The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Hour 2 - Brock Purdy for MVP

Episode Date: December 13, 2023

Brock Purdy is not getting the respect he deserves when it comes to the MVP consideration Looking at college football and the transfer portal The Clippers seem to be turning it around   Guest: Chris FallicaSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day in the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. We're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Welcome back our number two here on the herd, Jason McIntyre in for Colin Cowherd. Fear not, ladies and gentlemen, he's back tomorrow. Yes, Colin Cowherd taking a rare day off in the football season. I'm joined by Alex Curry today. Alex in her Dodgers blue, obviously. Did you tell?

I was like a little subtle hint of like, I haven't gotten to celebrate it yet because I was out of town when the news was announced. So yeah, I mean, my family, my dad at season ticket. before I was born all the way through college. Like we grew up at that stadium. It's a perfect landing spot for Otone. And by the way, you said you were in Cancun recently? I was. How was Cancun in December?

80s? Yes. I mean, but it was a festival. We were at an all-inclusive resort, the Hard Rock Hotels called Closer to the Sun, put on by Slightly Stupid, Pepper played, my husband's band. So it was a magical experience, one of the coolest festivals I've ever been to.

I think of Cancun, I think of Spring Break, and I can only remember, like, you know, a few things from that one. The first time I ever went was my senior trip club med. And this was the only time I've ever been. Debutchery, yes. But we probably shouldn't talk about that on air. Too much fun. Too much fun.

All right. Plenty of fun here on hour number two. I want to start with something I've been sparring with Colin about. And listen, he's not here to defend himself, but he's wrong. We know that. Brock Purdy is the MVP and it's not Dak Prescott. Yes, Dak could end up passing Purdy if he stumbles down the stretch. But I guess I kind of want to get into this idea.

before I get to this college football take that is spicy and you haven't heard anywhere. I want to start with Brock Purdy and the MVP, largely because I still think he's getting discounted because he was the dead last pick in the draft. DFL, Mr. Irrelevant, and people still don't want to give him the credit because, well, he was the last pick. And we got Cam Newton now calling him a game manager. It's just so weird. Tom Brady, by the way, Tom Brady, we now is the goat, right? We say that now.

But early in his career, you guys probably don't remember this. The young audience definitely doesn't remember this. Brady was a game manager, okay? He would get them in position, and the kicker, Venetary, would hit the game winning field goal in the Super Bowl. Brady had a game winning drive, and then someone else, Dion Branch would finish it or the run. And, like, it was Belichick's team, and he had his game manager. Why do we call people game managers? Because they weren't a top pick.

They weren't a first round pick. Even Dak got the tag from Cam Newton because he was a mid-year. round pick. And Russell Wilson, remember, for the longest time, never got an MVP vote, Russell Wilson, when he was clearly one of the best quarterbacks in the league. So you look at the stats for Brock Purdy this year. And again, I am not someone who the sun rises and sets with the stats, but I definitely lean that way. And in every category that matters, and I'm not talking about yards, okay, touchdowns, we get a touchdowns kind of sort of matter, but some of them are yak-touchdowns, where you dump it to Debo Samuel and he goes 50 yards or Christian McCaffrey.

Again, the stats that matter show Brock Perties your MVP. So Brock is getting asked about this now, and he was asked about it on KNBR this week. What do you think about all this MVP chatter? When I get asked the question and stuff, it comes to mind. And, man, like, the first thing is, like, what an honor. You know, I'm not taking anything away from that. You know, it's what an honor. And I'm very honored to hear that.

but, you know, at the same time, I'm trying to, you know, do what I can for this team for this Sunday. And for this practice or this meeting, I'm not getting caught up in awards and stuff like that. If anything, I look at it more as a team award, you know, like what I have a great surrounding cast. I make a play. It's a great defense, great special teams. And so that's a testament to the team that I have. So very well said, Brock Purdy. You know, senatorial, if you will, for a young guy.

I'm impressed. And Brock Purdy's story is one where he went to Iowa State was so good as a freshman as a young guy that they were like, ooh, he was on NFL radars. And then he kind of petered out. The stats weren't there, even though he had Breesiece Lightning, Brees Hall in the backfield. And it's weird. Brock Purdy's getting this negative rep. Well, Jay, come on.

He's got Kyle Shanahan. Kyle Shanahan's one of the best play coach. Oh, that's right. I forgot about Kyle Shanahan's Super Bowl wins. That's right. And Jay, he's got Debo Samuel, Christian McCaffrey, Brandon I, Uke, George Kittle, they're loaded, come on. Okay. Now, many of you weren't around for this, or the internet wasn't around, social media wasn't a thing.

So when Peyton Manning won his MVP, I didn't hear a whole hell of a lot of, what, Marvin Harris, and Reggie, Wayne, Edger, and James, Tony Dungey. You guys remember that? No, no, it's funny. Peyton Manning was one of the top picks in the draft. Hmm, interesting. Joe Montana, way back in the 80s, showing my age here. Bill Walsh, one of the great offensive minds in the history of the sport.

Roger Craig, Jerry Rice, John Taylor, the tight end, Dwight Clark. Like, Joe Montana always had stacked teams, but it was never about that. Why? Joe Montana was a golden boy. Notre Dame. Joe Montana, he was like a celebrity pretty much right out of the gate. Handsome guy, dating famous women like. if they love you and you're a big deal, boom, you're in.

Your top draft pick, nobody will make excuses. It's Peyton Manning running the show. It's not about Harrison and Dungey and James and Reggie Wayne. It was Peyton's show. So it's not Brock Purdy's show? It's just weird how we do this. I don't totally understand it. That's just kind of the way it is.

But just remember who told you on this show back in October. Hell, I said it's September of my podcast, but I digress. Brock Purdy should be your NFL MVP this season. All right, I want to pivot to college football for a moment. And I kind of alluded to this a little bit yesterday. As many of you know, I play men's rec league basketball. We won the Bay Club Championship this week. We have a guy on our team who played quarterback at Notre Dame.

And I have another buddy who did also go to Notre Dame. We have a producer here on the show who went to Notre Dame. Listen, Notre Dame as a national following, they've been on TV. since I can remember. I grew up Notre Dame every week on TV. And I like the Irish, obviously. I'm not like wedded to them. But something interesting is happening at Notre Dame

and throughout college football. We're seeing it as you see Dylan Gabriel behind me in Oregon. And listen, I want to be clear. I am pro player movement. I love the idea of NIL money. I like change. It's great. But something weird is happening in the undercurrent

that you can't really quantify yet. If you look at Notre Dame, and I'll use them in his example here, the days of Ron Paulus, Rick Meyer, there was quarterbacks who you knew were big-time prospects coming out of high school. They were the guy, three, four-year starter, and every week you could kind of get invested in them, right? Not at just Notre Dame. A lot of colleges around the country. Young quarterbacks, you watch their rise. You were like in with them. And we're losing that with all this transfer stuff and all this NIL money.

Now, I know I'm going to come off as a hater. I'm not. I like these guys getting their paper. The problem is that magic of college football, the essence of, hey, man, we just got a five-star recruit. He's going to be our guy for the next three years. He's a foundational quarterback. That's kind of out the window. It's just not happening anymore.

And when you look at college basketball, one of the things that really hurt college hoops, you guys know I'm a huge college basketball fan. I bet on it every day on my Instagram. March Madness is the greatest sporting event every year, except for a World Cup year. I love college hoops. One thing that has hurt college basketball, undeniably, is the one and done. You got the high school stars come in one year, and they're bounce.

Okay? Zion Williamson, I loved it. Hit college basketball like a comet. I was watching all of his games. And then he leaves. Poof, he's gone. One year. You can't really get in the way you could back in the day.

Christian Leitner hanging around. Fab five, mostly hanging around. It's weird. College football, you just, you don't have that anymore. Now, I know times are changing and that's, we can understand that. But look at a kid like Dylan Gabriel, okay? Good quarterback at UCF, kind of an unheard of unless you gamble on college football. Then he goes to Oklahoma, puts up massive numbers.

Now, Oklahoma's a big time program. You're like, okay, we got Dylan Gabriel, we got our guy. And now he's transferring again, which is fine. He's going to Oregon. He's going to put up big numbers. Might win the highman. be in the playoff next year. But they're renting the guy for a year.

That's it. The days of Marcus Marriota coming and he's the future and multi-year starter. That's done. They want relevance. They want it now. They want an experienced quarterback. And think about it. What team is going to pick a 19-year-old starter out of high school over a 23-year-old

like a Dylan Gabriel? So I looked at Notre Dame. Folks, last four years, they just secured Riley Leonard as their quarterback. Okay, the kid from Duke. He was good in Spurge, but it's Duke. You know, nobody's really watching. Notre Dame's on every week. Okay?

Last year it was Sam Hartman, who was a stud at Wake Forest. Nobody really knew. He comes to Notre Dame, and I know Alex probably follows us. Sam Hartman is a TikTok star. My wife's on TikTok. Who's a Sam Hartman guy? He's so handsome. Every lady loves him.

It comes a star. One year, poof, gone. That's it, done. At a quarterback team. Four straight years, Notre Dame will have four different starting quarterbacks. And this ain't the end of this like. This is kind of the new normal in college football. Again, I'm not bashing it.

I like the players getting money. I like player mobility. We know the coaches bounce around all the time everywhere. I got no problem with that. The players are chasing money, and that's fine. But, and you can't quantify it, so people are going to yell at me about this. Something is being lost in this. You're missing, like, the tradition.

We got a producer here on the show, huge Texas fan. Okay? every year, I mean, Texas, they got Arch Manning. He's our future. Arch Manning was like third on the depth chart because they got Quinn Ewers who went to Ohio State, then came back to Texas, and is Quinn Ewer's going to be done after this season?

Is he going to NFL? We'll see how he does in the playoff. I would take him in the first round, I think. I don't know. If he goes, is Archmanning the guy? If he stays, is Archmanning bouncing so he can start somewhere? It's just a weird feeling, a weird vibe. Like when Texas secure Arch Manning,

Yes! Victory! We got Archbitt! We got the next Manning! Okay. He might not even be there for two seasons. And again, I'm not bashing it. It's just the new normal. And I know this is going to come off as, you know, Jason, you're talking out of both sides of your mouth. Yeah, that's what smart people do. There's two sides to this. Yes, the players, they can make money. Yes, they can do whatever they want. They can play for three programs in five years, as Dylan Gabriel will do. but something's also kind of getting lost in the sauce as you see highlights of Cam Ward here.

Cam Ward for people who are out here on the West Coast, they know, man, that got lit it up at Washington State. He can sling it. And now you hear stories about the Ohio State quarterback and his dad allegedly went to Ryan Day and said, we would like assurances we're going to be the starter next year. Ryan Day can't do that. So what did Kyle McCord do? Well, I'm out of here. See you.

And now Cam Ward is a lot. Allegedly the leader will see he's visiting FSU and Miami. There's some competition. Pam Ward is going to get probably $2 million. Happy for him, that's great. And Ohio State will now get like a 23-year-old quarterback. And guess what's going to happen next year? They're going to go right back to the well.

Who's hitting the transfer portal? And again, I like it for the players. I just wonder. And Alex, you could check me on this. I just wonder if something's kind of sort of getting lost. We just saw UCLA with the young, quarterback, big time, five-star prospect, super great athlete. Kind of stumbled as a young guy, he's out, he's gone.

He's going to transfer somewhere else, and it's like, all right, who are we going to get in the portal? And I just wonder if the same way college basketball, over time was hurt by the one and done, I wonder if five years from now, college football, by the way, college football had its best season, the numbers were up, the ratings were extraordinary, people love it. Playoffs coming. Twelve teams, it's going to get even better. I just wonder if, like, each team, maybe, Alex,

do you think each team will feel a bit of a ding with the tradition and the history and being totally committed? Yeah, but everything's changed. And this is the new norm. And you can complain about it. You can be mad about it. Or you can just accept the fact that these guys are looking out for numeral uno. And that's what you have to do,

especially in such a violent sport where one play you could be done. So I'm never mad at someone looking out for themselves and looking out for their best interests to then reach their final goal that's going to get them exactly what they need. And that's what these guys are doing. They are, yeah. So coming up next, our guest, Chris Felica, the bear. I wonder if you'll chime in on the transfer portal, the madness.

The college football playoff is coming up. We'll get into all that next year on the herd. I have a great parlay for you this weekend. Thanks to Draf King Sportsbook, new users. Use the code herd, H-E-R-D when you download the app. Here's my parlay picks. People will sell their Packer stock because they lost to an average Giants team, but they're at home. I'll give up the three and a half. I think they beat the bucks handily.

Browns minus three and a half hosting the Bears. Chicago looked great. But Cleveland's defense at home will be a different matter entirely. Browns by a touchdown. And the bills minus two at home? Yeah, I like all three favorites. I'll take them over the cowboys coming up a highly emotional thrashing of the Eagles. You want to take the herd parlay. Check out Draft King's sportsbook. New users. Code is heard. When you download the app, it's easy. It's simple. Draft Kings. 21 plus in most eligible states, but age varies by jurisdiction. Eligibility restrictions apply. Gambling problem. Call 1-800 gambler. In New York. Call 8778-8 Hope & Why or text Hope and Y 4663369. See show notes for full details.

Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman. documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying.

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

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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-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 a little kill? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English.

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

And Better Help makes it easy to match with a licensed therapist. Get 10% off your first month of online therapy at B-E-T-T-E-R-H-E-L-P-L-P-L-P-R-H-E-L-P-R-H-E-L-P-E-L-L-R-H-E-L-R-E-L-E-L-R-E-L-E-L-E-L-E-F-E-E-L-E-F-E-E-L-E-F-E-E-L-E-F-E-E-L-E-F-E-E-E-L-E-E-A-P-E-E-E-A-P-E-E-E-A-P-E-E-A-P-E-E-E-A-L-E-L-E-E-A-L-L-E-E-A-L-L-L-E- for us Jets fans. I forgot. Where that come from? Is a big Jets fan. Yes, there's a few of us out here in the media. Chris is one of them. We'll focus on college football.

We'll get to the spreads of the college football playoff. I just, I went on a little rant there about how some kind of tradition, if you will, is getting lost, Chris, in quarterback cycling through the transfer portal seemingly every year. Notre Dame's going to be four quarterbacks in four years. We're following Cam Ward. I like player mobility, Chris, but it just feels like someone. of the magic of college football watching 19-year-olds come into a program start for three years and develop. That's out the window now. Yeah, it really is. I mean, this is the new look called

for a lot. I think if you look at the playoff Michael Pennix Jr., Washington, Quinn Ewer, is Texas. I think this is clearly, though, the way teams are going with Cam Ward down at Miami now. We don't know if Cam Ward's going to go to Miami, Ohio State, Florida State. It's not particularly a great year for quarterback transfers in the transfer portal. But I do think, this is clearly the new way. If you look at the guys who have gone now, Dylan Gabriel going to Oregon probably is the biggest splash, but Cam Ward is the biggest one out there.

I get it. I'm all for the player mobility in college football. I do think players should be able to kind of prosper off of their names, but I just don't like how it's kind of become backwards now, where it feels like the NIL should have been like, you're out of school, you should be getting rewarded for that play. It's not as opposed to what it's kind of turned into, where it's like bag of cash,

here's a guy who's looking to be recruited, we're going to get you to come here now. So, yeah, it does feel a little backwards now, but I agree. Something about a major Applewhite in Texas being a really an afterthought there, and Chris Sims get hurt and gets hurt, and major leads him to a big 12 title. Stuff like that, those stories seem like to be fewer and far between now.

Yeah, no doubt. All right, let's get to the college football playoff, Chris. Washington, it looks like Texas is a four-point favorite. I think I saw four and a half, but it's down to four. I'm just curious, where are you on that game? It seems like a lot of people are underestimating Texas. I like the longhorns in this spot. I like the longhorns in this spot, too.

I really like the over in this spot as my better play in the game. I see a lot of points. The one area you can expose Texas is in the secondary, And I think with the receivers and the style of offense, that Washington has, especially with Texas being down to DB in the first half from a targeting penalty in the Big 12 championship game, I think Washington will put up points. But the way this Texas offense is clicking now with yours healthy, with a healthy group of wide receivers, worthy should be back, no problem from that injury in the Big 12th title game. Yeah, they lost Jonathan Brooks, but the backs they've got there are still really, really good. I see this as one of those maybe like 38, 28, 48, 42, 31 type of game. Like pretty high scoring.

I don't think we're going to get many stops. But ultimately, I do think Texas's front will get a few more stops than Washington. But I'm with you. I do like Texas in this game quite a bit. I'm curious, on Uers, like it's a weird spot. Like, I think he's a pro quarterback. I think he's going to be fit great. But if he decides to stay at Texas, the trickle-down could be Archmanning says,

bro, I'm not sitting around another year. I could probably go start at some, I don't know, middle tier D1 program. Do you think, what's your feel or vibe? Or what are you hearing on you were staying? And what will be the second order effect of that happening? Yeah, I think he's going to stay. And I think that's a great move.

It will be great for Texas. A nice, easy transition as they work their way into their first year of the SEC play. I don't think Arch Manning is going to transfer anywhere. I think he's set. I think he's there. I think the bigger question would be what would happen with Malik Murphy, who we saw play a good bit this year when Quinn Ewers was healthy. Would Malik Murphy be the guy that maybe next year at this time is like, okay, if Quinn's here,

how many years am I going to play? We got Arch behind me, fans want to see Arch. Like Malik Murphy could potentially be the odd man out of Texas, not Arch Manning. But I think Arch Manning is staying in Austin regardless of what Quinn Ewers does. And I think it would be a, look, we were just talking about it with this NIL stuff. like Quinn Ewers is going to probably make a great amount of money if he stays at Austin next year. Maybe he doesn't start the clock on an NFL rookie contract is sooner. But I think if you look at the NFL quarterback draft maybe next in two years,

not this coming year with Caleb Williams and Drake May and JJ McCarthy, like I think the 2025 draft, I think Ewers might be looking down the light a little bit at that and saying maybe I'm QB number one there, or as opposed to this year, and maybe QB number four. That's not bad. So Archmane is getting a ton of money in NIL from NIL, like to sit on the bench, really? Somebody's paying him like, well, I don't know, $3 million. Just to sit on the bench for two seasons?

Yeah, but I think he probably went into this knowing that he was going to be behind Quinn yours. And I think he's the type of type of kid and the family certainly doesn't need the NFL contract money. And I also think there's a little bit of this where. the Manning name may be boosting his recruiting ranking, boosting kind of what we think of him more than his actual ability. I'm not saying that he's not a good player or couldn't be a great player, but I think the hype surrounding his name might have elevated him a little bit more as to, remember, there were people before the year that were saying, oh, is Quinn you was going to start or

as Arch Manning going to start? Like Arch Manning was never going to start. But I think there might be a little bit of that going on here as well. All right, let's get to the big game. Obviously, Alabama, Michigan. I was looking at the spreads. You can find two and a half offshore, one and a half in the desert. Really? Pick them.

Yeah, I won't save the spot on this show. But whether pick one and a half, two and a half, very strange vibes around this game. I hear a lot of, well, Nick Sabin is an underdog. You got to take it. I don't know, man. I feel like Michigan kind of slow played this. We're going to show nothing against Iowa in the Big Ten title game. You guys go ahead.

better get. We're saving it all for Alabama. I feel like this is a spot. Harbaugh unloads. I like Michigan here, Chris. You know, that's certainly the narrative going into this game about how Michigan is not been able to win these games in the playoff, haven't been able to win those big non-conference games against SEC teams. I can see a spot where if you like Michigan, I would just wait because I do think that Alabama is going to close as a favorite because of that narrative, because of,

of what we saw from Michigan, kind of surviving against Maryland late, really not looking great offensively against Penn State, nearly blowing that lead at home against Ohio State. I think there are a lot of knocks on Michigan right now. You saw the team's reaction about

what number four is Alabama, and it was kind of like a, oh, Alabama. I think that narrative with another, what, three weeks before the game, two and a half weeks before the games being played, I think most people that I have heard make a pick on this game right now has picked Alabama to win this game. And yes, Jalen Milro has been great since kind of solidifying himself as the starting quarterback.

It looks like they've really found an offense to make him play well. But they haven't had some spots where the Arkansas game, the Auburn game, they have had a couple of games where they haven't necessarily been fantastic. Sure that defense has played a heck of a lot better. and I think Michigan with a unfortunate injury, the offensive line may have a little bit of trouble opening up some holes on the ground running. But if you like Michigan in this game, I would certainly wait because I do think you're going to be able to get a pick in most spots

and maybe Alabama even going off as a slight favorite. So in my scenario, Michigan wins. They beat Alabama. Michigan wins against Texas. They win the title. What in that scenario does Jim Harbaugh do, your best bet? I would think he'll be the head coach of Lulliverman. Angeles Chargers next time. I think if you look at, yeah, I think if you look at all of the

situations out there, remember Jim coached at San Diego in Southern California, coached the 49ers in Stanford. This is a spot for him, I think, where he can land. You get a great situation with a great stadium, you get Austin X, you get Justin Herbert, you get Nick, like Joey Bosa. Like there are, there's a lot to work with the charge. But I think the writing's on the wall. I think we all know that Brandon Staley's days are going to be numbered with that team off of the disappointing season that they've had. I think the ultimate landing spot for Harbaugh will be the Chargers. And I think that's probably of anybody looking for a job this year. I know people say the Bears because of having that number one pick and having their pick as well.

I don't see that as potentially a spot for him. I don't know the relationship. but remember that Kevin Warren used to be the commissioner of the Big Ten is now in that Bears front office. I don't know the relationship between he and Haribaw, but was it good, was it bad? But I think if you're looking to take over a spot right now, I think the Charger's situation is probably a better deal than taking a situation with the Bears. All right, and we'll wrap up with the inverse. Nick Saban beats Michigan, beats Texas or Washington. Nick Saban wins the title.

What does he do in that scenario, Chris? I think he's got another year in him. It seems like we've been asking this question for a few years now. And I would say about eight years or so ago, it did seem like maybe he was at the end. But I think off of this season, if he were to win the national title, I think he would feel so good and so proud of the accomplishment and coaching this team where it's not his most talented and he got so much out of them, I think he would view that as a challenge to be like,

Okay, last year we overachieved, I guess you could say with them. Now I'm going to come back, and now I'm going to force them to be even better when there is expectations in an expanded SEC next year with Texas and Oklahoma coming in. I don't think next year would be the spot if they do win this year. I think he would view that as a challenge to come back and win one more, and then maybe next year would potentially be his final year. All right, Chris Felica, big noon kickoff, and obviously host of the, the Bear Betts podcast with Jeff Schwartz.

Thanks a lot, Chris. Enjoy the games. Take care, Jack. All right. Let's go to Alex Curry with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the Herdline News.

Well, J-Mack, the Chiefs are coming off a tough loss to the bills last week, which led to many members of the media to question Kansas City's skill position players. But Travis Kelsey gave a very passionate response on its new heist podcast. There's a lot of media. pointing fingers at some of the skill players that we have. I say that and excuse my language. We usually cuss in lighthearted ways, but this is, I felt like you guys had to feel that.

Whoever's talked on the skill players in our offense right now. All this that I hear in the media right now about who the chiefs are, it's only building that beast that we've been trying to create this entire year. And it's only going to keep making us better and better going through. through these learning experiences and going through these tough games. I'm not mad when players get passionate and heated because they're in it to win it.

We saw Patrick Mahomes do it after the game. He came out and apologized for his language later on. But when you have a trio of Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelsey, you never can count them out. Yes, it was an incredible play that got called back, but it was the right call at the end of the day. So Patrick Mahomes loses his mind on the sideline

And now Travis Kelsey's cursing out the media This is out of character for both of them Right? I mean, but it's also out of character For them to be getting as much heat That they've been getting about their offensive pieces Yeah You know, they're in a new position that they haven't been in before

So everyone's kind of feeling it I think every single Chief's player Was extremely heated After that game They're not handling the adversity well or we're just seeing a different side that's not the buttoned up that they usually present to the media. You know, behind closed doors and locker rooms,

I'm sure this is how the conversations are going all the time anyway, and then they just keep it together. You know what they say? Like, hey, so they're good front runners. When they're winning, it's all good. As soon as they start losing, here come the F-bomb, here comes and going after referees. It's passionate.

I'm not mad at the passion and the heat, because, again, they're in it to win it. They still have the best quarterback in the league, the best coach in the league. Travis Kelsey is his biggest weapon. They have three pieces. Yes, they are missing star wide receivers. Hands down, but that's what you get when you get young wide receivers in such a big contract with Patrick Mahomes. I guess we'll see if, I mean, there's no way it continues against a Patriots, right?

They're not going to struggle in this. You hope not. If they do, then it's, I mean, people are going to. Then I would worry. If they struggle against the Patriots, then, maybe you hit the panic button. But right now, no. That's fair. No. Let's move on to the Steelers.

Oh, yeah. Can't wait to talk about these guys. They've struggled this season leading to the firing of offensive coordinator Matt Canada a few weeks ago, and Big Ben believes that the team's offensive leaders need to step up and reclaim the team's hard-nosed traditions. He said, maybe the traditions of the Pittsburgh Steelers is done. Maybe it needs to be formed in a new kind of way. I don't know. Who's grabbing someone by the face mask and saying,

That's not what we do here. Is that happening? Yes, you have guys on defense doing it, but you need guys on the other side of the ball doing it as well. Obviously, the Steelers are struggling. Is this about Deontay Johnson and Pickens? I heard Pickens is going through some stuff this week again. I got him in fantasy.

I'm benching that guy. Yeah, it's tough. But, I mean, they believed in Kenny Pickett. They went all in on Kenny Pickett until he got hurt in week 13, And even though he was 27th in pass-a-rating, 27th in passing yards, 26 in completion percentage, and 32nd in passing touchdowns, that's not going to get you where you're used to being, especially when you had a franchise guy like Big Ben for as long as they did. There are going to be growing pains, and they are going through some massive growing pains right now.

Have they lost their way? I mean, again, we saw this with the dolphins. Remember Dan Marino retires? Yeah. Like 20 years, they're looking for his replacement. I don't know how long it's going to find to replace Ben Rothersberger. Like, he was awesome, Hall of Famer. Who have they gone through?

So it was like Tribisky, was it Duck Hodges and Mason Rudolph? A bunch of, come on. Listen, I thought Pickett was a dude. Basically, I had one year in college at Pitt where he was awesome. Yeah. And like an idiot, I was all in on the Steelers. It's a whiff. I mean, you can't hit them all.

You don't have them. I think I did that with the preceptive. Broncos, Russell Wilson's first year. Yeah. Well, that was on it. Hack it. Yeah. Not Russ's fun. Most people did. All right. Well, another team that's trying to find, and maybe they have their next starting quarterback, the Packers, who currently hold the seventh seed in the NFC at six and seven, but are coming off a Monday night loss to the Giants. Now, despite leaving

a lot of opportunities on the table, Jordan Love is confident the Packers will bounce back. Now, Jayback, Green Bay has a winnable remaining schedule. Yes, they're six and seven. but they have a couple divisional matchups left. Okay, they got Bucks who are right now the four seed, NFC South leaders, Panthers, Vikings, the sixth seed, second in the NFC North, and the Bears. And Packers are currently in the seventh seed. Do they make the playoffs?

Favorable matchups. I just, I tried to caution people on Jordan Love and then, of course, like an idiot. I was like, I'll beat them to beat the Giants and lose outright, kill my parlays. Dhabito's getting you. I mean, listen, I'm looking at it. at the numbers. Like, basically, we got sold a bill of goods on Jordan Love over three games. Three good games. That's it.

Look at it. Chargers, Lions, Chiefs. Look before that. He was going... I don't want to say garbage. He was not a good NFL quarterback. I can't believe about it. It took Aaron Rogers' time to be the guy that he ended up becoming. Like, it takes guys time. I mean, he's been there three years, Alex. This is his fourth... Well, he didn't start for three years, but he was in the

Rogers sit behind a guy for two, two, three years? And then he had a rough year and then... Yeah, it's been... rough first year. You gotta like, got to pull back a little. People just, it's tough to have patience.

Well, you want now. I want, he should be good now. And it's like, 25 years of Farvin Rogers, right? Yeah. And now you're gonna, well,

maybe there's gonna be a little down cycle, if you will. We'll be bad for a couple years. Call it a learning curve. He's got to get game experience. He had no game experience with Rogers in front of him. So remember,

he's looking to get paid this offseason. Yeah. What do you do? Is he your guy? What do? He's not my guy. Is he your guy? I don't know.

Are you paying him? I don't know. What Packers said, end of season, we'll figure it out. I mean, it's tough. What, what do you, maybe you franchise tag him, but then you're paying him, what, 30 million or something? You're not going to give up on him after one year. He worked with them for... That's a tough one.

Yeah. That's a good off-season topic. What do you do with the Packers do? What do you do? Because this deal, I don't know the... I just know his rookie contract's ending, and they kind of had restructured. So they're going to have to pay, tag, move off. They'll keep them in some way.

But then... If you missed the playoffs, do you keep him? It's his first year. It's his first year. Okay. It's his first year. You can keep him, Alex. They're currently the seven seed.

They're currently the seven seed. I'm not, I'm undecided at the moment. Alex Perry with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Lie News. Savor the holidays this year with tasty, hassle-free, hello-fresh meals designed to cut down on time in the kitchen.

Get free breakfast for life with code herd free at hellofresh.com slash herd free. That's one breakfast item per box while subscription is active with code herd free at hellofresh.com slash herd free. Coming up next, one team in the NBA. I told you about them a month ago. They're back. Finally, I'll tell you who they are next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Paulie Fusco here with Donie Fusco.

Yo. Of course you know us as the host of the number one rated show in all the sports talk, the Polly and Tony Fusco show. Yeah. Now the suits at Fox Sports Radio gave us this air time because they wanted us to tell you how great our show is. Why? Yeah, instead of us doing that, let us just let our millions of fans do the talking. Yeah, play the tape. You don't know crap about sports. I mean, why am I even on this crap?

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. That's the wrong tape. Wrong tape. Just forget that. Look, listen to the Paulie and Tony Fos. Fusco show on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. 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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, CliverTaylor 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-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's big to me not just because of crack.

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

For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Saturday on Fox primetime hoops to Big East and the SEC collide as Alabama battles eighth-ranked Britain at 730 Eastern, only on Fox and Fox Sports app. All right. So, as you guys, regular ones. watchers of the show know that I do like sparring. Early on, Alex

in my life, I thought I was going to be a lawyer because I was good at arguing. And now, as a dad, that's brutal to deal with a kid, my son, who loves to argue. He's just constantly arguing everything. So he got him in Model UN and he's doing some debating and stuff. He's a middle

schooler. I do love to spar. I will get in the trenches with anybody and debate anything. I just like discussing stuff, right? talking. So the clippers went and traded for James Harden, I don't know what, six weeks, a month and a half ago. And at the time, it was like, oh, not enough basketballs to go around. Even one of the guys on their team, PJ Tucker jumped in and was like, oh, this is really tough. How are you going to share the balls with Russ, who needs the ball, and Kauai, who's the best player. And

Paul George, it was on a heater to start the season. A lot of debate around the paper clips. They're not going to make it. And this guy named Colin Cowherd was like, oh, total failure, disaster. Look at this train wreck. And early on it was. I said, let's have some patience, folks. And I know it's running contrary to what I was saying

about Jordan Love and some other guys. Let's preach patience. My theory is sometimes when you look at things, it's not what it is, but what it can be. And I mean, I like to say that about myself. You know, when I was a blogger, people saw me as just a blogger. But obviously some people, the guys on the radio side said, you know, this guy could, he can do some radio.

And my first producer actually works here on the herd. He was with me at Fox Sports Radio. And then some smart guys, very smart guy on the TV side said, this guy, he's got some potential to be on TV. Other people are like, ah, no shot. Seven years later, here we go. So it's not what things are. it's what they can be.

So the clippers started off really poorly. Well, guess who has the longest winning streak right now in the NBA? It's the paperclips. Yes, the L.A. Clippers are riding high, five straight wins. And I ask the staff, hey, do we have any numbers on the paperclips? I can call them that. It's funny. Here we go.

In December, the L.A. Clippers, 5 and 0. Small sample size, small sample size. net rating first in the league, field goal percentage, fourth, opposing field goal percentage fourth. Wouldn't you know it, guys? It's taken a minute, but Tailu is starting to figure things out.

Now, when I compare NBA to NFL, I like to say, well, there's 82 games in the NBA, 17 in football. So you're looking about five games in the NBA is the equivalent of one NFL game. So I'm not going to overreact to five games when they've won five in a row. But if you look bigger picture, this was a team that was three and seven. Since then, 10 and three.

Now we're looking at, okay, that's more like two and a half NFL games. We're starting to see some trends forming and the paper clips are figuring it out. Ty Lou is a smart coach. Then I went and said, let me look at the NBA standings. Let me see how things are looking for the clips. Oh, whoa. Clippers are half game back of the Lakers, the mighty Lakers, who just won the in-season tournament and LeBron's popping bottles, and the team went out in Vegas and lived it up as well they should. A.D. Monster. Isn't it funny how narrative shift? The paper clips were a joke a month ago. It's not going to work.

We gave it a little time to bake, as Alex pointed out with Jordan Curry, gives these things some time. they will work out okay, it's going to be fine. And now here we are, the clippers with a stack team. Like, bro, you match up their top eight with the bucks top eight. Give me the clippers. There's only a handful of teams with a top eight better than the clippers. You know, it's a Nuggets. Lakers are right there.

Boston Celtics. I mean, you look at the Sixers. I'm just top eight. I'll probably go on Clippers. Now, health obviously is a factor, and maybe Paul George and Kauai, they don't make it. I'm sure early on in the season, they were laboring over, I'm going to get my contract. Oh my gosh, am I going to get paid? That stuff has subsided.

Folks, just remember, it's not always what you are, it's what you can be. And I could see the Klipper's ass, okay, Kauai's going to get his role. PG will fall into his role. Russ, probably better off the bench. James Hardin's going to figure out, you know, this guy's been in a league like 15 years, almost. He's going to figure some things out. So I looked at their recent stretcher. They've been hot and let's see who they beat. Oh, would you look at that? They beat the mighty golden state warriors who are not good right now. Then they took down the nuggets. Then the jazz

who stink, Portland who stinks and a really impressive win over the Kings. It gets a little harder. There's a big game against Dallas. You know I'm a Luca fan coming up. I just let's apply this to not only like me and life and the Clippers and Jordan Love and all this stuff. But let's remember this thing. It's not what you are, it's what you can be when it comes to the NFL draft. I'll never forget. I went to Vegas, I don't know, four years ago.

You know, we're trying to be ballers, a bunch of guys with a hall passes from their wives, and we're poolside at the Cosmo, and we got our cabana, and, you know, girls are trying to come up, and we're just like, we're just hanging out, just some dudes. And I look at the cabana

next to us, and they bring over this big football play, big dude, jacked. he's got like bolder shoulders, and he's just there with his girlfriend or whatever. And we're like, who is it? Is this an NBA player? He's got to be a football player. He's too big.

And so eventually the girl goes to the bathroom or whatever, and I decide, oh, let me just talk to that. I'm on television. He probably recognized me a little bit. And I'm like, what's up? You know, and we start talking. And instantly, I realize it's Cam Chancellor from the Seattle Seahawks. He had just retired.

And I start talking to Cam, and I'm like, oh, yeah, I went to Virginia Tech. He went to Virginia Tech. And we start talking about Cam Chancellor coming out of college. Nobody knew what to do with him. This is a good, sorry. He was a very good, I haven't said a bad word there. He was a very good college football player? But they didn't, was he a linebacker?

Was he a safety? He can't cover. He's on a corner. Seattle didn't see a lot of question marks. They saw this guy can be an awesome, disruptive safety. Cam Chandler told me about how they put him in the right position. and boom, he went on a rocket ship to the moon. He was part of the Legion of Boom.

Seattle dominated. Folks, just remember, it's not what you are. It's what you can be. And this applies to a lot of stuff in life. And I really like what I see from the Clippers. You know I'm a Lakers fan. I think Alex, you're a Lakers fan too, right? Oh, yeah, hands down.

Everybody loves the Lakers. Oh, yeah. We don't root for the Clippers. I'll go to some Clipper games because it's easier to get good tickets, you know. I've gone to Lakers Clippers games when Clippers were the home team because it's easier to get tickets. But I want them to get a banner. They're the only team in that...

Who, the clips? They're the only team in that building who never got a banner. Well, they're now that they'll get their own building. I think Taylor... The joke is... Isn't it? Taylor Swift has more banners in crypto than the Clippers? Every single team that plays in that building,

including Taylor Swift, has a banner except the Clippers. Yeah. It's a little wild. Listen, Clippers are getting their own facility soon. I think next season. And Balmer, he's got a squad. They're going to be okay. Let's not go banner.

Okay, let's not go... I mean, they've never won a legal. core conference title. Like, you've got to prove it. You got to prove it in the postseason. You can be a great regular season team. You got to prove it in the postseason. It's December. You know, we'll see. All right. Final hour rapidly approaching. Alex, I got to be honest, I didn't think the DAC has had a better career than Cam Newton take would, was that hot of a take. Blowing up. And I, my phone's practically melting here at the desk. People are freaking out. I was like, all right. Final hour coming up. Game manager. What the hell is a game manager?

Cam Newton certainly doesn't know. from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel

help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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 IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. on The Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam Jay. 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. 84 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 IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human.