The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - Setting The Standard

Episode Date: May 29, 2025

Colin credits Shai Gilgeous-Alexander with a dominant series win over Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves and how SGA is becoming "The Standard" He reacts to positive reports out of Browns OTAs regarding quarterback Shedeur Sanders and why he is clearly going to win the starting job in Cleveland  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

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

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Listen, Lina Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now. And I actually can win on any service. Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcasts on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. 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.

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This week's a big college football week. SEC Media Days, a lot of changes happening. Joel Klaz is going to stop by in one hour. hour from now. We love that. Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State football coach, brilliant young coach, is going to be joining us as well. Jay Mack, listen, last night in a laffer, not much of a game. And I understand this. I have said during the Pacers' Knicks series, stop beating up on the Knicks. It's about the Pacers. They have the best point guard and the best offense and the best pace in the league. And I feel like this with Minnesota. Like, they're not as good as OKC. They don't have,

They don't have the depth. They don't have the youth. They don't have multiple guys who can score like that. And so I feel like we should kind of honor OKC and SGA more than Hammer, Minnesota. Wow, a reasonable take to start the show, Colin. I like it. I like it. So let's start with that.

Obviously, OKC, that game was over in about seven minutes. The great thing about SGA, of the many great things, what I really like is he is delivering and fulfilling everything. I've been told Jason Tatum does, but doesn't really. Last year, the Celtics go on their championship run. Jalen Brown's the MVP of the Eastern Conference Finals. Jalen Brown's the finals, the finals MVP, and Jalen Brown's the aggressor and often the initiator.

SGA wants the ball, is always the aggressor. And he plays Williams, HomeGrid. He's got multiple great players around him, but he is clearly the alpha. And that's all I ever asked with Tatum. and got pushback. You know, I, I, that's, I'm holding Jason Tatum to the standard. You guys all lectured me on for years on LeBron.

When LeBron didn't take the shot, he's the alpha, he's the one. If he wants to be MJ, he's got to always take the shot. Okay, well, that's the standard of SGA and Yolchch right now. Like, like, I think both Yokic and SGA can elevate teammates and clearly do elevate teammates, but there is no question in this Oklahoma City room or that Denver locker room or in the huddle or any time there's a late possession, who's the man? And, I mean, we could crush the T-Wolts, right? They were awful.

Their effort was weak, but this series is not about the T-Wolves. And the Knicks Pacers, which I think will end soon, it's not really about the Knicks failures. Indiana is the best offense in the league with the best pace. OKC is easily the best defense and the greatest score. I mean, SGA is only the fourth player in 20 years to win the MVP and reach the finals. The other three, Steph, Kobe, and LeBron. I don't know. That feels historic to me.

So I just, I look at them between SGA and OKC's defense, this is going to be a great final. I get the best offense. I get the best defense. I get the best point guard. and I get the best score. And I know it's not catchy, and I know it doesn't sound, you know, dynamic. But I think SGA's nickname should be the standard.

This is the standard for a true number one. In the locker room, in the huddle, every big possession, he is a number one has to be dominating offensively, understood by all, even his talented teammates, debilitating to your defense. an adult consistent, number one on the bus, on the plane in the room. S.G. Alpha, the Western Conference Finals, undisputed MVP. This is not about Minnesota's failures.

It's about a historic player. He's one of three guys in league history to have 30 points, five plus assists at least 10 times in the playoffs. and LeBron or the other two. This kid is special. Every time he talks, every time he leads, you just see what a one should be. And here he is after winning the conference finals MVP. Yeah, it's a really good feeling. Stuff you dream about as a kid. And then of course, I want to thank my teammates. Without them, I'm nothing. Claire is day. I don't have a hundred and 24 points by myself. I love these guys to death.

With all that being said, this is a step in the right direction, but we have a lot more work to do, and we know that, and that's what we're focused on. So let's buckle up and get ready. Listen, they won by an average margin of 12.9 points per game.

And I understand, like, veteran teams in the regular season, don't give it, you know, LeBron's going to take some night-offs, and the older players, you know, they're dinged up a little bit. I understand they're, youth is a big component to it.

But here's what else is. This is as good a defensive team as I remember. Now, Detroit Pistons were great, but you could tackle back then. That was a little different. But given what you can do now, you can't really, you can't hand check, you can't use that forearm on your back, given what you're allowed to do by NBA protocol and rules, this is the best defense I've ever seen. They hound, they confound, they're aggressive to rim protectors on the back end. Even SGA plays defense and is long. Like, this is as good as defense gets.

So we can bang on Minnesota, but they're not built to beat this team. Julius Randall's probably a three, not a two. Gobert's got no offense. Conley, great veteran presence, not an offensive threat. And Ant just isn't there yet to single-handedly beat this offense. Way to go, OKC. All right. Listen, I don't want to make a big deal.

out of this. But some pretty interesting information trickled over my phone from the Cleveland Brown's OTA yesterday. I'm not great at math. But let's put the numbers up for the television audience. It appears in the four quarterback derby. Hmm. Again, not a mathematician, but one of them has more T-Ds than completions. That feels important to me.

despite the fact that Chedur Sanders had the fewest attempts, he was the most efficient and most productive with the fewest reps. So the quarterback tracker for those radio audience members, Flacco was 9 for 14 and a touchdown. Pickett, 9 for 16, no touchdown. Dylan Gabriel, 11 of 16, two touchdowns on a pick. and Sanders, seven of nine, three touchdowns, no picks. This, Justin, I've seen enough. I'm calling in a wrap. The herd newsroom is calling it in Ohio by a landslide.

Shadur Sanders should be starting. We are calling Ohio as the projected winner. In a race that is not as close as the fake news projected, you can keep selling me on picket. You can keep selling me on Dylan Gabriel. Now, Flacco I buy. Flacco I like. He's one of my favorite guys that's ever played in the league.

He's like, everybody likes Flacco. And I think he's going to win the starting job initially. I really like Flacco. But I'm calling it. I'm calling it for Shadur, and here's Flacco on Shadur. Shadur has been great. I mean, he's a lot of fun to be around in those meeting rooms. And I think once, I think so far there's been, you know, at least once in the media room

that he's made me crack a smile. And that's what it's all about. He's a young guy trying to learn some football and come out here and practice well and do those things. And like I said, he's been a lot of fun. Okay, you know, people, everybody's trying to sell you. I mean, TikTok's selling you, IG's selling you, using filters. Everybody is selling you stuff.

Now people are talking about the election that wasn't for Biden and was for Trump. everybody's selling me their takes. Y'all keep selling me. I got scouts telling me he's a fifth or a six-round talent. All I know, with very average personnel outside of Travis Hunter, against the very best teams he played. They didn't win games, but he was highly productive.

And a lot of college quarterbacks against the best teams with better teammates weren't as productive. Size, movement, accuracy. I like it. I know I didn't love, I didn't love the legendary draft room stuff. I thought it was a, lacked a little self-awareness. But again, you're 21, you're 22, you know, we were all running around pulling fire hydrants in college. So I mean, but, you know, we, we, we, you know, the pull the lever in college dorm rooms. I mean, we're all idiots at some point. We all had, you know, lack of judgment or self-awareness. I'm not going to crush anybody for that. But I think

he's really, I think he's really talented, and I think you're seeing it. Jay Mack, we're calling it for Ohio. You, you, oh boy. You know what else? The H-TRAID has left the station, and it's May for Shador standards. Okay, got it. Okay. OTA stats.

That's a new one. Let me just throw this at you. Back to Oklahoma City. Please. So, like, when you lose a playoff series or are losing a playoff series, we've talked about this with the Knicks. is like you kind of see what doesn't work against an elite team

Brunson and Cat on the floor Indiana kind of abuses them so you probably want to move off cat you could keep him if you added another catch and shoot guy but you can see your problems when you face on the elite team like you watch the T-wolves and you're like oh you know Julius Randall is

it was fun but boy when you play OKC's defense he is really limited and Ant isn't there yet so you great teams are clarity like when Andrew Lott came into the NFL was 11 and 5 with a bad roster, you're like, oh, yeah, that's what grade is. You can be 11 and 5 without a Pro Bowl or anywhere near the offense. But here's another takeaway, and I'll get into it later.

The T-Wolves ran the Lakers out of the building and can't compete against OKC. So for all those thinking were inches away, the T-Wolves bodied the Lakers, physically push them around. Dude, they could not compete in this series. They had one really good game. One of five. So I'm just saying, greatness creates clarity. If you think you're close or you think you're flawless,

but you don't think you have vulnerabilities. Oklahoma City, Indiana Pacers show you the truth, and you have to grasp the truth. You have to embrace the truth. You can't push back and be defensive. But Laker fans, Minnesota bodyed you. They got blown out of the building in this series.

Hey, Colin, I love it. You know, I can't help my son with eighth grade math. He's doing, like, the advanced math. It's hard. I have to ask Chad GPD. Okay? But I do remember in elementary school, there were all these math properties,

if A plus B equals C, just because Minnesota smashed the Lakers, it does not mean that the Lakers can't beat OKC. They match up great with OKC. Essentially, the Thunder had two rounds to watch Anthony, Edwards. And they were like, oh, here's how we stop him. Let's put up a picket wall at the free throw line and say, you're not getting in the lane. We'll go ahead and have Jayden McDaniels shoot the lights out or Julius Randall. And Minnesota didn't. Nobody else showed up for them in the series.

And it was a wrap. I still, I think your worst take in the NBA playoffs has been the Lakers are far off. I think you're way, way wrong there. But again, maybe I'm being a LeBron Homer. Yeah, maybe. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd. Weekdays and noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeard Radio app. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, huge news? We created our own podcast 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 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. We were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers. This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say, hey, Jonas.

And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and Friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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. Jen Chinch win. I mean, she went down in three to, two, 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. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind.

Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real.

From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsClice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicelife 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. You are now entering the no bull zone sponsored by credible rate rates and none of the bull. So Bears quarterback, Caleb Williams, has said it's a bit of a distraction, but he finally addressed yesterday. I'll get to it in a second.

Seth Wickersham, great writer ESPN, has come out with a book called American King's biography of the quarterback. And it revealed that Caleb and his dad did at one point, you know, consider ways to avoid going to the Bears based on their chaotic history and their inability to elevate quarterbacks. So finally yesterday, he addressed it, and here's Caleb Williams. And I want to come here and be the guy and be a part and be a reason on why, you know, Chicago Bears turned this thing around. So that last thing that was said and all of that, I think was the most important thing is that I wanted to be here, that I love being here, I love my teammates. So my take is different.

There was a radio host in New York that said he's been breathtakingly entitled. And I'll get to that in a second, but I don't think being concerned about an environment or a job before you get there at 22, 23 years old or older is entitled. A historically chaotic business, the Chicago bears an offense. It's like global travel for the rest of us. What's my budget? What are the safest parts? I'm new. I don't know it very well.

I want to do my homework. It's called due diligence. utilizing available information. Listen, you may need a malaria shot if you travel to certain parts of Africa. I don't think you're an entitled traveler. I just think that's the reality. And Caleb and his dad looked at the history of the Bears

and thought, yeah, they've never had a 4,000-yard passer. It's probably not all on the quarterback. It could be the ownership in the front office and, you know, a stealer-like devotion to defense. And they were right. Again, I don't think that's entitled. I think it's intelligent. When you buy a house, are you entitled if you're like, yeah, this neighborhood?

I got kids. It's not walkable. I don't think it's safe. I don't like the schools. I don't think you're entitled. You can afford a better house. Go buy it. So, you know, listen, Caleb Williams and I actually have a lot in common.

We just moved to Chicago. Now, only one of us takes the train to work, but we both moved to Chicago. I was warned about weather. He was warned about the bears. I think it's okay. I think when you're talking about young people, 24-year-olds now, they don't go to a restaurant.

They don't go to a restaurant without reading Yelp reviews. They don't do it. I mean, they just, I mean, I watch my kids. I lean on my kids for this stuff. I think it's breathtakingly out of touch or tone-deaf to think a 23-year-old, and historically in the NFL, you get one shot to be a number one.

If a team moves off you, now things have changed over the last four or five years with Darnold and Gino and Baker, but most of my life, first team that draft you, that's your big shot. You'll come with baggage and a reputation everywhere else. I mean, Baker is difficult.

No, he's not. Gino doesn't have it. Yes, he does. Darnold can't play without being reckless. Oh, wait, he got the right coach. So maybe Caleb, if it doesn't work in Chicago, will get other opportunities. But we are in the age of information,

and nobody is better at finding and accumulating and using that information than 20 and 30-year-olds. So I don't have a problem with it. He decided on Chicago. The fact that it made it out isn't entitled. It's honest. He didn't have to tell us that. Give the reporter credit, Seth Wickersham, who found it,

and the athlete and the dad who are honest enough to admit it. There's a lot of stuff out there that like this, We just don't hear about. You know, I always said this. When Tiger Woods got caught fooling around, you think he's the only golfer to ever do that? They all fly Gulfstreams? He's the only one on the road? All right.

No, it's just the one you heard about. This is just a concern. Like the Mannings, they did a lot of this stuff. They did it behind the scenes. You just didn't know much about it. Or John Elway and Jack, his dad. You just didn't hear about it. This stuff, I mean, it's just the way we live now.

We get all the information. You can't hide anything. It could be the White House or a football team. J. Mack with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, Colin, let's jump right into it.

The Knicks and Pacers play again tonight. New York looking to save their season. Got some bad news. Carl Anthony Towns listed as questionable after bumping knees here with Knee Smith. Towns went down, was limping badly. The rest of the, you know, the final minute, which took like 15 minutes. Tibbs thinks he's probably going to be able to play, but you can't have your number two score

unless it's questionable with the C's on the line. I don't know if the Knicks show up here, Colin. This is an Indiana Pacers team that just watched Oklahoma City last night just dispatch Minnesota, and you know they're chomping at the bit to get their shot at OKC. For starters, I'm not bad in this game.

I don't even look at a line. I don't know that you could take the Knicks here tonight. No, I think, I also think you can't fool players. And I think Knicks players, very early in this Celtic series, the Nick players felt like we are in Boston's head. Even before Tatum was injured, five minutes before Tatum was injured, I felt like this could be a Nick series.

They're in Boston's head. I think the Knicks realize they have some deficiencies with Kat and Brunson that Indiana keeps exposing over and over and over and over again. and I think they're well aware that Indiana is better with pace and almost as good in the half court. And I think you can't fool players. You can talk and have hubris and confidence, but I think Knicks players know Indiana's a rough matchup for them.

Just like Boston, it took them a while to figure it out, but like the Knicks with the NBA allowing physicality and a slow whistle, the Knicks were a real problem for Boston and Cleveland. So I just, I think Indiana is the better team. Well, in this series so far, they have been, I will point out last year, the Knicks led Fendi 3-2 and lost the series in 7. Of course, Brunson got hurt in game 7. But, Colin, the Knicks have lost the turnover battle in every game in this series. Yep.

You can't have that. Like Josh Hart, stop being sloppy with the ball. Carl Anthony Towns, like, you know, stop flailing in the lane. Like, they're just not buttoned up, as you like to say, for NFL teams. And defensively, the Pacers have shot over 52% on twos in every game. It's like the Knicks just have. Maybe it's like beating Boston. They felt like, hey, we slayed the dragon.

Team, we couldn't beat the last two years. We take them down. And all of a sudden they just forgot like, oh, we've got to like still play basketball. So it's kind of disappointing. I'm not expecting a win. Next up, NFL, Colin Jaden Daniels. Incredible first year in the league. Offensive coordinator, Cliff Kingsbury, says the sky is the limit in year two.

Here he is gassing up. Jaden Daniels growth. I mean, just watching him move around. He's not thinking as much. He's playing fast and letting his natural gifts kind of take over, and that's what we want to see. So I expect him to take a big jump. Yeah, he works extremely hard.

I mean, that's all he kind of thinks about is how he can get better, and watches a ton of film, watches a ton of football overall. And so that organically really takes care of itself in a way when you have a guy who wants to be that great. He is very highly motivated to be as good as he can be, and that's always exciting for the organization. How about this, Colin?

Washington added a, I don't know about elite, but very good left tackle in Laramie Tunsell. And they added a formerly elite weapon in Debo Samuel. Yeah, he still is. A great quarterback and a good offense and a great offensive coordinator. Washington to the Super Bowl, is that too exciting? Well, I think they're in the bubble. I mean, we do that Super Bowl bubble.

I think they're absolutely in the bubble. I think Jaden Daniels is, you know, people talk about a sophomore slump, but you just go back to the first month, first five, six games when he's going 28 of 31. And I think the thing about Jaden Daniels, beyond his athletic ability and his accuracy, it's really unprecedented. Even better than Andrew Luck was his poise. He was so good in the two-minute drill, so good on third and fourth down, with very few mistakes. I mean, Andrew Luck was remarkable.

But Andrew threw picks. Andrew was really aggressive. Jaden Daniels' ability to be a top three quarterback in the league late in games is something I've never. I said it. Mahomes wasn't that good. I mean, Mahomes didn't play as a rookie except for week 17. Like to come out of college, first year playing all those games, Lamar didn't play until week 11. I've never seen a rookie quarterback as poised as him.

Completion percentage, yards per carry, rushing yards. two minute drill. I've never seen anything like it. Well, Washington had RG3, whose rookie year was unbelievable, if you remember that. But then he had the injury and kind of fell apart for him. Listen, C.J. Stroud, we saw him regress in year two, right? Pull back a little bit last year, and they went and got Stefan Diggs for him. Is there a world where he regresses? I just like keeping Kingsbury.

I think Kingsbury is maybe a top five offensive coordinator in the league, maybe top three. Well, the advantage he has over C.J. Stroud is that you get 30% more playbook if your quarterback runs like Jaden Daniels or Lamar Jackson. C.J. Stroud, his comp coming out of college, which I thought was fair, was Jared Gough. And that's why I said, I think Jared Gough and C.J. Stroud are a great comp. And Jared Gop's been to a Super Bowl. It wasn't a knock on him. But his comp was, in the pocket, throwing darts with protection, he's really good. That's not a criticism. Jared Goff-Comp is not a criticism. It is a reality of a lack of mobility.

C.J. Stroud has more than Goff. But I think when you do have hyper-athleticism, it just allows you more plays. And Jaden Daniels opens with the New York Giants. That should be a win. Packers, Raiders, Falcons. Colin, I think they're going to be favored in three of those four. Could be a four-and-o start for Washington. Just put the Super Bowl futures.

Just consider it. This team's really good, man. And their coach, we know he's very good as well. Final Story, Collins, the Big Ten, has been running college football pretty much the last two years, right? Michigan, Ohio State went back to back with championships. Brian Kelly, the LSU coach, was asked at SEC spring meetings about scheduling the Big Ten in the regular season. Take a listen to this. We have the depth in this league from top to bottom and that we are the premier league in the country.

But you could do that in the playoffs, though. You can do it in the playoffs too. Absolutely. But you can also show yourself during the regular season. Ryan Kelly went on to say, Colin, he wants to, he would love to have like a partner, the Big Ten, pick someone in the SEC and they do battle every year. He's like pushing for it.

Now, I do believe he probably has an agenda. Hey, I got dibbed on Rutgers. You know, I don't want to play Ohio State in the regular season. But this is interesting. Wanting to actually play someone runs counter to what you. you were saying about USC and Notre Dame? Well, I think of a lot of people, Bruce Feldman said yesterday that the Big Ten last couple of years has been better at the top, but the SEC in the middle will be better.

And my take is both Washington, Washington has always been a playoff team or close when they have the right coach. And I think Jedfish is the right coach. I think it was a rebuild culture-changing year from Kalin to Borr, so Washington will be much better this year. and USC historically is a top 10 to 12 program. So my take is both USC and Washington were in the midst of a rebuild. Oregon, Penn State, Michigan, and Ohio State are a really good top four.

If Washington and USC just become what I think they will be with offensive coaches, that's six deep of really good teams. Not to mention I think Matt Rule in Nebraska is really good. So my take is right now about the Big Ten SEC thing. There's one advantage. Nobody's talking about this that the Big Ten has. They have bigger schools. Go look at the student body at Wisconsin at Ohio State.

SEC schools are mostly smaller. What does that mean? Well, with all those massive student bodies and those kids get flushed into the workforce, there's a greater chance they become millionaires and successful and give back to their schools. So the NIL numbers, Alabama's having to hold car washes and bake saves, okay? Ohio State congenerate, Michigan can generate.

USC's NIL's up to 18 million. Oregon's got Phil Knight. Penn State's got tons of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh money. The NIL is about the bag. How much do you have to spend on basketball and football? A lot of those southern powers are, small tiny towns, small schools that don't pour 18,000 graduates into the workforce every year. They only have 22,000 people going to the school.

So I think the NIL going forward benefits, benefits Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, USC, Phil Knight and Oregon. I think it's a big, I don't think this is like just a blip. I think Penn State's going to play for the national championship next year. Third straight, Big Ten team in that game. or L.A. I am. L.A. or whatever. One last note.

Do you think these SEC schools want to go to Big Ten country and say November? Or would they rather go in August and September? Well, if I was a Big Ten school, I don't want to be near the SEC heat in August and September.

Yes, exactly. Give me the November 8th game. Jay Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Heard Lye News. I saw this. J. Mack and I argue about the Brock Pretty thing all the time, but I do think you have to contextualize quarterbacks.

And I saw something, I saw it actually this morning when I got up, is that it's important to remember with quarterbacks. And this is a real thing. Nick Foles won a Super Bowl over Brady and Belichick. Trent Dofer won a Super Bowl. Brad Johnson won a Super Bowl. Joe Flackle won a Super Bowl. Dan Marino never did. Russell Wilson won a Super Bowl in that year, seven times he threw for under 200 yards. If you have a better roster, Brad Johnson's roster, Tilford's defensive roster, Nick Foles, Philadelphia roster. It wasn't the coach, the coach got fired in two places. Jacksonville and Philly, Doug Peterson, contextualize.

But we tend to go, oh, quarterback's winning, quarterback's great. Slow down. So PFF this morning may have been released last night, but I saw it this morning. They ranked every NFL roster, every single one. And when they ranked Philadelphia number one, it was interesting. Their biggest strength, they said, was defense. The rookie to watch was Jahad Campbell. The X factor this year is Nolan Smith and Edge.

And their biggest weakness, Jalen Hertz in the passing game. right. Jalen Hurts in the passing game. And PFF is right. Despite the best O-line in the league, the best running back in the league, arguably after Cincinnati, the best wide receiving combo in the league, excellent tight ends, an offensive head coach. Jalen Hertz can be bad in the pocket. And that's the truth. And I know it hurts, but two things can be true. Jalen Hertz was incredible against the Chiefs in the Super Bowl. and he had fewer touchdown passes last year than Gino Smith and the same as Kirk Cousins. With a much better weapons, a much better run game, a much better offensive line. So Jalen Hertz last year with a stacked roster to me is Brock Purdy two years ago in San Francisco with a stacked roster. That doesn't make you an A plus quarterback. Mahomes winning back-to-back Super Bowls would be worst receiving. core arguably in the league is A-plus-plus.

Joe Burrow getting to a Super Bowl with the 18th-ranked defense and an atrocious O-line, that's an A-plus-plus Super Bowl and winning two-road playoff games. That's great. Jalen Hertz and Brock Purdy getting to a Super Bowl, winning or losing, with a completely stacked roster, that doesn't make you an A-plus quarterback. Jack Prescott, before he signed his big contract, when he had the best running back in the league Zeeke, arguably, absolutely the best offensive line, offensive coach, good tight end. Everybody was like, Dak is A-plus-plus. You know who thought that too, Jerry Jones?

And he overpaid for him. So contextualize it. Not banging on Purdy. Pretty two years ago had Philadelphia and Jalen Hurts roster. Everybody looks great. the minute last year, Christian McCaffrey's hurt, Debo's hurt, Trent Williams out, go look at San Francisco's last 10 games. They couldn't win them.

And some of them were layups. So you have to understand in any business, what is driving your success? What is it? It's not Jalen Hertz. PFF has it right. The weakness of that team is against the Rams, they're not. Two for 65 yards. Thank God for Jalen Carter in their defense and those great corners and Sequin Barclay and those receivers and that O line.

Two things can be true. You can be great in moments with the stack roster. It doesn't make you Dan Marino. Here was Chris Sims last week on Jalen Hertz. With Jalen Hertz and what I look at too, we have a little bit of a revisionist history here. He won the Super Bowl and everybody just forgot about the 10 weeks before that that we were like, Wait, the passing game and the quarterback was the issue. He had a good NFC championship game.

I know that. But divisional game, we were like, man, the quarterback and the passing game. Wildcard game, we were like, man, the passing game and the quarterback not looking good. The last seven or eight weeks of the year, his top receiver said, what's wrong with the team? The passing game. Exactly. One of his receivers complained about it. I don't hate Brock Purdy.

I actually love the stoic nature of both Purdy and. hurts. I actually think Hertz and Purdy may have the perfect personality to be a quarterback. Like they just, they're not partiers, they're great at the mic, they give teammates credit, a very mature adult and stoic,

and they deserve to get paid. But you've got to contextualize it. Brad Johnson, Super Bowl, Nick Foles, Super Bowl for Brady, Joe Flacco, who I love, Super Bowl. Tread Dilfer, guest on this show many times, Super Bowl. Dan Marino doesn't

have one. Russell Wilson has one seven times due for under 200 yards. He was not driving the success, it turns out. Marshawn Lynch and that defense and that coaching staff was. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, it's Steve Kavino.

And I'm Rich Davis. And together we're Kavino and Rich on Fox Sports Radio. You can catch us weekdays from 5 to 7 p.m. Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and of course the I-Heart Radio app. Why should you listen to Kovino and Rich? We talk about everything, life, sports, relationships, what's going on in the world?

We have a lot of fun talking about the stories behind the stories in the world of sports and pop culture. Stories that, well, other shows don't seem to have the time to discuss. And the fact that we've been friends for the last 20 years and still work together, I mean, that says something, right? So check us out. We like to get you involved too. Take your phone calls, chop it up as they say.

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Huge news. We created our own podcast 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. We're starting a trend. 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. Oh, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers.

This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, where people could call in and say, hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, Jonas, and offered it up as a potential. title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your

podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel. Help an Acapella band with their Between Songs banter. Does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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. Jen she won. I mean, she went down in 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 I Heart Women's Sports. Last night, a blown call changed a game.

This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down,

give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsClyce brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsClyce on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Sunday, the fastest race you on our kids. It's the streets of the Motor City of the Detroit Grand Prix. The indie car season continues Sunday, 1230 Eastern on Fox. So I really believe there's two things that I took from Minnesota getting rolled in this series,

beyond the obvious that OKC is a much better team. But number one I said earlier is that Minnesota rolled the Lakers, they could not compete against this team. And this idea that the Lakers next year can keep Austin, Reeves, LeBron, and Luca, who they are what they are. They're not improving ascending players. They're just, they are what they are. Whereas O. Casey is younger.

Their players are all ascending. They're better now consistently. They've got two first-round picks next year. And again, LeBron is what he is at 41. Luca is what he is defensively. And Austin Reeves is what he is athletically. I think it's been established what the Lakers players are. That's why I think you have to move Austin Reeves

and get a big and get a wing and do the best you can. My second take is the T-Wolves getting rolled really shows you, and that's okay, he's only 23. It shows you the gap between SGA, Yokic, and Ant, and it is a Grand Canyon gap at this point. And I'm a big Ant fan. But, I mean, Yokic took a beat-up Denver team to seven games. You know, they just ran out of gas and bodies, or they could have won game seven. I mean, Ant had one great game in this series. Game three.

One. Ant shot only 28% from threes. He had no double doubles. Forget triple doubles. He had no double doubles. He shot 69% from the free throw line. So you can't take SGA, Steph, Yokic, or LeBron in his prime. You can't take them out of their game.

Can't. You can take Ant out of his game. Not everybody, but a good defensive team. trap him, double him, throw bodies at him, make him make quick, decisive reads. He's not great at that yet. And I always said, what really makes the great's great. What really makes LeBron Mahomes, Tom Brady, great, their entire careers in their prime, those 10, 12 years are prime, basketball, maybe it's 14, football, maybe it's 10.

Everybody's trying to disrupt Brady, disrupt Mahomes, disrupt LeBron, and they can't. The entire game plan, stop that guy, can't. I mean, LeBron was even at a high school by year two, 30 plus 10 assists, tireless offense. And everybody was trying to stop him, throwing their best defenders at him, doubles, traps, pressure, didn't matter. Everybody is designing their defenses to stop the grades. OKC did it and really shut it down. They couldn't shut Yokic down. Yolkich ran out of gas.

He didn't run out of brain power. He didn't run out of distribution or scoring. He just got tired. Ant needs more layers. He needs more time. He needs more experience. You can double him and he's just, he just, I've said this. It's a little bit like a quarterback in year two instead of year five.

Mahomes admits year three, the lights went on. Ant's just not, he's not good at pre-snap quarterback play yet. You can double him, pressure him. He can't make those quick reject. My guess is you could be trade deadlines. next year, he may have it. But he's just not quite there. And it shows the gap with a Yokic and an SGA. I said this yesterday. SGA is 26 and Ants 23. Like if you're 46 and 43, there's no difference. But at 26 to 23 in the NBA, it's a different player. I mean, SGA's decision-making's, his ability

to manipulate defenders and the officials. Like SGA, 26 with all his experience, like, oh, that's an Gold. He is now starting a prime. Ant's not in his prime yet. He'll probably get their end of next year. He'll probably sometime in May for about a nine-year period. He'll be in his prime. So what you're seeing is what the NBA is. It's hard.

And because these guys like Ant come out after one year of college, you know, I always said they can't even drink at the hotel bar for several years in the league. So he just needs, he needs more snaps to be able to read that. Too deep and zone and that man-to-man coverage and rolling over cornerbacks. He just needs more snaps at the line of scrimmage. That's what he needs. Here's Ant after. They was the better team.

They came out and beat us, punched us in the face, and we lost the game. We lost a series. Yeah, I'm going to work my butt off this summer. Nobody's going to work harder to me this summer. I tell you that much. And remember, Shea at 23 had never been an All-Star. So you start stacking these years and these experiences. young quarterbacks and aunt, they grow up really fast.

We're probably the All-Star Break next year, an off-season and 30 more games of him graduating to the things we're missing now. By the way, Jay Mack on my contextualizing Jalen Hertz and Brock Purdy apparently is outraged. So it wasn't outrage, but maybe it was what they wrote on the screen, what's I called a cry on, trust hurts to lead Philly. I was listening closely, and it's almost like you're playing the, hey, Brock Purdy had a stack deck in San Fran.

That's why he was good. Well, Jalen Hertz has the best roster. That's why he's so good. But I just wanted to clarify, are you questioning Hertz? Are you saying that he's not great? It's the team, not him? No, he was a second round pick for a reason. He was a better college quarterback.

He's a more athletic quarterback. Yeah, I think Jalen's better than Brock. But you're an elitist. You need your quarterback to be 6-5 and a top-five pick because, Colin, I'm just digging up some stats. You want a hot take? Jailen Hurts is the best dual-threat quarterback in NFL history. Sorry, look at the records.

He's setting more records. I know Lamar's great. I know Cam Newton had a couple good runs. Records, roster, yes. So that's it. You're going back to the roster. But guess who has the most rushing touchdowns in postseason history for a quarterback? Guess whose dual threat ability is leading the Eagles?

How do you get to the postseason? You have a great roster. He didn't have to carry his franchise like Josh Allen because Buffalo didn't have personnel. That's the difference. By the way, it's not being an elitist wanting you to call it a Chiron, not a Crayon. That's not an elitaph. You were closer saying Crayon. Whatever.

You're moving the goalposts or whatever they say it. In reality, let's be real about this. If the quarterback was taken in the top 10, you think he's the reason. for the success or the first round. If he's outside the first round, it's all the roster. That seems to be where you're headed. Purdy, hurts. Yes.

Yeah. Do you think that's fair? I think in this generation over the last 10 to 12 years, Lamar first round, Mahomes first round, Alan first round, Herbert first round, Joe Burrell first round. I mean, you can embrace Brock and Dak, but history shows you that in the last 10 years,

one. Scouting's better. Information's better. The first round guys, people are always like, the NFL does know how to draft quarterbacks. It'd be one thing if they're all ending up in the fourth and fifth round. The overwhelming great left tackles and quarterbacks in the league today are all first rounders. The league, the scouts, the GMs, the personnel people, like Detroit drafted a running back first round. People are like, whoa, they knew what they were doing. Jamir Gibbs is great. So I do look at you differently if you're a first round quarterback.

There is something that literally GMs went, wow. Wow, impresses. Wow, our tune is. 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. Nice. 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, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform?

We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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, the moment's set to find Roland Garris. Jen, she's an outsider

to win the French fame. 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 IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner

of IHart Women's Sports. 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. In 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-Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human. Thank you.