The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Colin Cowherd Podcast - Prime Cuts: Riley, Kelly CFB Shockers, Louis Riddick on Tua, NFL Future, Rodgers/Stafford Mismatch with Mike Silver, Week 13 Bets

Episode Date: December 4, 2021

It's the best of The Colin Cowherd Podcast! First, Colin's top takes of the week, including reacting to USC's blockbuster Lincoln Riley hire (3:00), what the outrage over Brian Kelly leaving Notre Dame says about college football fans (13:00), and why he didn't buy into the Matthew Stafford hype (15:00). Then, Monday Night Football analyst and former NFL exec Louis Riddick and Colin discuss if the Seahawks are headed for a total tear down or just a quick reboot (21:00), why Louis thinks Tua deserves much more credit than he's getting (26:00), and if he sees himself leaving the MNF broadcast booth to get back into an NFL front office (30:00). Next, longtime NFL writer Mike Silver and Colin discuss why Brady's Bucs looked different against the Colts (34:00), why Aaron Rodgers sometimes looks "supernatural" (36:00), and if the Niners have re-entered the conversation as a playoff threat (38:00). Finally, The Action Network's Chad Millman tells Colin his NFL Week 13 Patriots/Bills (47:00), Chargers/Bengals (48:00), and 49ers/Seahawks (51:00) picks are "sharp" or "square".Make sure to Subscribe and follow Colin and The Volume on Twitter for the latest content and updates and check out FanDuel for the best wagering and daily fantasy action! Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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This is Prime Cuts, the best of the Colin Coward podcast. Great, great week. Lewis Riddick, ESBM, Monday Night Football, former exec and player. What's wrong with the Hawks? Does Tua deserve more love? Longtime NFL writer Mike Silver, a bunch of really good topics, including the Niners. He's already tied into them. Chad Millman tells me squares, sharps, what are the best bats of the week?

But first, my top takes of the week. The big breaking news yesterday, bigger than the NFL, was Lincoln Riley to coach USC. It's a grand slam hire. So let me take you back about two months after they fired Clay Hilton. I called Mike Bone, the USC athletic director. I called a couple of significant boosters in the USC family. And I said, I just want to remind everybody that when Pete Carroll coached USC, there were no NFL teams here. The Clippers were a joke. The Dodgers didn't draw four and a half million and were not this good. There was not an LAFC team. The Silicon Valley money was not as substantial. People are now more distracted. The market's more distracted. I said, you have to go big.

Luke Fickle and Matt Campbell is not the answer. This is not Norman, Oklahoma. This is not a small town where the university is the centerpiece of it. USC is a huge brand in Los Angeles, but you will disappear very quickly in this city if you can't cut through. We need a superstar coach. So I told people connected to USC, GoPro, go get a big professional coach who's not a control freak, who understands the LA market. Because eventually USC is such a high glamour job. Whoever succeeds here, five or six years, USC's coach, often John McKay, John Robinson, Pete Carroll, gets lured by the NFL. We don't need a college lifer. We just need to have a culture that's legitimate. It's been hurting since Pete left. So I, of course, had no idea, Lincoln Riley was a possibility. In fact, I laughed at the suggestion he would leave

Oklahoma for LSU. I think Oklahoma is a better job than LSU. I do not think Oklahoma is a better job than USC because of the geography and the conference is much easier. So I just thought USC had to go big. So the night before, a source who I trust, way up the line at USC said, don't report anything. of this Matt Campbell stuff is just simply not true. He may get a great job. It won't be ours. And then, you know, the story broke early in the afternoon that Lincoln Riley had told his players at Oklahoma he was leaving and going to USC. USC because of geography is a better job than Oklahoma. It hasn't performed as well as Oklahoma recently. But when USC is rolling, regardless of who Oklahoma's coaches, you will see USC will have more NFL players. When you look at why Lincoln Riley left

Oklahoma. A, it's a much easier path to go through Oregon and Washington and Utah than it is to go through Bama and Auburn and Florida and Georgia and LSU. It's just a much easier path. Secondly, what USC sold Lincoln Riley on was this. This is the entertainment capital of the world. We know how to market, promote, build, and help stars flourish. and you are a superstar coach. There is no reason you should ever have to take a backseat in any conference to anybody. And I think Lincoln Riley understood that, that when you come to Los Angeles, you will be the most discussed coach in college football.

Remember, television networks are dying to put USC on. Texas A&M doesn't have a national fan base. It doesn't give you Dallas or Houston as a market. When USC is rolling, the second biggest city in America is watching. And that is why networks like to put the Dodgers on and the Lakers on and the Rams on. And especially in a sport dominated by smaller rural towns, the USC Trojans on. So, you know, networks are doing backflips over this. The minute Notre Dame or USC with massive national exposure and potential get the right coach,

They want them on every weekend. The other thing about Lincoln Riley is that California, they call it a brain drain when a lot of college graduates leave an area of the Midwest and they go to New York or L.A. or, you know, Dallas, Atlanta, and they leave the Midwest for cooler cities, warmer weather, more opportunities. Well, California's had a recruit drain because UCLA has more basketball school than football power. when USC's not right, the state high school football stars leave. They jettison California. They want to be seen. I mean, Alabama's quarterback, California kid. Clemson quarterback, California kid.

You start looking around the NFL at how many quarterbacks, Brady, Aaron Rogers, are California kids. So there has been a fast train out of Los Angeles for about six years with some of the nation's best talent. So if you can retain that, I would say about the middle of year two, and that's what it took for Pete Carroll, the middle of year two, the program started to take off. The good news for Lincoln Riley, there's some talent here. It's mostly on the perimeter. They need a star running back. They have to rebuild their offensive line. And they need more. They have some big NFL bodies on the defensive front. But there's some corners and receivers and tight ends. They have a young quarterback Jackson Dart who will, You'll know who he is by next year if you've not watched him play. There's already stories now of multiple Oklahoma recruits and multiple California kids looking to enter the transfer portal and to join USC. So this is an announcement that will be made Monday, the press conference, either early Tuesday or late Tuesday at the Coliseum.

They've already booked a spot there I've been told the school has. So it's the right hire. You've got to go big. You've got to cut through. This is a wildly competitive and distracted market in Los Angeles. Matt Campbell is a perfect fit in Oklahoma. It's the only game in town. He'll win games.

He won at Toledo. He won at Iowa State. He's a perfect fit. But I don't think, nor did I ever think, he would be the perfect fit for USC. A couple of things to note here. One of the first calls to congratulate USC, I'm told, was Pete Carroll. Once a Trojano was a Trojan, Pete Carroll called the athletic department Mike Bone and congratulated and was so happy and so optimistic about what Lincoln Riley could do. The second thing is one of the advantages Pete Carroll had when he was at USC is the conference was down.

And then later Chip Kelly entered at Oregon and Jim Harbaugh at Stanford. But the same thing is going on outside of Oregon. Washington's looking for direction. Utah and UCLA have the right coaches and they're solid, but they won't contend with USC once the recruits start piling in. The conference now, the Arizona schools are okay. Colorado is just okay. Stanford and Cal now are a little off the rails.

The conference is built to take over very, very quickly. Something else that was thrown out is, you know, I can't believe that Lincoln Riley wasn't loyal to Oklahoma. Well, remember, Oklahoma wasn't loyal to Lincoln Riley. They broker that deal to go to the SEC. They didn't ask Lincoln Riley to do that. And the truth of the matter is, it can be a little bit of a cesspool in recruiting in the SEC. There's a lot of schools, and I don't include Alabama in this, but a lot of the schools chasing Alabama are handing players the bag. There is a lot of ugly recruiting going on in the SEC.

Lincoln Riley a little concerned. Oklahoma could get lost. He doesn't believe he should have to take a backseat to anybody. He may not fit the Southern culture as well as he fits the Western culture in the PAC 12. Also remember, Lincoln Riley could go to the NFL anytime he wants. Stan Cronky is great friends with Jerry Jones. I would not be surprised if Jerry Jones and Lincoln Riley did not have a discussion about this opportunity. And I can guarantee you, Jerry told him, go west young man.

So this is a real opportunity. The number one college football program west of the Mississippi in the number two market in the country, networks vying to get USC on. They've got the quarterback in Jackson Dart for the next two years. Outside of Oregon, many of the top programs like Washington and Stanford are reeling. It's a perfect hire. It's the perfect time. and it will not take long to turn it around. You know, one of the advantages to being older, I'm in my 50s now, you know that,

is that just life experience. You can go to a prep school, you can go to Princeton, but if you're 24, there's limitations on what you've actually done in your life. And I've really come to terms where there are two types of people. People that seek and like change and people that are totally uncomfortable with change. And I told you a couple of months ago about a story from a University of Chicago economist named Stephen Leavitt, who co-wrote Freakonomics. And he has 20,000 people to make a decision on a dilemma based on the results of a coin toss. Like should I start my own business or should I propose?

Should I grow a beard? If a coin landed on heads, they had to make a change, even if they didn't want to. Tails and they didn't have to make a change. And six months later, they did follow-up research. And what they found was for important. decisions like quitting a job or ending a relationship, people who were told they had to make a change were more satisfied and happier than those that maintain the status quo. Meaning, some people have to be forced to make changes. They're just not naturally, innately comfortable

with it. There's a reason I support Brian Kelly and Lincoln Riley. And maybe this is my progressive side. I embrace change. I like change. As I've gotten older, I've noticed this. There's just people. They're often, I would call traditionalists. They're often conservatives. They don't like change. They like the way the world is now and it used to be. They don't like change. But as the study proved, when they're forced to change, they're generally six months later happy with the change. It can be any kind of change, a business move, a relationship, growing a beard. I've come to realize

whenever these coaches or these star players leave a city, half the fan base immediately gets it and the other half stubbornly resents it and I don't try to fight them on it. I just think people fall into two groups. Some are very resistant to anything changing and have to sometimes be forced to change

and then eventually they get over it. And some people are just naturally more willing to change. I thought it was very interesting when it was announced that Matt Stafford was going to the Rams. The over-under for the Detroit Lions did not change, and the over-under for the Rams win total changed only half a game. You are seeing the downside to Matt Stafford. Third straight game of the pick six. He misses open throws.

He can be erratic. He's inconsistent. He isn't always in the biggest games, the best quarterback. Once again, Aaron Rogers looks like a different level of quarterback. The Rams and Stafford are not completely healthy, but that's not an excuse because the Green Bay Packers have been the most injury-depleted football team in the National Football League, I would argue, for the last three weeks. They won missing 11 starters in Arizona. They could have won in Minnesota missing their top tight end, running back, left tackle, corner, and linebackers Adairia Smith. I don't want to hear injuries.

I like Matt Stafford. but it's remarkable how he was sold as the savior of the Rams and Carson Wentz was much malign going to the Colts. Is there that big of a difference? Wentz is bigger, as good an arm, is more athletic. And like Stafford, makes the reckless mistake. I like Matt Stafford. But this idea that he was going to be the savior for the L.A. Rams, he's better than Jared Gough. but what you're seeing is what Lion fans saw for years.

Great talent, not a super athlete, not wildly mobile. He's not going to spin it like Aaron Rogers. He's not going to move around like Kyler Murray. He's clearly not the winner or pre-snap as good as Tom Brady. He's an upgrade over Jared Goff. But the idea there's this massive gap between Matt Stafford, who the media thought would change the Rams, and Carson Wentz, who everybody thought was a dubious,

acquisition by the Colts. I think Stafford's slightly better, but I don't see the huge gap. Aaron Rogers, missing five of his best players, was clearly playing at a different level with a bad toe and limping around than Matt Stafford.

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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. Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions. my journey from basketball to college football

or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

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

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So I'm starting to see that there's a through line We also have AIDS on the table right now So Thank you finishing that sentence And yes I don't think there's a more important year For black people Really?

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for a free 14-day trial, full access at Shopify's entire suite of features. Shopify.com slash C-O-L-I-N. If I could be you. And you could be me for just one hour. If you could find a way to get inside. Each other's mind. Walk a mile in my shoes. Walk a mile in my shoes.

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but I'll remind you, he played in the NFL for the Falcons, Browns, and Raiders. He was an NFL safety and a thumper. He was a pro personnel director for Philly and the Washington football team. And I can remember years and years and years ago when he stepped foot on ESPN's campus. And my career was kind of starting as a syndicated radio host. And I had heard him on one of the sports centers. And I told my staff, I said, who is that guy? And Google. So I went to Google and I'm like, get that guy.

That guy's good. He's confident. He's got a point of view. Well, now, Lewis Riddick. So I'm taking all the credit for Lewis Riddick's stardom. I'd like to take all the credit for putting him in the herd. First of all, it's great to see you. You flourish.

That's not a big shock. You're very good at what you do and you have a point of view. And I've always loved that. So I'm going to ask your point of view on something. So I'm from the Pacific. Northwest, and I've known Pete. I covered him when he was at USC. Every division in the NFC is led by an offensive head coach. In the AFC, West, it is as well. My coach of the year would be Cliff Kingsbury or Zach Taylor, offensive coaches. The team that's not really a playoff team now,

but that's emerging is San Francisco and offensive coach. Now, we know Sean McDermott, Belichick, that division, there's some real good coaches. I like Flores. Sure. But Pete Carroll's 70, I've had two executives tell me they're weird in the draft. They don't like their draft picks especially early. Their schemes appear to be offensively a struggle. Often great defensive coaches don't have great offensive relationships and vice versa. I mean, I would bet Lincoln Riley has great offensive relationships, you know, maybe more than great defensive relationships, right?

Like that's how coaches often operate. So Pete 70, it feels Jurassic, the schemes, the O lines bad. The running backs are weak. And then Russell Wilson and his team leak. There's four places they want out. That's disruptive. If you or John Snyder tomorrow, there's some things we know are good. There's some things we know are bad.

Is it a total rebuild outside of Russell? Philosophically, they have to figure out going forward. And even for the rest of this year, exactly who are they? Who do they want to be? Go back to the Pittsburgh game, Sunday night game. First half of the game, now I know Gino Smith is starting a game, and Russell's not. First half of the game, that's throwing the ball over to place.

You know, 11 personnel, three wides, a tight in the back, going empty. And it's Gino Smith throwing like he's back at West Virginia, all over the place. But they can't get the ball in the end zone. And you can tell Pete's getting frustrated. Second half, what do they come out and do? They drive the ball right down the field by running the ball maybe eight times in a row. it looked like Seattle 2011, 12, 13, which is who I think, I think ultimately,

that's who he wants to be. But, and that's fine, because you know what, there's some teams right now that kind of look like 2011, 12, and 13, Seattle, that right now are going to be in the hunt in the end. Yeah, in New England. New England looks like that, exactly.

San Francisco, if they can stay healthy, they look like that. And that kind of stuff, it does matter in November and December. But philosophically, they're so all over the place and their offensive line isn't good enough to where it's hit and miss now. It's hit and miss all over. And if Russell's not there to be the difference maker, which he wasn't for a while, they can fall apart.

Defensively, you're right. Look, since the Legion of Boom got split up, they haven't been able to recapture that magic. They can't rush the passers the same way. And you're right. They have missed on some draft picks, especially in the front seven. There is no more, there are no, you know, Chris Clemens on that football. team that can rush the passer the way those guys could. There are no Cliff Averals that can rush the passer like that.

There is no Michael Bennett. You know, Bobby Wagner is really the only last holdover from those glory years. And so I think, personally, that whole organization is headed for a rebuild. It's headed for a reboot. That's what I think is going to happen sooner rather than later. Although, both John and Pete are locked up for a while. So it's going to be interesting to see what happens there. I think it's going to need that, though, sooner.

rather than later, a reboot. Yeah, well, it's Paul Allen money. He passed. His sister now owns it. So writing big checks is not a problem for them. I think what you touched on is Pete has really struggled with an identity. I don't feel like, you know, it's interesting about this. I think the Miami Dolphins all pivot to them.

They've found their identity. Is play good defense special teams. I'm a huge Brian Flores fan. Yeah. Limit what we ask of Tua. And Lewis, you can win three out of four games in this league playing that way. No doubt. Just don't ask Tua to be what he's not.

They're not asking Matt Jones. To me, Miami feels like a poor man's New England. Yeah. I don't know if you can win the Super Bowl with Mac or Tua. I don't know. But, you know, if I'm Miami's GM today, Chris Greer, it's not a great college class. I don't want to reach. I still have to rebuild my offensive line.

I'm not a big Tua fan. I don't see the it. I wonder if he ends the year strongly. I just don't go to my owner and like, listen, will you be patient one more year with me? Right. I'm not going to reach on a college quarterback when I can get a starting right tackle or a starting, you know, a starting whiteout or a starting corner. I mean, where do you go in your opinion with Tua? Yeah, I'm always, I've always been a fan, Colin.

and I believe this. I think we become in many ways enamored with the aesthetics of the position instead of the fundamentals of the position, meaning, that's interesting. I want to see the dynamic plays. I want to see the off schedule.

See, Patrick, you know what? And I think, you know, God bless him because I love him. And we all know, I mean, he's the future. He's going to, you'll see as we go on the rest of this year and on forward, Patrick will get back to being what he is. I think some of the spectacular plays will calm down because teams won't let them do it anymore. But we become so like that's the standard, right?

That's what a quarterback has to be. Deshaun Watson, those guys who can just do things that just make you go, oh my God, the guys who can rack up fantasy points, the guys who just make you want to come out and say, look, entertain me, show me something I don't get to see every day out of quarterbacks. But coaches and GMs don't really think that way. They think, show me a quarterback,

who's going to put the ball where it needs to be, and put it accurately, who has a huge mental horsepower, a huge mental engine that can figure out things in the blink of an eye, which is what Matt Jones is, and who can get the ball where it needs to, and as we develop him and make everything around him stronger, we'll turn him loose a little more, a little more, a little more, a little more, a little more, to where eventually maybe you have a guy,

and look, Tom is the best of all time in terms of how he has been able to get other body, everybody else around him to play better and win championships. But that's really, that's the arc that his career took. That's the arc that Drew Brees's career took. That's the arc that Peyton's took. And that's what I think, if you can survive without the aesthetically pleasing quarterback who has the rocket arm like Josh Allen or the running ability of Lamar, if you have the guy who's smart and efficient and you don't have to win in spite of.

And that's what I think, Tua can be. And I think, you know what you've seen recently over the past, month. That's why Miami's been winning because their defense has been playing good. He's going to fishing with the football. Next thing you know, they're winning games. And you're kind of like, see, now all of a sudden people don't talk about it because he's not doing dumb stuff. Now it's just like, oh, yeah, Miami's winning. Oh, that's cool. You know, Brian Flores, that's great and all. But it's like, oh, wait a minute. Let's rewind as to why they're winning. He's a big part of that. And so I get the, I get the desire in the, in the, in the, in the,

want to as far as having that quarterback that can make you go, I don't want to just sit at home and watch them. I'm going to go to the stadium and watch this guy. Don't think for a minute, Colin, you know this as well as anybody, that owners don't think that way too. Right. I want somebody coming to my stadium and buying gear and buying seats and buying suites because they're like, man, I'll tell you what,

you see that quarterback? We got to go to the stadium and see that guy. Right. People sitting at home watching them. So I think sometimes all that stuff comes into quarterback decision making that can get teams kind of a little bit sideways as far as how we're really trending. And I think with two of you just have to be careful with that. We'll see, though. We'll see. Finally, you've had opportunities to go to the front office. Years ago, I had this

discussion with Trent Dilford. And he said, coaching's a miserable life minute. He goes, I'd rather broadcast. And then he decided he wanted to go into coaching and changed lives. And he went to Nashville and he's in the state championship. And you've made a lot of money. You're making a lot of money. And you're experiencing broadcasting. But, man, I've been in a war room before. It's freaking cool.

It's really cool, Lewis. And you could potentially run one. Is that itch? I mean, how do you not think of that? Oh, I do. I mean, I'd be lying if I told you I didn't. And ESPN knows that. I mean, they know it, and I've talked to them about it, and that's why, you know, those avenues have been explored like they were last year, and then we'll see what happens here in the next month or two this year.

But it's not, I will say this, it's not the same, it doesn't rip me apart the same as it did when I was in it because of how fortunate I feel with the opportunities that I've been lucky enough to have here at ESPN. end, Colin, quite honestly. Broadcasting at the highest level doing money like football is different. I mean, that's not just broadcasting. That's different. I mean, doing things that, you know, some of the greats of all time have ever done. So it's, and what it's done for my family and all, I mean, it's, I'm so fortunate. I can't, I can't begin to tell you. But I'll tell you this, the being measured by wins and losses, the competing head to head with other front office executives and other teams, being around the players, being involved in the strategizing, in the developing, and living and dying with the players and the coaches and the support staff, that's something

that never leaves you. That's something you can't replace. I don't care what you do. That's why, quite honestly, the NFL football is it'll always win, man. No matter how much people complain about this and that about the NFL, it'll always win. I know. It'll always win. And for me, it'll always win.

So yeah, right opportunity, right place. And it just matches up. Of course, it's going to be one of those situations where you go. You know, you have to sit down and you have to talk it over with your, you know, with your decision-making circle, talk it over with ESPN, and you go from there. But I will say that my mindset has changed about it since I have left front office work. But the fire still burns that. You know what?

look, I know for a fact I could do it. I know for a fact. I mean, I did it for 12 years. I know what it takes. I've learned so much more being on the outside now, being able to talk to all the different coaches in a different way where I'm really able to pick their brains and talk about team building, staff building, culture building,

diving deep into the exes and O's and comparing what teams do to one another, what teams are doing themselves, how they're taking the game forward and, you know, advancing it. I am 10 times more smart about the game of football and where it's headed now than I was in 2012 when I last was in the front office, 10 times more. And I was taught by the very best. Look, I played for the very best at the same time in Bill and Nick.

I was around Andy, the very best, around Joe Gibbs, the very best. But I'm infinitely more prepared now that I would have been, had I gotten a GM job coming out of scouting in 2012. So we'll see what happens. but I'm good either way. All right, it's my buddy Mike Silver covering the NFL forever. Great sources, great mind. I love him.

So let's start with this. It is amazing to me as I sat there on Sunday and watched. You know, to be a great quarterback in this league is so rare. You're either too young or too limited and you watch the Aaron Rogers and you watch Brady. And you're like, it's so rare. It's even the great ones. Like Herbert's a huge young talent. He struggles.

He still gets lost. But you know what's remarkable in this? This is where Aaron Rogers is different. So I'll get to Rogers in a second because I think Green Bay is the best team in the league. But Brady with a healthy gronk, Mike, is so different. When you give him a decent running game and a healthy gronk, that is his life preserver. He is not the same quarterback, the goat without gronk. And I watched him and I thought,

Why is he fighting for Gronk? It doesn't matter about Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, A.B. Gronk's healthy? He's a completely different player. And, you know, Byron Lefwich is quietly doing some stuff over there that I don't know if the casual fan notices. And honestly, I don't know if NFL owners who have openings are going to notice. But, you know, we kind of underestimate Byron Lefwich collectively. We did it as a player.

He's got that horrible long release and he's kind of slow. And, you know, he just looked like a plotting guy. So he had his moments as a quarterback. But a lot of times people thought, you know, he's just, you know, he's not my kind of quarterback. And now as a coach, you know, Bruce Ariens is telling us. He's like, look, I'm not running the office. Byron Lefich is. I'm not even in the meetings.

He's doing all this. And obviously they have Tom Brady. And obviously they have all that talent you just referred to. And yes, Grunk makes a massive difference. But we've seen Tom Brady not look awesome during various times since he's been on Tampa. Byron Liffwich is doing a lot of this. And yeah, when you talk about Rogers, I mean, I'm watching that game Sunday. And I'm thinking, well, we're hearing suddenly about how hurt Matthew Stafford is.

And I'm not deny or I'm not trying to doubt that he is. but it's weird that after a by week, we're now hearing about all these ailments. And every time Stafford does something wrong, they're saying, well, he's clearly not right. Well, we know Aaron Rogers isn't right. He's coming off of COVID. He has a broken pinky toe,

and he's taken a shot for it that seems to wear off during games. And he looks amazing. So I'm not saying that every other injured quarterback should be able to do that, but you're right. It's supernatural sometimes. No, I mean, Aaron is, you know, he didn't practice and he comes out. And it's funny. I said this about Stafford. I said this about Stafford is Stafford goes to the Rams. He's a savior. Wentz goes to the Colts. It's a dubious contract. Wence is bigger. Wence is stronger. Wentz is more athletic. And they both have a propensity to be reckless. But it doesn't stick to Stafford. It's,

sticks to wince. And I was watching Stafford. And I never forget this. He goes from Detroit to the Rams. The over-under goes up half a game. Vegas didn't buy into this Messiah. And I like Matt. I really do. And maybe he's hurt. But come on, give me a break. This whole league's hurt. I mean, Trent Dover used to tell me this years ago, he's like October 1st, everyone's hurt. Nobody's healthy. Especially him. Yeah. I watched the Niners kind of dismantle with some injuries of their own Minnesota. And it happens every year, Mike. A team pops like a week or two before Thanksgiving.

Yeah. They get a little healthier. And I watch the Sanford because I think Minnesota is really good. I think they're really good. And I watch the Niners. Backers. Yeah. Yeah. And I watch the Niners.

Are the Niners that team? Do you buy them next six weeks? I do. And listen, I basically kicked dirt on them three weeks ago because I went to watch that game against the Cardinals where Colt McCoy was, you know, doing Joe Montana things on that field. And I don't think I love Colt, but I don't think it was just because Colt suddenly became Joe Montana. They just, they didn't look like they had any juice. They looked, they had gotten some guys back. It just didn't look good.

And I thought, you know what? Everything I thought all offseason and all season is wrong. They're not good. I thought going into the season, they were the class of the NFC and clearly the class of that division. And obviously I was wrong about the Cardinals. So that's a separate topic.

But I just, I was sure. And then after that game, I was like, okay, got it wrong. Kind of like what you're saying about the bills right now and what could be happening. But like, I got that one wrong. And then as soon as that happened, they played the Rams and looked different.

And it continues to look different. So yeah, I think they're the best. football team in California as we speak, which is weird because the Chargers were coming up a big win and the Rams had a good start. But I think they could be that team. And when you go back to Tray Lance, like, let me take you on the whole roller coaster. So they make that trade, which is a dramatic thing to do. They gave up so much. And I know I talked to Kyle and he was influenced by Stafford and not getting Stafford and what the Rams keep doing. and he's like, we got to do something big.

The Siogs do it. We got to do it. But then I believe he talked himself out of Mac Jones. I stand by that reporting, even though the outcome didn't, you know, end up being that way. And there are good reasons to talk yourself into Trey Lance, very, very good reasons. And then what happened in training camp was the first week, they freaked. They were like, well, Jimmy's having his best camp, but like, Trey Lant. in an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged.

It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions,

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

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

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app. Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Keer Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests.

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as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast. Learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the hard way and listen now. This is getting it so fast. He's so smart.

They knew he was smart. They just were like, he's crazy smart. Like, we've never seen this. And so about a week in the camp, they were like, the plan is Jimmy, but maybe we just have to play him now. And then what happened to Trey Lance after that was what happens to many, many, many young players, which is not some dramatic, like, just like, okay, well, look, it's hard.

Kyle's offense is hard. The NFL's hard. He's leveling off a little bit. And when he started to level off, he got in his head a little bit. He wasn't as loose. He wasn't as confident. Meanwhile, Jimmy, to his credit, ascended and was given them the best they'd seen of him. And so instead of we got to play Tray Lance now, it was the original plan, which is play Jimmy, try to do the Bahams thing.

And so, yes, the answer is, I think they're good. I do think he's in a great situation, Trey Lance, and I do think it could end up being really, really special. Yeah, and I don't see a need or a priority. It's almost like when Andrew Wiggins went to the Warriors, he was seen as a trade piece. And then all of a sudden, you're like, you know, he gives us 24 points about every third game.

I just keep him. I think with Garoppolo, you look at it and you're like, you know, there's some limitations. But when the running game's jelling, Mike Garoppolo lead you down the field. He does. Well, I mean, he is, he is very, very loved in that locker room as a player and as a guy. And he is obviously tough, though he's unfortunately for him been injured a lot. I know in some ways he's not the perfect quarterback for Kyle at all.

I could do a whole segment on that. But in one way, he is the absolute perfect quarterback for Kyle. for Kyle, and I've talked to a lot of players about this there and coaches. He can handle the venting, the tantrums, the negativity. Kyle's a perfectionist. Kyle gets angry during games. Kyle gets angry during practice. He can get after you, and some people don't handle that well. Jimmy, because of how he's made up, he's fine.

It bounces right off him. And, you know, that there's something to be said for that. And listen, he does. throw one of the most beautiful balls with the best releases in this sport. It's not, you know, there's no debate about the physical talent. It's, I know people go, well, is he, like, no, he really throws one of the elite balls. Okay. So we have the car payment, the rent, utilities, and the repair bill. Oh, what should we do? I know, I'm going to cashnetusa.com. I can apply a minutes, get an instant,

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Find a forest near you and start exploring at Discovertheforest.org. Brought to you by the United States Forest Service and the Ad Council. All right. Let's bring in Chad Milman. Time for Sharper Square. Chief Content Officer Action Network. I thought I was on the right side most of last week, especially on the Denver game was my favorite batting at one.

But I had a bad record. I'm okay with it. I had a great college football season. That made me happy. So let's start with this. I'm going to go backwards. I'm going to start. Hold on.

Hold on. Hold on. Hold on. You had a bad record, but we went over the games last week. And for the third week in a row, I had a really good record. So what's not translating? And we both, and we talked about the Bronx. No, I won that game.

But I also took the Colts. I took a lot of dogs. I took the Colts. So I just took the wrong games. But I took a bunch of, and I took the favorite, my favorite was the Cowboys. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm going to go backwards.

I want to start with my, a strong play. I'm going to take Patriots plus the points at Buffalo. 80 to 90% chance of snow. Who does that hurt? Buffalo. Windy, snowy, Stefan Diggs, not a factor. Also, the bills don't run the football effectively. Who does?

New England. And during the six game winning streak, I know everybody wants to say it's about defense. They're averaging 35 points. Right now, New England's the better team because they have an identity and an identity that plays really well in windy cold weather. I love New England in this spot, Sharper Square. Totally sharp. The wise guys have been playing the Patriots. It's been really interesting when the wise guys will play the Patriots. If the number moves down a little bit to two and a half, they immediately buy back on the bills. So the bookmakers know that three is sort of the number where they're finding the most balance. Everything you're saying is right.

I'm going to go opposite. I love the bills in the spot. Like strong feelings about the bills. My favorites co-host Simon Hunter, professional better Simon Hunter, is going against everybody he talks doing the industry. He loves the bills. Listen, I have lost many times this year, fading Mac Jones, peak Mac Jones. I just think that this is a time where it's going to be a real challenge and you're getting the bills in a primetime game and the line is probably a little bit closer than what it should be power rated at because of all the Mac Jones hype, I think there's an over adjustment that's been had. So give me the bills. All right. So I'm going to take another dog,

Chargers plus three and a half at the Bengals. So the Bengals have maybe their biggest in division win in a decade. They destroy and humiliate the Steelers. Pittsburgh's a bad team right now. And the Bengals are a good team, but there's still a little bit of this roster is still in the rebuilding mode. And I think now we're going a little high in them. I've made more money on on the chargers than any team in the league this year, betting against them. But I'm going to take the three and a half. I think it's a shootout. I think you have a very desperate charger team on the brink of being knocked out of the top seven in the AFC. I do worry that Joe Mixon, and I think the chargers know this. They can control the clock. But I feel like sometimes there's the regression

to the mean. Cincinnati's not nearly as good as they looked last week. Now people will come pouring in. I'll take the chargers and the points, sharper square. Totally sharp. So sharp. This line has moved from three and a half down to three.

And it's everything you said. You hit all the buzzwords, right? There's a bounce back scenario for the chargers. There's a desperation scenario for the chargers. There's a regression to the mean on both sides. for the Chargers and the Bengals. And we talked about the Broncos, right? Last week, we loved the Broncos.

And we have both been fading the Chargers for weeks because we faded them against the Steelers the week before when they were six-point favorites. Like the Chargers early in the year were winning and were everyone's darling because they were converting so well on third and fourth downs. They've stopped doing that. Their defense has been exposed.

Justin Herbert's accuracy problems have been exposed. and teams are learning how to play them defensively a little bit better. But now the pendulum has swung. It's a little bit what I talked about with the Patriots. The pendulum has won so much against the chargers. And you're always going to find value on a team that has an ugly loss against a team everyone thought was not as good against a team in the Bengals that just come off a massive win against the Steelers. So 100% you're buying the right side here. having an identity is really important.

I feel the Niners have found their identity once Elijah Mitchell got healthy. Now, they lacked Debo Samuel. So what concerns me about San Francisco is this is a low scoring game. They win one way, and that's run the football. They're minus three at Seattle that has no identity. My gut would say take San Francisco, sharp or square. square. It's the, the, this is dictated by the number, right?

So, uh, the number had been at, uh, three and a half. If you can still get it at three and a half, you take the Seahawks. If it's at three, it's generally a pass because what you're getting here is, as you said, there's no debo. Also, Fred Warner's out. Greenlaw is out. The Niners finally started getting healthy and then they have another cluster of, cluster of injuries, you're just getting a massive by-low spot on the Seahawks because of how bad

they've looked. Russell Wilson, something is off, right? Either he rushed back. There's a lack of comfort with the offense, new offensive coordinator, whatever it is. But this is a market play. It's not a team play. It's you bet this with the three and a half because it's the hook, because of the home team that is an underdog in that spot. And over the long term, which is what you want to be is better. You don't want to play it game to game. You buy the hook in that spot. At the Volume Sports YouTube channel, Twitter, Instagram, rate review, subscribe. We'll talk soon. The Volume. Get right to the romance and find the way to wow this Valentine's with 1-800flowers.com. From classic roses and bouquets to decadent chocolate-covered berries, gourmet treats,

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We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a, full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds, I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host, Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional

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