The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Colin Cowherd Podcast Prime Cuts -  Nuggets Title Reaction, Jokic Dominance w/ Jason Timpf + Middlekauff on Bills Concerns, Payton’s Russ Project

Episode Date: June 17, 2023

It’s Prime Cuts. The best of The Colin Cowherd Podcast. First, Colin and Hoops Tonight host Jason Timpf react to the Nuggets NBA title clinching Game 5 victory over the Heat, if Denver has a shot at... a dynasty, and what some other contenders need to improve to beat them. Then, 3 and Out and GoLow podcast Host John Middlekauff on if the Bills are still the AFC East favorites, their early surprise predictions for the ‘23 season, if Sean Payton will succeed in his first year with Russell Wilson and the Broncos, if the Niners will trade Trey Lance, and his predictions for the first post LIV/PGA merger major - the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club, and the fallout amongst the players following the merger.  Follow Colin and The Volume on Twitter for the latest content and updates! #Herd #VolumeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Starting point is 00:02:28 Download the free mobile Angie app today or go to ANG.com. Angie, your home for every... everything home. Colin, does that ever get old for you watching a team hoist the trophy? Oh, no. You know, tension makes movies and sports better. It was sloppy. I mean, Denver was really tight.
Starting point is 00:03:02 Even Mike Malone at one point said, we're tight. I mean, they couldn't hit free throws. They couldn't hit threes. But you know what? They hit their gimmies. You know, they're good in the paint. I thought Michael Porter redeemed himself with a couple of big moments. And I also thought you can say that, you know,
Starting point is 00:03:17 Denver's not this defensively. I thought they were pretty good. And the fourth quarter, I thought they were relentless. I thought they were kind of dictating, kind of pushing, running Miami off the line. No cheap baskets made everybody work for everything. Like, you know, they always say offense is talent and skill, defense is effort. Like Denver can be good defensively. They're so good offensively.
Starting point is 00:03:44 They don't have to be great defensively. but on a night when they couldn't hit anything, I thought their defense in the fourth quarter was really strong. They rose to a really high level. You know, it's funny. I was digging into this coming into tonight, obviously, as I kind of expected, as I'm sure you did as well for Denver to hoist the trophy.
Starting point is 00:04:02 And one of the biggest storylines is this is basically the first non-defending champion in decades to win the title without a top 10 defense in the regular season. It's a significant achievement. It's kind of a break of the mold, so to speak. But what's interesting is, as you do, dive into it, their defense has been excellent in this postseason run. Coming into tonight, their defensive rating in the postseason was only about two points worse than Golden State last year, who was an outstanding defense during the regular season and continued to be so
Starting point is 00:04:30 during the postseason. Now, some of it, I do think it was about matchups, and this is kind of the beauty of basketball, is like, it's not necessarily how great of a defense you are in a vacuum. It's how well can you guard the Lakers, how well can you guard Miami, how well can you guard Phoenix? And with those particular teams. Phoenix didn't quite have the amount of rim pressure they needed. The Lakers didn't quite have the amount of offball shooting they needed. Miami had all the off ball shooting in the world, but they didn't have the real high-level shot creation that they needed.
Starting point is 00:04:59 And that's the thing is like, again, in the NBA, you don't have to be, it's not about being that great defense in the grand scheme of things. It's about your specific matchup. And they took it very seriously in this particular postseason run. Mike Malone harped on it constantly. They all talked about it constantly after that game too. ugly loss to Miami. And you know, what's interesting is they were missing threes like crazy.
Starting point is 00:05:21 This was a classic Eric Spolster game. They ran about 40 possessions of zone in the first two games of the series. Then almost completely abandoned it in games three and four. And then that was almost all they did tonight. And it did a great job of disrupting Denver's rhythm. And they were missing a lot of open shots. And what's interesting in basketball is you can't control shot result. Like if you're getting good looks, you fire away and you just hope they go in, right? But you can control the defensive end of the floor. And I thought their second half was probably their best stretch of defense in this entire postseason. Hell, they had Jimmy Butler pump baking at ghosts and not wanting to shoot the basketball. Bam and a bottom was missing everything around the paint. It was their defense
Starting point is 00:06:02 that got it done. And that's what I enjoyed about it is like at the end of the day, it was some of the traditional things that ended up winning in the end. Yeah, I think they went from a good team to a very good and you wonder when you look at Yokic and Jamal Murray's playmaking ability on top of the points, are they potentially a great team? You know, Murray is a score and Yokic is a score and playmaker. That's a very good team. But when Murray adds the element, oh, I can make plays for others, along with Yokic, Gordon, an elite defensive team, all-time great size, then you start going, wow, they got a lot of things here.
Starting point is 00:06:40 Like Pippen, you know, Michael wasn't a playmaker. great score. Pippin wasn't a playmaker. He was a great defender. You know, like, Chicago didn't have a lot of that hybrid stuff where you could do both, right? Even Shaq and Kobe, known as scores. So Yokic and Murray both become 10 plus assist guys. You know, the other thing is when you're when you're a really great team, you not only win championships, but you often change the game. The Warriors changed the game. Denver now, with their length, are they putting it into small ball? You can't really play small ball with them.
Starting point is 00:07:20 You have to have an enormously successful shooting night. They're just too long. They're just too big. And I think to myself, great teams not only win, the Kansas City Chiefs not only surpass New England, they've made that sort of defense first game. That kind of game doesn't match up with Kansas City. you just can't stop Kansas City. If you give them 12 possessions, you just can't.
Starting point is 00:07:47 And so not only is Kansas City now better than New England, they've kind of ended the idea of ball control because Mahomes needs 13 seconds and he can drive down the field. And I think what Denver's doing, are they ending small ball? Do we look at now, Miami's a pretty small team of BAMs done on the floor. Golden State, they just don't match up. They just can't get anything down low. And I also think it was a throwback series.
Starting point is 00:08:11 Denver's very much points in the paint. A lot of guys hitting twos. They want a championship at a night they couldn't hit free throws or threes. I kind of like the old school stuff. I got to tell you, people are going to watch them. And I think people are going to say, okay, the small ball. Remember Houston for years chased the warrior small ball and they could never win. They were shooting 30, 40, 503s.
Starting point is 00:08:33 You sort of look at Denver and think, oh, there is another way. Length, twos, playmates. I don't know. I find Denver captivating to watch. I feel like I'm watching a little 70s and 80s and 2023. I feel like I'm watching a little of both. Yeah, they represent some proven methods that win in the NBA and some new methods, you know. And what's interesting is Golden State last year was kind of a small team. But if you look back, like size has been winning in the NBA lately. Like this Denver team gigantic. That Milwaukee Bucks team in 21, gigantic. That Lakers game in 2020. 20 gigantic. That Toronto Rafter's team in 2019, massive. Even that Warriors team with Kevin Durant,
Starting point is 00:09:18 when you really put Kevin Durant with Andre Guadala and Draymond Green on that front line, they were massive. They're just, you have to win with size in the NBA. And what was so interesting with this particular Denver team, and this is what actually your Kansas City Chiefs reference kind of makes sense to me. Like, I can't tell you how many times over the years as a tour of Cowboys fan, I'd be watching like Aaron Rogers put together these long drawn out drives. And then it just felt like the cowboy offense could never get in a rhythm. And the three and out is almost just as much of a product of the rhythm as it is the
Starting point is 00:09:50 defense just because there's a flow to football in the same way there's a flow to basketball. And it's when you see a team that's going to get a million offensive rebounds and they're going to score consistently get back in transition and force you to attack their set defense. Sometimes Denver's best defense is their offense. Just by the way they beat you up on the interior of the other end of the floor. I do not. One of the weird subplots of this series is Jimmy Butler and Bam Etabio could not make a shot in the paint to save their life. Like they were, they were awful, awful shooting inside the paint in this series. And a big part of that is those dudes are banging
Starting point is 00:10:25 with Aaron Gordon and Nicole Yolkichall series. And it just wears on you. And so that's a big part of their attack. And then as you go down the roster, you mentioned Jamal Murray, and that's such an important part. His playmaking has been a revelation in this playoff run. He's averaging over seven assists a game. That means Yokic and Murray are giving you almost 20 assists a game. Yeah. And then you've got the Murray, the, the, the, KCP, Michael Porter Jr. Element and the Aaron Gordon element, all these guys are coming back.
Starting point is 00:10:53 This to me feels like a team that could just as easily make four or five consecutive Western Conference finals and win multiple championships. That becomes an interesting exercise to kind of think about what the rest of the league does from here. Because I think it's going to affect in a bunch of different ways. You talked about small ball and I 100% agree. Like there's just, there's no doubt that if you try to march. to a series against the Denver Nuggets next year and you want to play four dudes that are below six eight, then you're going to be up against it from the standpoint of competing on the glass and in the physicality areas of the game. I mean, Miami did about as good as you possibly
Starting point is 00:11:24 can do because of how well coached they are, but even they looked physically overwhelmed at times. And look at what ended up as most of the pivotal plays at the end of this game were offensive rebound putbacks and Yolkich just mauling dudes around the rim. It was their size that got them beat at the end. Now, as I look around the league, though, like everyone's got to make significant improvements. Like, I think Phoenix had some real success with pull-up jump shooting against this Denver team, but they need to confront their size issues. That's going to be something they have to confront. Yeah. Oh, absolutely. And then the Lakers, ironically, were by far the most successful offense against the Nuggets. That was so weird about that series. You go in there and you're like,
Starting point is 00:12:01 Lakers are the best defense. They're going to be great. Denver cooked L.A. more than they cooked any of the other teams. Like, it didn't make any sense. And then on the offensive end of the floor, we all talk shit about the Laker offense all season. The Lakers were actually the most successful offense against the Nuggets, in large part because of LeBron James rim pressure, Rui Hachamura, rim pressure. They were actually able to attack the paint in a way the Miami Heat couldn't.
Starting point is 00:12:21 But they have to make so many improvements in terms of their perimeter athleticism because guys like Bruce Brown and Jamal Murray just absolutely destroyed them. And so all these teams have to make significant improvements. You're going to see, I think you're going to see a lot of teams get really aggressive this offseason because they know they're not good enough yet. And I think you're going to see a couple centers get some big paydays that don't make a ton of sense. This guys try to throw money at an extra body to throw at Yokic.
Starting point is 00:12:48 I think you're going to see a guy like Dwight Howard back in the league. Like it's going to be, this whole summer is going to be like, how do we deal with this team who's bringing all their guys back? And it's going to be an interesting challenge. Well, I mean, for years and years, the Spurs had Robinson and Duncan. And then the Lakers have always had bigs. And, you know, I mean, it's it's why a Portland goes out and drafts a great. Greg Oden, right? You start looking around the league and you're like, you know, you see it all the time in all sports. Who's in the NFL? And when Peyton Manning's in your division, everybody drafts edge rushers. Like, that's the way the sport works. Yokic is just now moving into his prime. He's got six more years of it. He's in the best shape, by the way, he's been in in his career. So, I mean, if you really go back at the end of the year, Yokic, I think sat five of their last seven games. So they went on kind of a losing streak at the end of the year. The next year, the next. not going to stay in regular season.
Starting point is 00:13:39 They didn't play starters, right? If you take that out, I mean, this team, I mean, trade deadline on, we should have seen it common. They just thump people all the time. Home road,
Starting point is 00:13:52 thump people. And it's, I got to tell you, I like new stuff. I'm not a rearview mirror guy. I love having a new potential dynasty. I don't know if they are, but it has the makings of one.
Starting point is 00:14:06 I mean, when LeBron went down to Miami, you felt like, oh, this could be special. But D. Wade was always a guy that hit the floor a lot, aged very quickly. It was like a running back, not many years. And so you could see by like year two, it was like D. Wade wasn't as good on back to back. There's going to be an expiration date pretty quickly on this run.
Starting point is 00:14:27 But I look at Denver and I'm like, at least for three more years, at least three more handful. Because I think, I think to be honest, Murray, Yokich, Porter, and Gordon. or right smack dab in the middle of their prime. Like not near the end of it. Like three years from now, let's come back and talk about it. Then they're closer to the end of it. But this will be fun.
Starting point is 00:14:49 By the way, I also love KCP. Bubble team, this team hit a big three in this game. I love guys. Free throws too. And a big steal. I love guys like that. There's every championship team's got a guy. I love the KCP.
Starting point is 00:15:02 He's had an interesting career. If he goes to the free throw line late, he's talking to all these guys. Settle down, settle down. It's like KCP. It's like telling everybody, hey, I've been here. So I just, nothing I didn't like. And by the way, we all love Miami.
Starting point is 00:15:16 But they need Dame. They need a score. They need another player. So the good news for Miami is they lost. They were overwhelmed. But you know exactly what they need. They need a score. From the standpoint of Denver in a potential dynasty,
Starting point is 00:15:34 the part that makes it so possible is, Yokic's durability and what he's capable of doing when the other guys are not available. Because both Michael Porter Jr. and Jamal Murray are constantly dealing with nagging injuries in one way, shape, or form. And even Jamal Murray this year, like he got back to where he needed to get in this postseason, which was one of the biggest storylines coming out of the regular season. It's like, can Jamal Murray be what he was in 2020? And he ended up eating way better than that even. But he was dealing with some nagging stuff with his knee, Michael Porter Jr. and his back issues flare up from time to time. but what's great about the Yokage thing is like you can just throw four dudes out there with him and he's
Starting point is 00:16:11 winning 50 regular season games. So like you're you're not going to suffer in the standings. You're not going to struggle. You can buy rest for Jamal Murray during the season and buy rest for Michael Porter Jr. And then when those guys are available in the postseason, it's the simple fact of you better find a way to score on them easily on the other end because there's just nobody ever really truly bothered them in this postseason. And that's just going to be a recurring theme. As far as Miami goes, and this is what is so interesting from the standpoint of continuity, and I actually wanted to bring this up, because it was something I
Starting point is 00:16:43 talked about a lot after game four. But I do think it's really interesting that from like 2017 to 2021, it was kind of like the mercenary era, right? Like the Warriors signed Kevin Durant outright. And they win a couple championships in a row. The Raptors trade their
Starting point is 00:16:59 continuity for Kauai Leonard, a mercenary, comes in, they win a title. LeBron James ships off a half decade of draft prospects in the Lakers to bring back Anthony Davis, they immediately win a title. The bucks coming off of a really disappointing loss to Jimmy Butler in the bubble, they go out and they trade for Drew Holiday. They immediately win a title. That was kind of like that era.
Starting point is 00:17:20 But now we're in this era where it's like suddenly you saw last year a Celtics group with Marcus Marlon Brown and Jason Tatum and Al Horford that had a ton of reps together that made it to the finals. And then you saw a Warriors team with a bunch of dudes who've been playing together forever make it to the finals. this year the Heat and the Nuggets teams that had been together for a while. And my theory on this is like there's so much talent in the league now that every team has two stars.
Starting point is 00:17:45 It's like Philly's like the 10th best team in the league. It's like they got Hardin and Bean and Tyree's Maxie. It's like everyone's got two stars. Everyone's got good role players. So it's the groups that play the best basketball that end up winning. And so you have to learn how to play good basketball over years. And so I do think it's interesting how continuity is taking center stage. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:18:01 And it's also the league. is cyclical. Like, you know, you see this all the time. People copied the warriors for years. Even when they didn't have great three-point shooters, it was just like, okay, we've got to become that. And you're like, no, you can get twos. You know, Denver, Denver was so confident in its ability to get twos, they can shoot
Starting point is 00:18:21 threes, and they're good at it. But they're not beholden to it. And so, you know, champions usually have people that copy them, right? Like, it's cyclical. So LeBron and Durant move and they have success. So everybody thinks that's, that's. But Kevin Durant and LeBron are two of the 12 best players in league history or 15 best players. You can move around the league all you want.
Starting point is 00:18:46 It's not going to, you're not going to duplicate their championships. So I think Denver, I do think people will look at Denver and try to get bigger to combat them. It was like when the Spurs had, you know, early in the Spurs when they have Robinson and Duncan, it's like, wow. Like this is, this is a lot. And I think people will try to combat them. But I think a lot of what Denver does is unique to them. There's just not many guys like Aaron Gordon in the league that big. I mean, just I saw him the other day.
Starting point is 00:19:13 He was doing something after a game and he had like a sweater on and he was at the microphone. And I'm like, that ain't sit-ups and deadlifts. That dude is just built, not like any human I've ever met like 6-10 broad. He's just not on the market, right? Like Yonkish. I've played an basketball game against him. I'm aware. He's huge.
Starting point is 00:19:35 So, Yokic is not on the market. Like, some of great teams have, Steph Curry's not on the market. You can try to duplicate it. LeBron wasn't on the market. So you're going to see some imitators and people try to get bigger. But, you know, great teams everywhere. Mahomes isn't on the market, right?
Starting point is 00:19:52 You can try to duplicate so much of it. Denver's unique. I think they're going to alter the game. I think they're going to have copycats. And I think they're going to be around for you. I was so happy for the city because I've always said Detroit and Denver don't get the love, but everything works in Detroit. They like bowling.
Starting point is 00:20:13 I've seen the ratings. College basketball. You know, New York City is a great sports city, but they don't love college football. They don't love NASCAR. Detroit loves everything. Denver's the same way. Denver loves everything. Every star was out tonight in Denver.
Starting point is 00:20:25 Every coach, every player. It was like it meant so much to the city. And the fans there are, you know, I grew up. with the orange crush. And, you know, that was the loudest place in the league. And I don't know. I just, I felt, I really felt, I was so happy for Denver. It meant so much to the city.
Starting point is 00:20:46 I mean, you see, Peyton Manning moved there. Right after he played, he said, this is where I want to, this is where I want to be the rest of my life. And he's biting his lip and he's sweating. And I'm like, God, it meant so much. It was such a joy to watch. I mean, it was, it was one of the great quarters. of intense, sluggish, open jumper missing basketball in a long time.
Starting point is 00:21:10 Like it was, you kept saying to yourself, okay, Denver doesn't deserve to win. You can't miss free. When Brown missed two free throws, Christian Brown missed two free throws. I'm like, bro, come on, you can't do that. You can't win a title like that. But I just have a feeling like elevation tonight. Like I'm really happy for Denver. I love competitive basketball like that.
Starting point is 00:21:31 It's funny. Yeah, there was a quote from Jeff Van Gundy during the game when he was talking about Max Strues playing through his struggles. And he's like, he's like every coach loves a player that is competitive when he's struggling. Because a guy who's struggling but is competitive will attempt to find ways to affect the game even when he's not making shots. Like, do you remember that ridiculous chase down block that Max Trues had in the fourth quarter with like four minutes left where I think it was, I think it might have been Jamal Murray.
Starting point is 00:21:58 Somebody had a breakaway layup. And he just changed playing it. Yeah, yeah, and he came flying in and blocked it. And I was like, that is just sheer force of competitive will when he can't buy a bucket. And there was literally like 10 of those dudes out on the court tonight because nobody could really make anything. You know, even Yokic missed one of his late little push shots that he always makes. So I wanted to talk about a little bit about Yokic and his place atop the league because I think even as we talk about the tier that you had mentioned, which is Luca, Janice, Yokic and Steph. I think that Yokic has demonstrated a level of offensive, I don't know what it's called, like
Starting point is 00:22:36 inevitability, like consistent shot creation. That's even a level above some of those guys. This kind of reminds me a little bit of LeBron in the early 2010s where there's kind of like the changing of the guard where it's like Kobe's tailing off, right? And Duncan's tailing off. And so LeBron's kind of filling that void. And then some of the younger guys like KD just wasn't quite. there yet. Steph Curry's not quite there yet.
Starting point is 00:23:02 That's kind of the way I'm looking at this right now. Like, Yokic feels like he's at the absolute peak of his powers here in his late 20s. And Janus is like dealing with some flaws in his game in the half court. And Steph just didn't quite shine through against that dominant Laker defense the way that Yokic did. And Luca's struggling in the margins of basketball. Like he's unbelievably great, but he's struggling defensively. And he's struggling with his attitude.
Starting point is 00:23:26 And he's struggling with kind of maintaining the flow of a team with how kind of all hoggy he can be sometimes. And so like, do you, do you potentially see Yokic starting a run here where he's the best player in the world for a while? Yeah, I mean, I think the best player today is Yokic, Yonis second, Luca, third. Yonis struggles with free throws confidence late and Lucas struggles with playing with somebody ball dominant. Those are real factors.
Starting point is 00:23:50 Yokic doesn't really have that. And so I do think, I do think he feels different. He also, and this is really a thing. And there's more than one way to do it. But there's an egosness to him, meaning he'll be easy to play with. Kobe wasn't. I mean, Kobe won force of just a willfulness. And then with Shaq and then with Gasol, like Kobe willed his way to a championship.
Starting point is 00:24:17 A lot of that was Jordan. Jordan was no easy to play with. There's a lot of different ways to do it. Then you get Magic and LeBron where they make everybody better. I feel like Bill Russell, Magic Johnson, LeBron and Yokic feel similar to me. That stylistically, they're all different. But their ability to make minus players plus players, B minus player a B plus, C minus player, a C plus.
Starting point is 00:24:43 I mean, Murray was an A player in this. I always thought of him kind of as an A minus a B plus. And I'm like, no, he was an A player with some A plus knights. And he's not doing that without the screens. Inevitability is a good word. like Russell, Magic, LeBron, it wasn't just them. I've said this before to you is the greatest stat in LeBron's basketball careers in high school, where he averaged like 26 a game as a junior.
Starting point is 00:25:10 He could have scored 50 a game as a senior. He scored 27. That told me all I think, all I needed to know about LeBron is junior and senior year. He averaged like a point and a half more. That's never been LeBron games to outscore people. It's always been about elevating others because he knows he can get his points. and it's like that that told you what lebron was he i mean lebron james best basketball player ever if i said what do you think he averaged his last year high school you'd be like 48 you're like no one more
Starting point is 00:25:36 point than his junior year and i think that's the key i think free agents and people are going to look jason at yokech and be like Denver's not a bad place to live right harden luka it's like man am i going to get the shot am i going to get looks you watch jalen brown explode in new york York, Jalen Brunson, exploded New York. You're like, holy God, Luca got in his way. Man, there's a lot of guys, a lot of Kevin loves, a lot of Chris Bosch's, had really big careers, gave up a lot of numbers, and said, I want to play with that, dude. 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
Starting point is 00:26:24 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 which I'm saying. Yep, that's me.
Starting point is 00:26:47 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,
Starting point is 00:27:05 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.
Starting point is 00:27:22 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 what 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
Starting point is 00:27:41 and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. All right, I'm going to bring in my buddy John Middilcoff, three and out podcast, former NFL Scout on the volume, sports network also hosts go low our golf podcast u.s. Open in los angeles everybody here's fired up everybody i know is going except me because i'm doing a podcast uh all right john i want to start with something i um in the last 24 hours i do kind of a pre-camp standings and we're through the draft coaching free agency OTAs. And my only woe was I put Miami in first and Buffalo and second.
Starting point is 00:28:29 And I had two reasons for it. I think Vic Fangio is the most underrated coach assistant in the league. I think he's a great defensive coordinator. Between he and Jalen Ramsey, I think their defense is going to be a handful. Secondly, I like the momentum of Mike McDaniel and Tua. I think they get better and better and better. I watched them out coach Sean McDermott, two of the three games. last year clearly and arguably three of the three games.
Starting point is 00:28:53 And also the Stefan Diggs story, something's amiss. Five years in, they can't solve the offensive line. They've added more defensive linemen. Ed Oliver got an extension. I'm not anti-defensive coach. Pete Carroll, Tomlin, Belichick, obviously very capable. What do you make of the Stefan Diggs? A lot of the Instagram stuff.
Starting point is 00:29:18 it just, for that stuff to go public, what did you make of it? Well, you know, he's had issues before. You know, he was, he's a winning diva. You know, he won in Minnesota, was a very productive player on their good teams, but he was a lot for them and they got rid of them. And they made one of the great trades in recent memory,
Starting point is 00:29:38 essentially straight up for a draft pick that turned right into Justin Jefferson, right? So it was a pretty seamless transition for them. And Diggs has been excellent for the bills. I heard you, I think, yesterday or two days ago, kind of on the Sean McDermott experience. And I was thinking about it over the last 24 hours.
Starting point is 00:29:54 I think a lot of times, and this works for offensive coaches too. And now Sean's technically the defensive coordinator. Your success is very predicated on the other side of the ball, who you hire. So just look at some of the offensive coaches, right? When did Andy Reed? Obviously, Mahomes was a big element of this.
Starting point is 00:30:12 Got rid of, I think Bob Sutton was defensive coordinator Spagnola. last five years, three Super Bowls in their defense has been dramatically better. With often young players. 100%. Kyle Shanahan, back-to-back defensive coordinators, become head coaches. They've been awesome. And now he hires Steve Wilkes. Everyone's really high on.
Starting point is 00:30:32 Sean McVeigh, excellent defensive coordinators. So you need help on that side of the ball. When were the bills really good? For that three or four-year stretch, Brian Dayball, turns out he's a star. Maybe Ken Dorsey, I mean, there's going to be a lot of pressure on him. because they got a little loosey-goosey last year with Josh Allen, who just is kind of a loosey-goosey player. His talent is just so elite, right?
Starting point is 00:30:54 Now, the thing with the team building, and I know you talked about the offensive line with the bills, their GM has a lot of juice, Brandon Bean. And they have invested heavily in the defensive line, which no one really, like, that's a smart thing to do. But it's like, have they hit on the right guys? I like Von Miller, $55 million for a guy 33 years old. It was a lot of money.
Starting point is 00:31:16 You know, it was a lot of money. And he was having a really good season last year, but what happened? He got hurt. You know, older guys. You saw JJ Watt a couple years ago again, elite guy champion. It's hard to overpay those guys. John, I didn't like the Vaughn Miller deal. I thought the Rams, much like the Chiefs did with Juju Smith-Schuster, incentive-laden deal comes in hits, Patriots overpay.
Starting point is 00:31:39 I thought Vaughn Miller for the Rams was a home run. I think Buffalo overpaid. I think at his age and injuries. history, it was a mistake. Yeah, I think when you're giving the astronomical deals, when you're a championship level team, they got to be your guys. When you go shopping
Starting point is 00:31:55 in free agency, you just, you pay, what, a 20, 30% premium just on the fact that you're bidding against other teams, the prices go up. So I think they regret that one. But I do think their success, you know, Sean McDermott's proven to be a good defensive coordinator when he was with the Carolina Panthers and Ron Rivera.
Starting point is 00:32:12 He knows what he's doing to coach the defense. So let's just say their defense a little bit better. what if their offense like would have Ken Dorsey I mean for every guy Shannon and Sean McVeigh there are a lot of offensive coordinators that turn out to not be that good so that would be my biggest concern if I was a Bill's fan. The thing with the dolphins though Colin
Starting point is 00:32:27 doesn't the quarterback concern you? I mean you cushing away from like missing the season well first of all two is put on about 15 pounds you can see it in the OTA like he got thick he did a Jalen Hertz Lamar did it two years ago you're like he's got traps he's got he got thick
Starting point is 00:32:43 so Tua's kind of come to terms with you can't you can't play light at that position you can't in college when you have bama's offensive line you can't the NFL you got to put putting on you got to put white on you got to get the ground too when shit hits the fan you can't try to be a hero he's not big enough or fast enough to do that so i've said if he plays 15 games i do think jalen ramsie vick fan gio um i think if you look at shanahan system with matt ryan it's in year two that a quarterback It's complicated. The quarterback really hits.
Starting point is 00:33:18 With Shanahan, often it's been year two. I think year two, McDaniel and Tua. I think the division's really good. If DeAndre Hopkins signed with New England, I think that's like substantial. But I have the same quarterback worries. I just don't like the way Buffalo is trending. And the other thing is,
Starting point is 00:33:40 with Aaron Rogers and the Jets, I know Aaron's going to be fine. And I think he's used. using he's smart he knows the narrative on green bay was his buddies were the old guys bactiari and cobb he didn't work with young guys so in new york he's made a point yeah to put his arms around the young guy i love these young players he's smart he sees it's like i've said before when you get divorced and remarried you're like what was i really bad at okay i got to get better at dealing with kids i got to get better with money like you you know what you're
Starting point is 00:34:11 bad at you correct it he's he's course corrected on the young guys but it's still a shaky O line. The wide receiving core, Alan Lazzards, more of a three. Garrett Wilson's young. I don't think they, I think most of their talents in the defensive front and in corner.
Starting point is 00:34:29 So I, if I said to you, so Miami's my woe pick, I think Carolina has a chance to win their division mostly because it's a bad division. Is there a woe pick for you at this point? A division that I would go,
Starting point is 00:34:44 man, I didn't see that coming. Well, I guess you could see it coming, but everyone's going to pick the Bengals. I do think the Steelers were really coming on at the end of the year last year. We know how well they draft. We know how much talent they have on their team. You know, T.J. Watt, remember, missed a lot of last season.
Starting point is 00:35:00 He's a lot like Nick Bosa, that if he's playing 17 games, he's getting, you know, close to 20 sacks and dominating every game he plays in. Good point. Their culture, you know, their quarterback, I'm not a huge, like, I don't really like those type players because I think their ceilings pretty low. But physically, you get to go to a place that's just kind of equipped with a running back, weapons, a defense.
Starting point is 00:35:23 He's an older, younger player. I mean, it's not out of the realm possibility. They win 12 or 13 games, right? If they maximize and stay healthy. And they're in that division, no one's intimidated, especially Baltimore and Pittsburgh by the Cincinnati Bengals, right? Even though the Bengals have been beating them. But they, they will view of healthy that they should win the division. So I'd say the Steelers are a team that I might link.
Starting point is 00:35:44 to pick, I'm definitely going to pick to make the playoffs, but to potentially win the North. Well, and the other thing, very much like New England, defensive culture, defensive coach, they get a Mack Jones, a Kenny Pickett, lower ceiling. But if you kind of look at what Belichick, Brady was viewed as a lower ceiling guy. Yeah, I got better over time. Yep. And so the truth is Belichick, Belichick doesn't want Lamar Jackson. running out of his plays either to shanahan either just you know tomlin sometimes was frustrated
Starting point is 00:36:19 with big ben's um you know ad libing um kind of refusal to audible in and out of trouble and so i kind of look at kenny picking and i'm like okay i don't love him he his ceiling maybe seven and a half but you know with tomlin's defense with a culture that can win a division it really can yeah And listen, I think coaches, you talk to these guys, GMs, every year's a new year. So the momentum, especially when you miss the playoffs, doesn't carry over. But that is an organization whose standard is so high and they're so used to like ending on success will carry over, I think, for a lot of these guys. I think the Saints are another team. You know, I know you've always been a supporter of Derek and I've known him since Fresno State.
Starting point is 00:37:05 I think for the first time in his career, he was really kind of told, like, essentially you suck. Get out of here. Yeah. You know, like you're not good enough to play here. He left the building the last couple weeks. That's a team that what's crazy is that the end of the Sean Payton era in New Orleans, they had a really good defense and they still have a lot of physical pieces. They've been a physical team.
Starting point is 00:37:26 Then Drew's career kind of ends. And obviously they go into this court. They don't have a quarterback. Derek does not have to be Josh Allen or Patrick Mahomes. If he can just play like the 10th, 11th best quarterback in the NFL, they could, especially when you factor in their. their division, their strength of schedule. Like, why couldn't they win 10, 11 games?
Starting point is 00:37:47 I think it's interesting. You touched on Sean Payton. I want to dive a little bit into Denver here. So I thought probably more, the best guest I've ever had on my show reoccurring is Sean Payton. I did him Mondays 15 times last year. Sean and I would talk five minutes before he went on, 20 minutes, 25 when he was on, five after. I learned so much, went to dinner a couple times. I learned so much from Sean Payton.
Starting point is 00:38:13 I could tell after about four or five meetings with him, there's no way he was going to stay out of the league. He's just, he's so curious. He's such a good storyteller. He's so, he's just, he's like intellectually twitchy. Like he needs to work, right? He can only golf so much. You've met guys like this.
Starting point is 00:38:28 He's too good of a coach to not be coaching. That's right. And he didn't have the burnout yet of a Jimmy Johnson who could have coach for years more, but Jimmy was burned out. And Sean, unlike Jimmy maybe, is, has a good social life. I mean, Sean's going to go rip it up and have a good time. A beautiful young wife. Like Sean gets away from the sport.
Starting point is 00:38:49 But I watched Denver and seven of the base eight best offensive lines according to PFF last year were offensive head coaches. Harbaugh and seven offensive head coaches. They figure out the O line. It wasn't lost on me that he goes out and gets Mike McGlinchie right tackle. Ben Powers at Guard. They already have, they have Garrett Bowles coming back, who's their best. old line, and they do have an interior guard they like on the roster. And so I think we're going to see a significant upgrade on their O line.
Starting point is 00:39:21 And Sean told me a couple of times off the air and on with Russell Wilson. He said he's got to go back to leaning into what he does. And that is basketball on grass. He's got to move. That's what he is. What do you envision? Because I think they're going to take a big leap. What do you envision with them?
Starting point is 00:39:40 I didn't love the O-Linman signings for the price point. But ultimately, McGlinchie is a good example. Like, do you love buying a house at the peak of the market? Sometimes not ideally, but you need some more to live, right? So do I want to pay $50 million for McGlinchie? No, but who's going to play right tackle? And it's not like he's coming from the worst team in the league. He's been a five-year starter on the 49ers.
Starting point is 00:40:02 So it's, listen, maybe I'm too close to the sun. I've seen him. But he's, he is a starts every game for you at a very, very critical condition. I'm with you. I mean, what made Russell Wilson so special, and I've seen him live several times in his heyday. He was just a magician.
Starting point is 00:40:18 He kind of had this Steve Young, Flair, obviously the deep ball, and he looked like a shell of himself. And, you know, I think most of us, if you're going to be bullish on his comeback, he'd be like,
Starting point is 00:40:28 well, Nate Hackett, dysfunction, and then if you were going to be bearish on the situation, be like, well, he's a lot of miles on those tires, right,
Starting point is 00:40:36 running around. You can't play like that forever. he's probably him and Aaron Rogers are probably the two most fascinating situations this year for just high level, Hall of Fame level guys in new scenarios. Obviously, Russell's been there a year,
Starting point is 00:40:51 but now gets Sean Payton. No longer he's in charge. I think some of the stuff was overblown. Like Peyton Manning had an office at the facility. Right. In India, Denver. No one cares about that stuff when you're winning. It just gets weird when you're not.
Starting point is 00:41:05 Now, Peyton, like Tom, are just better dealing with guys one-on-one. I don't know if that's something you change. I mean, some of the question marks with Russell, just being a little different. You know, that's not something you usually flip a switch at it, 32, 33 years old. Like, I'm pretty confident that Sean Payne. You talk to people in the NFL that he's viewed as one of the best offensive minds and just schemers of his generation. So offensively, like the scheme, he's going to figure it out.
Starting point is 00:41:30 It's just can Russell, is he still the athlete? And if his athleticism is, let's say, it was once 100% is now 70%, not 88%, that's a big problem for a smaller player who's not ever going to play like a Brady or Manning in the pocket, right? You know, it was interesting. I started thinking, why wouldn't Russell run last year? Because it was really abrupt, like intuitive movement wouldn't. And I did wonder this is that that Russell wanted to be viewed as a pocket passer because he wanted to be viewed as a pocket passer. because he wanted to be viewed as an all-time great.
Starting point is 00:42:10 And Brady was winning Super Bowls. And there was this. And Lamar Jackson was new in the league. Lamar was running around. And I had this thought that Russell watched all of this and thought, I'm not going to be Lamar. I'm not going to be Kyler Murray. I'm not those guys.
Starting point is 00:42:26 I want to establish myself as a pocket guy. Because it was almost as if he was stubborn, not moving. If you watched their games, when he moved, he moved the chains. He's not a great pocket passer. Jalen Hertz isn't yet a great pocket passer. Lamar's better than people think. He's not burrow.
Starting point is 00:42:46 And I thought it was almost one of those where Sean Payton said this to me. He goes, I got to convince Russell. Let's go back to basketball on grass. I think Russell can move. I think Russell made a decision. He did not want to be branded as run around guy because Kyler had come in and was a little quicker. Lamar was faster. Josh Allen was leaping over.
Starting point is 00:43:06 people. And Russell was thinking, I don't want to be the seventh best running quarterback in this league. That was my interpretation. Because when I watched, I'd think, Russell, every time you run in these games, twice a game, you pick up a first town. Run. He's still very elusive. So sometimes, you know, people have told me this before in my career, sportscasters, like lean into what you are. You know, if you're a storyteller, be a storyteller. If you're funny, be funny. If you're a great journalists lean into it. I think Russell needs to lean back into Russell. So I want to go from there to a team you know very well, the 49ers.
Starting point is 00:43:44 I think it's impossible to yank a player that went 8 and O as a starting quarterback. I don't think. So what is not happening. So it doesn't, you know, they love the guy. What do you do with Trey Lance? Well, I actually think he can earn a lot of credibility back. And I think he has a little bit in the OTA. but this fall if he just beat Sam Darnold out.
Starting point is 00:44:08 Like he went from the number three pick in the draft and then traded for three first round picks to two years later, not the starting quarterback because Mr. Irrelevant is, and competing with Sam Darnold, who's playing for $3 million to be the backup quarterback. So I do think there's a lot on the line come August, right, in training camp. They have some joint practices, the preseason games. My take is, though, I just, the 49ers thought that they could have their
Starting point is 00:44:36 Keak and needed to and develop this player. And they realized he needed so much work. And he got hurt that they were just a ready-made machine. It's why they always kind of went back to Jimmy Garaplo. And then when they just, they didn't luck into Barack Purdy because they, he made the team last year at a training camp. Like they, what he did in training camp, Kyle kind of fell in love with. They really liked them.
Starting point is 00:44:57 Now, they didn't think he was in it, end up being a starting quarterback. But through injuries, he, his play through whatever, the end of the season. and then those couple playoff games before, I guess the Dallas game was hard. I mean, their defense was playing really well. The Eagle game didn't even happen that he was a more explosive player than Jimmy Garoppel. And we know the weapons they have, right? And I think now that they have Christian McCaffrey, they just go, we don't need, because I'm not asking you to play like Patrick Mahomes. We run the ball a lot.
Starting point is 00:45:26 We throw a lot of quick screens. We throw a lot of wheel routes. We are not bombs away like the Buffalo Bills or the Bengals. That's not the way we play. So we just need a guy to be very, very accurate, basically in like the 10-yard window past the line of scrimmage, right? And Purdy was awesome at that. Of course he was. He's been a four-year starter at Iowa State.
Starting point is 00:45:45 He's a multiple all-big 12 guy. He had a lot of experience, very confident. And it's just an accurate player. I mean, that's his strength. And that's not Trey's strength. And, you know, the bill several years ago were like, screw it. We're going to figure it out with Josh Allen and learn through it. And they weren't even close to being a Super Bowl contender at the time he started.
Starting point is 00:46:03 when he got there. That's the opposite with the 49er. You could argue it would have been an easier landing spot if he just went to a shitty team and just got to screw up on the fly and figure it out. That was, I think the 49ers thought the opposite. And then once they got it, they're like, yeah, we can't. And the players last year were kind of grumbling because they're thinking, we can't win 10 games if this guy's not accurate, right?
Starting point is 00:46:25 We can't figure it out on the fly. We're 25 to 28 year old guys in our prime ready to roll. And yeah, I mean, if he doesn't win the backup job, they do have the three quarterback rule. You know, they change it. Technically, they keep him. But to me, it's not out of the realm possibility that they just maybe trade him at the end of training camp. If Sam Darnold, like, beats him out, right? Because what's, you can't have a guy $9 million being your third, you know, third quarterback.
Starting point is 00:46:51 Can you get a fourth round pick for him? I think it depends how he plays in training camp. Right now, you could not. Now, if he looks good in training camp and Sam's just better, they have a joint practice with the Raiders. I mean, what, Jimmy Garoppolo? They're banking on him being healthy. I mean, he can't pass a physical in June for the second time in two years. I mean, that could be a disaster.
Starting point is 00:47:14 What if he's good against the Raiders? Mark Davis, Vegas Knights champion. You can't just be irrelevant in Vegas. They don't have a, and if Jimmy is injured, I mean, that, they'd be, Brian Hoyer, we wouldn't just trade a fourth to just see what you got to take your chances because there's some pressure on just being relevant if you're the Raiders. So I think there would be a couple teams if he shows signs of life. If he doesn't, yeah, his value is very, very small because he makes, he's a third overall pick.
Starting point is 00:47:41 He makes him cash. Right. I just saw this. There was a rumor the Patriots tried to trade for Rogers and he blocked it. Do you believe that rumor? I would bet Bill sniffed around because he was obviously pretty down on Mack Jones over the last 12 months. the Patriots don't have any offensive weapons. It's not really an enjoyable place to go once it's not guaranteed you're going to win.
Starting point is 00:48:08 I mean, one of the reasons guys were taking pay cuts because you were guaranteed at minimum to go to the AFC championship game and like an 80% chance you were going to the Super Bowl. So, once it's like, well, we might win nine games. Like, yeah, I'm not playing for that. Crumudgeon. You've been on this forever. And listen, I think Bill's an awesome.
Starting point is 00:48:26 I mean, he's an all-time great coach, any sport, any era, any time. But the offensive game, last year was an embarrassment to go with Patricia, right? And Joe Judge. I mean, that situation, that's beyond like arrogance or whatever. That's just crazy. I mean, it was universally like, this is insane. Again, not a Mac Jones guy. I do understand if I'm Mac Jones.
Starting point is 00:48:49 Like what? He's been at Alabama. He knows what normal looks like, and that ain't normal. You know what? I often use sports to guide me through some of my business stuff. And, you know, like I watched Greg Popovich refuse to embrace the three-pointer. I watch Bill Belichick refuse to pivot, unlike Saban, to a more offensive quarterback-friendly team. And it is interesting in the business books that I peruse over the course of a year.
Starting point is 00:49:21 I like business. I always have, not necessarily a business person, but I enjoy reading about the structure of it, the architecture of businesses and the ascension of a business, especially since I rated the volume. And almost to a business, the successful companies that fail, people don't get dumb. They just get arrogant. And they start believing, John, in the culture more than talent. You know, Mike Shoshchevsky got very precious on the one and done.
Starting point is 00:49:51 Remember, for years, Duke would not hang your jersey unless you graduated. And then, you know, Mike finally said that all these one and done guys, they're all beating me. So Mike was like, okay, I'm pivoting. Saban pivoted when he got Lane Kiffin on the staff. That program for seven years was built on linebackers, safety's corners. Then they went all in on five star wide receivers and quarterbacks and left tackles. Is that when I look at Bill Belichick, he didn't get dumb. But when you fall in love with your culture, I remember when I started the volume, I talked to a, I emailed a couple of different people.
Starting point is 00:50:30 successful business guys and almost three people, a woman and two men and very successful people. And they all said the exact same thing separately. I said, give me one piece of sage advice. And they all said, be willing to pivot. Don't fall in love with your ideas or your culture. Whatever works, double down. What doesn't? Get off it immediately.
Starting point is 00:50:56 And when I watch the Patriots, I mean, you're a former scout. You have people in the building. that's why I think DeAndre Hopkins is sort of an acknowledgement and Ju-Ju-Ju-Smith Schuster, hey, I got to get this right. Like I effed up last year. That's what DeHop feels like to me. Well, I think there's some tangible pressure.
Starting point is 00:51:13 I mean, there's always been rumors in NFL circles. Bill doesn't exactly treat the crap family, normal like coach ownership hierarchy, you know, maybe an equal or maybe in some instances even above. Yeah. That works when you're going, 14 and 2 every year, right, and winning the Super Bowl every other season and winning six and whatever, 17 years and going to 10 AFC championship games.
Starting point is 00:51:40 It's a different story when you're struggling to make the seventh wild card, right? And when you do, you lose by 75 points to the bills or you don't make the playoffs. And you look around and you start making moves like that. I was also thinking about, I wonder if, you know, the older you get, especially some of these coaches, or even business people in their 70s, it's probably harder if you kind of lean negative. And Bill can be a little negative. Think about some of the successful guys right now.
Starting point is 00:52:09 Andy Reid, mid-sixth. Kind of happy, right? Pete Carroll, a little more positive. There's something to just be positive every day. It's a little harder. Because that were several years removed from Tom Brady. A lot of the guys that were around Tom, Edelman, McCordy, they're gone. So these guys don't know what 2016 was like.
Starting point is 00:52:27 That doesn't mean anything to a lot of the guys on the Patriots. right? And then you got this coach who just is a hard ass every day driving you through. One thing with Nick Savin, they're just, there's a churn in college. That's right. And he hasn't had the lows. I mean, his low is like 11 wins losing in the SEC championship game, right? Or something.
Starting point is 00:52:47 You know, Bill, last couple years for their standards, there's a, it's like a Grand Canyon wide gap. And I don't think he just, not that he's not an optimistic. obviously he knows what he's doing but he's tough man to be around on a daily basis the negativity people handled it because they also don't pay as much in terms of coaches, assistant coaches
Starting point is 00:53:10 historically, you know, they try to be cheap with the players historically and it's like it's one thing when you're winning just like in any industry. If you're going to be part of a lot of success and you're eventually going to benefit on the back end, you're like, I can handle this, right? I can handle this grind.
Starting point is 00:53:24 But when it's not working, like, what am I doing this for? You start looking at yourself in the mirror And a lot of people turn on you. Okay, I want to pivot U.S. Open in Los Angeles. John hosts our golf podcast, Golo podcast, cool merch. John is his real passion. He just happens to be great at football.
Starting point is 00:53:43 His real passion is golf. And you can tell when you listen to him. So I'm going to lean into you on this. There are certain courses that benefit certain players. So when I think of U.S. Open, I think of the rough is deeper. This is the American championship. You're going to have to earn it.
Starting point is 00:54:06 Are there players, when you look at the U.S. Open, give me a couple of guys who are built to win an open. Well, Kepka is, I mean, typically it's really, really hard. Based on Thursday, it was relatively easy. Now, they can trick it up really quick. You know, they can not water greens. They can, they have the ability to grow grass at rapid rates. I mean, the rough can, you know, change quickly.
Starting point is 00:54:30 You saw Ricky Fowler. One thing is, and I haven't played much golf, I haven't played any golf in Florida. There's a huge difference in the way grass your club receives at the highest level. I mean, me, you, the average guy, even if they're shooting in the 70s, you can't tell. But at the pro level, it's why California guys typically have success on the California swing. Pebble Beach, Torrey Pines, this today. Ricky Fowler, Zander Shoffley, born and raised in Southern California.
Starting point is 00:54:57 California. Last before we hopped on, Phil Mickelson was like 14 holes. He was three under par. California guy still lives out here. So you're very comfortable with the grass. Now, this isn't your typical where if you're off the fairway, you're dead. They've never played this course before. You see Zillow, the Tory, the spelling mansion is on hole 14. It's for sale right now for $155 million. So the monthly payment is close to a million dollars. The monthly taxes are like 120 grand. But this this is somewhat of a unique venue because they've never been here and they might never come back.
Starting point is 00:55:33 But I think typically it's it's guys that are smart. There is a kind of like a Belichick or you've got to have strategy. Tiger was the greatest strategist ever. Phil could be a little loosey-goose. It's why he's never won a U.S. Open and blown it a couple times. I think Kepka, you know, it's weird. He looks like a football player
Starting point is 00:55:51 or something, but he's actually a pretty boring golfer. Hits a lot of fairways, hits a lot of green doesn't screw up. It's why he wins these big tournaments. Rory, one of the knocks on him for being one of the most talented guys ever, a little fillish, not always the greatest decisions, you know, the talents there. And I think US opens historically, we'll see how this thing plays out. It usually kills you when you make a bad, one hole can ruin your tournament, right? This, you know, you're down there right now. It looked a little overcast today. So the sun's not baking, which maybe actually can lead to softer
Starting point is 00:56:23 courses, usually when that sun, you know, bakes, hardens out the fairways, hardens, out the green, but these guys, these superintendents, these people that run these courses now, especially at a place like that, they will not like these low scores. They're going to want to humble these guys, you know, 85 bears style the next couple of days. So it'll be very fascinating Friday, Saturday, if they try to hit them in the teeth with some curveballs. So the players that didn't defect to the live tour, you know, like Rory McElroy, my take was was that Phil Mickelson complained for years,
Starting point is 00:56:57 as did Greg Norman about the treatment of star players. Every other entertainment business, NBA, music, Sony, movie studios, you take care of your stars, golfed. So, you know, it wasn't a shock when Phil bolted to the live tour. If I would have guessed who would have bolted, I would have said, Greg Norman's going to run it, Phil's going to bolt. But for the players that didn't defect going forward, what do you think is reasonable compensation to show up?
Starting point is 00:57:26 Because you have to take care of some of these guys, especially now that the PGA scolded golfers that departed and defected and now took the money. You know, it's weird. A lot of the reaction over the last 10 days has been those guys got screwed. I don't think the top end guys regret making their decision. You know, Roy McElroy, John Rom, Romm,
Starting point is 00:57:48 Gordon Spee, these guys were worth nine figures. So the money at their level, not that it wouldn't have Justin Johnson likes his life, but Dustin Johnson was kind of over it. Kepka didn't play that much beside the majors and care ever. So what I think is going to be fascinating is that it was not sustainable the way it was going, right? It's a little like the NBA. You know, 10, 15 players, we talk a lot about like the top 10 players.
Starting point is 00:58:14 It's really the top three or four that carry the league. Right. In golf, it's always been the top three or four guys in any era that. carry the sport. And then you create stars by the next seven to 20 guys when they battle those guys. And if you ever beat them, you become a star. Like Yokic, how do he become a star? Sure, knocking off the top guys. And now we view him as an equal. But without his ability to beat those top guys, we wouldn't quite know how to gauge it. So the splintering of golf, which is much more niche than our team sports in America, it was never going to work. And they're going up against
Starting point is 00:58:47 an entity with unlimited money. So I have a buddy that works in Wall Street that text me, like, you know that the Saudis have like $16 trillion in untapped oil? I mean, their wealth is unlimited. And golf, I think they overextended themselves to try to compete against because they were going to their sponsors who are some of the biggest companies in America asking them to double down. And the guy's like, well, you're not producing double the, why would I give you double the amount I'm already giving you, which is a lot of money? It wasn't adding up. So the merger. And as you see, Jay Monaghan, I don't know if you saw the head.
Starting point is 00:59:21 line the last 24 hours, but he took a leave of absence. Probably, I mean, stress, you know, this is something I think that was, there are so many variables on this, but ultimately, I don't know, like, what are you just going to put everyone on salary, which might be, which might happen now that they're no longer in a, I think it's called a 501c for tax benefits, which they're not going to do it anymore. And they haven't been able to just put Tiger Phil, Rory, you know, pay them like, I don't know, Steph or LeBron or Aaron Judge is pay him 30,
Starting point is 00:59:51 $35 million a year and then whatever else you win. And that's the Saudis had the ability to do. But I also think some of those guys like, the thing with golf, to have a legit tournament, you have to have access to the courses. And the Saudis were never going to have access to any good course because the country clubs were all in a weird way integrated with the money guys. And they didn't want, they don't need the Saudis. And then the public courses, the PGA tour, the pebble beaches, you go around the country,
Starting point is 01:00:17 are in business with the PGA tour. All I know is this. There's like four golfers in this country, Phil, Brooks, Rory, and Dustin Johnson. If they're competing Sunday, I'm in. And now, I'd theorize if Tiger was in his prime, you maybe don't have to merge. And he's an all-time outlier, you're right, given the sport. I mean, Michael Jordan's more likely to come again than in golf we ever see it. Tiger Woods.
Starting point is 01:00:47 It was not sustainable the model. The volume. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.
Starting point is 01:01:31 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 podcast. 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.
Starting point is 01:02:01 I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an I-Heart podcast, guaranteed human.

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