers. They kind of have to win one way. They've got to have Herbert be Superman. They've got to have everybody healthy. Pittsburgh's got this field. Pittsburgh, Denver, and the Chargers. Those are one playoff win teams. Herbert finishes the night, about what is it, 23 or 31, 300 yards? It is. It's just, you know, remember a couple

years ago, and the media, you know, the media went through a weird thing where it was very sensitive. And I remember about three or four years ago, and the media was just saying, oh, these Thursday night games, they're unfair to players. Oh, give me a break. So I called players. I talked to coaches. And the players I talk to are like, we love Thursday night games. Usually it's a division rival. So you don't have to do a ton of film study.

Like tonight, you're playing somebody you know. And it's usually a division game. So the travel isn't too long. It's a two-hour flight somewhere. And you don't hit during that week. And then you get almost a second by week. And the media was freaking out about Thursday night games. We've had some sensational Thursday night games.

Tonight was sensational. I thought it would be much sloppier. I thought Denver was so crisp in the first half. Now, in the second half, Denver, I mean, let's face it, they aided the Chargers on that long drive. They had a couple guys off sides. That was a huge break. There were two big moments in the game for me, that the end of the halftime kick. And then Denver had a series of penalties as the Chargers got that big drive,

which eventually ended up with Herbert making that throw for a touchdown in the end zone. But they have three or four defense. penalties and that really gave them. They really seized momentum and you could hear the crowd a little bit getting into it. And God, that was just fun. Although my phone's ringing. It's probably Justin Herbert. I'm sorry to be obnoxious. Can I be happy? Okay, so a big topic of conversation before I get to Chad Millman has been the NBA ratings this week. And I saw JJ Reddick said tonight, you know, the league needs to be celebrated. No, the NBA needs to be audited. Don't blame the fans because the ratings are down. If you own a restaurant and people aren't buying certain items on the menu, change the menu,

the audience is right, the consumer's right. The NBA is celebrated too much. The players are pampered and coddled and not called out enough. I mean, good hell. Adam Silver two years ago said, our players are miserable. Twitter is making them miserable. Can you imagine a football player saying that? Give me a break. The league is celebrated constantly. It needs to be audited.

It needs to be held accountable. Load management's crap. The three-point shooting is gross. In fact, did you notice who talked about the three-point shooting? LeBron James was asked about the All-Star game changes. and he dropped an F-bomb and said, here's what I notice. Teams are shooting way too many threes. LeBron James said that, a guy that loves the game.

Joe Missoula, the coach of the Celtics, was asked this week about the ratings, and he said, yeah, I don't watch our game either. So that's the championship coach and the best player in the last 20 years, criticizing the league from a position of power, not seeking attention. In fact, LeBron didn't want to go into it. kept saying, I don't want to get too into it. So the people that are criticizing the NBA are not bringing a hatchet. They're not anti-this or pro-nistalgia. When your stuff isn't selling, change the menu. Rob Manfred did and Adam Silver needs to. For the record, when you make changes to

your menu, to your business, the consumer always responds. Always. I mean, baseball was in a 15-year drought. Rob Manfred made two changes. The ratings went up the last two years. This year, they went through the roof during the postseason. People want to watch sports. I want to watch the NBA. I tried watching the championship NBA Cup. Oklahoma City was five of 32 from threes. It was awful. It was unwatchable. It was drag. So, you know, nobody's against the NBA. People that criticize it, watch it. I watch it all the time. I don't really get into it until the football season's done. But by February, you know, you have the two weeks before the Super Bowl. I start watching 30 minutes a night, 40 minutes a night. So I thought it was interesting that Joe

Missoula and LeBron James both came out and were critical aesthetically of the current product. It's not a good watch. And when something falls off the cliff in two years, three years, got to look in the mirror. It's not about celebrating. It's about auditing. That's something baseball did recently and something the NFL does annually. NFL is king for a lot of reasons. One of the reasons, the ability to self-police, self-monitor, and course correct. Well, it's the most wonderful time of the year for getting in all the basketball, football, hockey action at Draft King's Sportsbook. It's the season of giving, so we're being gifted college football and basketball, pro football, basketball, pro-hockey to almost 24-7. It's an absolutely great time of the year.

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Download the Draft King Sportsbook app. The code is Colin C-O-L-I-N. New customers, $150 bucks in bonus bets. If you bet five bucks and it wins. Happy holidays from Draft Kings. Crown is yours. Gambling problem, call 1-800 gambler. In New York, call 8778-8-8-Hope-N-Y or text Hope-N-Y 467-369-669. In Connecticut, help is available for problem gambling. Call 888-7-7-7 or visit ccpg. Please play responsibly. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino in Resort in Kansas, 21 and over. Age and eligibility varies by jurisdiction. Void in Ontario. Bet must win to receive reward. Bonus bets expire 168 hours after issuance. Four additional terms and responsible gaming resources. see dkng.com slash B-Ball.

Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, name? Huge news. We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it.

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

This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, people could call in and say, hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it.

Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy. Not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, 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. Keith Giamanka seemed like a mild-mannered suburban dad, but secretly he became someone else, a master of disguise who went on a crime spree. At the time, did it seem like a crazy idea?

It seemed very crazy, but I felt so desperate that I felt it was the quickest, easiest way out. Did you allow yourself to think about how it could go wrong and what that might look like? No. I didn't want to manifest that. I was trying to manifest success. Every family has its secrets. But what happens when you discover that your dad has been living a double life? That is not the look of an innocent man. This is going to change my life and my family dynamic forever, because everything that had existed prior in my reality is now untrue. Listen to Deep Cover the Family Man on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down.

Georgia accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man. They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial issues. I like the bougie style of Housewives show. I think it looks like it's going to be interesting. On the podcast, Reality with the King, I, Carlos King, recap the biggest moments from your favorite reality shows, including the Real Housewives franchise,

the drama, the alliances, and the team everybody's talking about. As an executive producer in reality television, I'm not just watching it. I understand the game. As somebody who creates shows, I'll even say this. At the end of the day, When people are at home, they want entertainment. To hear this and more, listen to Reality with the King on the IHard Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier.

We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized, but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole. This podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Let's talk about the Chicago Bears. So they lost to the Vikings. I didn't think Sam Darnold played particularly well, but he's getting the ball to T.J. Hawkinson, Jordan Addison, and Justin Jefferson. So he's getting the ball to the right people. I thought he was a little high.

I missed some throws. But overall, a minute. Minnesota was picked for third or fourth. I mean, it's all gravy at this point. First, let's start with the Chicago Bears. There are a couple franchises in this league that are just broken. And I think the Chicago Bears are top of the list. It's a broken franchise. The McCaskies are arguably the worst owners in the league, oldest and among the poorest, really out of touch. Kevin Warren's the president. I've been told for years highly political. Charles Robinson of Yahoo reporting today that, you know, somebody that steaks power and to retain power, that's a little what I was told years ago.

Don't know him personally, but that's what I've been told from two sources I trust. Ryan Poles is young. You know, I'm hitting miss on polls. I love the Montez Sweat deal, the DJ Moore deal. I don't think he's the problem in the organization. I think Ryan Poles is struggling with the people above him. But a great example of the dysfunction. So Matt Ebroflus, a defensive coach, was fired.

Well, defensive coaches don't have the offensive connections that offensive coaches do. I mean, there is a reason Andy Reid keeps hiring really good offensive coaches, right? Like their offense. Now, Reed does most of the play calling, but, Doug Peterson got a head coaching job. Matt Nagy got a head coaching job. And by the way, got Mitt Trabisky to the playoffs twice. So you can say all you want about Matt Nagy, you'd die for Matt Nagy now in Chicago.

And then there's a reason that, you know, Belichick had to rely on Josh McDaniels. When Josh left, you know, Bill was scrambling to find an offensive coordinator, but Sean McVey can find one every two years. So Thomas Brown was under Shane Waldron. Well, Iber Fluse doesn't have a lot of great offensive connections, clearly, because when Shane Waldron left Chicago of Seattle, he was criticized. They rolled their eyes at him. He went to Chicago. It was a mess with Caleb Williams. Then Thomas Brown, who's a bright young guy, he coached with the Rams. But, you know, he's an interim head coach. He's had this third different job this season with the Bears. I mean, HR is probably asking him to slow down so they can get his paycheck right. I'm not going to blame him. But Iber Flues selected this staff and it's not very good. I think it's a broken franchise. And, you know, my take is if you're really honest about it, you know what they remind me of. I was thinking about it tonight. They remind me a lot. The Bears are the

Chargers last season where they had a talented young quarterback, some really nice pieces, but major cultural issues. And what did they do? They went and got Jim Harbaugh to fix it. And that's why Mike Vrable's the higher. Vrable is Dan Campbell, but less reckless. He's Jim Harbaugh, but to this point hasn't been as successful. He's a really smart guy. He's a culture changer. There's no bullshit with him. He's very honest and very upfront. And he got to an AFC championship, you know, with Tennessee. So I just think Vrable's the call here. Vrable, you know, and I've talked to Mike about this. Vrable is the kind of guy that will come in, and the only thing that would get in his way is a Kevin Warren-level executive that was trying to retain power. If Vrable has some say in

personnel, he's pretty good at that, and has a great relationship with the general manager who he can answer to and trust, I think Vrable could win immediately. I think, you know, again, I'll say this. The Bears have a Chargers feel. Now, the Chargers are not going to go from what they were last year to a Super Bowl. They need another draft. They have to hit on another receiver, maybe another tight end, another running back. They need more pieces offensively. And the Bears with Rable are not winning a Super Bowl, especially out of that division.

And I think the Bears need to shore up the offensive line. But more than that, maybe another edge rusher, more than that, I think it's just a cultural modification is what they need. But it's rough. I mean, you can say what you want about the Jets and Woody Johnson, and I think he's one of the weaker owners, but they have a good roster. Aaron's played well in the last three to four weeks. She's had 100 plus passer rating, I think, on average over the last four weeks. The Giants have issues, but, you know, there's some pieces there of that defensive front. And the Marys don't want to fire Brian Daibel because they've run through coaches, but the team looks like they've quit. But with Chicago, there's just, I mean, there's just not much to like.

I like Montez Sweat and Jalen Johnson. I like Caleb Williams. You know, DJ Moore, Swift, the running back. There's some P. Cole come out. There's some pieces I like. But I don't know what you do other than hire Mike Frable. This is not a job for a coordinator. Give me a break.

You're not going to get a Ben Johnson here. Bobby Sloick. It's not going to turn this thing around. You're a mile from that. And I'll make this argument. I think, and I talk to Mike Vrable about this. And my suggestion to him is, I'm not sure if I take a job this year.

I think next year, you could have much more attractive openings. If Joe Burrow is getting really tired of Zach Taylor, the coach of Cincinnati, they won't fire him at the end of this year. But if Joe Burrow makes demands, Zach Taylor's in trouble next year. For Joe Burrow to ream Zach Taylor out knowing he's on TV the way reamed him out, Burroughs got no time for this nonsense in Cincinnati. So that job could be open next year. year. I think Mike McCarthy in Dallas, I think he's probably saved his job, right? He's probably

saved it. And if Dallas can move Michael Parsons, get a couple of first round picks, hit on those, you know, who knows? But also, I think that could be open. So, you know, seven different coaches get whacked every year. I just don't like the job openings. I love Caleb Williams. Chicago to me is, it feels like quicksand for a coach. You know, Jackson. Jacksonville's got an opening. There's a reason everybody fails here in Jacksonville. Like, it just, since Tom Coughlin left, it's just dead coach walking. Nobody works there. So there's got to be something systemic within the organization. And I think what you're really seeing now, and it, I was having this discussion this weekend with somebody I respect a lot.

And he said, you know, you just, you start looking around this league, and it's just the power of 10. There's about 10 good GMs, Ted Gunned Oters, 10 good quarterbacks, 10 good left tackles. And I just don't like, if you're Mike Frable, I don't like what's out there. I love Chicago. It's a great city. There's good pieces. But man, anybody watching this show, watching this podcast or listening, it does not matter how good the employees are. If ownership and management is sideways, it doesn't matter.

I've said this before. I've been really fortunate. I had a really good ownership in Las Vegas, my first job. Obviously, ESPN and Fox are well-run companies. Portland, I thought we had good ownership, good management. I worked in Tampa for a couple years and really, really talented people in the newsroom. photojournalists, producers, reporters, anchors. It was not the employees. I thought management was a circus. And I'll just leave it at that. And you couldn't overcome it. And it was a real learning

moment for me is that the employee base was the best I'd ever work with at the time. I thought there was just so many talented people. Our sports department was just really fun, clever, smart people. But you can't, like in Chicago, it doesn't matter if Rabel's the coach. And he's trying to change things eventually if people are political upstairs. I mean, it's like, look at the Jets. They fire Robert Sol, the best coach on the staff. I mean, going into a game against Buffalo, if they won it, they were in first place. I mean, they fired Joe Douglas.

Well, Joe Douglas got you, Devante Adams, who's playing great now. Joe Douglas missed on a quarterback. But Joe Douglas hit on that jet roster, they've got dudes. I mean, they really do. They're going to get another very good first round pick this year. They've got a left tackle for the future. They've got their corner. They've got weapons.

I mean, they can really be selected. The Jets could move down in the first round and get four or five. You know, if they moved down and got another second round pick or a second and a fourth round pick, you could have five new starters on the team next year. The Jets, I mean, they really have their weapons. They have their left tackle, the Penn State kid, a couple of good receivers, good corners, pass rushers. So, I mean, I thought Saul and Joe Douglas were capable. They're both out.

So there's nothing you can do if upstairs is messed up. There's just, in my experience in life, there's nothing you can do. You know, it's, I make picks Blazing Five, and I had another terrible week. Generally, I've been doing this Blazing Five thing for like 20 years. And on average, I hit about 56%, 55, 57%. This is my worst year easily. I don't know why. I've just struggled all year long.

But actually, it's funny because on the bigger preseason predictions for division champions, I've actually had the best year I've ever had. I had Buffalo, Kansas City, Baltimore, and the Texans winning their division. If Baltimore beats the Steelers Saturday, I'll be four for four heading the last couple of weeks. I had Philly, the Rams, Green Bay, and the Fowler. winning their divisions, Philly and the Rams do lead, Green Bay, and the Falcons still have a shot, although Atlanta right now, they're beating the Raiders tonight. They got to get quarterback solved. My two Dark Horse teams were Washington and Denver. They'll both make the playoffs.

So I actually, in terms of predictions, I think I've had a really good year. I don't know why I'm struggling so much. I've just been out of rhythm. You know, the weekends I take favorites. they go belly up. The weekends, I take dogs. I have the wrong ones. But I love doing it. And I always feel bad. I don't mind losing money.

I don't like anybody else to lose it. But I haven't picking football games for so long. You know, an old story, when I first moved to Las Vegas, I had no money. I was out of college. And I drove down to Vegas in a blue AMC Pacer that later caught fire a couple of years later on Charleston and Oakey streets in Los Angeles. Vegas by a Texaco station. I pulled in. My car was on fire. And I remember when I first moved to Vegas, I'd never bet football games. And so I was a huge Pac-10 fan. And so I really started hitting on a lot of

Pac-10 picks because all the games weren't televised. I knew the Pacific Northwest teams really well because I was from there. I remember one year, I think I was like 10 and 1 on Oregon State games. I just could not miss on the Beavers. And I just love picking football games. But I have stunk this year. And what's interesting is that Nick Wright and Danny Parkins at FS1 have both been on fire hitting like 65 percent. So congrats to those guys. But, you know, my overall takeaway really on the playoffs this year is there's not a lot of surprises. I mean, right now I have, if Baltimore beats the Steelers Saturday, I'll have, you know, six of the eight teams I picked to win the division winning. And Green Bay and the Falcons close.

what is pretty clear. And the reason I picked those teams to win the division was like head coach and quarterback. And so I think the one thing I look at this year is a real positive. I think Caleb can play. I think Jaden Daniels can play. I think Bo Nix can play. My guess is J.J. McCarthy can play. I don't know what the hell is going out with Michael Pennix because I really liked him out of college. I thought he was a bigger, stronger, better deep ball, Tua. And Tua is more than capable, but he just can't throw a ball deep down field. He's not good against pressure or really elite defenses or in cold weather. You have to qualify everything with Tua. I think Pannock throws a much better, sharper deep ball, stronger, longer, just a bigger athlete. But I think we have a chance to go five for five with quarterbacks. And this is not a great quarterback year in college. But if the quarterbacks go four for five or five for five,

this group of quarterbacks, it will be the third draft since around. around 2018, where you've had multiple first round quarterbacks hit. And I don't think we'll ever get to a saturation point where, you know, everybody's got their quarterback. But I don't remember a time where there were this many good quarterbacks. I mean, even Aaron Rogers in the last month has been unbelievable. Jordan Love. Jayland Hertz this weekend was sensational.

You know, Bo Nicks makes mistakes. but he's clearly a franchise guy, his toughness, is athletic ability. He's got a better arm, I think, in the pros than I thought he had in college. So I think big picture,

as the leagues become more have-and-have-nots, I think we had another bumper quarterback draft class. I only saw J.J. McCarthy in the preseason, but in the couple appearances, I thought he was really quick,

really nimble, and he reminded me a little bit of Sam Darnold that he was really aggressive, And I think Kevin O'Connell's proven the Vikings head coach, he can coach a lot of that out of you. And another part of this quarterback journey is there's better quarterback coaches. I mean, this, so I think the guy down in Tampa, Liam Cohen under Baker Mayfield, who was briefly in Los Angeles.

I think he's going to get looks. I think the quality of offensive coaching has really improved. That's why you're seeing Darnold and Baker Mayfield a rebirth. I think they're sensational coaching offensively. didn't feel that 15 years ago in the NFL. I think it's everywhere, and I think the talent's everywhere. So, I mean, yesterday we had a really ugly one o'clock window. It was the first time all year I was bored watching the NFL where I thought, man, we just, this is just a bad early window. But, I mean, this weekend, the college and the pro games, this weekend starting Friday night,

Indiana at Notre Dame, the next Friday, Saturday, Sunday could be the most sensational three-day stretch of ball in a year and a lot of it is because of quarterback play and very sharp offensive coaching. Hey, it's us the Jonas Brothers and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news? Huge news. We created our own podcast called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast. Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to a first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts. We're starting a trend. But this one's extra special. So how do we actually come up with a name Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember I think it was on a call about what we should call it

And we were thinking I'm originally calling it One of the early names of our band Before Jonas Brothers This is how you guys remember it going down Yes I have a very different memory of this We were talking about a thing A bit for the podcast

People could call in and say hey Jonas And then I wrote down on my little notepad Hey Jonas and offered it up as a potential title For the podcast But thanks for remembering that guys listen to hey jonas on the iheart radio app apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcast just listen we don't care where you hear it another podcast from some s nl late night comedy guy not quite unhumored me with robert smigel and friends me and hilarious guests from bob odenkirk to david

letterman help make you funnier this week my guess s n l's mikey day and head writer streeter sidel help an acapella 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. Keith Giamonka seemed like a mild-mannered suburban dad. But secretly, he became someone else, a master of disguise who went on a crime spree.

At the time, did it seem like a crazy idea? It seemed very crazy. But I felt so desperate that... I felt it was the quickest, easiest way out. Did you allow yourself to think about how it could go wrong and what that might look like? No, I didn't want to manifest that. I was trying to manifest success.

Every family has its secrets. But what happens when you discover that your dad has been living a double life? That is not the look of an innocent man. This is going to change my life and my family dynamic forever because everything that had existed prior in my reality is now untrue. Listen to Deep Cover the Family Man on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down. Norsha accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man.

They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew. Pinky has financial issues. I like the bougie style of Housewives show. I think it looks like it's going to be interesting. On the podcast, Reality with the King, I, Carlos King, recap the biggest moments from your favorite reality shows, including the Real Housewives franchise, the drama, the alliances, and the team everybody's talking about.

As an executive producer in reality television, I'm not just watching it. I understand the game. As somebody who creates shows, I'll even say this. At the end of the day, when people are at, at home, they want entertainment. To hear this and more, listen to Reality with the King on the

IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection.

This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized, but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been

searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. All right, time for Sharper Square. My buddy Chad Millman, co-host of the favorites, all odds provided by Draft Kings. You know, listen, the college football games this weekend won't get the NFL numbers because nothing in the world does, but there's some heaters, and we'll get to that in about 15 minutes. There's some fascinating games. I mean, I'm sorry, it doesn't make any sense because he's been so good, but if you're Ryan Day loses at home to Tennessee. It's going to be a shitstorm in Columbus. It's going to be

crazy. So we'll get to that in 15 minutes. Let's do Sharper Square. I've had a terrible year. I've had my worst year ever doing this. And I don't really know. I don't want to outthink the room. I'm about 55 percent every year. I'm not a pro gambler, but I think I'm, you know, in the ballpark. I've been terrible this year. And I can't, you know, I think a lot of it is, I've always liked value and underdogs. And it's just week to week. Some weeks I go dogs. Some week I go favorites. So I'm just going to give you my thought on this. The Chiefs are now three and a half point favorites.

It's more stay away now. But when it was two and a half, even with Carson Wentz potentially playing, I love Kansas City. I think Carson Wentz for a week is fine. For a season, you can't trust his health. So I would imagine it three and a half, the sharps like the Texans. But if I like that two and a half and three Kansas, City. Now, if I say I like Kansas City, is it square? Totally square. Yeah, the wise guys are playing the three and a half because up until last weekend, anytime you're betting on Patrick

Mahomes as a more than three-point favorite, you're making a negative ROI bet. He just has not won as a favorite of more than three. Last weekend, obviously he did. They were four and a half point favorites, they covered. But even in that game, you saw the pressure getting to Mahomes consistently. You saw them lose the Browns because James Winston had two interceptions in the end zone that were from, in the Chief's end zone from about his 30-yard line. So killing two drives, plus they had three other turnovers, including to open the game. You look at that game, the defense gave up seven points, right? And so that game was closer statistically than you would imagine by the score itself. So there is going to be a sentiment you take the Texans at plus three and a half.

At two and a half, 100 percent people were still taking the chiefs. That's why the number got all the way up to three and a half. Yeah. So a prime example, the Steelers get beat and pretty soundly by Philadelphia. But what's lost in that game is they had 80 yards in the first half. only trailed 1713 in Philly. If Naji Harris doesn't fumble, we got ourselves football game. Yes. To give the Steelers six and a half, you know what the Ravens are?

They're the Mike Tyson. They're bullies. First round knockouts against bad teams. You push them back. You make them think. Baltimore can get beat by a lot of good teams. Pittsburgh pushes back. Tomlin is a six and a half point underdog.

So I, this to me is the steel of the week. Pittsburgh plus six and a half in Baltimore, sharper square. Yeah, wise guys love this bet. And it's almost become a blind bet in this series. Wise guys like Mike Tomlin as an underdog anyways. And you're right, that game, Najee Harris, the Steelers were outplayed. And in the middle of the third quarter,

if he doesn't fumble the ball, if he doesn't fumble the ball, they're on the 16-yard line. They're at least kicking a field goal to make it a 2016 game, or they're scoring a touchdown to make it 2020, changes the game, right? Mike Tomlin, Mike Tomlin and Raw-Ross spots.

Any way you slice and dice it, Mike Tomlin as an underdog, is the best coach in a generation against the spread. He is best coach in a generation winning straight up as an underdog. In this series, specifically, as a dog of three or more versus the Ravens, he is 6-0 straight up.

There's 6-0 against the spread. He's 13-2-2 against spread versus Harbaugh. When the line in this series is three or more points the past 20 years, so it's the Harbaugh-Tomlin-Rain. The Underdog is 23, 4-3 against a spread. Since 2015, underdog 16-2-1 against the spread. So, like, yeah, there are times where you're nervous about playing into these trends. And we talked about this on the show last week, betting the Steelers, fading the Chiefs. Those were times we were nervous.

Like it happens six times out of ten. This time it's happening eight times out of ten. So, yeah, you're playing the Steelers. I like the 49ers plus one at the Dolphins. I think one of the things that's become pretty clear with the dolphins is if they're not playing an oppressive humidity at home, they get pushed around by more physical teams. I think they're the ultimate finesse team in this league. And, you know, as I watch them against Houston, it's just bubble screens. That's all they do.

Tua is now throwing 40 times a game. That's way too much for Tua. The teams like the Packers and the Eagles have scaled back with more talented quarterbacks to throw 24 times a game. I think the 49ers, I think it comes down to pride. For Brock Purdy, it comes down to a contract. I like the 49ers here, sharper square. Sharp-ish.

Like the line opened one and a half. It's been bet down, obviously, from me one and a half to one. For a minute, very hot minute, the Niners were favorites. And then it sort of bounced back a little bit. But that money that's moving it is professional money in favor of the Niners. Not a huge sort of feeling on that game. They just sort of think that the Niners are probably a more physical team. Are they getting more healthy?

they don't believe in the dolphins is the bigger, bigger component of their thinking. Okay. The Colts were dominating the Broncos until Jonathan Taylor. And it was a blowout. They go home now and have to swallow three and a half. But the Titans are, they have Benchwell Levis. I was texting a GM this week and I said, I think if you gave Sam Donald to the Colts, they have the Viking season. I like their personnel. I mean, I haven't seen anybody this year,

including the Chiefs, push the Broncos around, especially in Denver. I mean, it was a mismatch. Three picks for Bo Nix. I think Indy, I don't care what the line is. I think they're going to come back. I think Chris Ballard's jobs in the line, Anthony Richardson's careers on the line. Shane Steichen with that trick play that got a pick six, I think Indy is inflamed, and I think they blow the Titans out, sharper square. So the Wise Guys are on Tennessee.

This line was at four and a half, even when Will Levis was possibly the quarterback. It's been bet down immediately with Mason Rudolph as the quarterback. The Wise guys have liked the Titans a lot this year. They've also liked the Colts this year. Their biggest fear is betting Anthony Richardson as a favorite. Like if you want to talk about comps,

the comps for Anthony Richardson and his completion percentage right now, Tim Tebow and Achilles Smith in the past 25 years, this season will go down as one of the worst in completion percentage because of how badly Anthony Richardson is playing. And I think there was a sentiment after he was benched, he came back and he looked like he was a little bit more in control. They were putting him in better positions. He was just awful against the Broncos.

They were winning that game in spite of him. And look, like, I was on the Colts last week. Jonathan Taylor dropping that ball was gut-wrenching. I was on the Steelers last week. Nigee Harris dropping that ball. And this was all happening. if you're watching Red Zone, this is like, boom, boom, boom. It was just like gut punch after gut punch after gut punch as a better.

But you felt like, and I felt like, Colts had no chance to get back into that game after they gave up the lead because Anthony Richardson can't win you a game. So they're going to have to dominate on the ground in order to cover this three and a half. And like, at the end of the day, you got to win by four points. that's a relatively big number of what should be a run heavy game in which the clock is running a lot. So I think the wise guys are still liking Tennessee in the hook. Part of me says I should love the bears at home plus six and a half against Detroit. Jared Goff outside bad weather. I defended Caleb Williams this week.

He has more touchdown passes than Justin Herbert and Kyler Murray, more passing yards than Jalen Hertz. and hasn't had an interception since Halloween, is that if you just look at the record, you would think he's awful. And it's like, no, actually, all things considered, now that he's with the third coach, at home, Detroit defensively, I mean, it's bad.

It is, I mean, eight, nine yards a chunk. I think I like Chicago at home, plus six and a half, sharper square. Well, look, the wise guys like Chicago at home when it was at seven and a half and seven. And this is 100% a number play. You're not going to find anyone taking it at six and a half. If you're taking it at six and a half,

we've talked about this. You're just not getting the best of the number. And long term, that's a bad way to try to win games. You might win once in a while, but long term, you want to be on the right side of the number. So the wise guys took the seven and a half. They took the seven. I think this is a really tricky game.

At six and a half is a home dog in the division. Of course I want to be on the Bears. I can't find a way to get there. I'm not saying I'm going to bet Detroit, but there's two schools of thought on Jared Gough. Jared Gough outside is terrible. Jared Gough indoors is unbeatable. Obviously that happened last week, so it's a hyperbole,

but he tends to cover when he is indoors, tends to not when he is outside, and he is a covering machine over the past five years. I look at this in a different way. Sure, their defense is beat up, but all they have to do is hand the ball to Jemir Gibbs because this bear's rush defense is just atrocious, like putrid. They are giving up 100 yards every single game,

no matter who they play. Saw it again. last week against Minnesota. So I do worry that Detroit is going to come out in a bad mood and try to prove that there's still the class of the NFC, run the ball down the bear's throat. And it doesn't really matter what Caleb Williams does or what the weather is. They might dominate this game. So I can't tell you at six and a half, you're making a good call.

Okay, Rams is now only minus three. I would take them against the Jets. It was three and a half. I think the Jets played the last two weeks, Devante Adams and Aaron Rogers, you know, have clicked. But the Rams are playing for the playoffs and the Jets are playing for pride. I mean, between the documentary, between Garrett Wilson wanting a trade, the story about Woody Johnson's kids, this has been a messy week for the Jets. I can gladly swallow the three for a much better team and a much more functional offense.

Rams minus three sharper square. I mean, look, wise guys have been on the Jets a week. The wise guys have been on the Jets for much of the year. And much to their dismay, Jeff Ulbrick, the coach, seems to find ways to play them out of wins and covers and then make the stupidest mistakes that actually leads them into a cover that they never should have covered, right? Last week, he's going for the touchdown with a minute left when the jacks have two timeouts. They end up covering the three-point spread, winning by six,

when really he should have kneeled down and left no time and kicked a field goal. Week before, making bad decisions at the end of the game, they end up losing the game to the dolphins and not even covering the three-point spread because they lose by six in overtime. So he's a menace when it comes to clock management, and he's a menace for betters. But the wise guys do love the Jets right now. Aaron Rogers has been playing significantly better the past two weeks. You could argue, well, the old man went to Florida, and when you're old and you're in Florida, you're going to feel better,

and now he's got to come back and play in the cold in New Jersey. But there is something about the Rams, and the fact that they have to go into the cold, too, Stafford does not perform as well then. And also, this is a team. You get late in the year. You get teams that are what I like to call good-ish, right? 50 to 60% in terms of winning percentage.

And they're playing bad teams on the road. That is a recipe for disaster in terms of covering the spread. Not saying they're going to lose, but those games tend to be closer. So the wise guys are definitely back in the Jets this week. Okay, I'm not prone to do this. But Green Bay minus 14 against the Saints. just screams take the Packers. I thought their win at Seattle was so impressive

because I do think Seattle has excellent defensive coaching. This has been a year of the favorites. I think the most underrated player in the league is Jordan Love. I think he's a magnificent talent. I think the Saints feel like a dead franchise. I think Green Bay still has a chance. They really believe it. I think they're a better team this morning or this afternoon than Detroit.

I don't like 14 point favorites, but they're covering. And favorites are covering. And I feel like I've got a ascending young, healthy team against the dead franchise. I think Green Bay is one of the few places where home field is still three to three and a half points, sharp or square. Well, look, you're never going to get a sharp confirmation on a 14 point favorite. there are two 14 point favorites this week, the Packers over the Saints, the Bills over the Patriots. There's been more of a conversation around the bills as 14 point favorites. That line actually ticked up to 14 and a half, and that was very much professionals betting on the bills at 14.

Then it came down. Then some professionals, not a whole lot of them, but a couple of them were like, yeah, that's like half a point too far. The Packers, like, sure, there's nobody who's thinking they want to bet on the Saints, but there's not a rush to the window on the Packers. Everything you just said, everyone agrees with. It's why actually the Wise Guys were on the Packers last week against the Seahawks. That was my favorite bet of the week. Yeah, mine too.

It's the only bet I won last week. And so they were on him at two and a half. That was a great spot for the Packers, right? They had just lost a really hard game to the Lions. And I think that game gave them the confidence that you just talked about. You saw the mastery with which LaFourke calls a game. Jordan Love has been much more cautious with the ball, hasn't been throwing interceptions. I think the Packers believe they are in the same class as the Vikings and the Lions and the Eagles.

And I'd be hard pressed to disagree. I think it's harder to win as to touchdown. favorites against a Saints team that, like, from a, from a wise guy perspective, they just don't like this game as much as they would like the Bills and the Patriots. And I can tell you why they like the Bills against the Patriots, if that would be interesting to you. Yeah, please. So this is the win Josh Allen, the MVP game, right?

There's talk this week because Lamar Jackson threw five touch. downs against the Giants, that maybe he should be MVP. And you saw the MVP odds shrink a little bit. The bills tend to blow these teams out anyways, right? They are a team that has a winning record as big favorites in these games, in the division, outside the division, at home. They don't play down to the level of their competition. Their offense can do whatever it wants against the Patriots.

If the Patriots are down early, their record against the spread, it's like seven and 21 the past two years. Like they are a terrible team. They cannot recover. So if the bills get out to lead early, which they tend to do, it's a great spot. The one concern is, you know, the bill's secondary has a lot of injuries, but there's really no concerns about the Patriots offense. They got Drake May who's slinging it and trying his best. But right now, Gerard Mayo was throwing Alex Van Pelt under the bus about their offense. There's just a lot of turmoil there.

So the wise guys, if they're betting a big favorite, they're more inclined to bet the bills than the Packers. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers. And guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, me? Huge news. We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas. We invented a podcast?

Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. A pretty, yeah, a pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there. but this one's extra special. So how do we actually come up with a name Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember.

I think it was on a call about what we should call it. Well, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers. This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing,

a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say, Hey Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad Hey Jonas and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it.

Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an acapella 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. Keith Giamonka seemed like a mild-mannered suburban dad, but secretly, he became someone else, a master of disguise who went on a crime spree. At the time, did it seem like a crazy idea? It seemed very crazy.

But I felt so desperate that I felt it was the quickest, easiest way out. Did you allow yourself to think about how it could go wrong and what that might look like? No, I didn't want to manifest that. I was trying to manifest success. Every family has its secrets. But what happens when you discover that your dad has been living a double life? That is not the look of an innocent man. This is going to change my life and my family dynamic forever because everything that had existed prior in my reality is now untrue.

Listen to Deep Cover the Family Man on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Jared Adano. You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help! Somebody, please! But there's so much more to me than that. I'm an actor. I'm a comedian. And recently, I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian.

I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff, rant, and recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man. If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone, let it ring twice. one ring is too scary. Cream of chicken suit. Hey, cream a chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrite,

the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrat as part of the Mike Coutura Podcast Network available on the I-Hart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you're watching the latest season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta, you already know there's a lot to break down. Orsha accusing Kelly of sleeping with a merry man. They holding Kay Michelle back from fighting Drew.

Pinky has financial issues. I like the bougie style of Housewives show. I think it looks like it's going to be interesting. On the podcast, Reality with the King, I, Carlos King, recap the biggest moments from your favorite reality shows, including the Real Housewives franchise, the drama, the alliances, and the team everybody's talking about. As an executive producer in reality television,

I'm not just watching it. I understand the game. As somebody who creates shows, I'll even say this. At the end of the day, when people are at home, they want entertainment. To hear this and more, listen to Reality with the King on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. All right, I want to talk some college football now because I do think Indiana, Notre Dame, and a lot of its weather, I think it's going to be pretty close. I think Notre Dame is a great run team. Indiana is kind of a peculiar, unique run defense.

I think really good coaches with time can employ, you know, competitive strategies. We know that Ohio State in Columbus on a nice day to play football is better significantly. Notre Dame doesn't have Ohio State's talent. And I also think Indiana now has extra time to prepare. I think Notre Dame has a ceiling offensively, whereas Ohio State doesn't. They just play down to their. competition. Notre Dame has a ceiling. And I think Indiana is going to, so I really like Indiana plus seven. How do the wise guys view it? Yeah, look, the numbers come down because wise guys are

betting Indiana. And Indiana has been a covering machine this year. Yes. Obviously, that Ohio State game was the biggest challenge. They also didn't cover against Michigan, but that was at a time where Michigan was starting to get better. And the next week, they went on and they beat Ohio State. So that was a much more physical game. Ohio State, Indiana had some bad plays, and they were outclass, and you could see the talent difference. I'm with you. The wise guys are with you.

And the way Indiana matches up a little bit better with Notre Dame and the time. And look, you can't help but listen to Kurt Signetti and know that he's playing this game and has got his players playing this game with a huge chip on their shoulder. And we've talked about this. One of the reasons Indiana won this year and why it was able to achieve when other teams that are leaning into the portal weren't able to achieve is because they brought in grown-up college football players. They didn't bring in five-star recruits who are going to be there for a year and go to the

NFL. They brought in guys who are just really good at college football. And this is a great college football game. And there is a nuanced difference when I say a college football game here. That's the style of game this is going to be. It's going to be physical. It's going to be about execution. It's going to be about not necessarily the best athletes, but the people who do their jobs the best.

So I love this game for Indiana. I like the under on Clemson, Texas, mostly not because Texas is going to score a ton. I don't think Clemson can score much on Texas. I'm going to take Texas minus 12. I really feel it has a chance to be 30 to 10. I think the Texas defense is sensational. And I think the Clemson offense, it's almost like that SMU game felt like their bowl game. I think both SMU and Clemson are going to get totally outclassed in their bowl games.

I like the under, but I'm going to take Texas minus 12. I think this, remember, Clemson doesn't go to the transfer portal. They have holes. Texas out recruits them and goes to the transfer portal. And also Texas's offense over the last three weeks, I don't think they'll pause. If Quinn Yuer's struggles, I think they'll go to Archmanning. I don't think they'll pause going forward. I like Texas to roll here, sharper square.

Totally sharp. Like, if you're looking, I'm looking in the action app right now, just checking it out. And you can see in the app, you can see the betting tickets, and you can see the money, percentages, on each side. And betting tickets is usually an indication of the public. That's the squares who are betting $10, $20, and there's a lot of volume of tickets. Money usually represents where the wise guys are. So the tickets right now are on Clemson. The money is on Texas. And I agree with you and the wise guys agree with you. That defense they have is just fierce. Like, they did a job on Georgia.

And if Texas' offense could execute a little bit better, then we wouldn't be having this conversation about who is the SEC champ. It would have been Texas. So, like, that defense is so freaking good. And it's a veteran defense. Again, we're talking about, like, guys who have been playing college football for a while. And I think that's an advantage here. So the game I'm going to ask you to handicap.

I don't get the line. So the line is telling me Ohio State's going to win because it hasn't moved much. So Tennessee's defensive line is significantly better than Ohio State's offensive line, meaning Ohio State's going to have to throw. And it may only be 15 degrees. But this line is telling me that out after that Michigan loss, Ohio State is pissed and Ryan Day's jobs on the line, And Josh Heipels isn't, and it's in Columbus, and it is a warm weather SEC team.

So the line is telling me that Ohio State's going to win this comfortably. That's what it's telling me. Otherwise, when it came out seven and a half, the sharps would have jumped all over this. I mean, Tennessee's the best rushing team in the SEC going into cold weather. It just screams to you, low scoring, take the points. But the line's not moving, and that tells me the sharps like Ohio State. Do they? Yeah.

Yeah. I mean, look, it's settled in where it's at, right? And that is because it's been, it's kind of, the advantages is not for Tennessee because of some of these situations that you just talked about. And there is some feeling that this is such a desperate spot for Ryan Day. It's been seven and a half almost since it opened. It was at six and a half for about 30 seconds. Wise guys took the six and a half. They bet Tennessee at six and a half, right?

But there was so much other sentiment coming in on Ohio State that it moved up. So Ryan Day is in a spot and we've talked about this. There was a story in the Wall Street Journal today about Ohio State fans, people calling in to local radio about Max Crosse, who, you know, the Lions, the Raiders defensive lineman who's out for the year on his podcast. He's a massive Ohio State fan. Talking about how he wants the team to lose so they get rid of Ryan Day. That is a weird thing to be talking about when you've got a coach who has won as much as he has.

But I think you and I agree, every game for him is going to be a must win game. And unless they win the championship or they get there and they are so dominant. and he puts himself in a position, even if they lose, it's a way to rebuild the goodwill. It's a Michigan or bust program, and he hasn't beaten them, and they haven't gotten over it. You know, I think sometimes one of the things I love about sports is when there's cultural changes, I like to be, I like to predict what they are. I love the theories and my systems on like what's changing. So something's happening in college football, and college football fans don't yet know it.

So in the NFL, it's almost understood that you've got to give a staff a couple of years, right? Like, it's just really hard. The margins are thin. Well, I think the Ohio states and the Georgia's and the Texas fans, you know, you've always been able to line up and just beat teams. And one of the reasons is over a long season is your backups were as good as their starters. And football's regulated levels of violence. So there's college and pro. There's injuries. But the transfer portal at NIL has eliminated depth at the Blue Bloods, Georgia, Texas, Clemson. So when you do suffer injuries and the season is now longer than ever, your backups are Purdue starters.

That's all they are. And so these Ohio states and these big Notre Dame, these big traditional powers, as the season goes on, I mean, look at our 12-team playoff. Arizona states in it, SMUs in it, Boisey states. And these are live dogs. Like, and so I don't think quite college football fans understand, not only are players getting paid that it looks more like pro football, but your backups stink just like pro football.

Detroit's defense now has six backups. It's terrible. A month ago, it was excellent. And so what creates that? The salary cap. You have bad backups in the NFL. Nobody has depth in the NFL. You eat it like Philadelphia's got great front line starters.

A.J. Brown's out. It's not the same offense, right? Sequin Barclay's out. It's not the same offense. We've always understood that in pro football. You need your starters. And when you get injury plagued, Buffalo, Detroit's defense, you're like, what the hell's going on? Well, everybody knows you don't have good college.

That was never the point. Top 10 teams just had better backups. I mean, 85 scholarships allows you to have four pro offensive tackles if you're Ohio State. Now they have two. One gets hurt. You move a guard to left tackle. They're all line stinks.

It's Iowa at best. So you're totally right. That's an on-the-field problem. But culturally, for fandom, the beauty of college football, it's always been. Michigan, Ohio State, rivalry weekend, you know, Alabama, Tennessee, or Alabama, Auburn. You know, these games, they had so much meaning because there was a lot on the line. You couldn't lose that game. I think what Ohio State is struggling with and what a lot of schools will struggle with in the future is,

you focus so much on that one rivalry game and that's all you care about because college football has always been so provincial. Now it's a national game. The SEC is spread out all over. The Big Ten is literally nationwide. These are the only two conferences that really kind of matter. And so the provincial local rivalries that college fan bases have built their mindset on,

have built their self-worth on, have built their fandom on, they need to move on from those really meaning anything because they kind of don't. If Ohio State loses to Michigan for the next 10 years, but they win the national title in five of those years, is that going to be better or worse as a fan? Like they need to come to grips with a new reality of what these rivalry games mean

in terms of the broader picture because they used to mean everything. It wasn't just about beating Michigan. It was about beating Michigan and what it meant for winning the Big Ten and going to the Rose Bowl or what it meant for winning the Big Ten and then being in the college football playoff

or winning the BCS and getting a better rating. Those things don't. matter anymore. So the rivalries and the expectations for what these rivalries mean need to be adjusted. I also think it's just going to diminish the value of those games for fans. My kid, he's going to be in college next year. He's gotten into Indiana. He got into Penn State. Wherever he decides to go, are the rivalries for those schools going to mean as much to him 20 years from now as they do to me and my friends who also went to Indiana? Probably not. Do you have an NFL bet this weekend that you would label your favorite?

Well, look, I middled Kansas City. So I bet Kansas City plus two and a half on Sunday night. And then... Minus two and a half, you mean? No, it was plus two and a half. Like, on Monday morning, I'm sorry. When the news about what was happening when Holmes was still unclear, the chiefs were two and a half point underdogs.

So I bet him two and a half. And then when it became clear that he was going to be playing, this was yesterday afternoon, the game got up to three and a half. I bet the Texans at plus three and a half. So the majority of my money is trying to get that middle, right? But I also bet the Jets, three and a half. That's one that I like. I really like the Steelers at six and a half.

So if I'll put in my five favorite picks, the Steelers will be in there. The Jets will definitely be in there. Dallas, I bet it four and a half. I like Dallas a lot against Tampa, I think. There's a lot of inflation this week. And I think that's one of the bigger games where Dallas has been playing better. Like the last three weeks, the last four weeks, that Cincinnati game kind of looks like a fluke, right?

They lost that game. They've won the three other games. Michael Parsons has seven and a half sacks since he's back. Duran Bland is back in the secondary. That defense is getting a lot of. better. Cooper Rush at home, controlled environment. Tampa Bay just put up 40 on the chargers. That inflated that line a little bit. So Dallas is another one that I'm unpaying attention to.

Chad Millman, Sharper Square. I love it, buddy. Great to chat with you, buddy. The volume. Hey, guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts.

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