The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - Brock Purdy and Jimmy Garoppolo

Episode Date: February 13, 2024

Colin compares Brock Purdy's stats to Jimmy Garoppolo's stats with the 49ers and wants to know why Garoppolo gets so much hate while Purdy does not He defends 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan for his decision to receive the kickoff in overtimeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

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I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok's podcast network on TikTok. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio in noon to 3 Eastern, 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRadio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app

by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. We're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Here we go on a Tuesday. So much to talk about. Live in Los Angeles, it's the hurt. Wherever you may be, and however you may be listening.

Thank you for making us part of your day. A lot of choices out there. Nick Wright, who will come with nuance on the Kansas City Chiefs in one hour from now. J. Mack, you know, what is fun about sports?

is a lot of times you think, you know, we can't relate to athletes. But, you know, NBA guys are 6'9, they're 7 feet. You know, a baseball player throws a ball 100 miles an hour. But in football, it does speak to us and relate to us. Half the league is undrafted. Small schools, overlooked, injured, having to go to work hurt or play in the rain. I do think NFL's a little more relatable, most of the kids. of us guys played some level of sports.

A lot of us played high school football. We weren't stars either. So I'm going to start this show today with relatability. Jimmy Garoppolo took nothing but crap as he guided the Niners to the Super Bowl. Jimmy Garoppolo looks like a movie star. Jimmy Garoppelow was traded for and rich. He was coveted. Most men aren't.

Brock Purdy is you. Overlooked, called Mr. Irrelevant, not man. making really any relative to the salaries of the NFL money. What a story that's relatable. But let's be honest about both Garoppolo, who you criticized, constantly blamed as a scapegoat for every loss, and Brock Purdy, who you demanded need to be in the MVP chatter. During the Super Bowl run for Garapolo, he had one great offensive player. One.

His leading receiver was Kendrick Bourne. He went to Eastern Washington University where I went. Okay? He had George Kittle. He didn't have Christian McCaffrey. Debo was a kid, a rookie. Didn't have Brandon I, you, didn't have Trent Williams. It was a defensive squad.

They were thin on offense. Brock Purdy, the relatable guy, his Super Bowl run, is five pro bowlers on offense. It's arguably the greatest collection of offensive talent at skill positions in my life. the best running back since Walter Payton, Hall of Fame left tackle, Trent Williams, the chess piece, Debo, Brandon Iute, PFF says he's the second best receiver in the league, and George Kittle, he had a stacked deck.

Yet in the Super Bowl, both outplayed Garoppolo and Purdy, both outplayed Mahomes early, both at a 10-point lead, both lost to Mahomes and both were outplayed late. yet Garoppolo was blamed for it. Purdy? I thought he was good. That Shannon held him down. Go back to that Super Bowl. Remember the pass Jimmy Garapolo late in the Super Bowl missed on?

I can't believe it. They should have won. Mahomes is a nobody. This pass cost them the Super Bowl. Wide open. Not really. Wide open. I can't believe that long throw.

carries in the air for, oh, I don't know, 55 yards in the air. He missed him by two. What a bum. Garoppel took all the heat. Let's go to Sunday. Brock Purdy, a much shorter throw to an equally wide open wide receiver. It didn't hardly get press coverage. Pretty wide open.

Time to throw. Mrs. Ayuk. And then later, Mrs. Debo badly. Again, shorter throws, easier throws to make. Look how bad he misses a touchdown here. That's a short throw. That's not a 55-yard throw in the air. He missed two.

And what's even more interesting is if you examine Purdy with a loaded offensive roster through 27 starts and Garoppolo with George Kettle through 27. It's the same guy. Brock is simply more efficient. Both went 21 and 6. Both completed 67% of their throws. Both throw for 248 yards a game. Brock has a higher passer rating and a little more efficient.

Yeah, I would be too with Christian McCaffrey and Debo and Iyuk and Trent Williams through 27 starts. But you don't look like Garoppolo. You weren't traded for. rich, you weren't coveted. Brock Purdy is us, and we like us. It's hard to relate to a 7-foot-2 NBA guy or a baseball pitcher that pitches a hundred miles an hour. But football players get hit, they work in rain, snow, they play hurt, we have to go to work

when we don't feel good. We feel sometimes irrelevant, like Mr. Irrelevant. Garoppolo was blamed for everything. Shanahan takes all the heat when Purdy struggles. I'm just saying add some context. That's why I often defended Garoppolo and why I'm viewed is often critical of Purdy. What did they have to work with?

Here's a story that is massively overblown. And let me start by saying, I've been doing this for 30 years radio and television. And yet I don't know what a single button or lever does in the control. room. If the staff yelled in my ear, we have a graphics problem, I'd be like, awesome! Fix it.

I don't know any of the buttons. And yet I've been in this profession for 30 years. Why? Because Fox and my former bosses at ESPN knew I was good talking to a microphone and didn't want to clover up my head with stuff

that they could pay other people to do. Andy Reed and Kyle Shanahan are paid to know the overtime rules. Be careful how much you put on the players. So the most overblown story is that the players for the Niners didn't know the overtime rules. It should be noted, McColl Hardman caught the winning touchdown pass for Kansas City.

He didn't know the game was over. He didn't know the game was over. People are making it sound like the overtime rules were a huge deviation. Like the official goes to the players and says, Okay, guys, you can no longer use your hands here. We're playing soccer. Or the official says, all right, from now on, touchdowns are worth three field goals worth seven.

No, instead, Kyle said, we'll take the ball first. My defense is gas. They were just on the field. And let's generate a long drive and score. And they did, and they did. But only a field goal and not a touchdown. What he wanted was the ball. if Kansas City came back to score, so Kyle would get the final possession potentially.

And I defend that. Kyle knew the rules and so did Andy Reid. They had both talked to their analytic specialists. I have news for you. The guy conducting the orchestra doesn't know how to play the clarinet. When your basement gets flooded, you ask your wife, are we covered? You don't know your insurance plan, champ. she's doing most of the work.

I've gotten accountant. I make a good living. I don't know the rules. Colin, that's different. You pay an accountant and the Niners pay Andy Reed and Shanahan to know it. I was told this years ago by a very smart coach, not sure if he'd want it, repeat it. He said, I'd try to simplify the game.

These are 23-year-olds. It's hard enough to figure out what to do with the line of scrimmage. They don't need to know everything. almost how we treat our kids sometimes, and these players are kids. They're 22, they're 23, they're 24. You'll want them to play hard and you'll want them to play fast. You go to overtime. I'd say defensive guys, make sure you tackle.

Offensive guys, catch, run, and score. The rules apply. Earlier this year, two at the microphone, detailed one play. This is one play in the fast. The fastest sport we have in America, between the most physically daunting men trying to hurt each other. This is one play of a game. I can give you guys a play, and then if you guys want to repeat it after me, as if you guys were in the hudder, you guys can.

All right. Should I go once or twice saying it? Once? All right, we got North, right, Clamp, South Fox, H-top, pass 38, top, Gumbby XP, sweat. Let's go. Anyone? That's one play in a crowded stadium, where you can bear. here. They have 60 of them. You're also supposed to know audibles.

I want to clog up your head as a 24-year-old with overtime rules. Kyle Eusecheck went to Harvard. He's a smart guy. Listen to what he said he knew about the rules. You know what? I didn't even realize that the

playoff rules were different in overtime, so I assumed you just want the ball because you score a touchdown and win, but I guess that's not the case. So I don't really, I don't totally know the strategy there. Something you guys have talked about. No. No, we haven't talked about it, no.

Yeah. I don't really know the strategy there. Coaches are paid to do the game plans and have the strategy. Defensive guys tackle. Offensive guys catch run and don't fumble. This idea that every player knows everything. You'll want to know why the overtime rules are confusing for professional football players? Because they change.

them every year. I've been doing this for 35 years. The overtime in college is a circus. It's ridiculous. It's like a seven-on-seven drill. You can play for hours. It's absurd. I prefer the NFL, but they change it perpetually. This idea that you're supposed to know everything about everybody. I got news for you, sports writer, your editor, your editor knows when they're going to let you go or resign you. Probably six months to a year before they do and you have no idea and that's your career we don't know what our bosses are thinking we don't know every part of our company we don't know front and back what our accountant knows about our money or what our insurance policy details we pay people to do it it's okay if every player doesn't know mccall hardman no idea it was the game winning touchdown

you know what he knew catch you know what he knew the play call that's all that mattered the winning didn't know the rules, but they knew the play calls. They knew where to be and when to go and when to catch and not to drop and not to fumble. I can't tell you. I've been watching football forever. There is one rule that drives me crazy that players don't know. Now, most do, but young guys, not veteran guy, but young guys will occasionally make this mistake. You ever seen like an offensive player go down and he's untouched? As a defensive player, you're supposed to come over and touch him. right you touch him to make sure he's down i see it every game 15 times on sunday that an offensive player will catch it roll down to the ground without being touched and he'll get up and run

and a defensive player could have just touched him that drives me crazy but this labyrinth of new overtime rules that young men who are trying to memorize a playbook that's the size of the san an Antonio phone book and you're going to just pile on overtime rules, I got the players back. Defensive guys tackle. Offensive guys, catch, run, don't fumble and score. I'm good with that. The winning team, the winning team, McCall Hardman didn't know he caught the winning touchdown. Reed knew, Shanahan knew, and by the way, Mahomes seem to know.

and I'm okay with that. All right, Jay Mack, a reality check for America. A reality check. I thought it was funny this morning also. They showed all the Super Bowl favorites for next year. It's all the same teams. It's funny.

I really like that take you had on the, you know, on the overtime rules, much better than your Purdy take to open the show. Goodness gracious. The slander continues. You're just pot committed to bashing Brock Purdy. I mean, only does his win and get to the Super Bowl and the NFC Championship game.

Oh, Garoppolo did as well. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. 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 apps, and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win.

A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, This platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment. And the next, we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger.

So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast.

Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Boar Your Mind on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. By the way, another number we didn't put on the screen.

Through 27 starts, Brock Purdy, has averaged 29.1 points a game with a loaded five Pro Bowl offense. Jimmy G. has averaged 28.9 points with just George Kittle. Two-tenths of a point less over 27 stars. Two-tenths of a point less.

Pretty with far more Hall of Fame-level talent. We like what we relate to. So there's a question this morning. I roll my eyes at this stuff. Some of the overblown reactions. Will Kyle Shanahan eventually need a fresh start.

No, he actually needs a star quarterback. Nobody's beaten Mahomes. Mike Tomlin's a very good football coach and Big Ben's going to be a Hall of Fame quarterback. Together, they were pretty irrelevant the last seven, eight years as a playoff team. Why? Because of an old Tom Brady

and a young Patrick Mahomes. It's what LeBron did to other great Eastern Conference stars, or what Nick Saban did to other SEC powers. In my lifetime, I've seen it time and time again. Great shrinks good. Great gobbles up. Very good.

Amazon did it with good retailers. Netflix has done it with very good streamers. And the NFL has done it with other very good sports. Everything now compared to the NFL is tiny. NBA, baseball, college sports. Sports feel niche, boutique, cute. That's what big does. It shrinks good.

I'm being told now Josh Allen's not very good because he can't beat Mahomes. And Lamar Jackson, he'll never win the big game. Really? Lamar's the most athletic quarterback I've ever seen. And Josh Allen is second only to Mahomes in pure talent. Maybe ever. And Kyle Shanahan's been to four of the last five, conference championships with Jimmy G and Purdy.

Do you know the last coach to get to four out of five conference championships without winning a Super Bowl? Andy Reed. Think he can coach a little? Stop with this nonsense about fresh starts and it's time to go. Kyle Shanahan wanted Matt Stafford. The Rams got him. Kyle Shanahan wanted Brady.

Fox Sports got him. He knows. knows the truth. He's probably never going to beat Mahomes or maybe Josh Allen or potentially Joe Burrell or Lamar with a C plus B minus quarterback talent. I defended Garoppolo and I'm tougher on Purdy, but toe-to-to-to they outplay Mahomes early and it doesn't matter. With a more stacked roster, it doesn't matter. Fresh start, maybe a new star quarterback's the answer. But San Francisco has behind the scenes gone after Stafford, Kirk Cousins, Tom Brady.

There's no new fresh start needed. SEC teams just kept firing, firing, firing. Alabama and Sabin were the best ever. Eastern Conference teams, trading, firing. LeBron in his prime, arguably the best ever. And when I watch Mahomes, put the trophy count aside. I've never seen it. any NFL player that good ever.

Tiger Woods kept a lot of guys from a green jacket or a U.S. Open. Doesn't mean they couldn't play. But when you get the best ever at anything, great shrinks even very good. J. Mack with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. I don't know if I'm ready for this, column, But the Chiefs could potentially three-peat next season. Has not been done in the NFL before three in a row. Patrick Mahomes was asked on Monday how he would feel if they were able to pull off the three-peat. Here's what he said. It's legendary. I mean, just to be able to, no one's ever done it.

And we knew it's legendary to win back-to-back. I think eight other teams have done it. We had heard it all week. We had talked to the guys about it, and we felt like we had the best opportunity that we had ever had to go out there and do that. I mean, all you could do is come back next year with the fresh mindset, said knowing it's going to be even harder. And we've got to continue to play our best football. We'll celebrate these next few weeks, and then we'll get right back at it.

How lucky is the NFL? That's the face of the franchise. Likeable, unbelievably likable. My wife even likes, she was rooting for Kansas City. My family was, yeah. My wife's like, I like his wife. Have you seen her new sports illustrated? You've mentioned that two days in a row, I've not seen it.

My wife is like, oh, she's adorable. I really like them. Oh, pro athlete, Mary's an adorable girl. Shocker. Well, they've been going out for a long time before he was Patrick Malm's a legend. Wow, that's cool. Yeah. Listen, the chiefs are very likable.

I think they are. That's the problem. That's the problem. Well, you know, we need some new teams in there. We need some little Jets action. We need some new teams taking down. By the way, do you ever have a T-bone steak for breakfast? How can you eat the same four things?

I don't eat the same four things for breakfast. I told you, I go with a different word every day on word off. I like new stuff. I went for a different word for. this morning because of you. I'm having an impact on you. And it was a stupid word, yacht, and I used a why, and it was a waste of time, and it took me six tries to get it. All right, going back to my word, you screw my life on.

Let's not go with yacht, which is probably where your mind is at. What are you going on, yacht vacation? Whatever. All right, next story. Now, this is interesting. I don't know if anybody else is on this, Colin. So Brandon Ayyuk had a really good season. Great.

However, in the Super Bowl, three catches for 49 yards. and then he went on Instagram and cryptically posted don't forget what got you here and it gets worse. His brother went on Instagram and was saying some stuff and now his girlfriend

is also saying stuff about, you know, basically I had a good run in San Francisco, I'm ready to move on. Like Brandon Ayuk's camp seems very unhappy. Time out.

His brother said, thank you, my brother is grateful, BA to Vegas. I don't know what's going on but let me just ask you. I would not let him go. Debo and Kittle can get banged up, and McCaffrey, how long can he be this insane workhorse? I would move off Kittle.

He's making $15 million, and that is a lot for a tight end, who had a bad drop in the playoffs and was invisible in the Super Bowl. Well, wait a minute. How is Kittle invisible in the Super Bowl, but Ayuk was it? Three catches? No, he was. The difference is, one isn't making 15 yards, and one isn't. Right now, Brandon Ayuk is a top three receiver.

All of his best years are ahead of it. He is not a top three receiver. PFF had him two. So what, come on, he's not, Justin Jefferson. Is one. Jamar Chase. Two, three. I mean, hell, I can't say Pooka and Nicole.

Cooper Cup. There's a lot of really top-bind receiver. Tyreek Hill. Come on. By the way, isn't this what DAC, top receiver, C.D. Lamb. Little shot at DAC, average quarterback, great receiver. What is Brandon Ayuk really saying? He's saying what we said yesterday, or I said.

You can't go into a game with Kiddell, Iuk, and Debo, and your quarterback can't get the ball to them. It's not good enough. Okay, time out. First of all, on Iyuk, he's in adding into the last year of his deal per spot track, his base salary is $14 million this year. I'm not letting him go. He's worth every penny.

He's essentially saying, I'm not going into this next season without a new contract. And it sounds like his camp is like, let's get the hell out of San Francisco. I think they're going to give him a new contract, and I think Kittle, keep your eye on the kiddle situation. So the good news is you can pay him because you're not paying Purdy. Purdy's making like $800,000 or something. That's right. That's right. So you can pay Iyut, but

do you want someone with this kind of attitude to give them the money and then complain to get a Diva receiver? We just know that wide receivers, first to break the huddle, historically wide receivers want the ball. They're not as dependent on other players. A quarterback's

dependent on a run game, a coach, a left tackle, a coordinator. Wide receiver breaks the huddle, it's like, bro, it's me and him. Throw it up. Devante Adams is a wonderful guy. He's been very critical of the Raiders, and I love Devante. Stefan Diggs, I love him, sometimes a little drama. I bake in for the wide receiver position. I bake in a little bit of this. I'm okay with it. Now, I thought Des Bryant was destructive to the chemistry. T.O. destructive. We're not there yet, correct. Yeah, yeah. So I'm going to, I could, guys that I love in the, I think, Devonte Adams, one the best players in the league. Have his back 100%.

It's been outspoken. It's okay. You have a right to an opinion as a wide receiver. Let me ask you, what can you get for Brandon Ayuk on the trade market? A lot? You're saying, I don't want to... Ah, now we're talking. So, listen, we just saw the Rams and I'm not going to keep using Puka. Fifth round pick, and he is a stud. Zay Flowers, first round of the Ravens. He was their best receiver all season. Why would I pay Brandon Ayuk top dollar? I know he's good. When I can go in the draft and try to find another receiver. Try and find a Brandon Ayyuk?

Brandon Ayuk is sensational. He's very, very good. I get that. He's awesome. You want to keep him. But not a top dollar and not of him and his family are going to be blasting the organization. Well, I would go to him and say, can we, hey, listen, you can't control brothers and sisters and moms. It's just the way life is.

Steph Curry, remember a few years ago, Steph Curry, people in his family. Somebody was talking, it's like, you can't control every family member. You would like to, but you can't. But they're probably, are they speaking for him? We don't know. We don't know. I think, again, I've seen this, you would prefer your brother, your sister, but they're doing it out of love. By the way, Rishi Rice on the Chiefs, they drafted him.

You called him a number one all season. I don't know if he's the number one. He was fine. He was really good, right? You can find receivers, Colin. I like Ayuk a lot. He's very good. I think we're going to be discussing potential trades.

I mean, honestly, if Bryce Young and the Panthers said, hey, we need Ayuk, we'll give up a one and a three. I'm doing it a heartbeat. I don't know. If I could get a one, if I could get. Panthers don't have their one this year. Right. But if I could get, yeah, I mean, listen, I'm just saying, Brandon and I, Yuc on the market, they'll be a lot of bidders. Devontey Adams on the market.

There'll be a lot of bidders. I know Purdy's not Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes lost Tyree Kill and has now won two. I'm not saying Purdy's Mahomes. Let's just stop this. That's totally different. That is totally dead. Mahomes can lose everybody but Travis Kelsey and Andy Reed.

Brady lost everybody. He lost Randy Moss. He lost Wes Welker. Brady and Mahomes are different. They're just, LeBron James has run through teammates. He won in L.A., he won in Cleveland, he won in Miami. LeBron's different. Mahomes is different.

Agreed. Final story, Mack Jones, time in New England. Looks like it's over. After three seasons, it is reportedly likely that Jones will be on a new team next season. He had a promising rookie year ending in the Pro Bowl bid, but followed up with back-to-back duds. Jones is expected to be on the trade block. I'll be honest. Okay.

So, Zach Wilson's on the block. Mac Jones is on the block. Mac. Mac and Will Jones? Mac and Roe Jones? Yes. Go look at his rookie year. You can have it.

And he's all yours. I'm not saying I want him. I'm saying you gave me to Zach Mack. Yeah, I would take Zach Wilson. I mean, obviously you got the right. Not your best take. Again, Mac Jones, how many times do you bench this year? More times than Zach Wilson?

Probably. Okay. One of them had an offense that was literally named a defensive coordinator, an offensive coordinator. Mac Jones, it was as if they were hoping he failed. I mean, that Zach Wilson had opportunities, a number one receiver. Zach Wilson had... Speaking of offensive coordinators, who was his in New York this year?

Oh, that's right. It was that Nat Hackett character. Well, let's be nice. I don't know. I mean, listen, neither of these guys is a starter, but I just don't know, like, what the market is for Mac Jones. I'm not giving up a top... I'm not even giving up a fifth round pick for Mac Jones. No, thank you.

I'm giving up a fifth round pick for Mac Jones. He got to the playoffs as a rookie. Boy, is a GM with some of these moves? You're going to be canned in the computer too. I mean, mostly get canned anyway. Outside of the guy in Kansas City. All right. J-Mack with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lie News. Now, this is interesting. So there's so much good stuff today. Nick Wright, top of the show, hour number two. It's so much fun. Now, by tomorrow, we're going to have to pivot to something.

But the day after the Super Bowl, and then the day after the day after the Super Bowl are so much fun for me. So get ready. So what are we in mid to late February, J-MAC? I don't keep track of the date. What is it?

It's almost Valentine's Day. You probably need to know that date. Oh, 14th is tomorrow. Yes. So tomorrow is Valentine's Day. So today's the 13th. Is that what we got today? Okay, all right.

All right, all right, all right. Okay. So in two months in about a week, we have the NFL draft. And folks, it's already starting. the Caleb Williams talk. So a report from Mike Garofalo, we know Mike,

very hard worker NFL network reported. The Washington commanders are exploring as a number two pick moving up to get Caleb Williams number one. Not a surprise. Also, Merrill Hodge, who I know and respect, he's right a lot.

his evaluation of Caleb Williams. He said first of, well, we have sound of this. And Merrill Hodge, Merrill Hodge thought C.J. Stroud was better than Bryce Young. He didn't like Johnny Mansell when everybody at ESPN was sloboring over him. He didn't buy into the Jadavian clownie. Merrill Hodge works his butt off, knows his stuff, never clickbait, never goes with a company line. Merrill Hodge is an independent thinker. I have absolute respect.

Doesn't mean he's always right. It's impossible to be always right. But he's taking big swings on big picks, and he's been right a lot more than he's been wrong. So he has real concerns about Caleb Williams. The one thing that is clear, he is not special. He is not something unique like a Patrick Mahomes. First of all, his ability to throw on the run is very disturbing.

It is very inaccurate. It's all over the place. There's a ton, a ton of RPO, which nobody's going to RPO their sales to a Super Bowl in R-League. They're seeing that in Miami, okay? You do got to push the ball down the field. Now, there are times that he does, and he does that well. He doesn't play with a lot of anticipation because of all the clean pockets that exist in him. So it's interesting, and it did make me pause.

There's also a young man out there named Matt Miller. He's a draft analyst for the NFL. respect him a lot, puts in a lot of time. He had something this weekend. It was just a little blurb on him, and it really made me think. He said, Caleb tends to lean into the spectacular. He won't take the layups. And that one, combined with Merrill Hodge, made me go, uh-oh, am I overvaluing a USC quarterback again?

When I trust you, and I know you, and you work hard, and you're both kind of saying the same thing, and you watch more tape than me, it does make me pause. One of the things I've said about Mahomes, Mahomes can be spectacular, but he loves the layups and hits all of them. Michael Jordan loved the spectacular, but he was great and fond of 16-footers. Caleb Williams tends to lean into the spectacular. But Kansas City, the chiefs are 24 and 0 the last two years

when Mahomes completes 65% or more. Meaning, Andy dials up nine-yarders. Mahomes hits him, misses occasionally on the spectacular, hits occasionally on the spectacular, but he always, always takes the layups. PFF has Mahomes, number one in the league, throws zero to nine yards. He's number three in the league, 10 to 19. So Mojolmes is the best quarterback in the league at the easier stuff. Because though he can be spectacular, he doesn't lean into it.

He simply pursues it when it's needed. They're trailing its fourth down and it's the option that saves the team. So Merrill Hodge respect him. Matt Miller, much respect as well. both offering some caution flags on Caleb Williams. I once overvalued another USC quarterback. I think Caleb is more talented than Sam Darnold. I think his escapability is unique.

I do think he can be a little frenetic on his accuracy. I've talked to other people about that. But when smart people who are right a lot say things, as I always say, let's get it right, not try to be right. right, I may have to reevaluate my number one pick. That's all I'm saying. I just made me, all I'm saying is I went between Maryland Matt, I'm going to slow down just a little bit. By the way, you remember who sat on the couch yesterday and was talking to us off air about quarterbacks? What he said, right? I don't want to get into that right now.

I'm not calling me. It was a good take. I echoed it. I gave one of those. You listening to him, coward? I gave one of those. Who did we have? have on the couch yesterday. Sanchez. Okay, let's not get into what he talked about. I'm not, but it was a part of the draft. It was very, he had a very interesting take. I'll let him

say it if he wants to later. Yeah, but I'm just saying there's there are people out there who like this draft for quarterbacks a lot. And like many beyond just the favorite. You remember, by the way, I asked our producer of this, what happened the last time

a home's lost a playoff game? You remember who it was to? Let me think. Burrow. Burrow and the Bengals. Do you remember why they lost it? Patrick Mahomes went yolo in overtime. They won the coin toss. That's right. And Mahomes chucked a deep one down the field. That's great. It's right.

Pinged around, intercepted, and they lose. Mahomes threw one yolo pass in the Super Bowl. Remember the deep one on third down, intercepted. Rest of the game, check down, Charlie, all the short stuff. You don't make mistakes on those. And that's how you win games. Not the spectacular over-the-top plays. Because a lot of people, because of their age, their young, did not see Jordan play in his prime.

and the truth was with Jordan, he was an automatic two on mid-range. Mid-range assassin. And then you get these highlights. He gave you about one play-a-game that you were like, okay, I've never seen that, and two more that were elevated beyond average players. But Michael would give you 14 mid-range jumpers. Michael was a machine. Kobe was always a bit more artistic.

He would come down and kind of ad-lib, although Kobe had his spots. Michael had like three base moves. It was like Bill Walsh's offense with the Niners. Only 12 plays. You couldn't stop them. Michael had three set moves. And I mean, he had every step down. You could not stop.

Michael would tell you, this is what I'm doing, and you couldn't stop it. Kobe was a little more, I'm going, I'm going to add lib here, although he had some spots he liked. So, I mean, it is, Mal Holmes is more mechanical than you think. Well, he's become mechanical. They are evolving. as an offense, Colin. Remember, with Tyree Kill, it was Chuck and Duck, big explosive plays. I saw one of the producers yesterday, and I said, what did you think of the Super Bowl? And he said, you know, basically everybody we were watching it with was like, this is boring.

There's no explosive plays. I mean, other than the passback by Jennings to McCaffrey, there wasn't a lot of juice in that game. It was a very tight, not a lot of deep throws down the field. I mean, I don't want to say it was boring, but until the fourth quarter and overtime, it was kind of a boring game. Is that okay to say? Well, I thought up until halftime, it was missed opportunities. I had said going into it, my favorite bet was the under. Which hit by half a point, right? And I said, I think we're going to have a lot of yards.

I don't think we're going to have a lot of touchdowns because Kansas City's secondary is filthy good. And I don't think, and Kansas City's offense is very limited. So I felt we'd have yards, and the offensive coaching is so brilliant, you would have yards. You're going to have plays. I didn't think we'd have a lot of touchdown. And the game looked a lot like I thought. I thought Kansas City would do more early. And San Francisco maybe would do more late.

But in the end, I thought, I'm not looking for three and a half hours of perfect. If you give me a great ending, I've seen, I mean, I've seen a lot of movies, pretty good early, great late. We call them great movies. If they end of the book and the end of the movie and the end of the game for the last 15 minutes of viewing is great, we look at it and we go, we're satisfied. Remember that Bill's Chief's game, the crazy one? And the final three minutes, there was like five touchdowns. That game is more memorable than the Super Bowl, by a mile. Look, go to LeBron's championship for Cleveland over Golden State.

Oh. First six games were blowouts. Major. You remember. Game seven was iconic. There were like 30-point wins, and it was actually an awful series. It was. The story of LeBron and Cleveland was magnetic.

And Game 7 was insane. And the fourth quarter of Game 7 is one of the top quarters ever. A series was mostly blowouts and just leaking all. In the fourth quarter was everybody missing shots. One quick final thing on Super Bowl. In regulation, the Chiefs had one touchdown drive, Colin, and I think it was 16 yards off the muff punt. That's it.

If I told you going in, Chiefs are going to have one touchdown in regulation, it's going to be 16-yard drive. Oh, they're not winning that game. Well, we said all year long the story of Kansas City was not Mahomes. It was the defense, and in the end, it was Mahomes with the defense. But listen, there's a lot of different ways to win.

The Tommy Brady team with Randy Moss? No Super Bowls. Dionne Branch got him Super Bowls. Edelman got him Super Bowls. He had Randy Moss and Wes Welker. No Super Bowls. There's a lot of different way. The spectacular?

I mean, spectacular is Miami's offense. Justin Fields can be spectacular. Layups, tackling, continuity, low turnovers. Keep it simple, stupid, remember? Good coaching wins the trophy. Take a break back in a second of the herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd. Weekdays at noon Eastern, 9 a.m.

Two NBA insiders podcasting twice a week to plug you right into the NBA great vibe. All happening in only one place. This League Uncut. The new NBA podcast with me, Chris Haynes.

And me, Mark Stein. Join us as we team up to expound on everything we're covering, hearing, and chasing. Listen to This League Uncut with Chris Haynes and Mark Stein on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast,

or wherever you get your podcast. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds.

I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined.

And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be.

Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes.

Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tontons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith Rule of 2. Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Saturday on Fox Primetime Hoops. It's another chapter in a Big Ten rivalry as Tyson Walker leads Michigan State in a showdown

against Michigan. It all fits off at 8 Eastern 5 Pacific on Fox and the Fox Sports Avenue. All right. So the Super Bowl favorites for next year, put them up guys. Niners, Chiefs, Ravens, Bills, Bengals, they squeeze the lions in there. Believe it when I see it, but I am happy for Detroit. Oh, people say, what's the point of the regular season if it's always the same teams? One of about to tell you is fact, not an opinion.

During the New England Brady Dynasty, there was very little change at the top of the NFL, and the ratings went up and up and up. Fact, dynasties get ratings, change doesn't. I'm old enough to remember the NBA in the 70s, a new champ every year, ratings, tanked. And then Magic and Bird arrived. One or both made the NBA finals for a decade straight. The ratings exploded. Stefan LeBron, the old heads, a couple Saturday nights ago, played an overtime game, one of the big NBA ratings of the year. Familiarity. It's the way our brains are designed. Go to your Reddit board and have a big opinion about change. It doesn't get ratings. Been doing this 30 years. Dynasties do. Familiaries do. Familiar.

familiarity does. Michigan against Alabama. That's going to get you a number. Texas. Alabama, Ohio State. Those get numbers. TCU and Boise State didn't. Sorry. March madness. Duke loses.

Kentucky loses. Kansas loses. It hurts the ratings. Over the last 21 seasons, only six quarterbacks have even made the Super Bowl from the AFC. It's going to be Mahalms, Brady, and a little Manning, a majority of them. People are creatures of habit.

Same drive to work. Same doctor. Same dentist. Same vacation spots. That's just the way people are. Overwhelmingly. Again, repetition. Repetition creates security and comfort.

Security and comfort create in our brains happiness. There are people that like constant change and flux. But if you look at the demographics and the same, stats on war time. Anytime America's in a serious war, the sales of comfort food go up. We are seeking comfort. Anytime there's chaos.

Anytime there's uncertainty. And it works that way for sports. We say we want new. Really? You think the Houston Texans next year against the Carolina Panthers really can't wait? Pinch me, tell me it's real. I'm not interested. I want Mahalms against the Niners. again, or maybe a Joe Burrow

or a Josh Allen, and I was never bothered when the Rams met the Patriots, even though the game was bad. I got McVeigh and Belichick and Brady. Game doesn't always result in greatness, but I was okay with the teams that got there, the bright new coach and the old legendary

coach and the quarterback. So everybody tells you they want change. No, they don't. March Madness, you are all rooting for Cinderella. The networks aren't. The networks want Duke to win by one in overtime against that 13 seed, but they want Duke to play in two days, not the number 13 seed. Mahomes just broke a Super Bowl record.

And if he played next year and Taylor's still hanging out with Travis, it'll probably break another record. Carolina and the Texans won't. The Jags in Atlanta won't. Change is overrated. People like continuity, continuity equals comfort, comfort equals happiness. Give me more Chiefs Niners. I'm okay with it.

Nick, right next. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the 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-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that experience. excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that

not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.