The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 1 - Steelers seem desperate

Episode Date: March 10, 2025

Colin can't believe the Steelers made a big move to trade for and pay DK Metcalf despite not having a franchise quarterback to throw him the ball Why Davante Adams going to the Rams makes sense  ...Thoughts on the Lakers and the injury to LeBron JamesSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Starting point is 00:00:00 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.
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Starting point is 00:01:00 Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds.
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Starting point is 00:02:45 free agency in the NFL live in Los Angeles. It's the herd wherever you may be, however you may be listening. Thanks for making us part of your day. We have a great show today. Colin right, Colin wrong, an hour from now, as is customary on Mondays. So a little bit of fools gold in free agency. Most of the great teams will re-sign their own players. Kansas City resigns Nick Bolton, terrific linebacker.
Starting point is 00:03:14 Nobody wants to pay linebackers, but he's been so good for them. That's a real smart move. That, to me, is what you want to do during this week period. but what happens is a lot of swings by a lot of desperate teams, J. Mack, and I'm going to start the show with that. I'm going to start the show with that today. There's an old adage. Struggling couples often have a baby to save a marriage,
Starting point is 00:03:39 or they buy a house to save a marriage, and it doesn't work. The marriage was in trouble. D.K. Metcalf to the Steelers for $150 million in five years, that's buying a house to save the marriage. The Steelers can't get the offensive line right. They can't get quarterback right. They spend too much money on defense, defensive culture, 25th in rushing average, 25th in the NFL.
Starting point is 00:04:08 So let's throw a Hail Mary to save our offense. What's ironic is the one position that the Steelers draft and develop exceedingly well on offense is wide receiver. They've been great at it for 20 years. Go back to Heinz Ward. They always draft and develop wide receiver. So why spend $150 million on it? And the Steelers thinking they can solve their offensive issues, which have been awful. Not only since Big Ben retired, but about the last two years of Big Ben, thinking you can solve your offense by adding another expensive high-maintenance wide receiver is like thinking you can solve your car troubles.
Starting point is 00:04:49 by putting in some premium leather seating. Yeah, that ain't it, man. George Pickens and D.K. Metcalf? Okay. You know how A.J. Brown was reading a book on the sidelines? In Pittsburgh, they need a library card. I mean, these guys want the ball. Now.
Starting point is 00:05:10 I mean, oh, yeah, there's another rumor out there with the Steelers. Aaron Rogers is talking to him. Good hell. What are you trying to be? A rock band. that trashes the hotel room? I said this last week. D.K. Metcalfe with a very solid
Starting point is 00:05:26 quarterback in Gino's very solid quarterback. I'll get to him later. He only accounted for 35 first-down catches. Okay, that's half of Amar on St. Brown. And the Steelers are not very solid at quarterback. They've been
Starting point is 00:05:41 experimenting, it feels like, for the last five or six years. So I'm not, I am not player-hating. I'm situation hating. If you went to a team like D.K. Metcalf went to Kansas City where they've kind of struggled.
Starting point is 00:05:58 I mean, Rishi Rice is good but in trouble. Xavier Worthy, good but in trouble. They've had several misses. You go D.K. Metcalf to Kansas City in that strong culture offensively. You could talk me into it. How about Houston and C.J. Stroud? You could talk me into it.
Starting point is 00:06:15 Pittsburgh doesn't know offense. Doesn't have a feel for it. They're not good at quarterback. They're not good on the offensive line. Again, this is a team the last two seasons that has been Pittsburgh 31st in pass attempts, which has driven George Pickens crazy. So let's add another receiver that's expensive and is going to demand the football. I say it out loud.
Starting point is 00:06:39 D.K. Matt Kaff said the two things he wanted, warm weather and a solid quarterback situation. Those boxes are left unchecked. So not all wide receiver acquisitions are the same. It's about feel. It's about fit. It's about does your organization do offense well? And I'll go from that because I think this is a desperate move. Let's go from that to the Rams getting Devonte Adams.
Starting point is 00:07:15 Now, D.K. Metcalfe is in his prime. Devonte Adams isn't. So I wouldn't like this move. No, it's different. I do like this move because of Sean McVeigh, the offensive culture. They've already got a number one in Puka, Nakuwa. So if Devante now is a 1A or a 2, it fits. This is very much this move by the Rams.
Starting point is 00:07:36 It's essentially a one-year deal. It's very similar to Jimmy Butler going to the Warriors. The Rams are lining up all their offensive pieces around Matt Stafford, because the Rams feel like, hey, we've got. about one to two years of great Matt Stafford left. That's what the Warriors felt. We got a couple of years of Steph being great. Let's get them a legit too.
Starting point is 00:07:57 So Sean McVeigh knows offense. The Rams have a feel for offense, and they've got an incredible defense that is young and super cheap, so they're flexible. This is a totally different move. And that's why I wanted to juxtapose. The Steelers move, which feels like a desperate Hail Mary to solve an ailing offense,
Starting point is 00:08:18 and the Rams move, which feels like a very substantive, one, maybe two-year deal to line up in an excellent offensive culture with Sean McVeigh and Matt Stafford. That's the difference. Remember, the Rams have said publicly, we're moving off Cooper Cup. And now, I don't know if Devante is in his prime. I think he's probably just left the prime. He's definitely not Twilight. So he's somewhere in between prime and twilight. But in the last three years, Devante Adams is tied for second in the NFL and touchdowns for wide receiver.
Starting point is 00:08:56 That's with Derek Carr, Gardner Minshew, Aden O'Connell, and Aaron Rogers off an Achilles surgery. So this is a very good fit. In fact, if you look at the Rams, they made another receiver move this weekend that it's a tell. They're telling you what they're trying to do. They re-signed to a one-year deal, 2-2 Atwell, who's been a little bit of a semi-bust. Why did they do that? And they even paid him $10 million for one year because they're thinking, they're telling you this next year, we think we can win a Super Bowl. So why bring in a young receiver when we got Devante, Puka, Tyler Higby, the excellent tight end, probably a B plus tight end, running back, O line set, they re-sign their left tackle, they're going for the Super Bowl.
Starting point is 00:09:39 Because the Rams and McVeyer are thinking, in a snowstorm against the best team in the league on the road in Philly, we're at the third. yard line looking to go in with a tying touchdown, PAT wins it, and we're going to the NFC championship. So, these are, this is a classic example. D.K. Metcalfe to a huge, long-term deal to the Steelers, feels desperate. Devante Adams, essentially on a one-year deal to McVeigh and Stafford feels really smart. So don't confuse the two. You know, don't, don't confuse the two.
Starting point is 00:10:16 A lot of nice cars on the freeway. Some take an exit to a nice neighborhood where they can afford it. Some take an exit to an apartment where they can't. Don't confuse two people driving two nice cars. Like, did you need it? Is it smart? Is it thoughtful? Does it work for your budget?
Starting point is 00:10:33 So this is what you get in the free agency period, and that's why I love it. In fact, there's a similar situation, which I'll get to on Gino Smith. I thought it was time to move from Seattle. I think he's a really good fit with the Raiders. Because one organization's really good and feels like they've had a ceiling and the other one's a mess and needs stability. This week is not just about the players. There is no week in the NFL where you can really figure out who knows what they're doing in the front office and ownership and who doesn't. This is not about the players.
Starting point is 00:11:08 Free agency week is about executives and owners. And you're going to see a lot of bad ones reach and a lot of good ones. and a lot of good ones find fits. This is Fit Week, not free agent week. That's what it is. Steelers, let's throw a Hail Mary. We got no feel for it.
Starting point is 00:11:27 Rams, I mean, we can get Devonte for one year. We've got two great years of Stafford left. Totally different acquisition, totally different sensibility and mindset. So, Jay Matt, we got so much stuff. We got, you know, I had a LeBron theory about a week ago.
Starting point is 00:11:43 Got a lot of feedback on that one. I've got another one. Sam Darnold looks like he's going to Seattle. I got my MVP vote in the NBA all settled up, Colin Wright-wrong next hour. And as you well know, you're betting Dayton and Creighton and Xavier games. You know March Madness is right around the corner. I just fired on Furman tonight. You've got to get in on that action.
Starting point is 00:12:04 Furman? Furman. Big game against, I believe it's Winthrop. I don't even know where either of those schools are located. By the way, I forgot to ask, who's quarterbacking the Pittsburgh Steelers next season? It's got to be Aaron Rogers, right? Really? And is Pickens on the roster in like three weeks?
Starting point is 00:12:18 Or do they trade him for a pick? I mean, again, Pickens gets frustrated in Pittsburgh. He's a huge talent. You put Pickens in Kansas City, it's like, oh, that would be interesting. You know, given what happened over the weekend with Xavier Worthy, getting in trouble with the law, maybe that's a great fit for Pickens. Yeah. Worthy, Ray. Fans tend to think we're picking on their teams.
Starting point is 00:12:42 And it's like, it's just like you. There are some jobs, if you're watching or listening to my show, there are some bosses and jobs that are a great fit for your personality. And then there are places that aren't. Right? And so it's just the same thing with players. Everybody thinks this is about players this week. And it's really about the organizations know what the hell they're doing. Or are they just making Hail Mary's to solve previous decisions? And that's what I think you see with Pittsburgh.
Starting point is 00:13:10 I mean, they're lost offensively. 150 mil and they gave up a second round pick i don't love that deal no be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon eastern 9 a m pacific on fox sports radio fs one and the i heart radio app 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 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,
Starting point is 00:13:44 yeah, a wide range of podcasts throughout there. But this one's extra special. So how did we actually come up with a name
Starting point is 00:13:50 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
Starting point is 00:13:59 one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers was... This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different
Starting point is 00:14:08 memory of this. We were talking about a thing a bit for the podcast where people could call in him 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.
Starting point is 00:14:29 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.
Starting point is 00:14:51 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.
Starting point is 00:15:07 I'm Renee Stubbs, and on the Renee Stubbs Tennis Podcast, I'm breaking down everything happening at Rolling Garas, every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay. Jen she went. 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.
Starting point is 00:15:26 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 Podcast. or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged.
Starting point is 00:15:53 It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Starting point is 00:16:18 Well, I told you last week, you know, the Celtics were going to beat the Lakers on Saturday. They're a better team. And then when Jackson Hayes didn't play and Rui didn't play and you lost all your size, it's in your length, it's like, yeah, this thing's not going to, this isn't going to work. Lakers have had a hard schedule, flying cross country. They ran out of gas in the second half. Boston's a better team. Boston's, in my opinion, Boston's going to win a championship.
Starting point is 00:16:40 The second best team in the league is Cleveland. It'll be a six or seven game series. I'll take Boston. But there was a moment when LeBron in the second half got hurt. A lot of people were giving him crap. That wasn't much of an injury. You want to know my theory on this? I have a theory on this whole thing with LeBron, and I totally defend him.
Starting point is 00:16:59 So he's been carrying the Lakers all season at 40 years old. Young Austin Reeves has missed time. Young Jackson Hayes has missed time. semi-young Rui Hashamora has missed time. Dorian Finney Smith isn't young, but he's missed a lot of time. Luca, who got torched in the first half against the Celtics, he's still playing himself back into shape. And LeBron got a little tweak and said to himself,
Starting point is 00:17:25 Daddy's going to take a couple weeks off, and I don't blame him. I think it's remarkable that LeBron isn't more bitter about having to carry this roster this year. He's 40 years old. looked at the schedule and said, six games in eight days, and the young guys are telling me they can't play, I'm going to pull up to my March mattress. Okay? Forget it, guys.
Starting point is 00:17:51 I don't blame him at all. I carried us to a number two seed. Lucas is not even in shape, and he's a liability defensively, and he got torched against Boston for most of the game. LeBron leads the Lakers in minutes, second in game play, and he's 40. and Austin Reeves is missing time and Rui's missing time and Jackson Hayes is missing time and I listen I'm the old guy on my team if my young vital dynamic virile dynamic staff was missing as much time as some of these guys missed for the Lakers I'd be bitter too I'd be
Starting point is 00:18:24 taking Fridays off for the next two years and LeBron's carried the franchise so I'm not saying LeBron isn't hurt a little when you get older especially like calf injuries or groin injuries or groin injuries, like, sit it out. But LeBron in the first half, they've gone through a rough stretch. This is the roughest stretch for the Lakers in terms of their schedule. He gave you 14, 8, and 7. And Luca did a lot of watching. Players drive by him.
Starting point is 00:18:52 And so I'm 100% with LeBron saying, and I'm not saying he's faking it, I'm saying he could probably play after two days off. If you look at this schedule, they get this, they don't play like one game in the next four or five. nights and then they got an on slot of Denver Nugget games this is the perfect time you'll see this with really great baseball teams you'll you'll see this with like the Dodgers or the Phillies in August and all of a sudden you know a pitcher sleeps on shoulder and he's like you know I'm going to take a couple of four starts off because he's getting ready for the postseason I don't
Starting point is 00:19:29 have a problem with it and here's LeBron after the game on his groin injury you point to a player sequence that caused the Yeah, it was the last play. The last score I had, Spano Jalen Brown, you know, maybe extended a little bit too much. A couple pivots, and then when I landed, I felt it. So that was the last pass score, though.
Starting point is 00:19:52 Not much concern. Obviously, we're going to day to look at it each day, see if it gets better and then, you know, take the proper measurement. See what we need to do going forward. Daddy's taken a couple of weeks off, and it's well-deserved. By the way, the Bucks have reigned Chris Godwin, Hassan Redick. So Jason Light, one of the smarter GMs in the NFL with Tampa is getting his guys sign. That's what I say 15 minutes ago.
Starting point is 00:20:19 This week is an indictment of bad front offices, and it doubles down on the good ones. The good ones are resigning their guys. It's good for culture. They know the system. You don't have to overpay on somebody you don't know absolutely fits. personality and playing profile. J. Mack with the news. No, no, no, no, no.
Starting point is 00:20:39 Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Yeah, a lot of moves happening, fast and furious. Some minutia. We'll get to all of it. Let's start with Josh Allen. The big winner over the weekend, won the MVP this season,
Starting point is 00:20:51 and the bills just rewarded him with a six-year, $330 million deal, keeping him in Buffalo through 2030. The deal includes 250 million, guaranteed. My gosh, the largest guaranteed ever given to a player surpassing Deshawn Watson, who people probably forget. I've got 2.30 guaranteed from Cleveland. Alan goes from being the 14th highest annual average at 43 mil to tied for second at 55 mil.
Starting point is 00:21:24 Listen. What can you say? Alan deserves it. He earned it. There's four quarterbacks in this league. Just pay them. Burrow, Lamar, Josh, and Mahomes. whatever the market is. Same with like Miles Garrett. People freaking out. I'll get to that later. He's the best pass rusher in football. Pay him. I mean, listen, Josh Allen is on the doorstep of a Super Bowl. I get that. He's the most talented player arguably in the league.
Starting point is 00:21:48 He's up there. I mean, he's a bigger, stronger version of Mahomes with a bigger arm. Like, I'm going to pay him whatever the market bears. I agree. Yeah, they're right there. They're close. That is, deal makes sense. Buffalo is going to be relevant as long as Josh Allen is breathing. Next up, let's go to another quarterback who's not got that much of a market, and that's Aaron Rogers. Still waiting. Interestingly, Colin, you know we like to kind of try to read the tea leaves out there. There's like no, it doesn't seem like there's a big market for Aaron Rogers, or they're keeping it super quiet. The Giants seem to think he could stay in New York and play for them.
Starting point is 00:22:23 The Seahawks, they need a quarterback. The Steelers need one, and then, and I don't know if I buy this. The Minnesota Vikings are a dark horse. I don't know. I feel like that's a reporter throwing a dart. Come on. You think he's following Brett Favre from the Jets to the Viking? No way. There's no shot. He's doing that. No way. Yeah, I mean, that would be embarrassing. Come on. Well, that wouldn't be embarrassing.
Starting point is 00:22:45 You're following Brett Favre. What's wrong with you? Well, you know what? I mean, that's like saying, that's like saying, well, I mean, Luca followed AED to Los Angeles. No, no. What? What? The train. Shack followed Great Laker players to Los Angeles. LeBron followed Shaqed a lot. Listen, there's a lot of great NBA players that want to play for the Lakers. Oh, yeah.
Starting point is 00:23:05 Everybody wants to play for the Vikings, huh? Well, Kevin O'Connell's a damn good coach. If I was Aaron Rogers and I got to pick a team of the three or four I'd want, Minnesota. That, of course. Yeah. So if Aaron talks his way into Minnesota, I'm not blaming Aaron at all. That's a great. I got Justin Jefferson.
Starting point is 00:23:22 I get that coach. I would rule out Seattle because it seems like they're rebuilding, right? They moved off Gino, D.K. and Lockett. This all comes down to numbers. I've been told the Seahawks, I was told this last week, Seattle wasn't going to re-sign Gino. I was told last week the Seahawks wanted Sam Darnold. But if Darnold's going to say $43 million and Aaron's going to say a lesser number, they may go Aaron. I'm told the Seattle situation is all about the number.
Starting point is 00:23:48 So the Vikings won 14 games last year with Sam Darnold. You think he's going to go to like a six-win team just to chase a couple bucks? like $10 million extra? I think Seattle's roster, I said this this morning to the team. When Tom Brady went to Tampa, the coach and the roster were fine. They couldn't get quarterback right. I like the coach in Seattle. I love the GM, and I think the roster is really good.
Starting point is 00:24:14 I think they have a quarterback situation. I think they thought Gino wanted more money than the Ciacs were willing to go. And I think Darnold's a better version of Gino, but they're similar in terms of size, mobility. and recklessness. So I think it comes down to, I've been told the Seahawks want Darnold, but the number's got to be right. Listen, if you're paying me $45 million a year,
Starting point is 00:24:36 sure, I guess I'll go to Seattle. But the Seahawks are clearing cap space. I don't know if you saw this. They have the most cap space next year in the league. Now, here, this isn't the NBA. You can't go out and get Janus. You know, there really isn't anyone to go spend all that cap space on.
Starting point is 00:24:49 So do they take a quarterback now? Do they soft tank? Well, D.K. Metcalfe. The only quarterback on the roster. Pittsburgh's paying all the D. D.K. Metcalf's salary, so they can look at it that way. I think they, I think, I don't think Capp's going to be a problem for Seattle. I think Donald's a better Gino, and I think they felt
Starting point is 00:25:07 they hit a ceiling. But the players that are now out there, the quarterbacks, it's all a number business. If Aaron Rogers says, hey, I just want to play with a better roster, Aaron would do very well in Seattle. You think Seattle has a better roster than Pittsburgh? No, but I've been saying the Steelers have a top five roster for five years. I don't think they have that kind of But I don't think it's a mile behind. Both teams have two good running backs. Both teams have offensive line talent. Both teams have receiver talent.
Starting point is 00:25:33 Both teams have an edge role. Both teams, I mean, both teams have a very good interior defensive lineman. Okay. Final question. NFC West. If Darnold or Rogers were to go to Seattle, rank the teams in that division. Go ahead. Rams are going to win it.
Starting point is 00:25:45 Niners second, Seattle, third, Arizona, four. You sure, Seattle third? Positive? I think Arizona is probably going to have a last push. I think Seattle's tanking. I know you don't want to hear. that or anything. Tank you.
Starting point is 00:25:56 Too good to tank. Really? How are they, where are they good? Give me one offensive thing that's good about. They fire their OC. They dump their top receiver.
Starting point is 00:26:04 They dump their locker room guy and lock it. Offensive line was, eh, running game. Lockett and D.K. Metcalfe moving off those guys. You saved a lot of lettuce. You're saving money,
Starting point is 00:26:15 but you're not a good. Wide receivers. They'll be fine. They have a number one wide receiver in the room right now. I like JSN a lot. Yes. Final story is the Niners.
Starting point is 00:26:24 Now, this one is kind of interesting, Colin. The Niners, they had a lot of financial decisions to keep their core together, and they did move off Debo. Brock Purdy's still negotiating his deal, but the athletic report, San Fran is having an organizational reset regarding giving out extensions. I think this dates back to Brandon Ayuk last year, and the Niners are attempting to be cold, calculated, and analytical. Do you think that's coming out as Purdy may have wanted 55? Yes. And by the way, we touched on this last week. That's what the Rams are.
Starting point is 00:26:57 The Rams told Stafford, here's the number. They told Cooper Cup. Here's the number. I think John Lynch and the Niners and Kyle have been way too permissive with contracts. And I said this before. Debo Samuel, it's like he's a chess piece. He's not a foundational go-to number one receiver. I'm paying Trent Williams, Christian McCaffrey,
Starting point is 00:27:23 Fred Warner, George Kittle has been terrific. There are pieces, I'm not paying, I'd move off their corner. I would move off. They got too many receivers. They're fine with Jennings and Kiddell and Christian and Iyuk and Pierce. They're fine. Probably too hot of a take for the first hour. But Sam Donald still hasn't signed anywhere.
Starting point is 00:27:46 And he does have experience with the Niners. If Brock Purdy's agents drive too hard of a bargain, do they say, Brock, sorry, we're not willing to go to. 45. We'll do Sam Darnold for 35 million a year, and he's our guy. This is what I... Is that in place? This is what I've been told by an executive I trust greatly. It is all numbers with Darnold, Aaron Rogers. It's all about the number. They're all kind of the same guy. Gino and Darnold are the same guy. I think Darnold's in his prime and more athletic. Aaron's not in his prime, but throws a prettier ball probably than
Starting point is 00:28:20 Gino or Aaron. He's also a little prickly. But if Aaron takes him... less, I would have no problem with the 49ers or the Seahawks saying, Aaron wants $12 million a year less than Purdy. Absolutely, I'll take it. I agree. Again, this is just a hot take I'm firing out there. That being said, I would rank Brock Purdy ahead of all those guys who just named. Currently, Gino, Rogers, Darnel.
Starting point is 00:28:42 Not physically. I don't care about physically. I want my quarterback. What are you getting like a Herculean superstar? No, we're not throwing a javelin, Colin. I struggle with guys who aren't the same. quarterback when it's overcast. Here we go. Go ahead. Get fire off.
Starting point is 00:28:57 I'm just telling you what I see. Anytime I have to go to the local weather to see if my quarterback rating will be over 80. Oh, drizzly. Let's just file that away, though. That's kind of spicy, don't? I'm just saying, this is all about numbers for the Niners, for the Seahawks, because there's no A quarterback on the market.
Starting point is 00:29:15 Aaron used to be, he's closer to B plus now. Which is not a shot. I mean, he's an older guy. The other guy we haven't mentioned is Justin Fields. Now there's just some stuff popping off online right now about that. Wait until you hear this story I've got. NFL's getting wild right now. J-MAC with the news. Well, that's the news.
Starting point is 00:29:33 And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Ly News. I'm going to say something right now for Chicago Bear fans, and you're going to laugh, but you shouldn't. The Chicago Bears are getting really smart, really fast, and they just signed another bear. brilliant piece, and he's a center. I love this. The Falcons, former Falcon Center, Drew Dolman, signed a three-year, $42 million with the Bears. Deal with the Bears. I love it.
Starting point is 00:30:04 So they've gotten two guard starters and a center starter. This is what the Rams do with Stafford. They clean up the middle. This is where Philadelphia is great. This is where the Chiefs are great. I love this move. So the... You know who... This is not good for Ryan Poles the GM. He spent all that draft capital on offensive linemen, and the new Bears coach walked in and went, yeah, none of them are any good. We need a new guard, center guard. Not good for Ryan Poles, the GM.
Starting point is 00:30:40 Very good for Caleb Williams. So this is something that you started noticing about three years ago in the NFL. well. The really smart offensive, by the way, when Brady went to Tampa, where was Tampa really, really good in the O line? Guard, center, guard. But the time Brady left Tampa, they'd had some injuries in those positions. I didn't think they were quite as good. So, no, they hit on Tristan Worf's, but they weren't great when Brady got there at left tackle. They weren't great there. They were great. Jensen, uh, guard, center guard. So I think this is really smart by the Chicago Bears. Last year, the bears were wide receivers, sexy, headline, Chicago Tribune. Look, just didn't mean anything. Guard, center, guard. This is when Andy Reid went and signed Joe Tooney to a big deal a few years ago. People were like, what? No, this is what the Rams did when they got Dotson from the Steelers. Remember, Dodson for the Steelers was going to be a backup. Sean McVeigh gets him.
Starting point is 00:31:49 puts him at guard, he ends up being ranked the number one guard in the league or top two over the last couple years. So I love this move by the Chicago Bears. This is the kind of sophistication you see with the really smart offensive coaches. And also, the Bears coach comes in and says, what did we have in Chicago? Great culture, great O line. Boom. He'll create the culture.
Starting point is 00:32:15 He'll buy the offensive line. Really smart by the Bears. So here are the free agent signings today. I just want, so Khalil Max is going to stay with the Chargers. It's one year 18 million. He's been terrific for them. Chris Godwin, Hassan Reddick, stay with the box, smart GM. And J.C. Horn gets paid for Carolina.
Starting point is 00:32:36 Drew Dalman goes to the Bears. You know, I got to be honest. I'm getting real wonky on this stuff. We never, you know, we never talked a lot of offensive linemen. old J. Mac did. J. Mack, believe it or not, Mr. Mussel Beach guy, a lot of sizzle
Starting point is 00:32:55 on the beach in Manhattan Beach. He's become a fan of interior line play as well. By the way, bears now have added three guys to their interior line. And I don't want to be too negative on a team we love at this network, but the Kansas City Chiefs' offensive line right now is in shambles. It is. Colin, it is really
Starting point is 00:33:11 ugly, and they're talking about moving the kid that they drafted from BYU. He's not working a tackle. let's move them inside and try that. They overpaid their tackle. Just contrasting styles out there right now. I know it's not sexy, like you said. Offensive line.
Starting point is 00:33:24 I'll tell you right now. People are probably changing the channel now. But if you're a gambler and you watch NFL closely, right? Offensive line. Significant. Okay, we got a bunch of stuff happening today. Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, and Hasselbeck top of the hour. I made it official who I'm voting for NBA MVP
Starting point is 00:33:39 and why Gino and the Raiders works for me. That's coming up. If you feel like owning a home is out of reach, Rocket mortgage says, hold on a second. We want to give you the keys to the American dream. Visit rocket.com or call 800 for Rocket. Live in Los Angeles, it's the herd. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific.
Starting point is 00:34:04 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 Covino 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.
Starting point is 00:34:27 Stories that, well, other shows don't seem to have the time to discuss. And the fact that we've been friends for the last 20 years and still work together, I mean, that says something, right? So check us out. We like to get you involved too. Take your phone calls, chop it up as they say. I'd say the most interactive show on Fox Sports Radio. be the most interactive show on planet Earth.
Starting point is 00:34:46 Be sure to check out Covino & Rich live on Fox Sports Radio and the IHeart Radio app from 5 to 7 p.m. Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific. And if you miss any of the live show, just search Covino and Rich, wherever you get your podcast and, of course, on social media. That's Cabino and Rich. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, huge news?
Starting point is 00:35:06 We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas, we invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there. But this one's extra special. So how did we actually come up with a name, Hey Jonas, guys?
Starting point is 00:35:24 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, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast.
Starting point is 00:35:52 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 Rockies. writer Streeter Seidel, help an
Starting point is 00:36:17 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. The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis.
Starting point is 00:36:35 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. Genshin won. I mean, she went down to three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted.
Starting point is 00:36:55 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.
Starting point is 00:37:17 Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds.
Starting point is 00:37:40 I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The Indy 500 runs through thermal as Indy car heads to the California desert. The fastest racing on Earth is back. March 23rd, live on Fox. By the way, not to bore you with O-Line Talk, but the Chiefs agreed to a two-year expensive deal with Jalen Moore's,
Starting point is 00:38:07 a left tackle, who was a backup in San Francisco. He got some starts late in the year. That's what happens. When you pay the quarterback all that money, you can kick the can down the road. But they're taking a big swing, not a huge swing, but a big swing on a left tackle that's never been a starter in the AFC where you got a lot of good pass rushers. And by the way, Chargers have them. And Denver's got him. And the Raiders have Max Crosby.
Starting point is 00:38:28 So that is a big ass for a guy that's never been a starter. So there was a move over the weekend. And I touched on this to start the show, is that it's a lot of your life and my life and professional athletes' life. is fit. So Gino Smith is leaving Seattle and he's going to the Raiders and he's going to sign a long contract. It's pretty expensive. I actually like the move. Gino Smith in Seattle to a better roster was played out. It's a very good Seattle roster. He couldn't take him to the next level. And I would have let him go. It was a nice story. He's a nice player. But the Raiders is a much different situation. They haven't won a playoff game in 22 years. They have no stability at all.
Starting point is 00:39:09 at quarterback, and it's a really bad quarterback draft class. So Gino Smith, with a coach he knows and respects Pete Carroll, and with a quarterback coach slash coordinator, Chip Kelly, who likes his quarterbacks to be accurate and move well, Gino's a great fit. He's going to end up this year with the Raiders having a mid-or-better, 97-passer rating. He'll complete 67-68% of his throws.
Starting point is 00:39:38 He'll have a ton of yards. and he'll give you stability and production. So what's interesting is if you go back since 2022 to Gino Smith and a quarterback I really like Justin Herbert, it's kind of the same guy. If you look at the numbers, it's the same guy. Now, I think Herbert has a much higher ceiling than Gino Smith. Obviously, most people would agree with me, but they're big, they move well, and they're accurate at throwing the ball.
Starting point is 00:40:05 And again, Gino with Chip and Pete Carroll is going to be fine. Life is all about timing. Pete Carroll is not at the age. At 73, he's got great energy, but he doesn't want to be a babysitter at quarterback, and Gino's an adult, comes in, gets it done. Tom Brady, it should be noted. Also signed off on this move, so I have no problem with it. Tom knows quarterbacks.
Starting point is 00:40:28 Gino's also, interestingly, Gino's 34 years old, but Gino hasn't played as many snaps as a lot of 34-year-olds. So he's like a young 34-year-old. He hasn't taken nearly the hits as most 34-year-old quarterbacks because he did some backing up. I think he backed up Eli Manning at one point. So, again, Gino's 34. He's probably got a 30-to-a-31-year-old body. More than anything, Pete Isstability, Chip Kelly, Gino Smith, that's what they need.
Starting point is 00:40:57 Seahawks have been stable forever. Same ownership group. They don't run through coaches. Pete Carroll was there forever. Now they have Mike McDonald, John Snyder, has been the GM. He's been in the front office forever. However, C-HUx have all sorts of stability. It's a very good organization with a good roster.
Starting point is 00:41:13 But they're looking at their division. They're looking at the Rams and going, all right, we're not as good as the Rams. They're looking at the Niners and thinking, I'm not sure we're as good as the Niners. And they're looking in Arizona thinking, well, Kyler Murray is a playmaker. They got their coach. We don't want to end up fourth. And we kind of feel like we kind of hit a ceiling. Absolutely hit a ceiling.
Starting point is 00:41:34 Like the move. All right. So yesterday, OKC and Denver played. So I'm not really an awards guy. I've always said I used to have a Heisman vote. I think it's silly. It's too regional. So I'm not really into awards.
Starting point is 00:41:48 They don't really, very subjective. You know, a lot of these awards have included media members who all have biases. You know, not, I mean, and again, I have biases. Everybody does. Politics, sports, every regionalism, everybody's got that. But I thought yesterday was kind of the, you know, hammer meets nail SGA Oklahoma City
Starting point is 00:42:10 I thought wrapped up the MVP over Yokic and I think Yokic is the better player but there's three reasons I would give it to SGA and number one is his team is much better and they're 12 games ahead of Denver in the standings and so let's be honest
Starting point is 00:42:28 it does matter how good your team is how valuable can you really be if your team isn't very good Denver is a good team Oklahoma City favored to get to the finals. So the team is better. Number two is, SGA is playing with a much younger team. Their average age is only one year older than the Auburn.
Starting point is 00:42:49 And it's harder to play with young players. Young players, especially on the road, are much less consistent. So SGA's team is better. He's playing with a much less experienced roster. And the other thing is, and this is probably only about 20% of it, SGA is a much better defender. Yokic in their championship year, that playoff run was pretty good defensively, pretty inspired.
Starting point is 00:43:11 He's not a very good defender. And Denver is atrocious defensively. So that matters a little too. And the other thing is, words matter. It's called most valuable player. It is not best player. It's not even most productive player. Yokic is more productive, and he is the best player in the world.
Starting point is 00:43:32 I think there's a real argument. SGA is either second or third. I mean, if you need a bucket, not a lot of guys in the league right now. I mean, right now he's better than Luca because he's in much better shape, but he's a much better defender. So, Yokic is the world's best player. There's an argument SGA is number two. And again, this is another component.
Starting point is 00:43:54 I think OKC and Denver play again tonight. OKC's beating him two or three times, and when you watched SGA put 40 Burger on Denver, it's something. It's 6%. It's 8%. So remember this about MVP. If MVP was about best player, why does Michael Jordan have only five? If MVP's about best player, why does LeBron have only four?
Starting point is 00:44:19 If you would have taken every year that LeBron and Michael were the best player, you'd have about 24 MVPs. 22, 20 minimum. They've got nine. Phil Jackson, how many coaches of the year does he have? You have to contextualize it. He had Shaq. He had Kobe in their prime. He had Michael Jordan.
Starting point is 00:44:36 He had Scotty Pippen. So I always thought that was ridiculous that, you know, Phil only won, I don't know, one or two coaches of the year award. He was obviously a very fair argument. He's the greatest coach of all time. You know, in a very short list of maybe two other guys you could argue with, one of them being Red Arbock. So I, to me, that game yesterday, and I'm a Yokic fan.
Starting point is 00:44:57 I said years ago, everybody gave M-Bed an MVP over Yokic. Yokic was a much better player. But everybody kind of felt like, you know, he's already won back to back. I kind of feel here is we can keep giving it to Yokic. But SGA is carrying the youngest team in the league. And here's the other thing. His second best player, Chet Hongren, is hurt regularly. So there are a lot of nights he's babysitting this offense.
Starting point is 00:45:28 Yokic has Michael Porter, Gordon, Jamal Murray, veteran coaching staff. not a bunch of kids here. So, yeah, Phil Jackson, I'm told one coach of the year once. Here's SGA after the win over Denver in the MVP race. I love MEPs. I love all stars. I love all the accolades that comes with it, but none of it matters if you don't win.
Starting point is 00:45:48 That's where I hang my hands. I'll be pleased with outcome tonight because we won. Yeah, listen, I'm not an anti-yokic guy. He's a best player in the world. But, you know, again, you could have given Kareem like eight straight MVP's. Like, a lot of you watching are 20 or 30 years old. I mean, there's about that eight-year stretch where, I mean, Kareem was stoic. He didn't talk.
Starting point is 00:46:10 He wasn't very joyful. He's very much an intellect and academic. A lot of you can appreciate that. But we don't give it. I mean, didn't Carl Malone when an MVP in Jordan's Prime? What are we doing? Right? Like, we all know the game here.
Starting point is 00:46:24 And it's just Michael's got five total. LeBron's got four. Phil Jackson has one coach of the year. What are we doing here? So my take is you, not me, you have created that we gave Russell Westbrook at MVP because it triple doubles. And we felt like it was a good story because KD jettisoned the Thunder and went to the Warriors. That's okay. I didn't lose any sleep over it.
Starting point is 00:46:46 Wouldn't have been my pick, but I didn't lose any sleep. But SGA is carrying a bunch of kids, and Chet Holmgren, his number two player misses a lot of action. There are a lot of nights. He's looking at Lou Dort to hit a jumper. I'm sorry. I got Michael Porter. I got Jamal Murray. if Chet Hongren's out,
Starting point is 00:47:01 whose SGA have that is dependable veteran guy on the road he can count on? They don't have a lot of it. So that matters. J. Mack doesn't like it, but that's the way it works sometimes. I'm just disappointed, man. We were rolling in that first hour. It was popping off.
Starting point is 00:47:13 And then you had to put this nonsense out there. Colin, I mean, first of all, did you, we kept showing the highlights, SGA, they showed him making three. By the way, Carl, he was 2 of 11 from deep. He doesn't play great defense. He's a good defender, never been all NBA defense.
Starting point is 00:47:27 This is just like the NFL MVP. The numbers said Lamar Jackson historic season, but the narrative was it's Josh Allen's turn. Yokitz, by the way, third in points, third in rebounds, second in steals, just had a 30, 20, 20, 20 game. Historic stuff. He's got the numbers. The narrative is SGA, they're young, they're fun, they've won 50-something games. Go ahead, give it to SGA. He's not the best player in the league.
Starting point is 00:47:54 He's not. Carl Malone, my bad, got two MVP's. in MJ's prime. I thought it was what. Oh, was MJ out of the league for one? Yeah. They still should have given it to Michael Jordan
Starting point is 00:48:07 because the ratings tanked. I think Kobe has like one MVP. He should have more. He was upset Steve Nash got to remember. You see it as narrative. I see it as contextualization. No, it is a narrative. The NBA writers are admitting as much
Starting point is 00:48:20 when Joelle and Bid had never won the MVP. Well, you know, we've got to give it to Joel. You can't give it to Yokic. It's almost like they're afraid to keep giving the honors. to a guy like Yolkich who's been best player in the league right there with Luca
Starting point is 00:48:34 for like the last five years? Yeah, again, Kareem was the best player eight years in a row when I was a kid. Not a kid, but when I was younger, Kareem was the best player. So give him the MVP every year. They didn't. He's the best player. But the precedent was set. They didn't. They probably should have.
Starting point is 00:48:48 It's a dumb award. Well, no, awards are, you see this in Hollywood. You see this in Hollywood where sometimes there is like, you know, we all know that Martin Scorsese's been, along with Spielberg, Christopher Nolan. They're a handful of Cameron.
Starting point is 00:49:04 They're a handful of directors that are otherworldly. And they don't clean up. And Scorsese forever, you're like, how in the blank does this guy not have an Oscar? And then he gets an Oscar, and you could argue it's not his best movie. And so sometimes it's okay. I'm still waiting for the Tom Cruise Oscar.
Starting point is 00:49:20 Oh, gosh, come on. I mean, that's outright. That's why I postpone. A lot of people postpone the Oscars because of woke, I postponed for the lack of respect for Tom Cruise. Put some respect on his name. It just, it feels like the ink-stained wretches are having their moment. We're not giving another one to yoga.
Starting point is 00:49:35 We're not doing it. Guys, freaking good. He's so good. Yeah, so's SGA. He says he's pretty good, too. Me. Me. Me.
Starting point is 00:49:44 Me. 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.
Starting point is 00:49:54 We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to a... We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it, but, you know, tired and sick. Tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.
Starting point is 00:50:13 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.
Starting point is 00:50:36 Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all.
Starting point is 00:50:59 in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hardweight with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional. knows what he's doing. How many men
Starting point is 00:51:31 carry a suit or armor. It signals to the world that you not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to, listen and learn the hard way on the IHard radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHart
Starting point is 00:51:47 podcast. Guaranteed human.

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