The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - Faces of the league

Episode Date: February 27, 2025

Colin states the NBA has only had three faces of the league: Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, and LeBron James. Matt Stafford's reps are talking with multiple teams The Mavericks weren't ready for the divorce with LukaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick. Tired and sick.

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

Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear.

Listen to SportsSlic on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Here's something that should not be as complicated as it is, getting a racist statue removed. And here's something that should be a whole lot easier than it is, getting a new one put up in its place. I'm Akila Hughes, and Rebel Spirit season two is about both of those things. As I was watching these statues come down, I was thinking about what it meant that I grew up in a majority of black city. which there were more homages to enslavers than there were to enslave people. Listen to Rebel Spirit Season 2 on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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 Heard at Fox SportsRadio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. Loaded, ready to roll, live in Los Angeles. It's the Hurt. Wherever you may be, however you may be watching or listening, thanks for making us part of your day.

J. Mack, I've got an interesting lead today. There are things that I talked about this all week long. Outside of the NFL, all sports are sick. And that, you know, the Dodgers get show Hey, O'Donnell. and it literally helped the entire league. Revenue sharing, Fox ratings were up. Show Hey, O'Tonnie, just driving up I-5, Angels to Dodgers, help the league. NFL doesn't matter who ends up.

But there's been a lot of talk about the NBA, and they need a face of the league. And I'm going to tell you something right now. The only thing more overrated than face of the league is people that buy gigantic houses. And they spend their next seven years yelling at their kids upstairs in the 20s, 7,000 square foot house. Whenever I see these rich people buy these huge houses, I'm like, you can't possibly have kids. You're screaming

constantly to find them. Smaller the house, the more the love in the house. You're around each other, right? And I've always had this feeling about face of the league. The NBA's had three all time. No, no, you think they've had eight, ten.

Wilt wasn't the face of the league. He was flaky and weird. Kareem was the best player for over a decade, stoic. I mean, you watch the HBO series on Kareem. That was very accurate. He was difficult to get along with. And Magic Johnson gets along with everybody.

The league has had, there's a story this morning. Jason Tatum gets glossed over or ignored when observers consider face of the league. Hell, he wasn't facing the Celtics in the finals. Jalen Brown was. Marcus Smart two years earlier was taking the ball from him. there's something about movie stars. Tom Cruise is a movie star. John Malkovich is a great actor.

Denzel Washington, that's a movie star. Jeremy Irons, you could argue maybe a better actor, some would say. Maybe not. But there's a cool and a charisma. Tatum's excellent. He's not in the same zip code as cool. Zion had a chance to be face of the league, but he ate himself out of place.

playing time. John Morant maybe had a chance. He wasn't mature enough. There's been three faces of the league, and I've been watching this league since I was on a bunk bed in 1972 watching Wilton the Lakers, old wilt with a headband, Jerry West, Gail Goodrich. Yes, yes, that's why I got this gray hair. I've watched a lot of NBA in the 70s.

The rest of you collected baseball cards. I collected NBA cards. Three faces of the league. Magic, Michael, and LeBron. And that is it. What about Kobe Bryant? He wasn't as popular as Shaq. People worshipped Kobe's talent.

People liked Shaq. What about Steph Curry? He's close, but you can have one face of the league, and in his prime, LeBron was in his prime. And Steph's never really sold shoes. And by the way, you generally have to be the best player on your own team. For several years with KD, he wasn't. And I'm a huge Steph fan. So there's a couple of factors that are really important.

First of all, and this is why Steph is close. You have to have an otherworldly talent. We'd never seen anything like Magic Johnson. The smile, the passes. He was a six-nine point guard. Against the Sixers in the finals, he played centered and scored 42 points. Michael Jordan, greatest player ever. Nobody played like Michael.

He'd never seen anything like Michael. And LeBron James, again, walked into the league. The first night of the NBA at a high school, he scored 20 points. He was scoring 40 later that year. So you have to have otherworldly talent. You also have to want it. Michael, Magic, and LeBron are outstanding business guys. They read the business page before they read the sports page.

And number three, it really helps if we're introduced to you early. We're watching Michael Jordan as a freshman at North Carolina. Who is this kid? We're watching Magic Johnson win a naddy. over Larry Bird National Championship, Judd Heathcote, the Spartans. Who's this kid with all the crazy passes? And LeBron James in high school, the chosen one. This is where, this is where, like Tim Duncan was good enough, but boring.

Kareem was great enough, but stoic. Kobe, little moody, little difficult, Shaq was more liked. But it really helps if we're introduced to you early, and that's where it hurts the international guys. I mean, I'm not sitting watching Lithuanian basketball on YouTube. Maybe you are. Most people are not. And that's why Zion had a chance. His YouTube stuff blew up in his crazy dunks, and then he goes to Duke,

and then there's the shoe deal where it explodes, and it's Nike, and you're like, okay, here it goes. And he got a taste of that jumbly and that New Orleans food, which I had for a week, and, you know, he went a little sideways. A lot of sideways. So, international guys sort of get dropped on. to bad teams and then you look up three years later with Yonison go, who, that guy's amazing. We like the journey in America. We love the journey.

We want to be introduced to you. The movie air with Michael Jordan, we want to see a struggle. I mean, Magic Johnson, the personal stuff, HIV, we've seen Magic's journey. We love Magic. If you're at a Laker game, and this is the craziest thing, magic's everywhere in Los Angeles. If you're in a Laker game and Magic Johnson, walks into the arena. I am not joking. The crowd stands. It's insane. It's like he's all over town. You see him driving around town. Karim walks into the arena. Arguably a greater player.

Nobody gets up. He's an intellect. He's fascinating. I have tons of respect for him. He was the best player when I was a kid. Better than Wilk, for sure. Greater offensive player than Russell, who I didn't see play live. But there is a charisma and a star power. J. L. L. Brown isn't it? Nobody's overlooking Jalen Brown. The only guy that's got an argument. To me, a real argument is Steph Curry. But there's one face of the

league, and in his prime, LeBron was in his prime. And so, and I don't think sports need to have a face of the league. I mean, Otani is the face of baseball with Aaron Judge. Both appear to be great guys. One in New York, one in L.A.

Do you have to have one? I mean, to me, in baseball, it's more about what teams are winning. If the Yankees are winning, if the Dodgers are winning, Atlanta, Cubs, viable, maybe the Mets, baseball's fine. Phillies help as well, and that's why they're good. But this talk about face of the league, there's been three in my lifetime. It's not just about productivity, or Jeremy Irons would be the face of Hollywood. Denzel's been that. Tom Hanks has been that. Tom Cruise has been that. There's a formula for all this stuff, and that's why it's so damn hard.

Some of the guys don't want it. I'm not sure Wemby wants it. I think Ant, by the way, if Ant played in Los Angeles, I think you'd have a shot. If Wemby was in New York, international, maybe a shot. But there's a lot of components to this stuff, and I don't think Jason Tatum, and this is not disrespectful to his game, but when I watch the finals, I mean, they shipped Marcus Smart out of town, a defensive guard. he was taking the ball out of Jason Tatum's hands.

Nobody took it out of LeBron's hands, including Kyrie Irving and D.Waig. Nobody took the ball to Michael's hands. And Kareem, you run the show. There is an alpha. There is a formula. Jason Tatum's a great player. But he's closer to Duncan in personality than magic. Just think about this.

Close your eyes unless you're driving and listening on radio. Let's close our eyes. Close our eyes. think about Magic Johnson you can see the smile think about Michael you can see that cocky grin think about LeBron

you can see the imagery pregame chock you can close your eyes and there's images with stars close your eyes now and do it with Tatum I don't see anything 26 a night I don't see anything

close your eyes and do it with Duncan. You see a rebound? I'm not being harsh here. I can close my eyes and I see Magic Johnson smile and laugh. I see Michael Jordan in the documentary. His intensity, his brooding intensity, but his likability. LeBron James, say what you want. I close my eyes.

I can see his game running down the floor, blocking things. There's a formula to this stuff. I don't think the NBA needs it, but we've had three. all time. That's it. Okay, I got one other thing I want to touch up. And I may have been rambling there, but, you know, I feel strongly about that. So,

I've said this before. I'm divorced. When you get a divorce, you got to be a grown-up. Okay? Guys, if you're going to get a divorce, you have to realize she may date somebody that's better looking than you and much more successful than you.

Are you comfortable with that? Grass is always greener. Are you comfortable with that? So when the Dallas Mavericks made that trade, what we're finding out, they're now bad-mouthing the X. Stories are now leaking on Luca. Here's one of the stories that is leaking on Luca. Athletic had a story. According to Sam Amick, the people who witnessed Luca's last days in Dallas, call him lazy.

They talk about the weight issues. They mention the social habits. The athletic has reported on such a taste for beer and hookah. That ain't the only thing they smoke it in the NBA. I'm just saying. And if you've been in New York, go to a hookah bar. It's a good time. Folks, Michael Jordan smoked cigars, drank wine,

played 36 holes on days of playoff games. He's the go. Shaq came into the season out of shape. I mean, right now, pot is wine in the NBA. It's fine. The bottom line is they weren't ready for this divorce. They thought this divorce was all about Anthony Davis and getting the lazy guy out.

They had no idea how much it would tick off Dallas fans, and now they're reeling. I saw a story this. morning and by the way all those bad work habits got Luca five-time first-team all-pro okay it didn't hurt him that much didn't hurt Michael that much he was playing late-night game smoking his 17th cigar in four hours leaking stuff makes them look bad the Mavericks ticket prices have fallen 40 percent and you know what Luke is now dating Got a lot of trophies.

Crypto Arena, bigger brand. And they didn't think about it. They just didn't think about that. This was all about getting him out. They had no idea how big the Lakers brand is. They had no idea that it would create this incredible LeBron James joy and energy, and they're not here for it. So they're just leaking stuff to make him look bad.

First of all, none of this stuff is a surprise. There's a piece of video years ago, Luca, after winning or getting to a championship level, somebody takes a beer out of his hand. The other thing is kids drink earlier in Europe. Kids are drinking wine with their parents when they're 15 years old. In Europe, go there. More people smoke. It's just a different lifestyle. It's a very relaxed lifestyle.

Long lunches, a lot of sags, a lot of wine for kids, little chill, afternoon siestas. So this is a team that thought they were ready for the divorce. And Luke upgraded. And by the way, in the same conference, just moved down the street. Drives by the house all the time. And you don't like what it feels like. All right. A lot of stuff today.

J-MAC, got some NFL Combine stuff. Do you see the report cards out? I did. Some of the stuff's actually funny. Do you see the Bengals got an F on food? I'm not surprised. How do you get an F on food? They don't give the guys three meals a day.

That's crazy. I mean, some of the stuff out there is bad. By the way, you mentioned a hookah lounge earlier. Met my wife at a hookah lounge in New York City. Yeah. Now it starts as a hookah lounge and then late night it gets into like a vibe lounge type spot where they move the hookas to the side. But hookah loucala lounges are great. Have you done that?

I've done that. I took into a hookah lounge in New York. And we did a lot of hookah in Luca. Huka, is it a verb? We just had a very good time. Hookud. Yeah. I still can't get, like, text or, it's just text.

Yeah. There is nothing beyond text. Is that plural? I don't know. But you go to a hookah bar, and I just laugh at this because it's like, we've all understood in the NBA, KD talks about this. It's pot as wine. Nobody cares. No, the bottom line is, do you have game or do you not have game?

By the way, again, this would be a bigger deal. That's why Luke is not going to be the face of the league. Michael Jordan wouldn't even talk about politics. Luke is unbelievably productive, but he wants his beer, he wants his hook, and he's not going to be in great shape. Avois said he's closer to Carmelo than he is to Michael Jordan. And by the way, Carmelo is a Hall of Famer.

But there are certain guys that just aren't going to be the face of the league, and they don't want to be the face of the league. Yokic, the minute he won a title, they asked him about the parade. And he was like, I got to go to a parade. I just want to go home and play with my horses. Like, some guys don't want to be faces of the league. I do have to ask, I got a text during your rant about face of the league.

magic but no Larry Bird. Okay, great example. No. Should they belong together as a package feel? No. No. Okay. So because Larry Bird, grumpy, had no interest in it, didn't have the look or the

charisma. Larry Bird is much more John Malkovich. Absolutely respected by everybody in Hollywood, almost worship. John Malkovich walks into a room of actors. Everybody's like, there's the best actor. Denzel walks in and everybody goes, damn, that's a movie star. I told you the other day. There's one person in Hollywood, maybe Denzel too, but the one person in Hollywood, if they walked into this room, I would be nervous.

It's not Jeremy Irons. It's Tom Cruise. And so Larry Bird was this French lick, grumpy, didn't, I mean, really, I mean, go look at the movies done about, like, Magic and Bert. He was grumpy. He hated the media. Magic is in Beverly Hills with Jerry Bus and the convertible sports car having the time of his life. and magic, I mean, the name magic. So Larry was...

Larry was very French Lake Indiana, and I love Larry. But, I mean, ask yourself, I've said this before. Los Angeles is a global city. Boston's a domestic city. Boston is, it's, you know, the town, departed. Like, every third guy's a mobster. Like, I mean, everybody I know from Boston has a chip on their shoulder. It's sort of insular. It's incredibly insular. It's one of the only cities in the country that does not watch any sports outside of their market.

When I used to work at the other place, I saw a test on this. Boston watches Boston sports. Now, New York will watch the Rose Bowl. New York will watch the World Series if they're not in it. They'll watch, I mean, New York is a, they'll watch anything. L.A. will watch stuff. Seattle, Denver. Boston watches Boston. Boston people vacation in Massachusetts. Cape. New Yorkers go down to Florida. New Yorkers will go west. New Yorkers will go to Europe. Boston guy goes to the Cape. That's a take right there. You just came up with that on the fly, didn't you? Hey, this thing never flips off. Clearly. Okay, if you feel like owning a home is out of reach, Rocket is here to give you back the keys because they believe everybody deserves a shot

at the American Dream. Visit rocket.com or call 800 for Rocket. 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. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, name? Huge news. We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast?

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

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

Another podcast from some SNL, late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert 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.

Jacob Kingston grew up in an isolated polygamous sect. We were God's chosen kingdom on earth. He felt destined for greatness. So when a swaggering Armenian businessman catapults Jacob into an extraordinary world, he doesn't look back. Ferraris and Lamborghinis, private jets, meeting the president of Turkey. I'm Michelle McPhee, and this is one of the most shocking criminal conspiracies I've ever come across. When Jacob met Levin this went to a billion dollar fraud. But with two kings from entirely different worlds, just how long can their empire survive?

The largest tax investigation in American history. You need to tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Jacob told Levan, you're ruining my life. Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened.

That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered.

SportsLice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicelife-12 and the TikTok podcast. network on TikTok. All right, you're now entering the no bull zone brought to you by credible great rates with none of the bull. So NFL combine's going on. It's actually known as a week when a lot of executives go and deals get made and, you know, it's not just guys in shorts running 40s and cone drills. It's a lot of executives go there, late nights, cocktails, cigars, and figure out deals. So I saw a story this morning

the Giants met with Matthew Stafford's agent in Indianapolis. So there's two scenarios where I will defend Matt Stafford. If he stays with the Rams, obviously, great coach, great org, very good roster, franchise momentum, McVeigh's had one losing season,

they were driving to beat the Eagles in a snowstorm. If he stays and takes a little less, and I'm not going to get into players money too much, but I would defend him. I would also defend him on going to the Raiders because I think Pete Carrier, and Chip Kelly are a really, really good combination as a staff. They don't have any momentum, but there's no state tax.

They've got a good left tackle. Actually, I like some of the young offensive linemen at center and right tackle. They got Max Crosby, and they have a weapon in Brock Bowers that you cannot cover. You can literally, he is the greatest tight-end prospect, now in the league. Last year is a rookie. They were bad at quarterback, and you still can't cover it. And they're going to go in the draft, and it's a great running back draft, and the Raiders need a running back so what they need the draft is going to provide. I would excuse it. Listen,

if the Rams offer him two years and 90 million, and the Raiders offer him four years and 170 million in no state tax from California to get on the freeway west, east, head east, I'm going to defend that. But if he goes to the New York Giants, it's a money grab. I mean, that's like Robinson Canoe going from the Yankees to the Mariners. I lost respect. You're not about winning. You're not about competing. It's just a money grab. In a way, it would be like Katie to Brooklyn.

Now, KD. to Brooklyn was not a money grab, but it was kind of weird, right? Like he just wanted to go where he wanted to go and he didn't feel loved. Matt Stafford has loved. Everybody loves Matt Stafford. But there are realities that you can get trapped very quickly in this league on old quarterbacks. Denver, Cleveland. If somebody's been banged up a few times and Matt Stafford's taking a lot of hits, the Rams have leverage here.

And their leverage is we're one of the five best run franchises in the league. And the Giants are a bad organization. Eight years, one playoff game, one playoff win, I think it is. I mean, the head coach and the GM, and I think they both had us say, let's say Juan Barkley walk to a rival. That's probably more Joe Shane than Brian Thable, but it's not a good organization. So I will defend him if he gets four years and goes to the Raiders, because I think Pete and Chip Kelly are going to work.

And it's a tough division, but can you imagine that division with Herbert, Bo Nix, Matt Stafford, and Mahomes? Here's Albert Brewer yesterday on Vegas, the fit for Stafford. I think it makes some sense for the Raiders in that I think so much of what Tom Brady is doing and trying to establish there is to add credibility to the organization. Pete Carroll obviously is a very credible head coaching hire. John SpyTech is well respected across the NFL coming in as a lot. is GM. You've got resources, which is part of how you pay, say, $6 million a year to go and get Chip Kelly. And adding Matthew Stafford, a quarterback, I think, would make some sense from that standpoint in that you're going to be able to get competitive quicker.

Yeah, I'll defend him on that. I'll defend him. I still think he's going to stay with the Rams. J. Mack with the news. No, no, no, no, turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, let's start with the Philadelphia Eagles, Colin. before that Super Bowl victory, remember there were a lot of rumors about drama with A.J. Brown and J.L. and Hurtz they had like a fractured relationship.

Brandon Graham had said something on a radio show in December saying that their interactions had changed and then there was an apology. But it doesn't seem to matter because Philly whooped the Chiefs in the Super Bowl and Brown addressed their relationship on a recent podcast.

I'll be seen up here lying to you that we never had any issues. Like, you know, we two guys, two alphas who wants to be the best and demand greatness from each other and everyone around us. So

some reports are true, some reports aren't true, but me and him good man, you know, we just want to be great and like I said, we push each other and, you know, sometimes you know, we bump heads, but, you know, that's normal, you know, and don't nobody sweat it.

Yeah, I'm about over chatty wide receiver, calling out quarterbacks. Let's be honest about this team with Devonte Smith, Dallas Gartor, Sequin, Barclay and that O'Line, you could move off A.J. Brown. He's very, very good.

Oh, no, he's excellent. No, I love him. I also love D.K. Metcalfe. Seattle could move off him. Well, wait, Seattle doesn't want anything with Metcalf. This guy is instrumental to winning. He's very, very good player, but I think wide receiver is,

Buffalo proved it. I mean, Kansas City proved it. Buffalo hasn't won anything. Casey has Patrick Mahomes. You're willing to move off A.J. Brown right now? No, I'm saying they have to move off players. Howie Roseman has come out in the last 48 hours and said it's going to be interesting. It's going to be a very, just be patient with us.

They've got to move off a couple of big pieces. Are you going to pay a linebacker? Are you going to pay that linebacker big money? You can find a linebacker. You can't find an A.J. Brown. No, but I can find 80% of A.J. Brown. I'm over. You're so well built, because DeVantta Smith is amazing.

against zones. And if you go, man, nobody can guard A.J. Brown. You saw him cook McDuffie in the Super Bowl. Like he's, I don't want to say unguardable, but he's definitely a top five receiver. I'm not, I'm not doubting that. But I will tell you is December and January, deep threats do not have the impact that they do early. This Philadelphia team's soul is that offensive line, that quarterback, and that running back. So if Seekwan Barkley, who's like all class, would never call out a quarterback, ever under any circumstances. If he did, I'd swallow hard and deal with it.

I'm not, I don't want to hear this stuff. I would call him in right now and say, you're not talking about the quarterback publicly, or we're going to move you to Jacksonville. But before you say that, I think you should go to Mike Vrable and be like, hey, how was life before and after A.J. Brown

in Tennessee? How'd that work out? Because apparently all the reports say Brable was Cress. Yeah, but Tennessee didn't have anybody else. They've always been receiver-like. They had Derek Henry and Tana Hill. They were their number one seat in the AFC one year. You're comparing that Tennessee team to this Philadelphia roster? I would say, A.J. Brown, I'd say, first and last warning, we don't talk about our quarterback publicly.

We're not doing that. The sole of this team is the GM, the O-line, Sequin, and J-Lond. I think a grown man who's wealthy and talented is going to take that. How is he going to take being traded to Jacksonville? I'm sorry. The one thing that's going to unravel this thing is chatter. Would that be like if you came to me and said, J. Mack, no more Austin Reeves love on this show. You can't do it anymore.

We're going to ship you. If I had a better old line, I would. I'd ship you to the Bravo Network. Oh, damn. Next story is the Pittsburgh Steelers. They still haven't decided on the quarterback McCullen. There's more leaks than the Iraqi Navy right now in Pittsburgh. According to Steelers insider, Mark Kabuli,

the team wants Justin Fields over Russell Wilson. Now what do you mean the team? Is that... Well, that's like everybody except the owner apparently. Justin Fields is the guy they want, but you can't put all your eggs in your... You can't put all the eggs in your basket. And while they wait for them, they've got to pretend like they're interested in everybody. Now, Art Rooney, apparently, the owner really liked Russell Wilson.

There's some speculative stuff about sponsors and Russell Wilson really plays well with them and all that nonsense out there. apparently they cannot afford Matt Stafford. That's another report. So right now it's very chatty and that's not normal in Pittsburgh. Is it? Usually they're buttoned up. Right now it just feels, ooh. Does Pittsburgh realize, is anybody in the media going to acknowledge this now? They're quickly becoming a have-not.

They really are. Their offense in the last eight years, look at it. It's an offensive league. They will again be the most money spent on defense. They are tone deaf. to the most important side of the ball. I don't care about a coach that's never been under 500. That, like, what?

Okay, how about this? So the Steelers are in the playoffs? They've got a really high floor. The Steelers' ceiling is way lower. Last four or five playoff games. They've been blown out. Okay, so let's say you were born in 2012, right? And you're an NFL fan.

Basically, you're a fan of the Steelers. You're in the playoffs every year. You're contending. What if you're a Jets fan born in 2012? No, never stiff playoff. You wouldn't take that? If you're born in 2012, You're 13 years old.

You couldn't buy any of the products or tickets anyway. Who cares? You know my point. Like, the Steelers fans have something to cheer every year. We're in the playoffs. We're contending. Meanwhile, you've got other have-nots like the Jets. We're not even in the playoffs.

I think you should be happy. I think the Steelers have become a high floor, incredibly low-ceiling team. I don't even, I don't, I mean, if I expect- There's nothing wrong with that. Not everybody's going to win the Super Bowl every single year. When you've got trophies, like how many they got five trophies? I think it is a problem.

It was a problem with the Dodgers until last year. You're looking around and going, okay, you're great every year, winning your division. Outside of that shortened season, was it a strike season or a shortened season and won a World Series? It was like the Dodgers are like, no, no, we're the Dodgers, we lead the league in revenue, we're second to the Yankees, we sell at our stadium, we have great attendance, we have huge payroll. You've got to win. You have to win in baseball in October. The Yankees have had one bad season in 15 years. And that was not acceptable.

So when you're sealing, the Steelers, the Packers, the Yankees, these are big brand, Georgia football. Eight wins is not good enough. In the NFL, it's more about the quarterback than the brand, right? Since Mahomes, Allen, and Jackson, they got that conference on lock for the next decade, calling. Steelers, there's no way they're cracking this guy. They're not beating those guys. I don't care what you do at quarter of them. The Stalers.

They're a stale franchise. All right, final story is the Kansas City Chiefs fell short. of the three-peat attempt and one of their biggest off-season questions is Travis Kelsey. Is he going to come back? GM Brett Veach spoke to the media this week and discussed Kelsey's status. I'm not sure how coach answered that. How we left at the end of the season is that he was fired up. He has one more year under contract and still think he has that fired and desire to play. And as far as I'm concerned, there is no deadline. I think we left it as he'd be back and we're excited to get him back and get him Get him going.

A lot of people selling that stock in Kansas City. I'm going to say this. There'll be a playoff team next year. Oh, way to go out of a limb there. So you demanded yesterday, I do a mock draft. It's almost complete. Yeah, when are you going to get that done? I have the Chiefs going tight end, the Michigan tight end Loveland.

Yeah, good player. So Kelsey Tudors him, shows him how to be a pro, and then goes off into the sunset. That's not who they're going to pick. They're going to pick an offensive tackle from Minnesota. I have him Oh yeah, wow, look at you, you're on your mocks, huh? That guy's, he's on my list here. I was told, I was told, I was told, I was told, I was told to, what's the date today?

I was told three months ago at a hookabar, I was told that he was the most underrated offensive lineman in the draft, the kid from Minnesota. He's very good. Jay Mack with it is. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd Lie News. The, um, no, it's, uh, so is a mock, when's a mock draft come out?

Uh, should be complete here in the next hour. And then I'll send it to the, uh, the editors, the big powers and they will, uh, make it look pretty important. What did you make of the Abdul Carter surgery? Why not just have surgery today? Yeah. I mean, I, to me, I don't think this is a strong enough draft to hurt him. I think he's going to be the number two pick, number three. He'll be a top three pick, regardless. I don't think it matters if you're the number one pick.

The top three picks make some pretty good money. Yeah, if the Giants get their quarterback here, whether it's, Stafford, Rogers, whoever, then yeah, they'll take Abdul Carter at three. And the draft starts with the Patriots at four. Do they go, I don't want to go too long here, but the Patriots are setting up for a Penae-Soole versus Jamar Chase decision. Do you go offensive line or do you go Travis Hunter? And who's this with? The Patriots at four.

Because they need an offensive line. They have their quarterback. I would say this. New England for the last three years feels like they've been the slowest team in the league. So to me, if you bring in Travis Hunter and I'm Mike Vrable, I'm sorry. I'm like, dude, I need you at receiver. Because I actually think the Patriots corners are pretty good. Yeah, Gonzalez is excellent.

I'd say, listen, you're going to make more money at receiver, Travis. I want you at wide receiver. If you want to be in nickel packages, but I want you to get, I want you to eat. Because New England just is not dynamic enough. They don't have enough speed. And so I think Travis Hunter works for them. Yeah, no, like Travis Hunter four.

Yeah. Mock draft season, baby. I'll tell you, you know, let me have, let me have. to this question. This is a combine question. I think this is a draft of mostly B quarterback talent. But if B quarterbacks drop and end up with A franchises, isn't that better than a quarterback prospects ending up on C franchises? So if you look at Shador Sanders, I don't think he would drop. But if he dropped to the Jets, well, hell, that's a good roster. So my take is this year you're going to have Kyle McCord at Syracuse,

Jackson Dart, Riley Leonard. Okay, if they were more talented, they would be draft higher to bad franchises. I would not be shocked if Kyle McCord goes to the second round to like a really good football team. Pittsburgh Steelers? Well, just like a really good roster with stability. So it's an interesting year where the quarterback, I think Cam Ward absolutely has some A traits.

I think he's got a big time arm, and he's really mobile. He's a little too ad libby for me, but there's no question. You will watch Cam Ward at multiple times next season and go, wow. He has got Travis Hunter, wow. I don't know if it wears well. I don't know if he can sit in the pocket, but he's got A traits. Shadur doesn't. Shadur's a B guy across the board.

Really accurate, but there's not a lot of wow to his game. He's super accurate, and he's had to carry Colorado. with no run game and a bad old line. That's my favorite part of him. But this almost happens all the time. Like in the NBA, it's different. In the NBA, you can go, this is a bad draft. Remember the Victorola Depot draft?

And you can look at basketball because I think you can see basketball talent when it's 15 years old. I mean, if you've got 42-inch hops and you've got the shoulders and the game, I've always told the story, I walked in to a gym in Hartford, Connecticut. And my daughter was playing basketball, and there were seven gyms. There were seven gyms. I sat down. There was a bunch of coaches there. And I sat and it was like seventh, eighth, ninth grade girls. I sat down with a coach. And in 30 seconds, I go, who's that girl in the far court with the handles? He's like, the best player. I mean, there was the 75 girls playing. And in your eyes went, oh, who's the girl breaking ankles over there? And he's like, yeah, she's in eighth grade. She'll be, she'll be, you can't be looking at her. You can go to a football camp. Football players develop more slowly. because it's so much about power and physicality. A lot of times you have a 340-pound kid,

and he's got good feet. But I talk to a lot of recruiting coaches. A lot of times are like these high school kids that come to college, even Alabama, they're not strong enough. They're just not strong enough. That's not an issue in the NBA. Kobe Bryant at 17 years old could play with NBA guys.

Tracy McGrady, LeBron at 16, they could play with NBA guys. Right? So there's a different, I mean, all NBA guys, even the big guys, Michael Jordan, if you put him next to Barry Bonds, Michael looked like a straw. He was so skinny.

So there's a physicality to football. So a lot of guys in football, it's really hard. If the NFL was like college and you got one year of playing, 80% of the first round would be busts. You need to let football players grow and develop. I mean, let's be honest about football. Offensive players have to memorize essentially a playbook the size of LA's phone book. So there's an intellectual thing to it. Can you learn quickly?

And a general manager told me this years ago. And I thought that was a great line. He had talked to Ray Lewis years ago, and he said, you know, Ray Lewis made a point to this GM. And it's like, there is something, when you've been a great high school player, if you go to a good college, you dominated high school, you ran over kids. And then you go to college and your challenge, but if you're really great, you still run over guys. in the NFL, outside of Derek Henry or Adrian Peterson, nobody's running over anybody, and so much of it is, is it here? Do you want to get into a car wreck 62 times every Sunday at the line of scrimmage?

I mean, Ray Lewis knew, Ray Lewis used to do this thing on Saturday night. He talks about this. He would light the canyles, candles. It was a religious experience. Like Ray Lewis looked at it like, I'm going into battle. I am going into the opposite. octagon for three and a half hours. So so much of Ray Lewis's greatness, he wasn't the biggest linebacker, he wasn't the

fastest linebacker, he wasn't the best linebacker in space. Ray Lewis was the nastiest linebacker. He had the late junior sayout, like you just didn't want to get tackled by Junior Seahou. You didn't want to get tackled by Erlacker. So football's a different dynamic.

And so when you need four years of film to figure out who can play and even with that, first rounds 30% busts. So I think when you have all these B quarterbacks in this draft, they're going to go to A franchises. I think Kyle McCord at Syracuse, nobody's talking about him. If he goes in the second round, like, and he goes, by the way, I'm trying to think of a team where you get an older quarterback. He drops to a well-run franchise.

And you sort of look up in three years and go, Jesus. Kyle McCord's really good. Well, that's what happens when you have, quote, good parents. You know, three, all this is why Green Bay, Jordan Love. I mean, half the GMs I knew didn't like Jordan Love. They're like, there was the marijuana thing, he was too loose, interceptions, he regressed his last year. You look up now and you're like, he's a star. Why?

80% of that's Green Bay. 80% of that is Green Bay. All right, we take a break live in LA, it's the herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, it's Steve Kavino. And I'm Rich Davis. And together we're Kavino and Rich on Fox Sports Radio. You could catch us weekdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific on Fox Sports Radio

and, of course, the IHeart Radio app. Why should you listen to Kavino and Rich? We talk about everything, life, sports, relationships, what's going on in the world? We have a lot of fun talking about the stories behind the stories in the world of sports and pop culture. Stories that, well, other shows don't seem to have the time to discuss. And the fact that we've been friends for the last 20 years and still work together, I mean, that says something, right? So check us out.

We like to get you involved, too. take your phone calls, chop it up as they say. I'd say the most interactive show on Fox Sports Radio. Maybe the most interactive show on Planet Earth. Be sure to check out Covino & Rich live on Fox Sports Radio and the IHeart Radio app from 5 to 7 p.m. Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific. And if you miss any of the live show, just search Covino and Rich, wherever you get your podcast and, of course, on social media.

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

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

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

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

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly.

what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaders to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more, follow Timbo Slical Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Jacob Kingston grew up in an isolated polygamous sect. We were God's chosen kingdom on earth. He felt destined for greatness. So when a swaggering Armenian businessman catapults Jacob into an extraordinary world, he doesn't look back. Ferraris and Lamborghini's, private jets, meeting the president of Turkey. I'm Michelle McPhee, and this is one of the most shocking criminal conspiracies I've ever come across. When Jacob met Levant this plant to a billion dollar fraud. But with two kings from entirely

different worlds, just how long can their empire survive? The largest tax investigation in American history. You need to tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Jacob told Levan, you're ruining my life. Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Tomorrow, Fox College Hoops Friday tips off at 8 Eastern with a big 10 showdown as 20th ranked Purdue looks to stick their claim for the conference crown against UCLA. By the way, give the audience a heads up. Who's your final four right now? Oh, jeez.

After a rough night in college, it's for me. Well, Yukon struggled. Purdue struggled a little bit. It's tough. Duke Scooper Flag, you have to put them in there for sure. I like Houston a little bit. They're looking pretty sharp. Auburn is incredible, and I'll go Alabama as well. I think the SEC is the best.

I've never seen a conference with that many good teams. It's loaded. It's like nine deep, ten deep at the SEC. It's incredible. So yesterday, we talked about this briefly, the NFLPA, the National Football League, Player Association. hands-out grades for their teams. It's anonymous.

So they vote on coach, owner, food, travel, weight room, and treatment of family. So it doesn't mean anything. To me, I don't really care that much. The largest decline of any team in the league that went down year-to-year the most, the Philadelphia Eagles. By the way, number one is Miami, and they haven't won a playoff game in 25 years. The Raiders are near the top, the chiefs are near the bottom. So I can remember when USC, the last time USC football was a national power,

Pete Carroll was there, they had horrible facilities. I mean, prisons had better weight rooms. Now they have beautiful facilities and they can't beat Maryland and Minnesota. What does it matter? So when I hear about, you know, food and elite travel, apparently Patriot players were upset. They don't get good Wi-Fi on the plane. Sorry you can't watch Netflix.

Tackle better. The one place the chief's got an A-plus, head coach. And I've said this to friends. I love that I get free coffee at Fox. I get Cafe Americanos. I have like four a day. And they got gummy bears everywhere. The best part about Fox, management, lets me say whatever I want to say and leaves me alone.

It's all about coaching. I don't care about your plane, player empowerment, treatment of family. It would be great if you offer daycare for all the kids all the time. It would be great. But I've always had this feeling. I covered Mike Tyson in his prime. And I was a sportscaster in Las Vegas. And his favorite gym to work out at was the darkest, dingiest, smallest gym in Las Vegas.

It was called Johnny Toko's ringside gym. Rest in peace to a beautiful, older boxing guy. Johnny was a wonderful human being. I would hang out in his gym. I watched so many fighters in that gym. Tyson loved it. And you know why Mike Tyson loved it? Because he was going to work.

He was going to work. And when he walked into the ring, black trunks and a torn-up hoodie. He was going to work. If you're sitting worried about Wi-Fi and having the shiniest locker rooms, you don't care about what matters. Now, in college football, it's a little different because the players choose you. So I do think it matters that Ohio State and Texas and Oregon have beautiful facilities. It matters some.

But in the end, it's all about coaching and GMing, and the fact that Philadelphia had a major decline, and the Raiders are near the top. And I've heard this, by the way, I know the GM formerly in Vegas, and he said the facilities are amazing. I wish the owner was that good. I wish they'd get the better coaches. So I don't take a lot of stock in this stuff.

I think in college football facilities matter, but the one category that I think was promising is that 20 coaches received A's. And so I think Albert Breer talked about this yesterday is that players like their coaches, and that matters. One thing that's definitely notable is it's gotten better. Like, it seems like what they're doing is working. You know, they showed us a whole bunch of different statistics and metrics that show

that there are far fewer failing grades for teams that players are handing out. And I think a big part of that is that a lot of these guys were embarrassed by some of the stuff that was out there on their teams. And so I do think to some degree, some of that stuff's been fixed. Now, Cincinnati, and I don't even know how this is possible, got an F on food. Now, I have noted many times,

cheapest organization in the league. I do not know how you get an F on food. Are you giving these guys ho-hoes and ding-dongs for breakfast? Like, how do you get an F on food? I mean, you can't. What are you serving Joe Burrow for lunch that you would get a little? And F. TV dinners again, guys.

Hey guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick.

Tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman

help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app. Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo. And every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline.

And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice. on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicalife-12 in the TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Every family has its secrets. But what happens when you discover that your dad has been living a double life?

That is not the look of an innocent man. Is everyone lying to me about who they are? I felt such desperation. I felt it was what I had to do. Listen to Deep Cover the Family Man on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.