The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Cowboys' throwback formula for success; Trubisky injury cloud over Chicago; Bama could be the G.O.A.T. college team; Kingsbury will be USC's next HC

Episode Date: November 30, 2018

Subscribe here to the 3 and Out with John Middlekauff Podcast https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/3-and-out-with-john-middlekauff/id1352730623?mt=2. 3 and Out with John Middlekauff is part of the Colin Cowherd Podcast Network. 3 and Out is an unfiltered podcast covering the biggest stories in the NFL and college football. John brings his unique perspective as a former NFL scout, NFL analyst and radio host. In this episode, John discusses the Cowboys huge Thursday Night Football win over the Saints, their throwback formula for success, and why Mitchell Trubisky's injury could be a bigger problem for the Bears than anyone thinks. He also explains why Bama has a chance to be the best college team ever; and why there's a good chance Kliff Kingsbury could be USC's next head coach and answers listener questions from the Middlekauff Mailbag. Follow John on twitter @JohnMiddlekauff and go to theherdnow.com to find the latest content. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Three-out podcast with me, John Middilkoff, back at it again. Just finished watching Thursday night football. And, you know, really, I only have one thing to say. How about them Cowboys? What a freaking win by the Dallas Cowboys. We'll dive into that here in a second. Just what a cool Thursday night game. I mean, you talk about the Monday night game.

I guess one was it? Last week, last Monday. So not this Monday. We're talking 10 days ago. Game of the year. I still like a good 13 to 10 game. I mean, it puts me back to my roots. We'll dive into a bunch of different things.

I mean, the Bears are sneaky alive for a home. home field by after this lost by the Saints. They still play the Panthers twice coming down the home stretch. Clearly the Saints are really good. But the Bears have a problem on their hands. We'll dive into that. Cliff Kingsbury, USC Trojans, offensive coordinator. Have some thoughts on that.

Do some Middilcoff mailbag. Maybe dive in to a couple other games, as we do usually go around the weekend, just getting ready. But, you know, again, and Middlecoff mailbag, you can slide up into my DMs. at John Middlethoff. What a game. What, I mean, just glued to my television. Luckily, I got two TV, so I had the Warriors game on, no sound, and I had that bad boy on.

What, I mean, Fox, the Fox broadcast is so good. You can say what you want. I'm a Joe Buck guy. Troy Aikman's so good. That, the feel when you're at Jerry's Palace, there's nothing like it. I mean, that's Yankee Stadium, you know, the Red Sox, the big, Laker game there's nothing really an equivalent in the NBA maybe like Duke basketball at Camman Indoor Stadium that place was rocking I saw someone tweet

out there were 93 that plus thousand Jerry going nuts that was just awesome I hated on the Cowboys earlier in the season I've since taken that back over the last month especially since they got of a Mari Cooper who that's looking like a pretty smart trade now that the Cowboys are seven and five what's that four straight wins they have not lost since Amari showed up to town. Or I guess they did lose his first game because they played the Tennessee Titans. But he's changed the dynamics of their offense.

But that's not the reason they turn this thing around. Their defense in an offensive league. And trust me, I'm the one banging the drum as much as anyone. Adapt or die, you've got to hire an offensive coach. Draft offense, sign offense. Don't get me wrong. I'm not backing off that. But the key to me to even have a chance,

it's not the old school, just out tough you, play good run defense. You got to do one thing really well. Because the one area on the field, that even though the rules have changed, that you can still be physical and you can still dominate. And I'm going to go football guy comment here is at the point of attack, at the line of scrimmage, your defensive linemen. and their defensive pass rush is elite. The other thing you need to be able to do in 2018

is have speed at linebacker. Back in the day, I could just have a stiff in the middle. And again, this guy's not a stiff. I'm a big Bill Romanowski guy, but that type player, just the run-stuffing middle linebacker. When I first got to the NFL in 2010, there was a big difference of you have a two-time, down Mike linebacker and then you would have a third down quote unquote nickel linebacker.

What does that even mean anymore? You would have that third down nickel linebacker, the guy that can cover sideline to sideline, cover running backs, run on the field every single snap. That two down middle linebacker, that human is dead. You know what 2000, and that's why when the 49ers took off with Jim Harbaugh, Willis and Bowman, it was the time when the game was somewhat transitioning, but still kind of caught up in the middle, and those two guys were just the ultimate players. Now, that's the high end, and these guys aren't that yet, but again, they're not Bill Willis and Bowman.

I'm not saying that. But Layton Van derresh, LVE, and Jalen Smith are absolute ass kickers. And I tweeted this because someone's like, man, 55's a stud. And my comment was like 54 is cracking skulls too. And then I thought, is that even politically correct? to say anymore in football. And then I thought to myself, you know what?

I still love violence in football. I thoroughly enjoyed that night, that game today, tonight, of just people getting blasted. And I'll get the Saints credit. They were flying around and hit people in the mouth too. I still like a good old school brawl where two teams are just hitting each other in the teeth.

And Layton Van der Wendhresh and Jalen Smith were crushing people tonight. They were fantastic. One narrative, I'm going to kill right now. I mean, it's over. And I'm not trying to overreact or hyperbole, but it was so stupid. And I get it. Troy, not that he has to tread lightly, but he's tight with the cowboys. He's probably good friends with Sean Lee.

Like Sean Lee, and they kept talking about this on the broadcast. What are they going to do with Sean Lee? I wanted to jump through the television screen. Guys, I'll tell you exactly what they're going to do. He's going to sit on the sideline, and he's going to help coach, with Jason Garrett, Mirinelli, and, you know, pump up the crowd. And if they need them, special teams, anything, then he'll do that. But 55 and 54 are not coming off the field, as in for a snap, as in ever, unless they have to because they're injured.

You are riding and dying with 55 and 54. Now, listen, I think Sean Lee, in his prime, was a stud. Part of the region Van derethe is on the Cowboys is because they could. not depend on Sean Lee. He was never around. Why he's always hurt. Where would they have been this year if they just would have drafted some other position? They would have had no linebacker. I mean, Van deresh has changed their whole team because Jalen Smith clearly was ready to take a step this year. His Achilles or whatever, the knee injury had healed and he was, I don't know if he's back to peak form, but shit, I mean, he's not far away. He looks fantastic. And Van derrash is

just flying around, just cracking people in the mouth. And I thought Aikman hit it on the head tonight. He does not miss tackles. And in a league where, you know, it's hard to find linebackers that can run, that can play sideline to sideline now, and that are just good open field tacklers. That's often what we hear about because the one of the downsides, and really it's so stupid, the players, you know,

when they got in the last collective bargaining agreement, they bitched and moaned, and they fought for like, we need more meals. We need more days off. No more padded practices. And the owners are like, yeah, we need more money. They're like, okay, just no more practices.

That last lack of practice time has led to poor tackling. But Vanderesh, clearly, whether it's the three-man football, we've heard the story a million times, I think it's eight-man football, that he played when he was in high school. I don't know where he learned the fundamentals. Boise State, who knows. but he is a tackling machine. And DeMarcus Lawrence, and I had someone actually asked me this morning at the gym.

A 49er fan came up to me. He's like, do you think we can get DeMarcus Lawrence in free agency? He's going to be a free agent. No. You know, he's going nowhere. No one lets pass rushers like that leave. I mean, that guy is just a freak show. And I know this guy had two bad penalties in Randy Gregory,

but did you see the pass rush speed that those two guys bring? to the table. And again, Randy Gregory was getting destroyed on social media, even though the neutral zone infraction was pretty BS. Like, it's sure as hell. Here's one other thing I'm tired of, Walt Coleman and that crew, and they said it like, they have more experience than any other crew in NFL history. I don't care. They're god awful, you know? I'm not anti-older people, but it's hard for certain older people to do certain jobs. And it's hard once you get in your mid to late 60s to do this job. Like to me, there should be a, you know, player in the NFL, unless you play quarterback or kicker. You're out of the league by like 35. You should not

be able to be a referee in the NFL like after age 65. Like it should be mandatory retirement. Like that, hell, maybe even 60. Like that was a joke tonight. That was an embarrassment on both sides. You know, on both sides. Now, they did get the final call, the pass interference on Amari. Like, he grabbed his arm. Like, you have to call that. But some of the other calls, they were terrible. It was atrocious.

And it's sad because both teams, like, you know, I mean, it was just a high level intense game. You have to have better refereeing. But, man, that defensive line, that front seven, like, that one in the game. And Zeke is, I don't even have a, I don't even have the box score up. I don't care. That guy's a stud. You remember that argument we used to have like, oh, the Cowboys should have taken Jalen Ramsey? Oh, you mean that guy that never shuts up?

And he's a good corner. Don't get me wrong. I mean, he might be the best corner in the league. But the Cowboys have corners. Like, their defensive backs are good. Their entire defense is so fast. Like, you could take a random novice that doesn't know anything about football and just sat them down and watch a Cowboys game.

And they would come away with like, Jesus, that defense just hauls ass. they are constantly redlining. That was as impressive of a defensive performance, given the opponent, given what was on the line we've seen in a while. I like Dallas. I put a little cash on Dallas on the game, just simply because,

and I didn't have a great explanation. I mean, it's one of the great offenses we've ever seen with Drew Brees, with Sean Peyton. You know, my argument was simple. Listen, I'm not, I don't have the analytics in front of me, on this one, but in the last 20 years, how many NFL teams have won 11 games in a row? Like how impossible that is. Like if you go 13 and 3, which is an incredible record, and I would say 99% of seasons get you a 1 or 2 seat going 13 and 3, you might at most have like a 6 game

winning streak. Like the chances today of them winning 11 games in a row, just in general, like how difficult that is. Think how impressive it is. Like the Texas is, right now are on an eight-game winning streak. I would just keep betting against them just because the odds are against them going on a 10-game winning streak. And that sounds simplistic, but it is so hard to win in the NFL. I mean, that game, first off, this wasn't a normal Thursday game because they had both played on Thanksgiving, so they had a normal amount of rest, which definitely benefited the Cowboys.

Like, do the Cowboys have that defensive performance just playing out of their ass if they were on a short week? no, I don't think so. So that really helped the Cowboys just having seven days. Like, I just don't think they beat them on a short week. But, man, you had to hat tip the defensive staff. And just the entire Cowboys. Like, they came out ready.

Everyone was just blowing Jason Garrett before the game as his Newt Rockney speech, you know, last night. But you know what? You got to give him credit because it worked. You know, whatever he said, the Cowboys team, like, they approached that. game the night like the Super Bowl and you could argue given what was on the line like they're in great shape now like they are beyond in the driver's seat to win the division they control their own destiny uh and they have one of the better wins of the season against the saints and on the flip side like i don't my views of the saints don't really change uh because they would never have to play

the dallas cowboys in Dallas like if they play in the playoffs that game's that game's in new orleans Like it's just that simple And that's a really big difference Because that place was rocking tonight The Saints are really good The Saints are They're not a lock First or second seed

Because the Bears who will get into next Actually might be in a little trouble As much as everyone hates on Mitch Trubisky They die to have him back And he's clearly going to miss two games in a row Especially like he's had time They haven't played since Thursday I mean he's basically getting two weeks off

That uh You know that it's not a lock but even if the Saints were the three-seed and not the two-seat, Dallas is going to be the fourth seat, like if they win the NFC East. Like if they're 10 and 6, they are the four-seat. So they would have to go on the road in New Orleans, they'd have to go on the road in Chicago,

and they'd have to go on the road to L.A. So for them to, you know, advance, they're going to have to go on the road. And it won't look like that besides the divisional round, the wildcard round. I guess the divisional round is the second round, but they would be on the road. So there's no home game for Jerry.

Now, maybe there would, would be a home game in the, you know, in the NFC championship, but that would mean the fifth or six seed, really it would be the sixth seed, because Dallas would play the fifth seed, so they would need the sixth seed to make a run. And last time that's happened when, is the Green Bay a couple years ago when they made a run, but they ended up running into Atlanta. Did they run into Atlanta? Maybe they were the fifth seed, but you get my drift. Like it's, you're not getting multiple home games in Dallas, you know, even if they were to make a run, which clearly they're capable of. You know, like that, that defense and that run game.

And again, Dak, I know they were crushing him for the fumbles, and the one fumble was terrible, but the second one that right before the Cowboys got the pick that basically sealed the game, I don't put that necessarily on Dak. Like his right tackle got smote. You know, I know Troy, and I get this, I do it too, like, you got to have a clock in your head. Well, that's true. But, I mean, if your tackle just gets smoked, like just gets destroyed, as he did by Cam Jordan on that play.

And was holding him, and he got strips sacked. So it didn't really matter. There's nothing a quarterback can do. Like Peyton Manning or Tom Brady is getting destroyed. Remember, a couple years ago in the AFC championship, the year the Broncos beat the Patriots, the Patriots offensive line was just getting steamrolled. And, I mean, Tom Brady, the greatest quarterback of all. time had no chance. You know, Jesus would have struggled with that offensive line. Like if you're

right tackle, get smoked, even though it's not your blind side, there's nothing you can do. And Drew Breeze, again, I just think it was as simple as they were bound to lose a game. They'll probably end up 13 and 3 and still more than likely the two seed. My opinion doesn't change on them at all. My opinion does change on Dallas a little bit. Amari's changed their offense. Just made them a little more, a little less one-dimensional and their defense in 2018. Like, I don't know how great their run defense is if they were playing like the 95 Cowboys or, you know, just like some of those teams 20, 30 years ago, they would just run it down your throat.

I don't know if they're truly built to do that, but that's not the NFL anymore. Like, you're lining up against the Rams, you're lining up against the Saints. Even the Bears, like the Bears spread it out. You're playing spread offenses and they have a spread defense. So as Jimmy Johnson said, baby, how about them cowboys? One thing that's a little bit of a red flag, and they've had, I wouldn't say a fairy tale season, because they were really talented, they traded for Khalil Mack, they got a new young coach, my buddy, bald brother, Matt Nagy, and, you know, they drafted a ton of good players,

Roquan Smith. I think most people in the NFL thought they could be pretty competitive, you know, eight, nine wins. I thought they'd easily been the best bad team in the NFL the last several years. John Fox, an all-time mail-it-in job last year. I mean, complete joke. So I thought they would compete for a wildcard spot. Now, they're a lock wildcard spot. So I guess somewhat surprising.

But they, besides the Aaron Rogers come back on one leg and Brock Osweiler beating them, I guess, what was that, three or four weeks ago? Feels like a lifetime ago. The Bears, you know, I've been gone pretty good. You're 8 and 3. Well, they got a problem on their hands now. I saw Mike Garofolo tweeted it out. And I think it's a pretty good idea.

People have been talking about it. That Mitch Trubisky's not going to play in this game. And they're playing the New York Giants who have actually been playing better football the last three or four weeks and do have Sequin Barclay, which it's going to be hard for him to go off against the Bears defense. But Odell Beckham, it's not like I know Eddie Jackson is making a ton of plays, but they don't exactly have, you know, the Ronnie Lott and Dionne Sanders back there. So Odell could go off.

Not off, but he could have a good game. But I would imagine they're thinking we can beat the Giants without Mitch Trubisky. Well, here's a problem. Listen, in the NFL, and I say this all the time when defending the Niners, who are on their third string quarterback, the guy's an undrafted free agent, when your starting quarterback is out, maybe if your team's good, you can win a game or two with your backup. But more than likely, if you roll out your backup in an NFL game, you are going to lose consistently.

Like, it can happen to one game, and it just did. They won a game with Chase Daniels last week. But they're playing the New York Giants this week, and you would just say, if Mitch was healthy, you'd be like, oh, the Bears are going to kill them. And I would agree. I would say they should win this game. But when Chase Daniels come in, that changes it for me.

And I know he actually played pretty well on Thursday, given that the way it happened. I mean, it happened quick. It was a short week. I can't expect you. I don't care how good your quarterback is to win multiple games with your backup quarterback. And luckily for the Bears, Packers are out of it. Vikings are somewhat alive, but that tide kind of changes the game a little bit.

They have to get Mr. Busky back. Like, if his injury is serious, and I haven't talked to Nagy or anyone there about one way or the other, clearly the way it's being reported, it doesn't feel that serious. But I do think Bears fans, and just people in the NFL in general, that talk about the sport, you know, us fans that we love watching the sport,

you know, I've crushed Mitch at times, and he's had some bad moments. I mean, he missed throughout their run, even when they were winning games, he was missing a lot of layup throws. But I think you're really going to see, like he did bring an element to the table of, he's an elite athlete,

might be strong. I would say like Lamar Jackson's elite athlete, but he's a damn good athlete. And he has really helped them out multiple times with his legs. Chase ain't doing that. So if you get into a situation where you're in a tight game, like that's been a curveball for them. Now, they have a huge game. Let's just say they can get by the Giants. Like, is Mitch going to be back next week? Like they got Sunday night football in Chicago. The L.A. Rams rolling in town. The game got flexed. And it got flexed for a reason. You know, I mean, the Bears and the Rams. I got news for you.

The L.A. is the second biggest media market. The third biggest media market is Shytown. Chicago. Like, they need Ms. Trubisky back for that game. As football fans, I hope he is back. As fans of just, I want to see the NFC as competitive as possible, and I think with a healthy Ms. Trubisky, they are a legit threat to win a couple games in the playoffs,

just because they have an elite defense. they have an innovative young coach. They just have a lot of good players. But one of their curve balls is Mitch playing well. Like his ceiling, if he's on, he could in the second round, I don't know if they'd go to New Orleans and win. I do think they'd go to L.A. and win. Like, I think they could give the Rams trouble,

just because the weather would not be a factor. Their defense is elite. Who are the Rams, just to say, would be a lock win in the playoffs. But they could, under no circumstances, go on the. the road and win a road playoff game without Mitch Trubisky. And that's crazy to say. It just shows you, though, like mainly because the difference, and again,

they may, they may lose in round one with Mitch, but at least his ceiling, his athleticism, and just playmaking ability if he's on, gives them a fighting chance against some of, against these two, even the Cowboys. I mean, there are three really good teams in the

NFC and Seattle. I mean, the NFC is good, but they need to have them. And if they don't have them, it's major problem. And I, listen, you miss two games in the NFL at quarterback. Like, it was clear earlier in the season. Khalil rolled his ankle and they gave him a game off. And then their second game was against the bills.

And they were like, oh, screw it. We'll just give him two weeks off. And they were able to kind of roll over and get two weeks and get Khalil 100% healthy. And it turned out not to be a big deal. It was also early in the season. Their defense was really humming. Like, your quarterback's a little bit different. Like, if he's missing games, it's serious.

There's just, there's just no. way around it. Now, you could counter and say, well, like with Khalil, they've proven that like this season is not the end-all, be-all and they're being cautious with Mitch. I get it, but I don't know if you can really treat the NFL like that. Things change from

season to season, from year to year. You know, players get hurt. There's somewhat of a randomness. You know, next year, there's no guarantee that they'll be competing to make the playoffs. And their roster would still look good. But you'd have to think Green Bay was bounced back. Minnesota's roster is still loaded. The NFC is just good.

It's just hard to make the playoffs in the NFC. So I do think that unlike Khalil, if Mitch was able to play, they'd play them. So to me, it's a pretty big concern that he's nowhere to be found. And they got a lot to lose. I mean, this is a team that's arrows pointing sky high. Like, they're ascending this year.

They could make serious noise, but they cannot do it with Chase Daniels. For those of you that don't follow me on Twitter at John Middokoff, same as my Instagram, fall away. But I've taken some crap. And I said it, actually was, I believed it when I said it, but listen, I get the counter argument,

that Alabama would beat the Raiders. And then somehow the following week, the conversation morphed with Alabama beat the Buffalo Bills. And I kept thinking like, no, I said the Raiders, and Sports Center ran with it, and all these internet companies ran with it. I just kept thinking, and there were 28. Someone said that one of the Vegas bookmakers made,

the Alabama Crimson Tide a 28-point underdog to the bills, and I was like, well, the bills are dramatically better than the Raiders. I would take, if you gave the Alabama Crimson Tide 28 points against this Raiders team, like the one, it was a couple weeks ago, not the one that started the season with Marshawn, Lynch, Donald, Pan, Amari Cooper, like the team they were rolling out the last couple weeks. I would take the 28 points. And I've tried to put in perspective this Alabama team for people, and especially people on the West Coast.

I don't think they're quite as locked into how good this Alabama team is. And they don't quite understand recruiting and just how many true pros they have. And at Texan buddies that cover the SEC for different NFL teams, they will tell you when you ask how many NFL players they have, as a good buddy of mine responded, every player that's on scholarship. I mean, again, kind of tongue in cheek, but not really. And then asking about who's the best players in this SEC chance, championship game, which I'm super excited for.

Because I actually think Georgia, there's a chance that they are just better than Oklahoma in Ohio State. And if you listen to the podcast on Monday, you know that I think that the college football playoffs that they both win just end up going with Oklahoma on the simple fact to just avoid the urban and I forget the coach's name that he fired, but the domestic violence and him tweeting at Tom Herman about the massage parlors, just avoid that whole mess. but right now the line 13 and a half I think there's a chance that Georgia actually plays them pretty tight

even if they lose by 20 they might be the fourth best team it may be they actually might be better than Notre Dame it might just go bam a Clemson Georgia might be the third best team we'll never find out Georgia probably get knocked out of the mix but ultimately my point is to put this team in perspective this Alabama team has a chance if they win three more games against Georgia and then against Oklahoma and then let's say against Clemson who has three defensive defensive.

sublime in there going to go in the top 20. Like the B Go Down is one of the great all-time teams in college football history. And I asked my buddy, like, who are the best prospects? I was writing this article for The Athletic of just some prospects that Niner and Raider fan should be looking at when they watch all the games this weekend. Just ACC, you know, all the different conferences. But I asked about the SEC championship. So who are the best players on Alabama?

Obviously number 92 Quinn and Williams, who's going to go in the top three or four picks. He's like Aaron Donald meets Nadal. I mean, he's just, he's just, it's not even a fair, it's a cheat code what he is. Hell, he might go number one overall. Like, he's that good. But my buddy responded, well, actually, like, their next four best players are all sophomores. And he's like, obviously one is the quarterback. So you start thinking, this Alabama team, that's the star wide receiver, the star quarterback,

a couple star offensive lineman, and they just produce offensive linemen easily anyway. Star middle linebacker. Like, I hope people realize that this team at Alabama, again, everyone I talk to and anyone, you listening that have watched them play, they are an absolute machine. Like, I think Clemson is the clear second best team, and they are on a completely different level. But the craziest thing is, they got everyone coming back, or I mean, a large majority of guys coming back next year. And the main guy, the quarterback is coming back. the wide receiver coming back.

The star in the inside linebacker coming back. So if Sabin was ever going to retire, it wouldn't be after this year, after he wins another Natty. It'd be after next year when he's got this whole squad returning. It'd be the equivalent. If you've watched Duke basketball this year, Zion Williams, Cam Reddish, and R.J. Barrett,

I mean, they, and the Tyos Jones's brother, they look like an NBA team. I mean, they're so talented. Just imagine if I told you, actually they all, they're all going to return. You'd be like, what? Huh? That's exactly what Alabama is.

They're all going to return. Say that out loud. When you watch them Saturday night, because listen, the SEC championship is by far. I'm a little biased, Fresno State, Boise State, the best game of that Saturday. Actually, Oklahoma, Texas is pretty good too. But the college football weekend is pretty solid.

But I would say that Georgia, like if Texas were, to beat Oklahoma, that'd be a big deal because Oklahoma would be getting bounced out. But at the end of the day, it was Oklahoma going to beat Alabama. Like if Georgia were to upset Alabama, it would be one of the bigger upsets in recent memory, just given how good Alabama's been. But the crazy thing is, like, even if Bama doesn't win this national championship, they are going to be the heavy, heavy favorites to be the national champion again next year.

So when people ask, like, oh, middle cough, they could never hang with the NFL team. an NFL team has 22 pros. And yeah, the bills do. Actually, I mean, they may have some starters on offense that are not NFL players. Well, I'll promise you one thing. The Raiders do not have 22 pros. They have several players that would not start at Alabama. That's not hyperbole.

That's not a hot take. That's reality. And that can only be said because they have one of the greatest college football teams of all time up to this point. Like, that's just a fact. Just like there would be NBA players. that are in the NBA that would not start over Zion Williams. That's just a fact.

I mean, that's just, that's not hyperbole. That's not, you know, just trying to like get a reaction. That's just react. That's just the truth. That's not an opinion. So when you look at Tua

and you look at these guys, just know this. This is Nick Sabin's most explosive team ever. And a lot of these dudes, in 2019, when you, you know, hit the couch in early September, I guess the,

college football season usually starts late August, and Alabama's playing whoever on that neutral site, college football opener, you're going to remember a lot of these guys from this team. They were all starting. They were all playing. Patrick Sertain, the starting, the corner who starts on this team is a true freshman. His father played in the NFL. That's where you hear the name. Patrick Sertane.

Yeah, that's his kid. So this team is just stupid. And I can't wait to watch it. Well, I'd say the biggest college football story of this week, non on the field, non one of these games that are about to take place this weekend, has been USC. I got to start with one thing. This kind of bothers me. I'm what you call.

I wouldn't say a Pac-12 Homer because I'm a realist, but I'm a huge Pac-12 fan. It's my favorite conference because it's where I grew up. I grew up watching all these teams. I grew up on the West Coast. I grew up going to Cal Football Games. the programs mean something to me and as someone that did not go to a big school I went to Cal Poly

Division 1 AA we produced a couple guys over the years Chris Go Kong Ramsey's Barton we have our fair share of NFL guys but by no means it wasn't a it wasn't a Pac-12 a Pac-10 school you know

it means just a different level so I live vicariously through them and I always kind of stuck up for Pete Carroll and those teams not that they needed it, but I'm just saying, like, how dominant they were and Tedford's teams and just the Oregon teams. Like, I took pride on our good West Coast teams. Well, I know this year certain people in the media, you know, always say the SEC gets the benefit of the doubt. And listen, having worked in the NFL, they get the benefit of the doubt for

the reason. They have the most talent. It ain't even close. Well, you can complain and bitch and moan all you want about the amount of teams in the, you know, top 25. I think the SEC has eight. And obviously they have, you know, LSU is a three-lost team in the top 10. That doesn't bother me. Like LSU on a neutral field would throttle. Like to me, it would throttle Michigan. Would throttle Washington. Would throttle Texas.

It'd kill them. So it doesn't bother me. Now, I don't even think the PACT 12 is, like this year, I got news for everyone. The Pact 12 is closer to the Mountain West than it is like the big, 12 or the Big 10. So when you hear all the Big 10 and the Big 12 and the Pact 12 are getting the same respect as the SEC, well, this year, that conversation cannot be had, including the PAC 12. They do not deserve it.

Like, they are not in that category. And that pains me to say, I love the West Coast. It's where I was born, it's where I've lived the majority of my life, and it's where I'll be buried. And more than likely, where I'm going to raise my children. You can never say never, because, you know, life changes, the world's flat. you know, who knows, I might be living in, like, China in 10 years. But the point is, like, I'd be the first guy if a team is deserving to stand up for him.

And they're not. Like, when I got to the NFL, everyone laughed like, oh, Boise State. What's up with this Boise State? Actually, you know the only guy that didn't? I remember one time dropping something off at his office, and he's like, Middilkoff. What's up with Boise State? Like, do they have something special in their water? And it was Sean McDermott.

And this was actually back in 2010. when Chris Peterson had a team with like 17 NFL guys. And I said that team could compete. You know, that team deserved to go to a BCS game. And that was the year that Kaepernick and they ended up missing a field goal. But that team was legit. I promise you. I worked in Fresno State for two years.

I had a front row seat watching that program when those guys were young. I missed them when they were juniors and seniors, the Kellyn Moore, Titus Young, Pettis. They had a ton of defensive guys. George Ioka. They were unreal. I mean, they were awesome. Now, are they like this Bama or LSU level? No.

But that team, that version of that team was really good. But my point is the PAC 12 does not deserve to be in the conversation. And one of the main issues is the PAC 12's main program, like the Big 12, they're good when Oklahoma's kicking ass. The Big 10 is good when Ohio State or Michigan's kicking ass. The SEC is good when like, obviously Alabama, LSU, or Florida's kicking ass. The PAC 12 is good when SC is kicking ass. And right now, they were a joke.

It's one thing to have a down year. Like to me, a down year at a school like SC, at a school like Bama, at a school like Ohio State, at a school like LSU, is 8 and 4. That's just an awful year. 8 and 4. Well, if you get sanctions or some crazy things happen, a coach leaves, I can give you, you know, it's hell, even 7 and 5.

But under no circumstances, I repeat, zero. Can a school like SC, Oklahoma, Alabama, LSU with no sanctions, like you have the full amount of scholarships, it'd be okay to go five and seven. For two reasons. One, you just have way too much talent on your roster to ever go five and seven. There is zero excuses for it. And two, because the other schools in your conference are depending on you to carry the flag. you make money for them. Do you know how much money the SEC has made

over Alabama's run? Do you know how much money the Big Ten is made with Ohio State kicking everyone's ass for the last 15 years? The TV contracts they've negotiated? I mean, there's a reason you see them on FS1 and Fox. Like, they're a big brand. Like, Michigan, Harbaugh, Michigan having Harbaugh and then being a 10 and 2 team.

Like, it was devastating them losing Ohio State. They're 10 and 2. You know? I mean, SC fans would die to be 10. They went 5 and 7. Well, Clay Hilton, and I don't necessarily think it was his choice, I think it was kind of mandated. They just hired Cliff Kingsbury. I got news for you. Like, if there is, if USC's offense is good next year and J.T. Daniels excels or whoever the quarterback is, has a lot of success. Cliff Kingsbury will be the next head coach at USC.

One thing, just look at him. I mean, he's just, listen, I can call a spade of spade. He's a really good-looking dude. You know, there is no disputing that. He looks the part. Two, he's an elite offensive coach. Look at all the quarterbacks he's recruited. Look at the offensive numbers the Texas Tech had put up. Here's the other thing. At a school like USC, I got friends in college football at big school, small schools.

The difference of the polo shirt you have on, I always hear this. Like, the dude's a really good recruiter. Like, yeah, if you're landing dudes, if you're at Oregon State or Iowa State, you know, or just random schools, like, yeah. Kentucky. Like, okay, you're a good recruiter. Like, if you land NFL guys at USC, you're not a good recruiter. You're just a coach at USC. You just throw on the polo, you walk into the high school, and you have the USC polo on. You have the Alabama polo on. You know, you have, like, you work for Coach K, you roll in with the Duke polo on, you're getting a meeting with the best basketball player.

You know, you walk into the best high school and you have Oklahoma on your polo. You got a chance to land the number one recruit at that high school. That's the way the world works. You know? So I think that Cliff Kingsbury, if the offense is good, is going to be the next head coach. Like, I think it's, the writing's already on the wall. Clay Hilton will be out next year,

and Cliff Kingsbury will be the next head coach at USC. And I know this. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing, but for the Pac-12, they need USC desperately to be good. Because right now, them not being good, hurts the relevancy of the conference, and also really, really hurts their pocketbooks.

Okay, let's get to the Middilcoff mailbag. Got a lot of questions, so let's just start banging them out. Hey man, love the podcast. Why does no one ever give Mike Tomlin as due as a top head coach in the league? Every time the Steelers lose, it's always on Tomlin, but whenever they win, he doesn't get any credit. He might not be the sexiest exes-nose guy,

but there is something to be said on how he manages all the personalities in the locker room and kept together a levy on belt. Good point. I think it's simple. Whenever you're a coach who doesn't call either side of the ball, and most defensive coaches have a defensive coordinator, and then like Tomlin, they don't call the offense,

and I got news for it. They don't know anything about the offense. It's hard to get credit. And I think Ben is such a big personality that he kind of steals some of it away from Tomlin. But I'm with you. I mean, I think he's clearly a top five head coach in the league. His resume speaks for itself. His teams are always ready.

He has bad losses, but so does any team. I don't think Ben is the easiest, you know, quarterback to deal with on a daily slash weekly basis. And I think you bring up a great point in terms of Levion Bell. He kept the team together. Antonio's not the easiest guy to deal with. They got a lot of personalities on the team. Now, the thing that he doesn't ever have to deal with, with because of the consistency in the organization, just this stability at the top is there

aren't ever rumors. You know, there is no like, let's take a look at the hot seat. Like, there is no hot seat. They've had three coaches in like 875 years. I mean, seriously, I think they've had three coaches, you know, in the last, I don't know what the exact number is. It's got to be like right around 50. That's crazy.

The Browns have had three coaches in like, You know, they'll have three coaches by February. Hugh Jackson, Greg Williams, and then whoever they end up hiring. So it's just, it's just a completely different world he lives in from most. Jed York had a stretch where he went Jim Harbaugh, Jim Tom Sulla, Chip Kelly, Kyle Shanahan. I swear to God, it was like 40 months, you know, 40 months. I mean, Mike Tomlin doesn't even, can't even relate. to that. So a lot

just because when people know you're not going anywhere, the standard in that organization is playoff wins. It's not like winning the division. It's not just some cool regular season wins. Like that's the standard. The expectation

and what people expect your fans, your owner, even though you're not going to get fired, is like win playoff games. But I remember a couple years ago, boom, go on the road. You know, the first first round they got Miami and Tanny Hill had been knocked out. They kicked the crap out of them. But then they went on the road to, I remember Jeremy Macklin and Alex Smith saying it was the best Kansas City chief team they had been on.

That was obviously before this year. And they won. I mean, that was, he went on the road to Kansas City in a tough environment and won. That's, that's a heck of a playoff win. And a playoff win like that, to me, carries you for a couple years. Now, last year was bad. But in fairness to Tomlin, that Jacksonville Jaguar team, gave the Patriots everything they could handle. You know, I mean, they lost 45 to 42. Their defense isn't atrocious. I think here's the other reason people get mad. It's like when the defense sucks or when the offense is off,

it's like Tomlin kind of takes the heat, but you know he's not doing it. You know, it's just he's kind of in control, but he's like, he's not actually calling any of the plays. He's got a good gig. You know, I wouldn't give it up. And he's just got to be the coolest looking coach in NFL history. John, I'm a huge Broncos fan from Philly.

But my question is, how long do you think fans Joseph will last past the season? And do you think if he has a good season that he will be there after 2019, 2020? Well, that win against the Steelers was pretty big. They are, they're not dead. You know, just to me it depends how they finish this season. If they get to 8 and 8, 9, and 7 with Case Keenham, he's clearly not losing his job. The team is playing really hard. It's responding to him.

It's actually kind of helped. This year has been a big year for Elway because a lot of people were just taking a gigantic dump on John Elway. And I said this on Twitter like a week ago. You know, listen, most people, most GMs, unless you're just a bad GM, if you're drafting in the top five, that means you drafted in the top five every round. Well, it's much easier to do that than it is if you have a winning team. You know, it's hard to draft players in the late 20s.

That's why Bill Polion's in the Hall of Fame. He was the general manager of playoff teams, and he still drafted a ton of good players. Like, it's hard. It's not just the first round, like drafting the 20s. That means you're drafting in the 20s in every round. Like, how does Belichick throw together a team? Everyone's like, oh, he's not a good drafter. Well, yeah, he's been winning 12 games a year and playing in the AFC championship every year for my entire adult life.

I mean, his earliest draft pick is like 28. Most times he's drafted 31 or 32. Well, that doesn't just mean the first round. that means in the fourth round, he has the last pick in the fourth round, or the second of the last pick in the fourth round. That makes it hard. Well, what happened to John Elway this year? He had a top five pick.

What did he do? Crush the draft. I think John Elway's good. Now, he hasn't found a quarterback and he hasn't found a coach. Well, the coach is actually kind of riding the ship a little bit. The quarterback, Case Keenham's a Band-Aid. He's going to have to find a franchise quarterback. But Chubb's good.

Vaughn Miller's still kicking ass. Their defense is playing fantastic. like Emmanuel Sanders is still playing well. They got some value for Demarius Thomas. Philip Lindsay, you know, I don't know, one of the stories of the league, you know, just in terms of good stories of the league, undrafted free agent in his hometown.

I think the first undrafted free agent, I might be butchering this stat, but to run for a thousand yards, I think they said that on the broadcast on Sunday. He's just a cool story. He runs as that, he's just good. I mean, it's just, you watch him, you go, God, how did this guy land as an undrafted free agent?

He's got fantastic feat. He's just an explosive runner. He's got good vision. He's tough. He's just good. I mean, he's just a good player. And it's just, that's a great part about the NFL. Like, you can come from nowhere, and all of a sudden it's like, yeah, the guy's an undratch

free agent. He's a starter. A mailbag. John, why in the world would less miles go to a laughing stock program to coach? I don't know a lot about NFL coaching contracts, but what prevents Jerry from going and hiring Sean McVey, Kyle Shanahan, or Matt Nagy. Well, Les Miles, I really don't know. It just, it baffled my mind that he took that job.

The Kansas job's awful. I think it's one of probably a top five bad, you know, top lowest, I don't even know. I can't even summarize this. Of all the Power Five conferences, it's got to be a bottom five job of all the Power Five conferences. It's that, I mean, it's terrible. I mean, it's God awful. Now, my response is probably money. I bet he got paid, but maybe he likes a challenge.

I don't know. I think it's pretty crazy. And the thing about it, those guys are under contract. So they're just competition laws. You just can't steal a guy. Now, you can work out something, but that team has the right to that individual. It's no different than a company. Like, if I have you under contract, I have the rights to you.

Now, if I want to let you go, I can, you know, figure out compensation with another company via like if Jerry wanted John McVay and the Rams were open to letting him go, even though they never would be, you could figure something out. But yeah, it's just, that's why I remember when Belichick quit on the Jets, he couldn't just go to the Patriots. They had to ultimately trade him, just like any job. John, Jim Harbaugh and Nick Saban comparisons are dead, agreed. I think Harbaugh to Charlie Strong is a more appropriate comparison.

that seems harsh. Highest level of success came with a future Pro Bowl quarterback on the roster and both have failed occasion on Premier Jobs. Who is the most appropriate coaching comparison to Harbaugh? I'd have to think about that one. Listen, I think Jim Harbaugh is pretty good. He won at Stanford.

He had two winning seasons there, one, eight and three, and the other 11 and one and went to a BCS game. He won for three straight years with the Sanford scope 49ers. Before he got there, the Sanford's scope 49ers, were consistently terrible. And since John, Jim Harbaugh has left, they've been consistently terrible.

And Michigan, let's not forget. Like, they had a, that loss was devastating. I, you can't sugarcoat that. But they didn't go 10 and 2. You know, they got to figure out the quarterback situation. Shea Patterson looked like, should have been a Cal Poly, not Michigan in that game. But I, I was, they still had a, you know, a good year. A great year, no.

You can't give up 95 points to Ohio State. but his fair comparison let me think of an NFL guy that's a tough one he's kind of old school you know I mean he's just he's much more you know he's like the Bo Schemblecker

he's just a tough because he's not a scheme guy he's more of a culture guy but he's never won a championship but again he resurrected an academic only school that never won in football in Stanford people like well they've produced NFL guys people do realize like John Elway senior year, they went like five and six.

You know, I mean, Stanford never won until he showed up, consistently won. And they haven't stopped winning since he set the tone. And Michigan was in shambles when he showed up. And now they are, I wouldn't say, an elite program. They're not Alabama, LSU, Oklahoma, but they're a power program again. They're the second best program in what, the second most important conference. the country, that's still a pretty big deal. Now, the gap between him and the first best team in this conference is as big as the Grand

Canyon, which is a problem. But Jim Harbaugh is a good coach, but he's got to find a way to get a better quarterback. Because the only way you're going to beat Ohio State is with a dynamic quarterback. And Shay Patterson can beat Penn State, he can beat Wisconsin, you know, he can beat Rutgers, but he ain't, he ain't Dwayne Askins, you know, he ain't winning that game. He just, like, are you going to roll that back next year? Because if you roll out Chey Patterson again against Ohio State, it's the same thing's going to happen.

Let's get one more. John, is there a scenario in which the Rams and the Saints do not play each other in the NFC championship? This is a pretty relevant question as the game we saw tonight. Which team teams is most likely to stand in the way of the matchup? So let's just go over the seating right now. Let's just assume the Rams get the number one. overall seed. Let's give the Saints the benefit of doubt as the number two overall seat. We'll go Bears three, Cowboys four, let's go Seahawks and Panthers. So in the

first round you'd get Bears Panthers, Dallas, Seattle. Let's give both home teams the benefit of the doubt. Dallas handles business, Chicago's handles business. Well, if Dallas is the four, they would play the one the Rams and the Bears would play the Saints. I would say that the Bears, it would be very difficult for Mitch Trabisky to go on the road and beat New Orleans. So I would say New Orleans would have a much better case or chance to be in the NFC championship game. To me, the Rams are beatable. Like, I just can't chalk up Sean McVeigh and Jared Gough as a lock win, you know, in a big time playoff game. Now, that place will be rocking. they'll be coming off a buy.

If somehow they have the number one seed wrapped up last year, he didn't have anything to play for and he rested everyone. Sean McVeigh rested everyone in the preseason, and it clearly hasn't mattered. But that's a long time to take off. If they take off week 17, then they take off the buy week, and then you come back, let's say, you know, week or that second, the second playoff round, which is his first playoff round,

and Dallas has won eight of nine, and they're the hottest team in four. football, they could easily go in there and beat them. Like, look at Dallas. To me, Dallas or Chicago, if either one of those teams goes into L.A., like I think it's going to be really hard to go to no one's beating New Orleans at New Orleans. I just don't think that's happening. That's just, it's a different animal there.

But I do think that Dallas or Chicago, Mitch would have to be healthy. And just that version of Dallas could go on the road to L.A., which, I mean, there's a lot of people there because it's the Coliseum and it's big. but it ain't exactly you know, Death Valley and Baton Rouge at night. So the Monday night game was cool, but let's pump the brakes a little bit

that is some crazy home field advantage. That I do think either one of those teams would have more than a puncher's chance to go on the road because they both play defense. They both can rush the passer. Chicago and Dallas have elite front sevens for the modern day game. They can rush the passer.

They have big time speed at lineback. Their play speed is excellent. They can stop the run, but they're playing teams don't run the ball that much anyway. Roquan Smith and the Vanderress and the Jailens are as equipped as anyone to just semi-shadow Todd Gurley. So I think if it was, if we don't see those two matched up, I think the likelihood is that the Rams get bounced than if the Saints. Because think of how crazy it would be if the Saints went 13 and 3 and they had the two-seat and they lost a game. you know, in New Orleans. I have a really, really hard time seeing that.

I mean, that place is just too special. You know, that'd be like Seattle in their prime losing a home playoff game. It's just hard to see. It doesn't mean you can't have a tight game. Remember, you know, Harbaugh 49ers gave Seattle all they could handle. But they won for a reason. You just not win in there.

Appreciate everyone listening. Enjoy the games. Much better college weekend than it is a pro weekend. But, God, that Dallas game, that was fun. It's been a fun night, fun podcast. It's been a fun week of podcast. See you next week. Monday night after Eagles Redskins.

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