The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 1 – Questions about Bears after Sunday night, is Aaron Glenn on hot seat?

Episode Date: December 29, 2025

Colin breaks down the big Sunday night football showdown between the Bears and 49ers, marveling at the growth of the 49ers offense and Brock Burdy while the Bears have a few questions they need to answer before the playoffs. Philadelphia had the better roster over the Bills but Colin has some issues with how that game played out. The Jets had a miserable season, and questions are out there as to how much Aaron Glenn can do with more years.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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And however, you may be listening, thanks for making us part of your day. J-Mac, Barry. Niners' best NFL game of the year, A-plus, plus, plus. That was as good as professional football gets. This late in the season, you're missing some starters if you're San Francisco. And, well, let's just start with that. That's as good as pro football gets. And the other thing is, this is why you hire offensive coaches. Between Ben Johnson and Kyle Shanahan, 900 yards of offense, both were great on

third down, right in the red zone, efficient, smart play calling, young quarterbacks being the beneficiary, Brock and Caleb, of really bright guys. Now, yes, I always thought brought Perttie ad talent, but I thought he was very dependent on Shanahan and Christian McCaffrey, but he didn't have kiddle last night. He didn't have left tackle Trent Williams. He hadn't have Brandon I, you call year. and last night he was attack, attack, attack, with mobility, with accuracy. Yeah, he threw a pick six. I've told you for years. Brady threw pick sixes and Super Bowls.

He's won. Yes, he threw another interception and got a bit of an officiating break in the end zone. I like this purdy. Attack, aggressive. I thought the last three weeks is as well as he's ever played. You can win a Super Bowl with this quarterback play. Yeah. You're going to have a pick.

I defend Donald. I defended Andrew Luck, Peyton Manning and Elway through picks. This one I like. Now, now, did Mack Jones and Garoppolo also look great with Shanahan? Yeah. Matt Ryan won an MVP with Shanahan. But everybody's got help. Mahomes has Andy Reed. Elway had Shanahan. Shula had Marino had Shula. Brady had Gronk, Edelman, Belichick's defense. So San Francisco has been very reliant, regardless of the quarterback in the last five, six years with George Kittle. He wasn't around last night. Trent Williams also incredibly important. Great left tackle.

Still at this age, great left tackle. He wasn't around last night. So you don't really have your deep threat in Brandon Ayyuk. So instead of just being a really talented passenger, which has always been my take on Purdy, he's talented. You mean, you can watch him play two quarters. He's talented, but he's mostly been a driver. you know, passenger.

Last night he was the driver of the offense. I thought he was fantastic. Now, could he stay healthy? He gets dinged up. You know, now he's got to play Seattle's defense. He's not going to have all night to throw like you saw last night. I mean, Dennis Allen, I'm not sure what that defensive game plan was. But if you got open last night, Jennings, Kyle Hughes-check, you know, the backup tight end,

it just didn't matter. If you got open, Brock Purdy found you. And this year, this year, Purdy, banged up some of it, is 7 and 1 with a 104 passer rating. And in the last month, once the toe got healthy, there's no disputing it. The last six weeks, this is the healthiest best Brock Purdy we've ever seen. He's not just stabilizing. He's elevating. He's pulling the offense, which is missing a Hall of Fame left tackle,

which last night's missing a first ballot Hall of Fame tied in. So it's been my question. I mean, Matt Jones came in this year as a backup. Looks spectacular. Garapo was 38 and 17. He left Shanahan. He disappeared. Matt Schaub made a Pro Bowl.

Every quarterback looks good. They didn't look this good. This is the best quarterback play. Maybe outside of the Matt Ryan MVP season, but you didn't get much mobility there. This is the best quarterback play in the last month that Kyle Shanahan's ever received. So, I mean, you don't have Kittle, you don't have Trent Williams, you're dropping 42 points.

That's pretty impressive. And here's Shanahan after. I thought Brock had a hell of a game. Again, Brock's been playing his ass off, made some huge plays in this game, kept some drives alive with his legs, made some off-scheduled plays, and was an assassin out there throughout the whole day. I'm not the best historian. I feel like he's had some good stretches, I mean, especially going back 23 and 22. But, I mean, he's playing as good as it gets right now. Yeah, Brog-Purdy, trust your eyes.

Moving, attack, going for it, missing, missing great players. Well, he's got McCaffrey. Again, Brady Ed Grunk, you know, Mahomes. Go to all the great ones. Aikman had Michael Urban and Emmett Smith. They've all got some help. Now, if you're a Chicago Bear fan, I can live with that loss.

3535, 58 total first downs in the game. It was a track meet. Somebody had to lose. I can live with that. Caleb was excellent. The play calling was excellent. Third down, fourth down was excellent.

My only issue with the Bears is San Francisco's defense isn't good. They have an excuse. Lost Fred Warner and Bosa. They don't have a lot of great players. Chicago's got some high. in defensive players. What were they doing? Robert Salo was mixing up blitzes. He was attacking. He was being aggressive. He was creating occasionally some pressure on Caleb Williams behind Chicago's excellent all line. Now, Caleb didn't get sacked, but he got flushed out of the pocket

more than a few times. Chicago's defense felt very passive to me. In fact, if you look at the numbers and we did this morning. Brock Purdy had the second most time to throw in his career last night and the most time to throw all season. So I think you can look at year one with Ben Johnson. You're contending going into that game for the number one seed.

You're on the road in the second half, and your second half possessions are touchdown, touchdown, field goal, and you're at the two-yard line. Ben Johnson, tip of the cap. Caleb Williams has gotten better every week. Second week in a row, Caleb Williams, no sacks. That was the big concern into the season. You got to get out of the negative plays.

Back-to-back games, no sacks. And again, Sala was being hyper-aggressive. Dennis Allen, I thought, again, at least we now know what the bears are going to do during the draft. You know, they need linebackers, they need an edge rusher. We know what Chicago is going to do in the draft. but Sala was dialing up all sorts of pressure. It didn't sack Caleb, but at least he was occasionally uncomfortable, like the final play here.

I felt like Brock Purdy just sat, took his time, did what he wanted. It felt passive to me. In Chicago's five losses, they are surrendering 35 points a game. That's worse than Cincinnati. And they've got better defensive talent than Cincinnati. So I didn't love kind of a passive defensive game plan. I didn't love that. But all in all, if you're a bear fan,

somebody had to lose that track me. I thought Caleb was great. No sacks, no picks. Ben Johnson's play calling, outstanding. What's new. You've got to feel, you're not going to win all these close games. And San Francisco's offense, this year, when Brock Purdy's upright, has been unbelievable. We have been saying on this show, both Jay Mack and I have been saying this for almost three months.

absolutely two months. If you gave out in the NFL an award for the best coaching staff, I would give it to the Niners. I would give it to the Niners. What Salah is doing with this defense, creating some pressure against the great old line, and no Fred Warner, no Bosa, banged up, moved off to Funga, the great safety in Greenlaw in the offseason.

So the Niners are on a heater, tip of the cap to that organization and Brock Purdy. And here was Caleb on a tough road loss. We've proven who we are. We'll fight. And, you know, I think we're a team to be reckoned with. And so I'm excited for, you know, this next game. I'm excited to go back and watch this film and figure out how we can better, how we can put up more points, how we can, you know, be more efficient, maybe on offense

for moments like this because we may see this team again. I'll tell you, one of the things that's, great about Caleb. I've, I've, I've compared him a little to Josh Allen, a shorter Josh Allen, where he's not going to be perfect. I don't worry too much about the 59% accuracy thing. Last night, I thought he threw really good footballs. I mean, I thought hit on a deep throw to burden, hit on a couple of key sideline throws. I think, I think Caleb's fine. In fact, he's, how about the free play touchdown to Loveland, who's just a horse, man? that guy is a handful.

I think Caleb's clearly coachable. I think he loves his coach. And I think Ben Johnson, they didn't play great offense early. They had a couple of series. I did not love the Bears' defense got that pick six early. But overall, I think if you're a Chicago Bear fan, if I'd have told you you were going to lose last night, but it was going to be a wild shootout,

and you would have the ball at the two-yard line, you would take that loss over any loss this year. that offense for the Bears is stacked. It is going to be a handful against every team they play. I'm not sure anybody right now is beating the Niners in the Bay. This offense just is crazy good. NFL's best game probably right there. J. Mack, I don't mind losing a bat when it's that kind of way.

I mean, that was. Yeah, we were head to head on that. Colin, by the way, do you want to guess the line? Seahawks travel to San Fran on Saturday night. So short week again for the Niners. Okay? They are at home. Seattle was just in Carolina, so they had a cross-country trip. I would guess Niners minus one.

Wrong. Seattle is favored in San Francisco by one. Now, I know it's just one, and it's not huge. I was surprised by that. I don't know what they're seeing. Maybe the Trent Williams injury means he's not going to play. Well, no. I think you would admit this, and you love Purdy. When Brock is comfortable, forget it.

He is, and last night, he is moving around. That's why I thought Dennis Allen should have been much more aggressive, comfortable Brock Purdy's a handful. When you speed the game up, and this was the knock on Brock, it's been a knock on his career and the knock in college. He can get a little reckless. If you speed him up, because he watched last night, he is not afraid to throw the ball down the field.

Garoppolo with Kyle kind of kept it safe, didn't throw up the sideline. Brock's aggressive. Maybe not Sam Darnold aggressive, but Brock is aggressive. So now Seattle is going to speed up everything for the Niners, because it's a much better pass rush. Those, you know, and also Christian McCaffrey had another huge touch night. Now, interestingly, though, Colin, regarding Seattle, they played in the season opener.

You remember that game? Darnold had to turn over around in the red zone, maybe the 10-yard line at the end of the game. Purdy did struggle at times, but the Niners defense is much worse than it was in week one. Okay, so look at what the wise guys have done. The Seattle, San Francisco line, has flipped three points. in the last couple hours.

It started where I thought it should be San Francisco minus one and a half. The wise guys, the sharps pounded Seattle. Seattle now is favored by one and a half. So the sharp money, sharper square, the sharp money all on Seattle. Yeah. So would you back Sam Darnold in that spot? Huge late season game. By the way, Darnal was, he was pretty atrocious against Carolina.

Hey, no excuses, buddy. Come on. Listen, Saturday night. That's the main event this weekend. I don't care about Steelers, Ravens. That's a good game. This game is everything. Seattle and San Fran.

Last night was fun. That was great. 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. Hey, this is Jason McIntyre. Join me every weekday morning on my podcast, Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre. This isn't your typical sports pod pushing the same tired narratives down your throat every day. Straight Fire.

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We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. 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. We 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.

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Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. presented by Capital One, founding partner of I Heart Women's Sports. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tript Fantine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase

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on my new podcast. Learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the hard way and listen now. Here's why I defend Buffalo going for two. They've got a superstar quarterback. They're at home. They're favored.

They had dominated the second half. The Philadelphia defense was tired. You have the momentum. Seal the game. And it was a great play call. And the receiver was wide open. Have no problem with it. More disturbing to me for Buffalo is you were being shut out at home with Josh

Allen with six minutes left. and the Philadelphia roster, we're all watching the same thing. Top 10 players in that game, Philly's probably got eight. Top 12, they probably got 10. So the leading Buffalo receiver, the catch of the game is Brandon Cook's a journeyman, who I was told years ago was considering retirement. I mean, he just arrived in Buffalo a month ago, and he's like they're one receiver I depend on and trust in a spot like that.

So, I mean, Buffalo could not beat a team at home with Josh. Josh Allen at quarterback, they couldn't be the team at home that had 17 yards of total offense and no completions in the second half. I mean, Philadelphia wins the game, but how? I can't figure Philadelphia's offense out. I think it's weird. Why did they ignore A.J. Brown in the second half? Why did they get so conservative? Jalen Hurts was playing very effectively. He was very accurate, but even on a deep ball to AJ Brown that missed, probably a PI call that wasn't called, I thought it was a great pass.

I thought the first half Jalen was excellent, and then they got really conservative. And I don't know why. Like five straight punts, they pulled the plug on the offense. So clearly Philadelphia had a better game plan early. Clearly, Philadelphia's got a better roster. Clearly, Philadelphia is the only team in the league

that can have these stinkeroo halves. They have three of the worst offensive halves in the league this year. I think three of the worst five. And they've won all those games. First half against the Rams, second half against the box, second half against the bills. They're atrocious. And they win all of them. So, I mean, I'm looking at the box score this morning.

How do you beat Josh Allen in Buffalo when you have 11 first downs and three and a half yards of play? Only weird, dysfunctional Philadelphia can do it. I mean, total control of the game with six minutes left, answers what happened in the second. We weren't in a mode of saying, hey, 13-0 is enough, not against this quarterback, not against this offense. And so I don't think our mindset was ever that. No, but again, I got to do a better job there in that scenario. And, you know, I'll put that on myself. The stand-up guy, totally appreciate it.

But again, I always thought the rule was going for it. Do you have a star quarterback? Do you have momentum? I mean, the last six minutes of the game, Buffalo had momentum. Do you trust your play design? That was a good call. Good play, wide open. Josh was upset with Josh.

And again, Philadelphia, that defense had been on the field, the entire second half. So you're at home, you're favored, go for it. I have no problem. You had a gas Philadelphia defense who got beat on that play, and you just couldn't connect. So I think it's easy to beat up on these coaches, and I have my issues with Sean McDermott. They lose a lot of games. I didn't lot. Philadelphia's first half game planned, total control, smart short passing.

A couple of big plays to A.J. Brown. Philadelphia came to play. They were absolutely the better team. should not have come down to one play, but man to the Eagles lay eggs for a half. The fact that they can win those games, all of them in their four worst halves, speaks organizationally to how well they draft

and accumulate talent. J-Mack with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, Colin, let's go to Saturday night. I know the main event was Derek Henry carving up the Packers,

but, you know, if for a moment, we could talk about Malik Willis. Wow. I mean, listen, I know everybody's going crazy. He was phenomenal in this game through the air and on the ground. I know it's only the Ravens defense and they have not been great throughout the season, but Willis looked everything the part of a QB1. Now, I'm not ready to go overboard and call him a franchise guy,

but a lot of people are. Let's start with LaFleur talking about Malik Willis's performance. I want to pump the brakes on all that stuff. I think Jordan Love was playing. pretty high level football. And it's great that we feel the same about Malik in his ability to go in there. Certainly have a lot of confidence in both of those guys. But, I mean, it's pretty clear that Jordan is our franchise quarterback.

And he is going to be the, when he is healthy, he's going to be our starter. So I just want to squash all that. Here's the thing. Malik Willis, not much to look at in Tennessee dysfunctional. Goes to Green Bay. Wow. if you send him to a team like the Jets, is he just going to become the Tennessee versus?

These young quarterbacks, this is indisputable. Young quarterback, go look to Caleb Williams last year and Caleb Williams this year. You think if you put Brock Purdy in Pittsburgh, you would look like this offensively. So my take is Malik Willis and Green Bay is excellent. I would really worry

sending this young guy who clearly has talent. Like he is a time, and he never had the ball. I mean, Ravens had like 30 first downs. He never had the ball. So this kid is going to make, you know, this is why the NFL's great. This kid gets drafted. A franchise gives up on him. He becomes like Darnold, reclamation project guy.

Darnold got paid, Baker got paid. This kid is going to eat and deserves to. I don't know if he's a franchise guy, but you can't deny. This is why he got drafted. He is super talented. So he was, it's interesting. He was a third round pickup. Mike Rable.

Titans. Right. Okay? I know we'd love to think of Vrable as an awesome coach, and he might win coach of the year this season. Colin, he didn't, he basically looked at Malik Willis for two years and was like he's not for us. No, thank you.

Now remember. He moved off of him quickly. Remember, he went to Liberty. Small college football, and Mike Brable was in win now mode. Mike Vrable was not going to be his mentor on his t-shirt. Mike Vrable wanted to win games. So that's a political, weird organization. Yeah.

In Green Bay, Malik Willis his job is, hey, learn from Jordan Love. You don't have to play much. That's a different environment. So young people, especially, your environment, your landing spot, overwhelmingly dictates your success. 100% agree. Now, you mentioned the Jets, and I'll be real.

A lot of Jets fans online are like, he's our quarterback next year. If we don't get Dante Moore, let's go from Maliples, and I'm with you. Let's just settle down. LaFleur is a great offensive mind. Okay, we know that. Who's the Jets offensive coordinator next year? this idea that Willis is going to come in and throw for 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns, I think that's a little silly.

I do think he could make sense for a team where you've got an offensive coach and you don't have a quarterback. You know, there aren't many of those, but I'm going to be real with you. Kevin Stefansky, it sounds like he's going to be the guy still in Cleveland. I know we've seen some flashes from Shadour, but I would take Malik Willis in Cleveland. He might get you to the playoffs in that division or the Pittsburgh Steelers if Rogers retires. Oh, no, no, I think the Pittsburgh Steelers, absolutely has a feel like that. Because, you know, first of all,

they're too good to get a top quarterback unless they sell the farm, right? And so, and their offensive line is better this year, but they still can't run the football. He would provide some elements of a run game. Interesting situation for Willis. All right, let's move on to the other game on Saturday. That was Texans at the Chargers.

I think we handicapped this perfectly. Texans go in, get the win. It wasn't overwhelming. They play a little like the Eagles, right? They get this big early lead. and then they just sit on it and the Chargers came back because, you know, Justin Herbert is a superstar. And other than the kicker screwing things up at the end,

Chargers could have sent this to overtime. Here's Jim Harbaugh talking about his teams never say die attitude. Every time we see our team take the field, we see a team committed to winning. And we didn't win today, but at no point, I mean, never, never, does this team say no mass. Some things to clean up before the play. playoffs and we'll use that. We'll use things today to be better tomorrow.

Colin, I think it's obvious. The Chargers need to rest everyone with a pulse this week, get fresh for that playoff road game. Looks like it's going to be at the Patriots, possibly at Jacksonville or Houston, but most likely the Patriots. Colin, I'm going to be real with you. If they face the Patriots in the first round, who's the best quarterback on the field, Justin Herbert or Drake May? Well, I think Justin Herbert at this. point is, but I will say the Patriots pass rush is okay.

It's nothing great and their defense is not. People are going overboard. The Texans are an elite number one defense in the league. Herbert struggled, then figured it out. Go look at the Texans road defense. It's nasty. It's even on the road. Like a lot of times defense is really

play to the crowd, the energy, the juice is better at home. The Texans road defense is number one in the league in every key category. So the Patriots fans were in hibernation for a year when Gerard Mayo was the coach. They've all come out, and now they're going crazy for Drake May. Colin, I'm being real with you. Chargers at Patriots, opening ground. Any thoughts on that game? I think New England's probably favored by two, two and a half, and I think the Chargers would probably be a really good bet. Herbert plus the point, but I think

New England would be favored. Definitely, yeah, I would agree with that. I'm going to be on the Chargers almost regardless. I mean, I think this Chargers team is going to be surprised in the playoffs. I really like him as long as the offensive lines healthy. All right, final story. Let's go to Philip Rivers and the Colts. Tough one for Indy to stomach. They lose to Jacksonville and are officially eliminated from the playoffs. Philip Rivers was, I know people are going crazy.

I got a little tired of this story. It was fun. He was fine, 147 yards and a touchdown. He can't throw the ball down the field kind. Right, that's the problem. And this interception right here you see on the screen, Jaguars read that like a book. That was on their drive that could have won the game for them.

Here's Rivers reflecting on his three games. cameo coming off the sofa. If this was the last one, shoot, again, I told you guys I wouldn't have any regrets about coming back, and I don't. Other than us not winning, right? That's not winning. It's been an absolute blast for three weeks. I wouldn't, if I go back and say, all right, now you know everything's going to happen,

what are you going to do? I do it all again. It's been absolutely awesome. And so, yeah, I mean, if it's the last one, it's the last one. I thought the last one was walking off the field in Buffalo. walking up that tunnel. And I was fine with that. And that one, that one had tears. Those few days after it, you know, and I was at peace with that being the last one. Yeah, I got to tell you something. We're going to have to get used to this. Jacksonville's pretty good.

Oh, okay. I thought Philip Rivers. Well, you know, I'll get to the Colts and Colin Wright wrong in 30 minutes. But I, Jacksonville's a real team. I mean, that was just not, that's a divisional game. We say it all the time, Jay Mack. Divisional games are different. We just watched Cleveland beat the Steelers. Divisional games are different. late in the year. That would have been an easy place for Jacksonville to go and stub their toe. And they just made the big plays on both sides in that game in the second half. So kudos to the Jags. That's a real team. Trevor Lawrence is pretty damn good. I like watching him run.

Quick note on the Colts, Colin. So obviously they're going to start Riley Leonard next week, figure out what they got. This trade for Saltz Gardner kind of backfired badly. I know that Daniel Jones got hurt. Colin, I'm very curious what happens this offseason. in an indie. Does the coach and GM, do they survive? Because again, you were 8 and 2,

and you crater and miss the playoffs, and now you're out of first round pick. I don't know what you do with Daniel Jones in the offseason. Can you re-sign him? Can you, do you tag him if he's going to miss a month? We've seen quarterbacks coming off the Achilles. It takes some time.

I don't know, man. This is a tough one in Indy. It's a fascinating story because they tried, but they failed. Yeah, I don't have answers. I mean, what the offseason's about. Jay Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by.

The Heard Lye News. I mean, yesterday, so this is what the NFL loves. This is why they put the divisional games at the end of the schedules. Ravens go to Pittsburgh. Loser stays home. Winner wins the division. I like Baltimore. If D.K. Metcalfe did not play this week,

and he's not going to play. next week, he punched a fan for the record. That kind of sort of uneven personality is why John Snyder, the best GM in the league arguably, let him go. So now they have to

hope that MVS, because you watch them this weekend, it's Friermouth, run game is 26 in the NFL, so they are in a tough spot. They were atrocious on third down. They were bad,

on fourth down and I defended Aaron Rogers all year. I said this old line inconsistent. Mike Tomlin's run game seven years. Where are they? So they haven't won a playoff game in eight years. And last week, everybody loved Mike Tomlin, but I feel like it's Groundhog Day. It's the same thing over and over where Pittsburgh has a winning record, but they can't really figure out a run game. The offense gets into quicksand. You bring in a Tribisky, you bring in a Russell Wilson, you bring in Aaron Rogers, three quarterbacks who've all made the playoffs, all different skill sets. You bring in different offensive coordinators, and it's the same stuff. So now you don't have that talented tight end. Washington broke his arm.

D.K. Metcalf not available. You're relying on MVS, who is Aaron Rogers friend, but there's limitations there. Your run game's not dependable. You kind of forgot about your run game. game. It's, again, I can think Mike Tomlin could be a head coach tomorrow and succeed and also think this Pittsburgh thing has run its course. As far as Shadour goes, I got six starts, some things I like, throws really bad picks. It's the biggest win for the Cleveland Browns that I can remember, certainly the biggest of the year. Here's Miles Garrett, the all-timer after the W.

to an extent I feel like they're they were more worried about keeping me away from from Aaron than getting the win and I think that's what came back to the bottom so no they'll have to fight it out with with Baltimore next week but I'm just proud of the guys for fighting and getting this one that's the main thing and I'm always going to keep it up it's a nice win for Cleveland but the bigger story is seven straight seasons the Pittsburgh Steelers have had a bottom 10 offense, and you guys can all blame Aaron, and there are times he's been irritating. Who is he supposed to throw to?

Everybody's like, oh, he's picking on Denzel Ward. Well, he's got to pick on somebody. He's thrown to Scotty Miller. Fryermouth had a couple of big plays. But, I mean, you look at all the teams that can potentially make the playoffs. Pittsburgh, with no DK Metcalf, is the most barren cupboard of weapons to deal with. And again, I'm not blaming Arthur Smith.

What do they have? They spend so much money on defense that they can't spend money on offense. Even Aaron's taking a discount double-check deal. So this is why Seattle, they like D.K. Metcalfe, but they thought he was really emotional. Too many penalties could sometimes, you know, handcuff the team a little bit. And once he was out, I don't know who Aaron's supposed to throw to. Everybody's like, oh, oh, for three. got to make a play there to who who you're supposed to make a play to coming up next sometimes you don't need to see that much to know

you got the wrong quarterback or you hired the wrong coach in chicago it's the herd be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays at noon eastern 9 a m pacific hey it's us the jonas brothers and guess what we have some big news what's the news news news we created our own called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to a... 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 were.

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 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 headwriter, 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. 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 question. 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 Slic Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis. And I know firsthand because I competed there myself.

I'm Renee Stubbs. And on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast, I'm breaking down everything happening at Roland Garris. every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay. Jenshin win. I mean, she went down to three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted. She's an outsider to win the French for me. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lena Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now,

and I actually can win on any surface. Because if she's serving, well, good luck. Consider this your court-side seat to the French Open. Listen to the Renee Stubbs Tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Keer Games.

And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough because people scoreboard watch life becomes about wins and losses Steve Burns Dustin Ross because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth

or are you a good person because you're afraid because that's two different intentions bro absolutely and that that's two different levels of trust I want you to just really be a good person Join me, Keir Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app, search Learn the Hardway, and listen now. Great football coming your way into Trust and Will Holiday Bowl. Noah Fafita and Arizona take on SMU. It's a can't miss showdown in San Diego. Friday, 730 Eastern, 430 Pacific on Fox.

It doesn't matter what industry it is. you can see great or awful very quickly. I always said this with American Idol. Like, I don't know anything about music. I could spot Star or Hack in 10 seconds. And I don't know music. Right? Like Steve Wilkes in Arizona.

Freddy Kitchens in Cleveland. Nathaniel Hackett. First game in Denver. Couldn't figure the clock out. David Cully in Houston. You know when you whiff. You know when you miss. You also know with Ben Johnson, three or four games in.

You're like, whoa. Or, you know, Kyle Shanahan. hand in San Francisco. You're like, whoa, remember Jim Tom Sulla in San Francisco? He couldn't get the press conference right. He was brutal. Aaron Glenn is a defensive coach. Opposing quarterbacks against the Jets this year have 34 touchdowns and no picks. The Jets don't have an interception. What has been my rule forever? I will defend you as a coach. You got to get your side of the ball right. They have one of the worst pass rushes. in the league. They have no interceptions. He cannot get his side of the ball right. He's not a head

coach. He's been arguing at the podium. He can't even get the podium right. So he's either a great coordinator or he's a world-class positional coach. But New York is a hard place to win. That game yesterday was 35, 3 at half. Their leading receiver is still Garrett Wilson. What has he played? Seven games this year? So, and again, you can turn things around quickly. Gerard Mayo last year felt a little over his skis the higher variable. They go four and thirteen to what they are this year.

Now the Jets don't have a Drake May in the building. But if you get the head coach right and he brings a great offensive coordinator, you can solve stuff quickly. But this idea that I need years to see Nat Hackett in Denver, David Culley and Houston,

Jim Tom, Sula, and San Francisco, you don't need years. You watch all those music shows. you can tell in 15 seconds. You hear a couple lyrics. You're like a couple notes, a little melody, you're like, yeah, that's not hireable.

So I just don't think. Now, Dan Campbell was in Detroit, went 3.13 and won his first year. And it was kind of ridiculous at the press conference. Remember bite the kneecap thing. But remember that year, how relentless, how aggressive,

fourth down, I can remember the first year saying, this team plays harder than anybody in the league. They're just not any good. So you can have a losing record. It's not just a record. But if you watch Detroit in year one, you're like, man, they're playing. They play their arse off.

They're setting a tone. They're a very almost overly aggressive culture. You tell me, what are the jets hanging their hat on? So even the press conference stuff. So here was Aaron Glenn after the game yesterday. I always talk about how we come out when we play with effort. Today was probably the one time. I feel like our effort wasn't.

That's good I would want to be. And that's just me not BS and you guys. Just being on this, I didn't think the effort was where it needs to be. We have to figure that out. Because at some point, man, it's not about the score anymore. It's about the pride that you go out there and play with. And again, I'm always going to talk about how. our guys played with effort but today i didn't see the effort that i felt like we needed to go out

and compete at a high level okay so efforts he's not talking schemes he's on the sideline watching it and he's like well i don't see a lot of effort and yet he went and watched film and said this this morning effort was not the um the issue with that game um i thought our guys uh i thought they played all the way to the very end it was nothing about them that they that they were throwing the white flag and they were quitting. So to me, that's the one thing I really want to look at and see how that was. Again, it's commandantly. Well, there were some things out?

Absolutely. But, again, our guys did not quit. And my take, somebody got in his ear that's close to him and said, dude, if it's effort, you'll get fired. Because effort means, lack of effort means the players quit on you. Somebody got into Aaron Glenn's ear and said, don't, do not say that. do not say it's effort effort and a poor effort saying the team quit on you you don't want to admit that so somebody got in his ear he comes out this morning so i don't know what it is you know i'm not sitting there breaking down tape and again jim tom sulla or annette hackett or uh i don't think you need that

much how can you not have an interception on the season i mean it's just If they had the same record, but they had 15 interceptions, they had a bunch of close losses. And I can remember when Jim Harbaugh took over Stanford. Stanford was awful. And at the end of that first year was Stanford in Harbaugh. I remember people the Pac-12 are like, they're the most physical team in the conference. And Pete Carroll was at USC. You got to be able to hang your hat on something, and I don't see it.

and I remember that Lions year at the end of that first year with Dan Campbell the last four games Detroit was two and two and I mean they were punching people they were getting into backroom brawls and you're like they're not very good but man you can go into the offseason thinking we got something here

it's like a bad college football team that wins a bull game you're like all right there's something to work for so I don't know for me I don't see it I don't get it and I don't think it takes forever, but, and, you know, the downside is Brable took over a team that at least had Drake May. Harbaugh took over a team that had Justin Herbert. It's way easier to do.

Liam Cohen walks in and has Trevor Lawrence. It's easy. That's why maybe you go get, you know, I said this last week, is Lamar Jackson a terrible idea? If you got the coach right in Lamar Jackson, think they look different? It's worth considering. It's worth the discussion. That's all I know.

here's the next thing. A lot of rumors about Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame coach, being the New York Giants primary candidate. Marcus Freeman goes to X slash Twitter this morning, says, 2026, run it back, go Irish. Now, the cynical part of me thinks

he watched the Giants hammer the Raiders and knew he would not get Fernando Mendoza, the Indiana quarterback, is his number one pick. So, you know, Jackson Dart through eight starts, nine starts, what's Jackson Dart's record? I mean, it's not, you know, Jackson Dart's not Fernando Mendoza. And you can't win in this league without an elite quarterback. I am not convinced Jackson Dart is an elite quarterback. He's better than I thought, but a lot of quarterback's better than I thought.

So Jackson Dart as a rookie, three and eight. You know, so that's the cynical part of me. I think you can argue Notre Dame or the NFL, but I look around the NFC now, and I see Caleb Williams, and I look around the NFL, and I see all these top quarterbacks, and I don't know if Jackson Dart at 3 and 8 year one is something I'm going to leave Notre Dame for. I do think that Notre Dame is a great job and have some advantages. I mean, if they finish in the top 12, they automatically get into the playoff. it's a big name. They've got NIL money. It's a great place to play. You get such quality kids.

I think Notre Dame is one of those top four or five jobs, maybe a top two or three job, depending on what matters to you in life. Not that far from Chicago. There's fun around the corner. So Marcus Freeman staying, for me, look at their schedule next year. Outside of the home game against Miami, they'll be favored by seven points or more in every game. He's going to win a lot of games. You control the personnel. he's beloved. And I think college football is not as hard to coach as it was years ago. That's why you're seeing older coaches like Kyle Winningham and Kurt Signetti working

because you're not on the road recruiting like you used to. It's very administrative. It's very transactional. You can just write a check and go buy half your roster. So I don't think college football, you know, a lot of it now is just administrative. Do we have NIL money? Can I retain my players? Also, it should be noted Notre Dame athlete.

do not leave as often as other top 10 programs players leave. Because, and I get my take would be Notre Dame athletes. Don't go just for the money. They go for the education. I don't know this, but I think if you looked at why Notre Dame has less player loss year to year, it's because you go to Notre Dame for a lot of reasons, not just give me a paycheck. It's such a storied academic historic franchise.

That's my kind of guess, if you want to call a college program a franchise, Notre Dame kind of is. So Marcus Freeman is staying. The Jets may want to, listen, not all chefs, even the good ones, can run a restaurant. Right? So it's not like a lot of, I've said this. Sometimes you're just a great vice president. you're not a president. You're a great VP.

You're not a CEO. You're a great chef. You're not a great chef restaurant owner. So I go back and I look at some of these coaches. They're very good coordinators. Half of the NFL coordinators that get head coaching jobs, it doesn't work after three or four years. I defend a lot of coaches that people beat up on,

but it just feels like to me with the Jets, if you can't get an interception all season, one I mean quarterbacks against the jets are 34 touchdown zero picks even optimistic JMAG would acknowledge

that's not ideal 34 touchdowns bagel with picks calling right wrong next 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. 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, S&L'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. I'm Michelle McPhee, and I've been unraveling the strangest criminal alliance I've ever reported on. A Mormon polygamist and an Armenian businessman. Multi-million dollar house, Ferraris and Lamborghinis, private jets, a billion dollar fraud.

But how long can this alliance last? Tell me what you know. Is somebody coming after me? Listen to Kingdom of Fraud on the Aihar 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 Sports Slice 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 Slicelife-12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Winning on Clay is an art. The rallies are relentless.

and at the French Open, only the toughest survive. I'd know. I competed there for decades. Join me, Renee Stubbs, on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast for no-nonsense breakdowns of the biggest matches, the toughest players, and the moments that define Roland Garros. She's an outsider to win the French for me. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lennar Rabakina is arguably the best player in the world right now,

and I actually can win on any surface. Listen to the Renee Stubbs Tennis Podcasts on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.