The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - NFL is giving you what you want

Episode Date: March 27, 2024

Colin breaks down why the NFL taking over Christmas day was an inevitable and correct decision He believes the Lakers proved that they're true Western Conference contenders after their double OT win over the Bucks The Cowboys need to move off of Dak Prescott after this season if they get bounced in the playoffs once againSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Thanks for making us part of your day. J. Mack, there are a handful of NBA games during the regular season that matter. Buck's Lakers last night, at least for the Lakers. That was a showing. That was something. Anthony Davis, Austin Reeves, total package. What a game. But I want to start with this.

We all have bosses. Even rich people who own companies like this one, they have shareholders, they have boards. Got to answer to somebody. I always laugh when people complain about the NFL, putting games on Christmas or Thursday night games. You do get that Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL, as 32 bosses, the NFL owners. He is an employee of the NFL. So the NFL yesterday announced they're going to play two games on Christmas,

and it's on a Wednesday. And all the complainers come out. Two games on Christmas Day, Wednesday in 2024. There's the headline. What would you do if you were Roger Goodell? Would you go tell your bosses? Yeah, it's going to get huge ratings, but you know, I just think it's too much.

There's a reason Roger Goodell keeps getting raises because he keeps thumping the NBA and baseball and pulling away from all the other sports. Ask yourself the question. Will you watch those games? Don't know. No, no, no. Will you watch the games? Yes, you will. The NFL put a playoff game on a streaming service, Peacock, not even one of the more popular ones.

It got 28 million views. 28 million viewers came into one. watch a boring playoff game, almost three times the NBA finals. It wasn't on Netflix. It wasn't on like Hulu. It wasn't on Amazon Prime. It was on Peacock. Got 28 million viewers.

The most streamed live event in U.S. history. You keep watching and they're going to keep putting stuff on streaming services on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving. Because you keep watching. Tech companies follow the demand of the audience. It doesn't matter if it's Apple, if it's Google, they're going to try stuff. Nobody liked the Google glasses, so they stop making them. Right? That's what tech companies do.

They keep rolling stuff out and they follow your demand. And for the record, I will watch an average NFL game over It's a Wonderful Life any day of the week. There is no proof. We've looked at all the numbers. Athletes don't get hurt more on short weeks like that. Thursday. They do not. There is no elevation of injuries. Wednesday games are going to be very infrequent. They're only doing it because of Christmas. And these games get huge ratings. There's two times in America. Everybody's sitting down in front of the TV not working. Thanksgiving,

NFL owns it. And now Christmas, NFL's saying, we're going to own it. And for the record, I like that the NFL, unlike baseball, has always been willing to move, change, and adapt. Overtime rules have changed multiple times. The kick-up. now this year is going to change some for safety measures some just to make the sport more interesting kickoffs were a dead play they're going to mess around with punts now too often there's fair catches i'm okay with it p a t roughing the passer is now going to be uh you can go to replay and review roughing the passer because people complain the nfl's always been willing to do that so you know my takeaway in this there are certain people out there maybe it's a brain function by certain

people they just want to complain about stuff but will you watch the games. Yes, 28 million people went to Peacock to watch a bad playoff game. The most streamed live event in U.S. history. You know, there's your answer. And the NFL more than every sport is always understood. It's a TV show and it's a business and that's where the income comes from. That's where the revenue comes from. So if we keep buying their new tech, they're going to keep selling their new tech. So I would ideally love if it was just a Sunday-Munday league, but I got to be honest, even though those games are bad on Thursday, I'm sitting down there on a Thursday night, and I end up watching most of them, as long as Carolina's

not in it. And these Wednesday Christmas games, last year they did Christmas games, they got massive numbers. They bludgeoned the NBA. And I think the NFL also sees an opportunity where the NBA's made some marketing mistakes. LeBron, Steph, KD, getting older, they are seizing a business opportunity and putting games right on a day that used to be owned by basketball. So there's not that many regular season NBA games that, you know, you have to, you feel like you get a real impact and that make a real statement.

I like watching NBA regular season games, but I don't think there's that many that truly matter, but you'll get down to the stretch after the All-Star break. You get down into these games, you watch them and you're like, that feels like it sort of resonates. Last night, the Lakers beat Milwaukee at Milwaukee. without LeBron 128, 124. And I thought it said a lot about the Lakers. Milwaukee is a team that's got size, doesn't know as utilize it.

They've been playing really good borderline playoff teams, 10 of their last 11 games. They look tired down the stretch. But it said a lot about the Lakers. First of all, Anthony Davis, we said this yesterday, is having an amazing year and a half stretch. Last night he played 52 minutes. He's already top five in the league in minutes.

that's the most he's ever played. He was absolutely dominating. Challenged by Janus, he was 28, 34 points, 23 rebounds, four blocks. AD was the best player on the floor. And LeBron didn't play, so AD and Austin Reeves saw that as a green light to take over offensively. And for the record, this once again illustrates, unlike the Warriors without Steph, the Lakers are actually six and four without left. LeBron and they score more points.

Now, my theory on that is DeLoh, DeAngelo Russell and LeBron, I don't think LeBron loves his game. DeLo last night in the second half was money. He got shots that he wouldn't normally get or take with LeBron on the floor. So when LeBron doesn't play, Austin Reeves knows, I got to be more aggressive, Deelow, who I don't think I was fits with LeBron, they almost traded him, he steps up, and AD realizes I'm the leader of the team. A couple years ago when you ask AD, here's the baton, be the guy, he shrank, he disappeared, he was never healthy.

Something has happened with Anthony Davis over the last year and a half. When LeBron's out, he grabs that baton and he takes over and he is dominating. They were down 19 late in the fourth quarter and came roaring back. No LeBron, so they play a different style without LeBron. And if you look right now at the Western Conference standings, the way they do this in the NBA with a playing game, seven through 10 will play in, playoff, and only two will survive.

And right now, I would take the Lakers over Sacramento, Phoenix, or the Warriors, or an improving Houston. Again, Milwaukee looked tired. Janice was two-for-seven in clutch, missed two key free throws. They've had a really tough stretch. I've got my issues with Milwaukee,

but they're going to win a playoff series. They'll be fine. They're not Boston, but they're fine. this game said a lot about the Lakers. They can play without LeBron. DeAngelo Russell continues in the last since December to be a really consistent offensive player in some clutch spots. This is also a team that utilizes their size. The Lakers are not going to run up and down the floor.

You can run, you know, that's why they're probably not a great matchup if the Celtics were at full strength. You know, Oklahoma City runs well young teams. Lakers don't really do that. They utilize their size. Milwaukee takes a lot of jumpers for their size. The Lakers free throw differential the last two years is plus 911. So they pound the ball low, they score in the paint, they don't take or make a ton of threes. What they do well is experience, OKC doesn't have any.

Size, Golden State doesn't have any. So the Lakers roared back without LeBron, on the road, down big, their size, their experience, and the new and improved AD over the last year and a half were on display. This game felt like it was the biggest Lakers win of the season and is a testament what they can do not at full strength. They've got enough tools, not at full strength. They can go up against what the number two seat in the east come back from 19 down late and when. Here's Austin and AD after. It was one of those moments that you can either, you know, flip the page to tomorrow,

get ready for that game, or you can, you know, go out and compete 110% and give yourself an opportunity. This is the stuff you dream about as a kid, being on the road with your guys, you know, battling out of an amazing team and having opportunities to make big shots. A 20-point lead in his league now is just nothing because it's a way the offense is right now in the league so high-powered that you can wipe the league away pretty fast so I'd say it was fine we line up and do it all the good tomorrow

my takeaway after this game is somebody get Anthony Davis an IV because they play Memphis tonight it is another must-win game for the Lakers. That was impressive. And again, a year and a half ago, two years ago, LeBron was begging for AD to take over the team. And he just wouldn't do it. And something has happened. I don't know what it is.

Is he taken care of his body? Did LeBron have multiple sit downs? But AD last night is on nights like last night, best defensive player in the league, doesn't get hurt much anymore, playing a ton of. ton of minutes and absolutely is relishing and embracing the leadership role. Get me the ball on both ends, totally dominating performance against Janus. So, J. Mack, that was something. That was an impressive W in a wildly entertaining game.

Yeah, AD was tremendous. Austin Reeves, triple double, game winning three. Best game maybe of his career. I mean, listen, you will, I know people are like, hey, can we get Donovan Mitchell in the off season? Can we get this guy? I'm telling you, I'm not ready to move off Austin Reeves, man. He is really fun to watch, Colin.

That kid, Lakers fans love this guy. And they create contact. You know, everybody's always like, why do the Lakers shoot so many free throws? Because they don't shoot a lot of threes. So Austin Reeves, A.D. LeBron, initiate a ton of contact. So teams that settle for threes, Milwaukee's big, but shoots a lot of threes. Lakers are huge. They don't.

So their free throw advantage. And last night, I think they were like 15 for 15 late in the game in free. though. So the Lakers get to the line. Not all Laker teams get to the line. You know, when the Warriors were dominating this league and doing small ball, they weren't getting to the line as much because it was very perimeter dominated. This Laker team can't win that way. They have to pound the ball. And it's not like they always shoot well from the free throw line. They don't necessarily rebound as well for their size. But offensively, they create contact. They hit their free throws. They get to the line. And it's a pretty clear advantage.

By the way, Lakers will probably be playing on Christmas Day again this year, like every year. I'm just curious. Do you have two televisions in your house? Yes. You do. Do you have remote controls for the TVs? Yes. Do they work?

Yeah. Okay. So it's not an issue. Christmas Day you can watch it all. NFL and NBA, right? Well, also, I have Fubo. So, this idea people like to grumble. What you don't have an iPad?

I mean, do you have an iPhone? Fubo's 20 bucks a month. I'm watching, I'm on a plane watching March Madden. games flying home on Sunday. It's not like there aren't a million commercials during all sporting events. I mean, NCAA tournament is kind of brutal. It feels like there's a tournament every two a commercial every two minutes. I got to watch

another game on my phone. I have a remote. Some, you know, listen, will you watch Christmas Day NFL games? Yeah, 100%. They're going to put Josh Allen on one of those games. They may not put the Chief, but they'll put like Lamar, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, Matt Stafford, you will watch the games. Yeah, wasn't it? Aaron Rogers

versus the Dolphins last, or no, sorry, Jordan love versus the dolphins. Somebody versus Miami. It was a great game and two, a vomiting all over himself and I want some money. That's all that matters. That's all that matters. On Christmas. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd

weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the IHeard 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 athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment,

and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right what you need to be. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs?

Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to? to do a little kill. Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down,

and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84's big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have age.

on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. So when is a take, not a hot take, even though it sort of sounds like it's lukewarm and boiling,

here it is, I would move off Dak Prescott after this next season. The Packers moved off Aaron Rogers. You can move off Dak Prescott. They'll take a cap hit in 2025. Teams have cap hits all the time. You hit on four or five draft picks.

You get around it pretty quickly. I mean, look what Denver just did with Russell Wilson. You figure it out. You draft a quarterback, second, third round, pops. Boom, you're fine. Jack Prescott himself was a fourth round pick. There is one thing that guarantees you will never win a Super Bowl in modern day football, that you have a good quarterback and he's paid like a great one.

Dallas is not a viable Super Bowl team. Either was Tennessee with Ryan Tannahill, who was a good quarterback paid like a great one. Minnesota just made this decision to move off Kirk Cousins, who is absolutely DAC statistically. And so Jerry Jones, to his credit, it is not going to sign him early, is going to let it play out. And my takeaway is, I would draft a quarterback somewhere this year, second, third, fourth round.

If Michael Panics falls, I'd grab him. This is not a shot at Dak Prescott. The Rams moved off Jared Gough, because he was a pretty good quarterback being paid a ton of money. And he'd been to a Super Bowl. He throws a much nicer ball than Dak. He was a number one pick. Look around the league.

You can't win a Super Bowl if you're pretty good at quarterback and really expensive. Breeze. In Denver, Manning, Brady, Mahomes now, either taking pay cuts or constantly reworking their deal to be team friendly. Dak was a steal his first couple years in the league. He's been a little bit, a little bit of a lead weight in the last couple. couple, they couldn't make any moves during this free agency period, and they had needs. Jerry Jones at the league meetings acknowledging they're not going to sign DAC right now. They're going to let it play out.

We are where we are. We have our contract. We're locked and loaded for this year. And we can see as we move along how we are thinking, we inclusive of everybody here, us, that. and we'll see what we do. I don't have anything to report today. Yeah, I mean, DAC is a 2 and 5 playoff quarterback, and in seven playoff games, he's had one great one

against the 8 and 9 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He has made a living off awful teams, of which Washington of the Giants for most of his career have both been awful. He is 48 and 12 against teams under 500, and again, he's had two bad ones in his division. division. He is way below 500 against winning teams. So that's the difference between a Mahomes and Allen, a Lamar, a Brady, a Manning, a breeze, the great ones, can you beat the

good teams? Good quarterbacks beat bad ones. If you look at Dax's career numbers, regular season and playoffs, it is very clear. When he faces top competition, he is mediocre. You may take a cap hit in 2025 moving off him. This isn't anti-Dact. I think he fits like Kirk Cousins fits in Atlanta. I think DAC in New England, an adult in the room, is a really good move. I think there's an argument to be made. New England trades their pick down, solves a lot of their offensive speed limitations, and then goes and gets DAC next year as they'll have another top pick in the top five. But the idea that Dallas owes him or Dallas, no, no, Dax been overpaid.

If you're paying quarterbacks based on January and February, Dack was a steal early. He is now, I mean, if you paid for a pretty good house, but you paid a great price, you'd feel ripped off. If you paid for a pretty good car, but you paid a more expensive price, you wouldn't feel like you're getting value. You start looking at Dax's playoff performances and records against good teams. You're not getting great value anymore.

J-Mac with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. That sounds like such a crazy take, but essentially Minnesota just did the same thing. Hey, we like Kirk. Not if the number starts with four. Well, Dallas, Dax's number could start with six.

Then it's not, it's beyond not a good deal for the team. It's a bad deal for the team. That dovetails nicely into our first story, which is Brock Purdy, who has been great on his rookie deal. Seventh round pick he's making peanuts, but he's extension eligible next off season. 49ers owner Jed York recognizes Purdy will more than likely ask for a monster contract, and here's what the owner had to say. It's a good problem when your quarterback is one of your highest kid guys on your team and in the league.

It's what the market is, right? It's not like Brock is going to ask for something that no one has ever asked for before. you have, I don't know how many players making over $40 million as a quarterback right now. I'm glad that we have Prague, J.L., Kyle. They're the ones that we'll figure out the details of it. And I just have to sign a check. So my part in that's pretty easy. What do you think his market would be today?

And this is what irks me a little bit. Why are we doing this? It's a year away, a whole year, Colin. Now we're putting this, ooh, undue pressure. Niners, Brock Purdy, they got a payment. Can we relax? It's coming off another great season. And by the way, you brought up Dax's playoff stats.

I've got Brock Purdy's here for you. Would you like him? Well, Brock Purdy has a... He's four and one. I'm not giving him the loss to the Eagles where he got hurt. He got hurt on like the first or second series. Okay, fine, fine. But the record, because he started giving him a loss.

Six touchdowns, one pick. He's been great in the playoffs. Three game winning drives. Okay? Unlike Dak, Purdy's been great in the playoffs. I don't know what you do with him. We'll see how the season plays out. What's his market?

It's better than Justin Fields, I would think. It's better than a six-round pick. You would think? Yeah, obviously. It's just too... So here's this... I see what you're doing, Cowhert. I see what you do. Well, I mean, I think companies want to know...

In order for me to pay you, I'm not going to negotiate against myself. What's the market? Okay. So here's the answer. Justin Fields in about December when I made the robust market comment, there weren't a lot of

quarterbacks that were going to be out there. We didn't think Cousins was going to let go from Minnesota. We didn't know Russell Wilson was going to be dusted. It looked good at the time. It got very bad come free agency. Right now, I would say the market doesn't look great next year

for Brock Purdy. What a four of these quarterbacks sick hit? Well, that's the thing. We don't know. I mean, what if three guys retire, Russell Wilson, I'm done, Aaron Rogers, I'm done. Like, a lot of things can happen. It's tough to say, but I know where you're going with this.

He's not a $50 million guy. No, he's not. You have to look at the market. I think in everything you have to contextualize, he literally has five Hall of Fame level players around him. I mean, Trent Williams and Christian McCaffrey and Kittle are all automatic. Debo plays five more years. He'll get votes, and I think Ayyuk is outrageously talented.

Wait, wait, George Kittle's an automatic Hall of Famer? I mean, we know he's great, but really? Already? I think George Kittle is a Hall of Fame. You don't think so? I mean, I need to drill down on the numbers, but like automatic Hall of Fame. Like Travis Kelsey, he's it, gronk, lock. But like, a kiddo's really good.

Trent Williams, Christian McCaffrey. Yes, Christian McCaffrey. He may be the best running back in the last 25 years. Ladani and Tomlinson's up there. I mean, there's some great ones, Edger and James. I mean, there's been some really guys that can do multiple things. He's on the Hall of Fame track. Like, he's not 30.

Can we not put him in the Hall of Fame yet? I don't know what's going to happen with Purdy. I just don't like how the media is. They're trying to make an issue when there really isn't one. How about win a Super Bowl? Then you're more. We'll see what your market is then, right? Is that fair?

Look at the suspicion that he's looking. He's just like, I can't wait to just McIntyre's upset about this. I'm going to needle him for 12 months about it. Next up, Nick Siriani and the Eagles. He was on the hot seat this off season. Ended up keeping his job. They replaced both coordinators. Eagles had that brutal, brutal wild card loss in Tampa.

During the league meetings, owner Jeffrey Lurie explained his decision to stick with Siriani. Nick's conscious desire to have top-notch defense, top-notch coordinators under him really drove a lot of the strategy, and he was hell-bent on making sure we had the best. And, you know, highly encouraged by his both analysis, of where we're at, no excuses, basically, you know, a fundamental understanding of what needs to be better than the last five or six weeks of the season. Yeah. Well, we'll see. Top-notch coordinator, so he had the guy to Cy who he wanted. Shane Steichen was a home run, and then the next guy wasn't, so he's batten them, you know.

But who picked the next guy? He did. And then the defense coordinator, he had to sigh, and then he had moved off him for. The rocket scientist to call plays, and that's a disaster. Even Nick Sabin at Bama missed on a couple coordinators. It's hard. Pete Carroll missed in a couple. You know, I mean, it's hard. You can't, good coaches.

Mike Tomlin missed on an offensive coordinator. It's hard. You're not going to go, you're not going to hit bat a thousand on coordinators. Tomlin stuck it out. And by the way, I heard Ken Dorsey was great. He went to Buffalo, and it didn't work. And he got dismissed. They put Brady in, and they were better.

And I heard Dorsey, I heard for years. was on the hot track, everybody loved him. I think hiring number two's is very difficult. I've worked at big companies before and seen a lot of mistakes when the CEO hires a number two and the number two doesn't fit. I'm not a huge Nick Seriani fan, but I mean, I think the biggest question in Philadelphia is there is a direct correlation between Shane Steichen calling plays for Jalen Hertz and Jalen Hertz crushing and Shane Steichen not doing that and Jalen Hertz being slightly better than average.

So my question is, it's not even a Seriani thing because I don't think we consider him an elite top 10 coach or top five coach. To me, it's a Jalen Hertz issue. How good is Jalen Hertz without one of the smartest guys in the league calling play Shane Steichen? Because Stuyken has separated himself. There's a lot of smart offensive guys in this league. He's the next great one. All right, let me ask you. So I'm looking at Nick Siriani's history here. He was the offensive coordinator for the Colts for a few years. He was a quarterback's coach with the Chargers, a wide receivers coach.

I don't know. Can you pinpoint anything? Anything. Nick Siriani's done amazing in the last two years ago. When he got that job, I set it on the air. I called my people and they were like not quite sure he's a head coach. Now, again, he hits on Steichen and it all looks glorious. But remember, when he took that job in Philly and he,

started calling plays early, they were a mess. It's when he relinquished that to Stuyken that Philadelphia took off, then Stuyken leaves, and they're okay for about six weeks, seven weeks. And then the further Shane Stuyken got away, the more poorly coached they appeared. So they're, and I'm not, you know, I mean, it, look, D'Amico Ryan's hit a home run with his coordinator. Dan Campbell hit a home run with his. It's going to be hard in Detroit when Ben Johnson leaves to hit another home run with Ben Johnson. Atlanta, Dan Quinn hit Kyle Shanahan.

before and after him wasn't the same level. So Kingsbury in Washington, Dan Quinn's like, we got to pay big money for a coordinator because my career has been really good when I had a great one. So I just want to see Jalen Hertz without Shane Steichen. If this coordinator's better, fine, he should be. But I'm really curious to see,

what do I have with Jalen Hertz now? I'm not quite sure. All right. Listen, I don't want to sit here and defend Hertz, but I feel like Siriani deserves way more blame than Hertz. I think that's fair. Okay. Final story, the Dallas Cowboys.

Colin, listen, they're not a huge talking point, and then all of a sudden, two names pop up that the Cowboys are being linked to in free agency. Are you ready for this? Ezekiel Elliott and Dalvin Cook. That's all they have money for. They don't have any money. So I just looked up Dalvin Cook's stats last year.

Remember the Jets got him? People were like, ooh, nice. Three years ago, he was amazing. Aaron wanted him. He had like 200 yards rushing all last season. Yeah. I thought he was going to give them more pop, he didn't. Brees Hall's just better.

It's not even close, but I mean, Dallas kind of scraping the bottom of the barrel? I mean... They don't have any money? What happens when you pay a quarterback in the 50 million range? Well, you know running backs don't matter like they used to and they're interchangeable. I mean, Nick Chubb goes

down, Brown's plug-in dudes and they deliver. I don't know, that that backfield's not looking great in Dallas. It's going to happen. They got to win with Dak. It's a bad running. backdraft. I think the kid at Oregon's about the best running back I've seen.

What do you mean? The two guys from Michigan. They're not bad. Blake Corum had an injury. When he came back, he was never quite the same player. Fair. Um, so they have to win with Dak this year. And he was a runner up for MVP last season. Shouldn't be a problem. All right. CD Lamb, C.D. Lamb, twist, an ankle week three. Michael Gallup's gone now. Barely hold back laughter. Okay. Jay Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Heard Lye News. You know, I was thinking about this.

So we had Mark Few on the show yesterday, and he's been to nine straight sweet 16s. And there's this real pushback. He plays Purdue this week. Gonzaga plays Purdue. I think Purdue's the better team. And they played earlier in Maui. Purdue won. And Purdue's got Zach Edy, the 7-4 kid.

And he's just for a college player. He's a dominant college player. But there's been a lot of pushback. back because people that cover the NBA and the draft people have said Zach Eadie just does not work in the NBA.

That doesn't mean like Tim Tebow, you can't be a remarkable college player and here is Mark Few on Zach Eadie in the matchup yesterday. In 25 years, I've been a head coach here. I've never dealt with a

player or an entity like him. He is a really, really, really, really good basketball player and he's and he does everything well I mean he he posts the right way he can score as ball goes in now very efficient and he shoots free throws really well and then at the other end he's just you know for a team that likes to shoot we're very effective in the paint and shoot a lot of twos I mean it's it's tough to get shots off in the paint and so uh he's just again an entity that quite frankly I mean you just I have a seen in 25 years.

Here's the way I would explain it. In the 70s, 80s, 90s, and even to some degree in the early 2000s, college football offenses did not look like the NFL. I mean, you go back to Nebraska in the 70s and 80s, and Tom Osborne, they were doing single receiver sets, like one receiver out left.

And that's why Tommy Frazier, a quarterback for maybe the best college quarterback I've ever seen in terms of production. Tommy Fraser, I watched him live in the national championship game against Florida. You couldn't stop him. He didn't get drafted. I don't believe he got drafted. There were quarterbacks in college that would be great, didn't even get drafted.

Today, college football offenses look a lot like NFL offenses. So if you put up big numbers, you're going to get drafted. But college basketball in the NBA don't look anything like each other. First of all, if you're any good, you either don't go to college or you stay there for a few weeks, a few months, a semester, and then you're gone. But the NBA is about speed and athleticism and spacing and threes. It is managed by coaches. College basketball is dominated by coaches.

It's plotting. It's half court sets. It's very much a coach's game. Zach Eadie is great in that environment. It's like Tim Tebow. He's great in an environment where he plays with superior talent. He can do lollipop throws over. college DBs and hit on his great receiving crew at Florida.

But the windows closed in the NFL, and he didn't have the mechanics or the arm strength to get those balls, squeeze those balls in there. Zach Eady to me probably gets drafted late second round, but he's more of a college player. He is a back to the basket center. And the NBA has bailed on that for about eight to ten years. It is a Players League, spacing speed athleticism, up and down the floor.

I'm not sure laterally who Zach Edy could defend. People are getting worked up like they're deeply discouraged, but my entire life, I've watched great college football players just not work. They're part of a system for years and years. You know, BYU, Ty Detmer would put up profound numbers and feel a little overwhelmed in NFL. Now, Steve Young worked. Jim McMahon had worked out of BYU, but a lot of times you'll get these very collegiate looking offenses in college basketball or football.

They just don't work at the pro level. It's not a knock on the kid. You know, he looks like a backup in the NBA to me. He can swat a few shots. I mean, the NBA is getting bigger. There is no question. The small ball era was overrated. It was basically the Warriors and everybody else. Now the NBA over the last four or five years has really pivoted to size, so there may be a spot for him. But this is explainable. NBA and college basketball looked more similar 20 years ago

when Patrick Ewing would stay in college basketball for three or four years. Well, Patrick Ewing, as a college player, was better than half the NBA centers, his junior year at college. Same with Tim Duncan. Christian Leitner, Shaq, you'd stay in college. So you would watch a college basketball game in 1985, and they couldn't beat an NBA team, but they'd have four NBA guys on the floor that would all go

to the association and within a year or two were productive. That's just not the way it is. Even the best college players now, they go into the NBA and they make almost no impact, almost none right out of the gate. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey gang, this is Jay Glazer, host of Unbreakable, a mental wealth podcast. And every week we will have on leaders from sports, entertainment, like Sean McVeigh, Lindsey Vaughn, Michael Phelps, David Spade, Guy Fieri, and also those who can help us in

between the ears, anyone from a therapist to someone like Ed Milet or John Gordon. We've all been through some sort of adversity. To get to the top, we've all used different tools. Listen to Unbreakable with Jay Glazer and Mental Wealth Podcast on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get 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, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show.

This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me 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. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jek.

And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we picket here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because, of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so y'all know.

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

For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This weekend pro football is back on Fox as the UFL kicks off on Saturday with the U.S. NFL champion Birmingham Stallions taking on the ex-FL champion Arlington Renegades and kickoff weekend continues Sunday on ESPN. So the Chargers Jim Harbaugh, his willingness to embrace his personality and put it out there when he's drinking a big glass of milk with a steak, it's always something I'm fond of.

of. He really leans into Jim Harbaugh, and he turns teams around immediately. It's very Bill Parcells. It's not that the team gets better. They get better in camp, better in preseason, and better immediately. And Harbaugh's at the league meetings. He's been living out of an RV as the Chargers build a new facility, and he talked about it. It's been great, you know? I mean, being myself, you know, like, I always wanted to do that. It worked out great. I'm 100 feet from Greg Roman. He has an RV as well.

He's got a better bar. Giro's got a really, really good RV. In the RV world? Well, I'm not as fancy. I'm not as fancy. You know, my Thor motor coach, you know, it hits me just right. So Harbaugh says he goes into his motor coach. He goes to the back, and he sits and it gives him time to think.

and that's why I, you know, that's why I think he has come up. I can see Harbaugh laying down, arms crossed, thinking about how do I get more picks? Right now the Chargers have nine. They'd love to get about 11 or 12 because they've got some real needs like center, another corner, two receivers, a tied end. They want as many picks as they can get. And that's why he keeps saying, oh, J.J. McCarthy is unbelievable. He wants all these teams moving up and taking quarter.

and the Chargers have the number five pick. So he is the modern-day parcels where it, he just makes teams better very quickly. It's not play calling, which has always been overrated, it's culture. It's not scheme, it's toughness. People forget how bad the 49ers were. It was one of their longest streaks of ineptitude. They had not made the playoffs in eight years. They'd not had a winning season in eight years.

Harbaugh got there. immediately 13 and 3 and in the NFC championship. That is one of the great turnarounds in the history of the league. When he went to Michigan, Michigan was a mess. They were 5 and 7 and inept offensively. They lost the previous year 31-0 to Notre Dame. They couldn't score a point against Notre Dame. And at that time, I don't believe Notre Dame was great.

Good, not great. The next year, they were 10 and 3. at Michigan. I went to his first game. That was against Utah. But a lot of teams in the NFL, this is Dallas right now, and it's Minnesota. That's why they moved off Kirk Cousins. A lot of teams in the NFL get stuck. And he never does. Harbaugh doesn't really have gears. He's in perpetual motion. He starts hot and keeps going. People have no idea how bad Stanford was when he got there. They were the worst college football team, Division I. They were awful. Awful. San Francisco, awful. Michigan in net. For Michigan.

Michigan, you go five and seven and get blown out repeatedly. And at that time, a very average Big Ten, Michigan was bad, 10 and three the next year. So it's a little Steve Jobs. It's not that Steve Jobs doesn't immediately innovate, but there are no gears with Steve Jobs. It's just ascension. It's just keep moving up. And I think it's pretty remarkable what he's done. I think Harbaugh's got a plan.

It's never been about play-calling and scheme. It's about culture and toughness and resilient, and he's got it going in motion. You know, the other thing about Harbaugh is that he is such a unique personality that when people are different or unique, remember with that hard backslap to Jim Schwartz, I don't think Jim's quite that anymore. But I can remember talking to people at Ohio State when Harbaugh got there, and he couldn't beat Michigan State or Ohio State, just like Brian Kelly initially at Notre Dame could win, but he couldn't beat the Bamas or Georges or even be competitive. I think it takes a long time in northern climates in college football to rebuild a program. It's easier and warm weather. There's more Division I one athletes. You can train outside year round.

I mean, Florida, Georgia, Texas, California, it's just a conveyor belt of speed and great athletes. You don't have as many in northern climates. So it took Harbaugh a while to get it done. But I think the chargers are if they can trade down and get up to 11 or 12 picks, I think they'll be great next year. They've got to get a center, a receiver, a tight end, an interior defensive lineman, and nobody knows these college kids for the next couple of years quite like Harboss. I don't consider it a rebuild.

If you have your quarterback, a left tackle, and two pass rushers, it is not a rebuild. Because those are four of the top five things you need. They got the quarterback, the left tackle, and two edge rushers. They could use another corner. They need a center. But a lot of the stuff they have, they now got a great coach, a great quarterback, great left tackle, excellent pass rushers.

You can find receivers and tight ends in this league. You can find them. Patriots had a 20-year dynasty had one world-class receiver. One. The Chiefs moved off Tyreek Hill. You can find receivers in this league. You get about 15 a year out of college

that make immediate impacts. Go look at the Houston Texans last year. Getting mid-round-wide receivers come in ready to play. Those kids are now playing at 7-on- seven camps when they're 14, 15, 16. college receivers come in much more polished and ready to play than 20 years ago. Chargers 10-win team, up or down on that. I think that's about Spiler.

9.5 to 10 is where I would bet the over on 9.5 and a half. I think they're a 10-and-7 team. I think the Raiders and the Broncos are just not ready to compete at that level yet. I just don't think they have the personnel or the quarterback. 9.5.10 seems about right. It does. Eric Mangini stopping by Chris Broussard.

You see the Warriors got that big double you last night? Yes. Not as impressive as the Mavs destroying the Kings. My guy Luca Donchich. Man, what happened to old light the beam? Lost in steam. It did not light the beam last night. Hour to next, live in Atlanta, it's the herd.

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 huge. 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. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hard Way with your favorite therapist and host, Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having

honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing. How many men carry a suit or armor. It signals to the world that you're not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to. Listen to learn the hard way on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHart podcast.

Guaranteed human.