The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 2 - Bills, Dolphins, NFL

Episode Date: September 22, 2022

Looking at the improvement of Bills QB Josh Allen What to make of the Dolphins comeback win against the Ravens   Guest: Greg CosellSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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It's the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening. IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, App S-1. Greg Kosel, five minutes. Love football, bet football, fantasy football. Want to get smarter at football. Greg CoSell. Jay Mack is joining us.

Tonight, I think I'm going to say Cleveland beats the Steelers. I think that's my gut feeling. Give me a score because the total is about 38, 38 minutes. Yeah, that's what I see. I see 2117-ish. Okay. 21-17. I'm going to go Cleveland 21-Steeler 17.

Over under snaps for Kenny Pickett, 1.5. Under. No, I think... No Trubisky benching tonight, huh? I think Tomlin knows he's going to move off him, but he doesn't want to do flip-flop. Flip-flop looks bad. That's how Brian Flores and Matt Nagee get in trouble.

You look disorganized. You don't have a plan. You're going back and forth. I think Tomlin knows I got a ceiling here. Let me get Kenner. a few more games watching how it works in the quarterback room, then we're going to let him go. Probably going to get choppy,

but I'm not going back to Trubisky. I want Trubisky. Everybody in the locker room, no. We can't win a lot of games with Mitch Trubesky. I don't want there to be any doubt if Pickett fails, this isn't going to work. I'll go 17-13 Browns. All right, so we both like the Browns. By the way, there's a lot of careers out there where you can get second, third,

and fourth chances. You can fail upwards. Sales. You know, bounce around and work for 10 different company in sales. I've seen people they can't really sell. They move them up to management. Media. I know people have gotten three shows.

Nobody watches any of them. They still get shows. Media people, salespeople, they can always get jobs. And there's professions where you rarely get a second chance. You've got to be ready to go the first time you get it. Quarterback in the NFL. I said this about Baker Mayfield. I said it about Cam Newton, Johnny Mansell, James Winston.

You better be ready when you walk into a team. James Winston, you better be mature because you're never going to get Mike Evans, Chris Godwin again. And I'm not going to look like that. Right. You're not going to get an offensive coach, great receivers, Baker Mayfield. You're not going to get Nick Chubb in that offensive line again.

You're probably not even going to get a receiver as good as OBJ. be adult, be mature, and be ready for it. It's not sales of the media. You don't get another show, at least a good one after you fail. So this weekend, I've never been anti-Baker. He's 0-and-2, probably going to go 0-and-3, last place, NFC South. And I said it. You've got to be a grown-up coming out of college.

Because that first O-line, you're not making any money when you get to the NFL. And they're going to load that roster up for you. You're going to get two good tied-ins. three good receivers and Kareem Hunt and Nick Chubb. I was right on Baker initially. I'm right on him again. The world he's living now is the real world. Average O-line, running back can't stay healthy.

Defense is pretty good, but the roster isn't complete and the receivers aren't as good as the last place. Baker Owen, too. This is the real NFL. When you come into the league as a quarterback, you don't make any money. It allows your franchise to give you an all-star team in some areas. You will never get that once you make money. Baker's 0-N-2 could be 0-13, but he says, nobody's losing hope or being impatient.

Each week, you need to have a sense of urgency to win. But the no-panic mindset comes from the fact that we are just now going into our first division game. So nobody's sitting in the panic button yet. It also helps that we've lost a total of five points. All right. Not anti-anything. It's saying it's why I'm critical when you walk into this league. It's the cheapest you'll ever be.

It's the best O-line you'll ever have. The deepest running back reservoir you'll ever have. You better be a grown-up. You better be ready for it. All right, Greg Kosell, 43 years NFL films. All right, I was just talking to Peter King. So you look at tape. You're not necessarily in the opinion business.

You're in the tape business. you observe. So you tell me, it looks like to me, Trevor is more confident. By the way, he has a, he's got to learn to throw an off speed pitch. Everything's a little hot out of his arm. But I'll say, so what does the tape say on Trevor Lawrence year two, Greg? Well, I think what you're starting to see, Colin, is a little bit of the transformation taking place with Doug Peterson, who's obviously very good with quarterback. you're seeing that he's a little quicker on his drop and his set, that his stride on a lot of throws is not quite as long.

Because one thing with Doug Peterson and the elements of his passing game, there's a lot of quick rhythm throws. We're almost seeing one now, the touchdown to Kirk. And you can't be long. You can't be a strider on those throws. And I think as he further develops, Colin, becoming quicker and striding less, you will see a little more touch,

develop on those kinds of throws. Those are the throws that demand touch. You can't throw 10-yard balls with great speed and velocity. So again, it will be incremental. It's not going to happen on every single drop. He'll probably still have a bad game or two along the road to success. But I think you're starting to see on film the transformation with his footwork. So Burrow didn't practice much because of his appendectomy surgery and he didn't play and they had offensive line changes. Same thing for Stafford and Brady. Stafford and Brady's same situation, and they've all scuffed early in the season.

I did feel in the second half against Dallas, it just felt a little more symmetry. It looked a little more on point. That's what it, as a casual observer, that's what it looked like. The second half, his seventh and eighth quarters of the year, I'm like the protection's a little better maybe. What is though wrong with the Bengals offense right now? Well, I think, look, we all know that the offensive line has not been very good in past protection. That's the obvious.

So now you have to go beyond that and speak to what is the byproduct of that. And there's two byproducts. One involves borough and one involves the coaching staff. What involves borough is the fact that quarterbacks, when they're pressured constantly and particularly quick, Colin, is they start to anticipate pressure and they start to perceive pressure that's not really there. And then they break down in the pocket. That's another byproduct of the pressure. You break down too early in the pocket and you can leave some throws on the field. That's the part that impacts borough.

The second part is what impacts the coaching because now it limits what you feel you can do from a play-calling perspective. Last year, they were incredibly successful throwing the ball at the intermediate and deeper levels. when you don't have quality pass protection, Colin, what happens is this. You can't call those plays because you know that Borough will not have the time to deliver the football. So your play calling becomes impacted. Yeah. Interesting this week if they can write the ship because Jets are coming off a little bit of a fortunate win. In Cincinnati, I thought was the better team in the second half and lost.

I kind of like the Bengals this week. I will say this on Monday night. I don't want to overreact. But productive is productive. And I watch Jalen Hertz, and it's not always pretty, but his completion percentage has gone straight uphill now for two and a half years. His passerating is, I don't know. That's a handful to me, Greg.

That offense, they know what they are. They lean into what they are. And you're seeing teams struggling to prepare for this sort of contrarian offense it feels like to me. Well, again, it speaks to Jalen Hurts. as a runner and as a design runner in the context of the offense. And I think that that offensive coaching staff has a great feel for that. Now, this was kind of a perfect mix on Monday night because they played against a Vikings defense that was static, Colin, pretty much the entire game. They lined up almost every snap in a too high shell look, too high safety look,

and they didn't change up literally throughout the entire game. And the offense, the offense, the offensive coaching staff had a terrific feel for that. And they rely on their four-man pass rush in Minnesota, and the Eagles have arguably the best offensive line in the league. So Hertz was clean in the pocket, and he threw the ball with decisiveness, with precise ball placement. He saw it cleanly. He really threw the ball well.

I thought he had an outstanding game, and their run game was good. But they really use Hertz's legs as a really foundation. element, and that stresses and challenges defenses, and they know how it stresses and challenges defenses, and that allows their passing game to really be efficient. Because of the comeback win and the nature of the game, Tua and the dolphins got all the press. But if you watch the game, and I watched it again last night, Lamar was pretty good. He was. What do you make of his performance, as we're all talking about his contract or Tua, and let's just

get into the game part of it. What's the film say on Lamar last week? Yeah, I thought Lamar threw the ball well. Again, I thought this was a game, quite honestly, where both offensive coaching staffs did an outstanding job of attacking schematically the opposing defense. And they set up some really good throws. And that's what you're trying to do as a coaching staff. Now, the quarterback has to make them.

And I thought that Lamar threw the ball really, really well. I thought he saw things cleanly as well and made some excellent. on throws. On the other side, you have to put aside the busted coverages. That gave two of the big numbers. But I thought that there was some other really good throws. And I thought that Mike McDaniel, just sitting and watching tape and seeing what he does with that offense and how he uses personnel, formation, shifts, motions, and how that sets up the defense and how the speed of Waddle and Hill, not just running vertically. That's the important point here. It's not just running vertically. I know he'll caught the two long balls. Those were the

bus and the coverage. But what the speed does is it takes away press coverage. So now what happens, Colin, is this. There is no disruption of routes because teams will not play press. And Tua is so rhythmic. That's when he's at his best. He's allowed now to be rhythmic because routes are not being disrupted off the line of scrimmage. So they face the bills next. They have steamrolled the Rams. steamrolled the Titans. These are a, you know, this is a Super Bowl winning team and number one seed. And I know year to year things change. A.J. Brown has gone for Tennessee.

It's not as dynamic in offense. But let's just talk about, you know, Cole Beasley's now gone. Manuel Sanders has gone. They brought it an offensive lineman. Does Buffalo's offense, does it look any different on film than it was last year? I think what they've done really a good job of, and it's because Josh Allen can do this now, which he couldn't do, let's say, two years ago, is one thing that stands out, Colin, is they now have a very timing, rhythmic passing game. You know, we would never have said that about Josh Allen. Look, I remember sitting with you in your studio when Josh Allen was at Wyoming and we spoke about him.

And I said that this kid was super talented. But what has he become now? He's become a quarterback that can be a pinpoint passer in the quick game throws, which is not something we ever would have said a couple of years. ago. So now they can attack all areas of the field and they are actually really good with the RPO concept. And off their RPO concept, they tend not to throw it in the middle of the field. They throw speed outs to digs and they get him in reduced splits to the short side of the field and it's almost uncoverable. So it seems like they get eight yards whatever they want. And then of course, that can set up other things. But Allen has become a pinpoint, precise passer in the short. intermediate area. Well, I keep saying this week, I think Tampa matches up well with Green Bay when they're healthy.

But I don't know what receivers will play. I don't know what offensive line will play. So they're just not healthy. Green Bay is. I am, what interests you when you look at the Bucks and Green Bay? What is the matchup? Because it's going to be, it may be the last time Rogers and Brady play. What is the matchup that fascinates you 43 years at doing film?

Yeah. I would say the Bucks D and the Packers O because the Bucks D is healthy and they're very, very good. Their linebackers are playing at a very high level. And what did we see in the Sunday night game? We saw the Packers run the ball exceptionally well. You know, we always talk about Rogers because he's great. But they ran the ball exceptionally well with their two-headed monster in the backfield, Jones and Dillon.

And I'd be very curious to see if they can do that against the Bucks. My sense is no. I think it will have to be a Rogers game. And the Bucs secondary is healthy right now. So, you know, the Bucs secondary has went healthy and their defense has done a good job against Rogers and the Packers. And it's actually that side of the ball that I find more fascinating for this matchup. Because the Buc's offense through two games has not really been that strong, you know, up to this point.

Yeah. Well, there's so many injuries. I mean, you can, I mean, you can tell there's limitations on what Tom trusts, what Tom can do, and I get that. I want to talk about, you know, I had said this earlier, Greg, when a young coach, it could be Lincoln Riley at USC or Sean McVeigh or Sean McDermott to Buffalo. They usually clean up their side of the ball first. It's their straight.

McVeigh got golf and Rams offense cleaned up real quick. Lincoln Riley at USC. McDermine at Buffalo. He got Tyrod Taylor to the playoffs on defense. So a coach usually, he's going to go to what works for him and clean it up. Sure. What concerns me about Nathaniel Hackett, offensively burning timeouts, situationally odd, indecision on fourth down. It's like timeout.

That's your side of the ball. You've got a veteran quarterback. When you look at the tape, does it look as disheveled as it looks on television? No, it doesn't look that way on tape because I don't see that part of it on tape. That's TV. But what I will say is this. Here's what the tape shows to me. I would say, and maybe it's a function of a different offense,

I would say right now Russell Wilson is not seeing things well or quick enough. He's a little slow with his elimination and isolation. There hasn't been a refined sense of timing and rhythm to his game. At this point, it's two games in a new offense, and I don't believe he took a snap in the preseason. Is that correct? He did not take a snap in the preseason. And Wilson does not run as much as he did years ago.

So, you know, he stays in the pocket and wants to be a pocket player. So if you're going to do that, then the nuances and details of pocket play come into play. And I think right now, in a new offense, he's not there yet. We'd have to assume, given that he's had an excellent career, that he will get there. But it's a process. Yeah, it's interesting. Kyle Shanahan got some heat for running Trey Lance. And my takeaway is coaching.

It's like literally silly. Like you just tell me you don't know football without telling me you don't know football. You call what picks up first downs. You grow at practice all week. You see what works. You know, the Patriots see what Mack Jones can do and what Mac Jones can't do. And they call it appropriately. So what is Garoppolo the minute he gets in, what does it allow them to do that the young kid,

very raw, very talented, couldn't do? Well, I think it allows them to expand the passing game. just because Garoppolo has been there, understands the offense. Look, there's coaches who will tell you, Colin, most coaches, even though quarterbacks can't have success early, most coaches will tell you that it takes a quarterback three years in the same system to really understand and inculcate all the elements of the offense that coaches want them to understand. Jimmy G. knows all that stuff right now.

And here's one thing, and this is just my sense. Kyle Shanahan's very strong. smart. And I think even though they have a great defense and they will run the ball, they always do, I think Kyle understands that this league has clearly trended to the fact that big games, you're not going to win those games now 17, 13, or 20 to 17. You're going to have to win these games scoring. Yeah, it doesn't mean every game's 38, 35, or it's like the Chiefs Bill's in the playoffs a year ago. But, you know, they drafted Danny Gray. He can run. Yeah. Ayuk is now advancing as a player. He has vertical ability and explosive ability. It would not surprise me to see Kyle become a little

more proactive with the passing game. Situationally, of course, they won't ask Jimmy G to drop back 45 times, but I think he understands that they need to score. Yeah. And let's go to your big play of the week. It involves Garoppolo and Shanahan. Yeah. And this to me shows, again, just how good Kyle Shanahan is as an to get to basic concepts. Okay, so let's go to the play from last week. It was actually a touchdown. It was early on when Jimmy G. came in and he threw the touchdown to Ross DeWally, the tight end. And I'm sure a lot of people saw this play and said, wow, somebody busted in the coverage because he's wide open. In fact, it was not a bust. So let's walk through this, because what you're going to have is Garapolo is in the shotgun. You're going to have a two-by-two set,

two receivers on each side. Now what the Seahawks do here is they're going to rush five. They're going to bring the safety Jones off the edge. And they're going to play behind it, what we call three under, three deep, three deep defenders. So what do they do here? The 49ers Ray Ray Ray McLeod runs a vertical route to lift the corner. And Dwelly will then run a corner route. Debo Samuel is critical here. He's going to go in motion across the formation, and that brings the flat defender, the linebacker, to deal with Debo. So what do you get? We talked about Dewelly on the corner route. You have the corner lifted by the vertical.

He's wide open. This is scheming, Colin. This is a scheme play that worked against the five-man pressure and the three-under-three-deep. So this is not a bust in coverage. This was a void that was produced in the country. coverage by the Blitz and the 3003D that the 49ers exploited with their play call. Greg CoSell as always fantasy football, Bennett, love it, just want to get smarter. That's what he provides.

Greg, great seeing you again. Thanks, Colin. Appreciate it. Yeah. Isn't it interesting Josh Allen? How scary is that for the league? He's like, oh, now he's really precise. Forget the big plays.

He's incredibly accurate and precise on the shorter stuff. I think Buffalo is going to go down to Miami and address the dolphins. I really do. I think if they're healthy. Now, if they're all beat up, I mean, their safeties are both hurt you said. That's a game changer.

With Tyreek Hill, you can't have a rookie safety out there. Everybody's already crowning Buffalo. AFC champs are going to the Super Bowl. It's two weeks in. We know they're good. Kansas City's always great in September. I forget who made the point yesterday, but it was like teams struggle early

and then find their footing the last couple years. The Bucks with Brady. last year Rams with Stafford and then they get hot at the end and kind of make the run to the Super Bowl. I just wonder if it's too early for Buffalo, you know? I don't know. I don't see too early. It's just too dominant more. I think they're beating up on the good teams, like the playoff teams.

One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week, within the IHeart radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win.

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

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

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

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Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your Podcasts.

Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests.

I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses.

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Another home run for Judge. That is a Judgian plan. There it goes. Number 60. Slide over bed. You've got some cover. Tonight, it's history in the making on Fox. All eyes are on Aaron Judge as he continues to chase for the American League home run record.

As the Yankees take on the rival Red Sox, it all begins. night at 630 Eastern on Fox. Colin, Aaron Judge. Do you know, in the history of baseball, only two other players have reached 60 this fast. Bonds and McGuire in the steroid era. So we speculate, but by and large, they weren't clean. This is the greatest home run season ever. And the other thing is what Babe Ruth didn't face or Roger Maris didn't face, the game's

global now. You face Asia's best pitcher, Latin America's best pitcher. You face a slider, a cutter. So you're facing, baseball is much more global game today. So the players are much better today. The second thing is the pitching is more sophisticated. When I was a kid in the 70s, the Cincinnati Reds were the dominant team. They had one pitcher that threw in the mid-90s, Don Gullet.

Everybody throws in the 90s now. If you're throwing in the 80s, you're a AAA or a double-A pitcher. So Judge is doing it clean against the global game, against the greatest arms ever. I mean, how many pitchers now are 6-6, 6-7 throwing right down a pipe, right down a tunnel? I had a buddy trying to sell me that Otani should be the MVP. And I said, listen, he's been great. But look at Aaron Judges. Look at the second place home run guy right now.

He's like 25 behind him. And the other thing is the Yankees lost a setup man King earlier this year. They traded a pitcher at the deadline to, I think, the Cardinals. so they're not going to be carried most speculate by their defense or by their pitching. It's going to be Aaron Judge. So, I mean, whenever I always laugh, Steve Kerr had a line about this years ago. And he's, you know, he just jokes. Could the Jordan Bulls and the Golden State Warriors, well, the Warriors are more talented?

Nobody shot the ball like Clay Thompson, Kevin Durant, or Steph Curry on the Bulls. Jordan wasn't a three-point shooter. Pippin wasn't a good jump shooter. Their best shooter was Steve Kerr, who's now the Warriors coach. Players and athletes get better. These sports are now, Tony Koo coach was rare. He was an international player. The league now, Janus is international, and Bede is international.

Yokic is international. Luca. The sport's better now. They're all these teams, more good athletes, better nutrition. Well, what if Babe Ruth would have had better training? Babe Ruth ate hot dogs in between innings and drank beer. There's a lot of, by the way, obesity's never been hired America, and we've never had better foods and greater opportunities and more opportunities to be vegan and vegetarian. I do not believe Babe Ruth would be doing sit-ups in between innings.

Literally everything from science, technology, everything gets better with time. But for some reason, some fans like to cling to, well, who could beat the 27 Yankees? It's like, seriously, I mean, that's what we bring up in baseball and basketball. Well, the Bulls are in the 90s, they could beat. No. If you took today's NBA, the war. when they had Durant, Steph, and Clay would have worked the Bulls. The Bulls had one three-point shooter.

Destroy them in maybe five games. They couldn't keep up. It would not be close. If you had the hand check era, then it's advantage Bulls where they'd push Steph all over the floor. But today's athlete, there's never been a team in the history of basketball at any level that had Durant, Clay, and Steph. The three best shooters arguably in the world on one team, where the rules now lean into three-point shooting. That's never going to be duplicated. That is the greatest team for a season.

The Bulls may have been more impressive over time. For a season, there was nothing like the Warriors. Nothing. Nothing. J-Mack with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news.

We've got to talk about the big Jets Bengals game this week, obviously. Listen, the Bengals, they're struggling this year, Colin. O and 2 to start the season. Joe Burrow, I don't know if you saw this. He said he deleted Twitter and Instagram from his phone. so he can focus more. I guess it's a little distracting, right? Here's what Joe Burrow said.

They're not panicking, Colin. Myself, I mean, everyone is frustrated, but like I said, we're not panicking. Two games in, we've got 15 games left. It's all just take a deep breath and relax. We're going to be fine. We're not worried about it. So we've got to quit being ourselves, start faster,

and then we'll get more chances. Cincinnati's my favorite team this weekend. that's a big favorite. To me, you know, five and a half, six points a big favorite. I think they're good. The second half against Dallas, I think they kind of righted the ship. I thought they were the better team in the second half. I think their first six quarters, they were all over the map in coverage and protection.

I kind of think they got it right. I don't know. Dallas kind of pulled in the oars there. They were like, hey, we're up big. Let's just kind of coast. Let's take it. Be careful with Cooper Rush, no mistakes. And Cincinnati had to throw it.

I got to make a case for my Jets, Colin. Come on. I got to see the injury report first. Gardner, concussion. He's been playing great. Next up, Colin. The Dallas Cowboys, by the way, good news for the Cowboys. Michael Gallup getting close to his return. That would be a huge one for the Cowboys in that anemic offense. Mike McCarthy said Gallup has passed the physical threshold of his recovery. Now it's about him getting adjusted to game speed. Obviously, he's going to take the full slate of practice reps this week. We'll see about Monday night

against the Giants. It could be on a pitch count, right? Only play 20 snaps or what have you. Gallup would be a big addition because C.D. Lamb is not getting any airspace at all against defense. And Gallup's a speed guy. You can put him on the perimeter. He can, I mean, you've got to pay attention to him. He's a nice player. I don't know if he, he's a really good two. He's a great two. Yeah, great two receiver. We'll talk about this more on Monday. I really like the Cowboys against the Giants on Monday Night Football. I think it's a great spot for them. Giants are really overvalue. They got two lucky wins, Colin. Well, let's not go lucky. What do you mean? Oh, the Jets didn't have a lucky win? No, that was all skill, of course.

Come on. Job by 13 with 140 left. No, but the Giants have been, I'll say fortunate. Well, this is a fortunate league. I mean, the bottom line is the Rams at the end against Atlanta got fortunate. They were clinging on to that lead. It's like Sean McVeigh said. You win, savor it, go have a Coors Light and be on your way because it's hard to win.

Coors Light. What a man of the people he is. All right. All right, let's go to the final story. Browns and Steelers, both coming off. tough losses in week two. Thursday night football should be a good one. Cleveland at home against Mike Tomlin,

divisional matchup. According to Fox bet, the Browns are favored by three and a half. So this was five and a half a couple days ago. Yep. I don't know who is betting, betting like after-tax dollars on Mitch Tribusky, especially on the road. I don't know where they make plays here at all.

Pittsburgh offense is probably one of the worst in the league. When you look at the per play. They don't throw the ball down the field. 23-yard complete. They can't. The offensive line. Well, and Trubisky doesn't have much of an arm. And it's going to get frustrating here very quickly because they have really talented receivers.

And let me tell you something, they lose this game and pick-in to Claypool, and they have a great tight-in. These guys are going to start, they're young receivers, they start grumbling. This is where, because picket, he's got a better arm. Pick it to throw it down field guy, let it rip guy. And they're seeing him at practice. So if Trubisky, that's the problem with Trubisky is this, team has really elite wide receiver talent and they're and they want to score and they've got agents and they got people in their ears they don't throw the ball down the field now well also

the defense with t j watt in week one was tremendous week two against the patriots zero sacks with no t j mack with the news well that's the news and thanks for stopping by the herd be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon eastern nine a m pacific on fox sports radio and the I Heart Radio app. He's by Carmen. I'm Dan Byard. We have a brand new fantasy football podcast called I Want Your Flex. Twice a week, every Tuesday and Friday, we come up with new episodes to not only look back at

what happened, what you need to do at that minute, and also look ahead of what's coming up in the fantasy football world. That's right, Dan. Every week we're going to scour the waiver wire to find the pickups to turbo boost your fantasy lineup. It starts. Fantasy football players. rankings to get you ready to dominate the competition.

Listen to I Want Your Flex with Mike Harmon and me, Dan Byer, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, and 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 put on 10, I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying.

Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast.

The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast,

it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, This is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with Little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jek.

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

They're finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games.

And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark, Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch.

Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust.

I want you to just really be a good person a good person. Join me, Keir Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app, search learn the hard way, and listen now.

Of all the people that get jobs in the NFL or college as a head coach, 5% become great. There's a 95% chance whoever you hire will not be great. NFL's only probably had 10 to 12 great coaches. You know, you know who they are. College football has probably had 25, 30 all-time

great coaches, maybe 35, 40, maybe. So Marcus Freeman at Notre Dame is just a kid. He'd never been a head coach anywhere. He takes over, and it's been a bumpy start. But I, and I feel bad, the good news about for Notre Dame fans is if Marcus doesn't work, he's a great recruiter, like Elaine Kiffin. If he got fired in three years, the next guy that gets the job would have a ton of good players. And that's the thing. When Lane Kiffin and guys that can recruit, if they don't work, you're left with a cupboard that's certainly not bare. Marcus, I think, should work. They've got recruiting momentum. He knows the defensive side of the ball, but it is an offensive world, and he is struggling. But I think sometimes we forget how hard success is. And I'll go on a tangent

here for a few minutes. Think about how smart and how big Starbucks is. And I often use Starbucks because I'm from the Pacific Northwest. It started in 71. I'm from the Northwest. I'm from the Northwest, never went to a store until the mid to late 80s, and didn't become nationally and globally iconic until the late 90s. So 20 years with a brilliant CEO until it became Starbucks. Jeff Bezos, one of the smartest people in the world, first or second richest guy at Amazon. They opened their doors in 95. They sell books. About seven years later, they get their online services up and ready. And they really hit. They became Amazon. Amazon, the number one retailer, about 10 years ago.

That means they were 16 years in as smart as Jeff Bezos is. And I've told you the story about people I know that met him at Microsoft 25 years ago. They're like, that's the smartest human I've ever met. And that's what the Microsoft geniuses were saying. It's the same in college football. So Marcus Freeman's never been a head coach. Harbaugh multiple times a head coach. He goes to Michigan.

They're a mess. They're like five and seven. They're just a mess. And he wins 10 games immediately. But it's all smoke and mirrors. doing it with somebody else's players. They got some scheduling breaks. It wasn't until last year, year seven for Harbaugh, that I looked at them and I thought, they had three players drafted in the top 45, which is saying something.

Oklahoma hasn't had any players the last two drafts drafted in the top 45. And Oklahoma's great. So Michigan last year had three guys drafted top 45. Last year in Harbaugh's seventh year, no smoking mirrors. I'm like that, they can play with almost anybody. maybe not Georgia, but almost anybody. That's legit. Speed, power, coaching.

That's a legit big boy football. It wasn't until, now, Brian Kelly did the same at Notre Dame. He took over a mess from Charlie Wise, 6 and 6. He turned him around immediately 8 and 5, 8 and 5. They were 12 and 1 a few years later, but it was all smoking mirrors. All his recruits were like sophomores or freshmen. You know, and he was taking other coaches, guys, and they got blown out by Alabama. It wasn't until Brian Kelly's 10th year, in my opinion, when they hosted Georgia.

They lost, but they hosted Georgia. And I thought to myself, Notre Dame is big boy football. They got NFL guys in every unit. Linebacker, receiver, O line, D line, corner. That's big boy football. No smoke and mirrors. For Brian Kelly, 10 years. Jim Harbaugh, seven years.

Jeff Bezos, 16. Howard Schultz, 20. Marcus Freeman's never been a CEO. I've never been a coach. But we live in a world now, and I think it's because of technology and the phones, we get everything instantly. So nobody has any patience.

And when you combine the technology, which has made myself included everybody more impatient, we get whatever we want when we want it. I want this, I order Amazon, I go online, it's at my house tomorrow morning. So between that and the vile nature and the harsh critical nature, the avalanche of social media. When you lose two games in a row, your athletic directors looking on Twitter, your media,

your boosters, it's really hard. So, you know, I think Marcus Freeman can make this work, and the recruiting's going great. And that's always the key. If he doesn't work the next guy, it's like Ron Zuck was at Florida. He was a disaster, but he was a great recruiter. Urban Meyer took over. He had all sorts of NFL guys, and they won immediately. So if Marcus doesn't work,

Notre Dame will have all sorts of four and five star guys, the next coach. But this stuff is hard. It took, and especially for cold weather programs, it is very, because most of the great high school football players are in warm weather. They're in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama, Texas, California. That's the states where most of the players are. So northern schools, northern schools have to convince kids, hey, you want to come here. It's so much fun to play in the rain, cold, and snow. It's really fun.

You should try it. Or LSU goes, your friends are all here. You want to go here? Stay at home. So years ago, when I grew up, to play on national TV, a lot of times you had to leave your region. A lot of the powers were Penn State, Cold, Michigan Cold, Notre Dame Cold, Ohio State Cold, Nebraska, Cold, Washington Cold. And then companies like ESPN, who at the time televised 50 games, now televised 500. kids stay home.

The warm weather kids stay home. The kids that train all year stay home. You can't train all year in Iowa. Iowa's got to leave the state to go get players in warm weather because Iowa doesn't have any. Midwest doesn't have as many. So it is harder. I think now for, it was much easier for Northern Powers years ago. And I, by the way, Brian Kelly did it.

Harbaugh did it. Ohio State to me is the only northern program that feels like an SEC program. Money, commitment, history. They'll spend whatever it takes. a coach, a weight training program, a facility. Everything else feels like a northern program, and I think it's harder to win. But just think how good Bezos, Schultz, Harbaugh, Brian Kelly, and how long success takes. It is hard.

Whenever I see anybody, I work in the TV radio business, right? Whenever I see a media critic, rip a show after a week, I'm like, you just don't get it. You don't get out. Website that I started, remember? The big lead. I had basically quit my job at a magazine and start the website 2006. For the first year and change, it was only friends and family reading it. But you put in the time and energy keep grinding.

Boom, five years later, I'm able to sell it and make a good chunk of money. But Colin, remember Harbaugh, we would talk about him endlessly here. After one or two years, people wanted to trash him. Get him out of here. He can't win. Patience. Why don't we have patience in sports? Well, it's technology.

So with our phones, I want something. I order it. I get it. DoorDash, Amazon. I get it. So we're all now seduced by the urgency of our phones. And you throw in all these quasi experts, no nothing's on social, which start avalanches. And it just, it starts going downhill. The athletic director feels pressure, the boosters, they feel like they're empowered. It is really hard. If you're great, if you're great to get it right. Sabin never did make Michigan State good.

He failed in the NFL. Year four at LSU, he had five laws. losses. Alabama lost to Louisiana Monroe first year and got boxed by Utah in year two. Now, the transfer portal can make it easier, but Notre Dame doesn't lack talent. Brian Kelly gave them a lot of momentum. Marcus is a great recruiter. The staff is great. But my takeaway is take a deep breath on this stuff. Whenever I see anybody that is overly critical of somebody like just starting a job, do you understand how hard it is?

Marcus Freeman's never even been a head coach. I don't think he's been a head coach in high school. A lot of these critics have never started. anything. They've never run employees. They've never done a payroll, run a P&L, and they just want to fire people left and right. Meanwhile, they've never employed anyone under them ever. They don't know what it

takes, these critics. They've never started a business. Yet they think every TV show, they know exactly what works. Well, Marcus Freeman talked about facing Mack Brown. Mac Brown has 50 years of experience, and Marcus Freeman was laughing about his lack of it this week against North Carolina. I don't know if you can make up for that

lack of experience, but But, you know, again, Matt Brown, Coach Brown has been, I'm sure, through a lot of different scenarios and situations that I haven't been through or just starting to go through. And so, you know, I really just got to focus on our team in the preparation in terms of trying to give our team a chance to have success. But you know you're going to go against a well-coached team. And that's not to say at the professional. I mean, Marcus is young.

The defense isn't the issue at Notre Dame. That's his side of the ball. I've said this. I'm very critical of Nathaniel Hackett. He's been in football a long time. His dad was a head football coach, college and pro. He goes to Denver and they look totally disorganized on his side of the ball. I think it's fair to criticize him.

I don't think we should fire him yet. But this stuff is hard. Success is hard. It takes a long time. It's a competitive global space now. We're good people. First of all, it's hard to find him, hard to hire them, hard to retain them. hard to teach him your system.

I'm rooting for Marcus Freeman. I think college football is way better when Notre Dame is relevant. But I'll say it again. I didn't think Harbaugh really reached Michigan football what he wanted. If you asked him privately until year seven, I'm like, oh, they can go toe to toe with almost anybody. And I don't think Brian Kelly did it until year. I don't want to hear about that 12 in one year.

That was smoking mirrors mantai Tao. Notre Dame year 10 with Kelly, I'm like, oh, they can play Georgia. they may not beat them, but they're not overwhelmed by Georgia. And Georgia may be the best program probably is right now in America. So if this stuff, it takes time. You've got to take a deep breath. I mean, the Lincoln Riley USC thing, a lot of that success is. The Pac-12 is not very good.

USC is a huge brand. And California feeds them massive talent every year. Notre Dame, that's cold weather, baby. Hour three neck. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smy, 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. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at a Podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me.

big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it with our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. It was a wild year.

It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying.

Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast,

or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network, On TikTok. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.