The Herd with Colin Cowherd - HOUR 2 - Panthers-Texans, Brady

Episode Date: September 23, 2021

Colin previews the Panthers-Texans game tonightThe reasons why everyone should be cheering for Tom BradyGuest: Greg Cosell Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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 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.

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. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm 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 Clifers 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 IHeard 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. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at

Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Heard. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go. Live in Los Angeles, hour number two. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1. It is great to be here, Greg CoSell in a couple of minutes. If you like fantasy football, betting on football, getting smarter at football, Greg CoSell.

Joy Taylor is joining me. Sam Darnold, party tonight at Collins. We are going to have a big bowl of pasta. I get excited for it. I woke up this morning, and this is the wonky, nerdy part of me. You know, if you're a college football fan, you wake up on Saturday morning, and you can in the fall, you can just smell the grass, and it feels like college football Saturday.

It feels like Sam Darnold Thursday to me. I got to watch every snap. I'm not first two weeks. I don't keep my eye on a million games, and he will make a mistake. He has got a lot of Carson Wentz. He can be reckless, but I can see Matt Ruhl. He's played with two leads. He's got a running game.

when Sam was in New York, he often, he mostly played trailing with no run game. So it's third and 11. And Sam get, you have to make a play. And Sam, to a fault, wants to extend a play. But when you lead and it's third and two, it's different. And so now Carson Wentz, by the way, has trailed twice. The running game's not working. So his reckless sort of DNA is having to be tapped into a little bit.

Whereas Sam, when he plays with a lead and they have a run game, right now, that rule. So it'll be interesting. This is the easiest part of their schedule, but when Sam trails to Tampa, and now he's got third and 11, and that's where I think, I don't know if Sam is ever going to get out of that reckless DNA,

but so far, so good. James has done a pretty good job so far. So far. Before we get to Greg CoSell, I saw NFL execs are still doubting Lamar Jackson is worth mega deal. There's a bunch of comments here. Of course, oh, was a

Anonymous. Is he a franchise guy? He's got one playoff, win in three years, followed up with a complete disaster the next week. Well, first of all, mega deal. Like a Mahomes is a mega deal. I've got to be honest with you. There's not a lot of people on the face of the earth that are worthy of a mega deal. He's going to get paid. Baker Mayfield is going to get paid. Mega deal? Yeah, I'd prefer not to pay anybody but like Mahomes and Russell Wilson, mega deals. The media too often kind of panders to just pay the athlete. You got salary caps here. It's not baseball. To me, when you get into this contract situation with young quarterbacks, I talked about this about a week ago or two weeks ago, there's three levels of it. Number one is pay the dude. The score is irrelevant. He's just it.

Russell Wilson, Patrick Mahomes, when they're young, just pay the guy. Literally change the franchise fortunes. In the Super Bowl conversation the minute they arrive, that's Mahomes. The second one is, oh, it's just not working. Trubisky, Dwayne Haskins. there are usually unfixable issues or three. Trabisky, just doesn't have the Army. He's not accurate.

Dwayne Haskins, maturity. You're not winning enough. So like pay the dude or let's move on. And then the other one, and I think Lamar is on the high end of this, close to the pay the dude is there may be an unfixable issue. I mean, Baker Mayfield is small. He's not a big athletic guy. Lamar's never going to be a beautiful passer.

But they can win. They may need a better O' line. or a better defense to win. They're not going to carry the team every Sunday. But you can, you know, they call it a confetti guy. It'd be confetti guy. Lamar Jackson, I don't know if I feel Baker's there yet. I do think Lamar could be a confetti guy.

But, I mean, Matt Ryan almost was. Jared Goff almost was. So the three levels are pay the dude. This ain't working. And it's not perfect, but you can win a lot of games. What you don't want to be in the NFL is driving to the stadium or the practice facility. and you don't think you can win on Sunday. Lamar wins a lot of games, so he can get paid.

Mega deal? I mean, how many guys in the league at their position make mega deals? Not many, and not many should. O'Dell Beckham is one of the most talented receivers. I'm not paying big money anymore. He's not available. He's not winning games for me. Let's go to Greg Kossel, 42 years NFL films.

All right, Joey and I are just taken by Kyler Murray. First year, then he gets better in the second. year, then he gets hurt, and then you open up the third year, and it's like, oh, boy, it just looks he just looks a little better than he did last year. So he just keeps growing and growing and growing. And I have my concerns about Cliff Kingsbury. I kind of think he's the fourth best coach in a division. That's not great. But what are you seeing with Kyler Murray? Is the improvement O line? Is it scheme? Is it Kyler? What do you see? Well, the big issue was first two seasons. And quite honestly, Colin, he wasn't much better last year than he was as a rookie, was he missed.

what we call too many layups. You can't miss routine throws in the NFL. He's always going to be spectacular. He's got that kind of ability. That's going to happen probably on a weekly basis. But in this league, you cannot miss the routine throws. And he's gotten much better through two games. It's a two game sample, and that's important to say, but he's gotten much better at making what are somewhat routine throws. Some of them are not. I mean, the fourth and five last week versus zero blitz in the fourth quarter is not necessarily a routine throw, but it's a pocket throw. And he needs to be better making the layups from the pocket. If he continues to develop in that way, he'll become more consistent.

And there's a difference between consistent and spectacular. You're not a great week-to-week snap after snap quarterback if you're just spectacular, but not consistent. So listen, I like Sam Darnold and Carson Wentz. They're both reckless. Sam Darnold in the first two weeks has played with a lead. has played with a running game. So he hasn't been forced to make plays.

He's taking Matt Rule is, he's taken what's given. Now, Carson Wentz, the offensive line is struggling. He's playing behind. He's having to make plays. He goes back to being reckless. I don't know if you can coach reckless out of somebody. And I don't think Donald is an elite thrower like we see on seven or eight arms in this league. What do you see with Donald?

Do you like anything that worries you? Well, first of all, they have a. lot of offensive talent, and that's number one. The O-line will be a continuing concern, but as far as skilled position players, they have a lot of talent. I think what Darnold is, we know he can move out of the pocket, and you're 100% correct, Colin. There's a reckless, undisciplined nature to his game when he leaves the pocket that still exists, by the way. But the past game under Joe Brady is incredibly well-schemed, and what you're trying to do is make Darnold as much of a one-reed player as possible.

Because he's the kind of quarterback that he drops back and he's throwing it to the primary. So you have to do a really good job scheming in terms of your route concepts versus the anticipated coverage that you're going to get. And that's film study and that's coaching as well so that he can deliver the ball with timing within the structure of the past game. Yeah. I'm happy for him. All right, Matt Stafford at the Colt.

I didn't think he played particularly well. but I also think the Colts had been pushed around by the Seahawks the week before. And, you know, there's some urgency with the Colts right now. Their defense is having to carry him. What did you make a Stafford against the Colts on the road? Well, Stafford is, he's just one of those guys that's such a big time thrower that he can make throws. And he's very intelligent. He's very good behind the line of scrimmage.

That's an overlooked element of his game. He's not a runaround guy, but he's got very good movement behind the line of scrimmage, not a scrambler. And because of that ability, and then his ability to throw the ball at the intermediate and deeper levels off that movement behind the line, he can also help an offensive line tremendously. But he can just make any kind of throw. He can throw with pace. He can throw with touch. He's got a power arm. So he's a highly talented guy in a very well-schemed offense that presents throws for him. Yeah. So far, by the way, I think as good as anybody I've seen, It's, you know what?

Sean McVeigh looks really smart because they sent some picks and they're still paying goff, but the Rams this morning looked pretty smart going with Stafford. You know? Josh Allen, what do I make of his inaccuracy rearing its head again through two weeks? What do I make of that? Because in college and his rookie year, Greg, he was a wild pony, big arm, not very accurate. Here it comes again. What do I make of it?

And you're right, through two games, he's been very inconsistent with his ball placement. He missed too many throws that were there, and some of those were routine layups. He's throwing the ball too hard, and he's throwing the ball on some deeper throws too flat. So there's no trajectory to those throws, so there's no margin for error whatsoever. So the question is, will that improve? Because last year, that was not an issue. So you and I don't know the answer to that, Colin. a brilliant thing to say about what's going to happen week three and beyond. I can only tell you

what the tape shows. And through two games, he has clearly struggled with his accuracy. And he's missed too many easy throws that he did not miss a year ago and that he has to make. Well, you know, we don't know the answer to that. He became kind of a celebrity. Maybe he had a little more chill off season and, you know, celebrated himself. I mean, we don't know what happens in this stuff. I don't want to make. But it is weird that it doesn't look quite the same. So So Mac Jones is interesting. And Joey and I have talked about this ad nauseum is that whether I like him or not, he really ended up in the perfect place to go from Sabin to Belichick and the same sort of ideology,

which is the quarterback doesn't have to carry the franchise. It's a really nice landing spot. So when you watch the film and you've done this for 42 years, is he making the right reads? The ball's not in the air much with him. 3.1 yards. I mean, it's a lot of underneath stuff. what are you seeing is he making the right reads tell me what the film says well that he's doing but

they're not asking him to do very much in terms of the kinds of throws that they're asking him to do the degree of difficulty there's not much that they're asking him to do i think some of the limitations you do see as a passer he can't really drive the football uh his overall traits suggests that the past game concepts must present the reads and the throws for him now the one thing that he is, he's a very precisely accurate thrower. There have been some one-on-one routes the last two weeks against man coverage. He threw a beautiful ball to James White, week one on a wheel route. He hit Myers this week on a fade route.

He's a very accurate thrower. So as he continues to develop, and all indications are he's this kind of player, he must truly master the mental part of the game so he can win, Colin, a high percentage of the time before the ball is snapped. because that way he can play with the timing and rhythm that defines his game. So, listen, I think we both think, if you look at Cleveland's roster, their offensive line, their run game. I thought last year, Kevin Stefansky really figured out quite quickly with Baker Mayfield, he is best playing with a lead, with a sufficient run game, and when managed.

Everybody manages, a quarterback is managing the game, so that term is overused. it's often viewed as a negative, but everybody is managing the clock and managing your downs and managing personnel. But so far, when you look at Baker this year, do you see, again, kind of a formula kind of managing him? Or do you think he's, you know, I mean, where are you comfortable with what you see? Because we know their defense is a work in progress. It's got seven new starters. It's going to take a little bit. What do you make of their offense what you see so far?

Well, it's interesting what you said, because every quarterback, is a system quarterback. What you're, because that's the way it's taught. What you're ultimately saying is what happens with quarterbacks in games where the run game can't be a factor, where the play action pass game can't dictate things to the defense, where essentially you have to go to a drop back pass game. Right. That's what you're essentially saying, Colin.

Yes. For a lot of these quarterbacks as we try to evaluate them and determine what they are. He's in a very good system for him. they marry the run game and the past game as well as any team in the league. So the question is, when you get into games where that can't be a factor or as big a factor, what happens? And ultimately, I think he's an improving player. He throws the ball very well.

See, that's an overlooked part of his game. He's a very good thrower of the football. So I think he's just continuing in incremental development. Unfortunately, we want to see people make big, big jumps. His development has been incremental. and I think he's just getting better and better. So the Cowboy Charger game was interesting. The Chargers had some dumb penalties.

They had one bad call go against him. I kind of felt like I'm not sure if the better team won, but I will say this, DAC was efficient. They were good on third down. He was 23 at 27. They didn't have as many penalties. And, you know,

boring is not the worst thing in the world. And I thought Dallas was more boring and then more efficient and won the football game. And Tony Pollard, by the way, It looks like now they're best back. I mean, it feels more explosive to me. Maybe it's the play selection. What did you make in Dallas, their offense, their win, their efficiency,

and again, the balance, pass, and throw? Well, they played their opponent. The Chargers play under Brandon Staley a lot of split safety coverage. And when you play split safety, as we saw with Aaron Rogers and the Packers on Monday night, you have to run the ball. So therefore, their offense played to the opponent last week, and they became much more balanced in terms of their approach. The week before, when they played the Bucks, they knew they had to put up 30,

and they weren't going to put up 30 by running the ball. So they had to throw it as often as they did just to stay in the game. They're playing the Eagles on Monday night, and it wouldn't surprise me at all if their approach was very similar to the one against the Chargers because the Eagles play a lot of split safety coverage as well. So they're playing to their opponent. So the Raiders have been two and O last several years undergris. Rudin, so I don't want to overreact. I will say they haven't had a pass rush in two years,

and it's been excellent for the first two weeks. They're getting hits. I mean, they're getting hits on people. And they don't blitz. And they don't blitz at all, Colin. So it's like, that's a real thing. Like, you can't argue that they are getting four-man rush, real pressure, and that usually will sustain itself to be a pretty interesting team. Their schedule, you know, it's not easy in that division. But Derek Carr, I have defended Derek Carr forever. I've always said, They're quarterbacks I like more than the public. Derek Carr is one of those. I feel he's a little bit like Tony Romo.

You know, Tony entered the league undrafted. He didn't go to a big college. So we always doubted him. Derek Carr goes to Fresno. He's not a top 10 pick. The team was bad. So your entry point is often how we judge you where you drafted. Where did you go to college?

Baker's at Oklahoma. We all think he's great. So Derek Carr has been, when I watch, he's doing more than what he's done for the last two years. He's a very good thrower of the football, not a huge arm. I mean, what do you make of car when you watch him so far this year? Oh, he's got a pretty good arm, Colin. I mean, again, Gun is a relative term.

Just like Elite is one of those terms that means absolutely nothing. So I'm not going to sit here and say, boy, now he's elite. I think he's in its fourth year in John Gruden's system. I thought last year through play design and just his growth in the system, he became more aggressive throwing the football. I had always felt studying tape that car had. a little risk of version in his game and was not willing to drive the ball down the field and he can make those throws. So I think what you're seeing as a quarterback more comfortable within the system.

The play calls are allowing him to push the ball down the field a little more. The talent level. You know, this is a team that lines up with tight ends as much or more than any team in the league. And what that does is that makes the defense more predictable. You know what you're going to get. So this is now an offense and a past game that's growing and growing incrementally and cars growing with it. And the play we want to show this week is the long touchdown to Henry Ruggs from a week ago, which is a really interesting play. And we can go to that right now and take a look at the play. Yep. So obviously people remember this play.

It was one of the best of the weekend. It was a 60-plus-yard touchdown to Ruggs. And how they got to it and what they did is really interesting. What they have here is they have a trips formation to the wide side of the field, and Henry Ruggs is the outside receiver in trips. And then you have Darren Waller, the single receiver to the short side of the field, which they do an awful lot, by the way. Now, in this particular coverage, it's a blitz coverage.

Mika Fitzpatrick is the post safety. Nothing can get over the top of them. But what do the Raiders do? They run Waller on a vertical route and rugs on a deep post. So combined with Carr and with Waller, what you get is Minka Fitzpatrick kind of focused on Waller. Look at him right now. He's sitting low. He's focused on Waller.

Carr sees that. He sees the depth and the body position, and he knows he can go over the top to rugs. Rugs is against an outside leverage corner, and Rugs has speed. Now, this is ultimately Minka Fitzpatrick's play. When you're the post safety, nothing can get over you, and he knew that as soon as it happened. But this was well done because Waller, who lines up a lot as what we call the Boundary X, the single receiver to the short side of the field, he presents a lot of problems, Colin, for defenses and how they want to match up.

That was great stuff. I swear every time I watch your film, I think, why don't they do that every drive? That play was so easy. Well, yeah, a lot of people say that about plays that work. Why don't they just do that every time? Greg, it's great. 42 years NFL films, great seeing you. As always, Greg.

Thanks, Colin. Yeah, it'll be interesting to see. He brings up a couple of points he made today. The Raiders are getting a pass rush and they're not bringing extra people. That is what everybody in this league is trying to do. I don't have to sacrifice my coverage. So that is where, and I said this yesterday, they didn't have a pass rush for two years. They not only have one.

It's excellent and they're not bringing extra people. That's a thing. And if you're a Raider fan, Carr has been fine. He's been the life preserver for two years. Now, it's got a little bit of a feel, to be honest with you. The Raiders feel a little bit like Carolina to me. That great pass rush to make the other quarterback uncomfortable. And the Raiders, Carr and Darnold have really nice weapons.

You've got a top back. Now, Carolina doesn't have a tight end like Waller, but, you know, if you have on your team as a quarterback a great defensive line and you have marginal, you know, help offensively, That quarterback is going to be more uncomfortable than you're going to be most Sundays. The most comfortable quarterback wins a lot of games in this league. Just simply that. So Derek Carr is going to be more comfortable than a lot of the quarterbacks he faces.

That's a good space to be in. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. 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 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, 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-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.

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.

Thank you 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. 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. Join me, Kear Gaines,

as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free, our heart radio app. Search learn the hard way and listen now. Tonight, Thursday night football is on NFL Network as Christian McCaffrey leads the Panthers against the Texans. Week 3 starts tonight at 8 Eastern, 5 Pacific only on NFL Network.

Carolina wins. 2420. That's it. Davis Mills, though? Carolina's got weapons, but it's a bottom three offensive line in the league. I mean, they have a really good right tackle. Their draft next year, get a box safety, maybe another defensive interior lineman, and draft all offensive linemen.

They don't have a bunch of needs. They have everybody grades poorly except their right tackle. The right tackle is a pro bowl level right tackle, and they pay them a bunch. Everything else is up for, they went and drafted Tommy Travel from Notre Dame, good pass blocking tight end. They got Christensen from BYU, a left tackle, but he's a kid. But they're really, if you watch Carolina, and you'll see it tonight, it's not an effective offensive line. It's a bad. you can tell a lot by how long a quarterback gets to just set his feet.

Like Baker can really set his feet. By the way, you're seeing with Derek Carr, even against Pittsburgh's pass rush. You get a real chance to set your feet. Donald, 1001, he's often moving a lot. So just watch that tonight. All right, Joy, with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. Well, Michael Parsons has had really an explosive start to his NFL career. Very good. They moved him to pass Russia this past weekends. He came up with a key sack on Justin Herbert, and he thinks that all quarterbacks need to be on alert. I mean, I would say every quarterback that's on the season is on the hit list. I mean, I want all of them.

Herbert was just the guy I had that week. You know what I'm saying? But it hurts. He's on the hit list now, too. I look at it to be like the tournament. terminator out there. Well, Jalen Smith's now a backup. I mean, this kid has taken the defense.

He's been great. He's been great. And I like it. I like the confidence. I like the defensive side of the ball having a little attitude. And that is something that Dallas was certainly lacking. And he brings a lot of energy to them. You know, what's really interesting right now is many of the best teams in the league, Tampa Bay, I worry about their defense. Kansas City, I worry about the defense. Cleveland, I worry about their defense. Green Bay. They can't get to the quarterback.

They have one sack. Like if you start looking at the teams in the NFL that are good and we're like, oh, they play defense, it's like the Rams. I mean, that's kind of it right now. The top five or six teams, Baltimore depends on the moment. But the Rams are the one team that I like both sides of the ball. They're totally locked in. Oh, yeah.

But it's really, you know, we know it's an offensive league, but there's a lot of this stuff. Now, Dallas, we know they don't have much defensively. But it's kind of a trend. Like when I can remember even like 10 years ago. If I liked a team, they all had a defense. Green Bay cannot get to the quarterback. Seattle cannot stop the run. Tampa is not getting pressure this year.

Kansas City, you can run on them. So there are no perfect, if Tampa's the best team in the league, I think the Rams are going to beat him Sunday. I think the Rams are going to control. Yeah, I think the Rams are going to win. This is why, remember Joel Klatt said yesterday, college football ratings are up this year, because there's a sense

almost anybody can beat anybody. Like Ohio State doesn't look as dominant. It feels like there's parity for the first time in a lot of time. Yeah, like it's, Alabama's great, but even Alabama almost lost this weekend. If Tampa's returning all 22 starters, they are,

they're a, that game is a one and a half point spread. Everybody is smushed very close in the NFL. Well, Michael Parsons is currently favored to win defensive rookie of the year according to Fox Bet at plus 450, followed by the Broncos cornerback, Patrick Sertana, plus 650. And Micah is certainly making a great case for that so far.

And that is the Monday night game, which will be a great one. Eagles, Cowboys Monday Night and Cowboys are currently favored by three and a half on FoxxBow. It's only three and a half. Okay. Well, Ben Rothesberger suffered a left pectoral injury in Sunday's loss to the Raiders, but he's saying he's doing everything he can to get back to play this week for the Bengals. He said the injury affected him during the game, but because he hasn't attempted a pass since he's not sure how it will affect his throwing motion.

They are currently favored by three against the Bengals. I already bet the Bengals. Now, again, the line's crappy now. I already bet the Bengals. This was one of my early bets of the week. Well, the thing about the Steelers outside of Ben's injury, which should give you a lot of concern, especially three weeks into the season,

is that they cannot run the ball. At all. They cannot. They have 114 rushing yards. That's the fewest in the NFL. It's dramatic. It's not an exaggeration. They cannot run the ball.

And by the way, he is, Ben looks old. Their offense has never been what I would call like Uber efficient. I mean, that's not, they've been a big play. There's a lot of big play stuff. It's a little Buffalo where it's not the most, Josh and Ben are not the most accurate throwers. But when the Steelers are the most effective is when they can run the ball. So then it opens it up for Ben to do what Ben does, which is those big plays.

They haven't run the football since Lavian Bell left. Three years in a row. They have not run the football for three years. It's really remarkable. They don't really have an identity outside of their defense. By the way, it's so fun. It's like there's a power outage in Pittsburgh. All they do is complain about me.

And then Sunday, power go out in Pittsburgh, didn't get a single tweet from a Steeler fan. Sometimes it does, though, and then it takes a little while to get back up. Yeah, Miami fans. A lot of chance. power outage in Miami. He didn't hear one tweet Sunday about how wrong we were. I just think having, I mean, look, everything we do here is unreasonable.

So to have some sort of perspective on it from a fan's perspective, I get it. You know, you live in a space of hope and dreams. But, I mean, I thought Najee Harris was a good pick for Pittsburgh, but it's, and it's not on him that they don't have a running game. Like, they have a new offense coordinators are a lot happening right now. They don't get any push. They get no push. You're just not going to do that in the AFC North.

So Tom Brady was asked on his latest let's go podcast about the evolution of the game and the mobile quarterback. And Brady acknowledged that it definitely changed the game for the defense. There's a lot of plays and hits that are happening on quarterbacks now that are flags for defensive players that probably weren't that way 10 or 15 years ago. So I'd say the game is a little softer than it used to be. You know, I think the defensive players are more on defensive when they go into tackle. And I think that's probably adding to this element of quarterbacks outside the pocket and taking more chances, you know, than they did in the past. Yeah, well, I think the fear, in fact, I read this in the Seth Wickersham piece on Tom Brady.

Roger Goodell's fear when he became commissioner was a player dying during a game because of the hits and the violence of it. So they got out of stuff above the shoulders. You know, I grew up when Darrell Stingley got hit and was paralyzed for life. Like, that's the NFL I grew up with. So the league, when you're as successful as the NFL and there's hundreds of billions at stake, the only thing that can bring you down, it's like tech. It's like Facebook. The only thing that can bring you down is the government. Like the government says to Facebook, break it up. You have a monopoly. They did that with oil companies or you do that. That's it. Like you're at a point with the NFL. It is so far ahead, the only thing that could bring it down is a massive tragedy. Like even a

pandemic had no... Well, they got a huge break in when it happened in their schedule with having the ability to look at other leagues and make adjustments. But they are, it is a soft league. It's no question. But it's so the trigger word there is soft, right? Like, and you know, you're hearing that from Tom Brady, everyone's going to be like, my guy. Right. Kind of benefited you a little bit. Some rules were changed. Like, you are probably one of the most protected quarterbacks in the league. Everyone has a bubble around you.

So, you know, it's like you benefited from it and now it's quote unquote soft. So I think words matter. Yeah. And when you describe something as soft, especially when you're talking about a sport as violence as football, it's going to put everyone's going to kind of. Freak out.

Or just be on alert. Like, what do I think about him saying that? Like, am I upset? Because, you know, because he's benefited from those rule changes? Is he right about it? Is it truly soft? To me, it's not that the game is soft. Every time somebody changes anything,

it's like the weakening of America and it's soft and like the feminists are out of control. It's like maybe there's just a better way to do something. That protects people. Yeah, so if Tom said the league is more protective of offensive players, then that word is, well, that makes sense. sense because soft has a negative connotation in this setting. That's right. That's right. Like you don't want a, if I describe a blanket to you and I use the word soft, that is appealing.

When I describe a sport, a collision sport like NFL as soft, it's going to put people on a different headspace. I'll give you an example. When Dana White took over the UFC, I can remember watching Dana wasn't part of it back a long time ago. I was in San Francisco with friends at a sports bar called the Condor and UFC was on. And the women we were with could not watch it. There was eye gouging. There was blood everywhere. And believe it or not, Dana White came in and said, we want to get major advertisers. Budweiser's not going to sponsor something with eye gouging.

So the UFC today is much more regulated and much more reasonable than if you go to YouTube 20 years ago, it was. It was insanity. And by the way, why would you do that? Because you want to get $150 million a year in advertising. And Budwizers. But also not sustainable. It's not sustainable. All these words make everyone freak out and like they're like oh and start playing in dresses

and stuff, which by the way, you could never pull off a dress, please. Yeah. It's very helpful. Heels, hard of tackle and heels. You guys can't be bothered to wear seatbelts and wear a dress all day. But that's the word. Like what he's saying may be true. But what's causing this to be a story is that he's saying that it's softer because that's

just that puts everybody on alert. Yes, the game evolved. It has to evolve in order for it to sustain. In order for us to have an NFL 50 years from now, you have to do it in a way that protects people. Ask yourself this. Are the Colts more fun to watch with Carson Wentz or out? You want to protect him.

Boom. There's your answer. Yeah. Is it more fun to watch a starting quarterback or a backup? Or the third string. There you go. Protect him. Joy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The herd line. how sometimes you think something's really a negative and it's actually a positive like when you're a kid your parents have rules and they're strict and you're like oh my parents are such a buzzkill but they kind of keep you out of trouble and they do create sort of a get your stuff what you know kind of a seriousness that maybe you wouldn't as a kid and so like kids don't like you know my kids are you dad's so strict and dad's got all the rules. But in the end, I'm trying to create kids that

respect, you know, borders a little bit. We can respect borders here and other people. And there's an interesting one. Brady may be viewed as a threat to a couple of great quarterbacks. He is actually going to make them hundreds of millions of dollars. And I'll talk about that coming up. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays, noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, what's up, everybody? It's me, three-time Pro Bowl of LaVar Arrington, and I couldn't be more excited to announce a new podcast called Up on Game. What is Up on Game, you ask?

Along with my fellow Pro Bowler, T.J. Hushman Zada and Super Bowl champion. Yep, that's right. Plexico Burris. You can only name a show with that type of talent on it. Up on Game. We're going to be sharing our real-life experiences loaded with teachable moments. Listen to Up On Game with me, LeVar Arington, T.J. Hushmanzada, and Plexico Burris on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast from. 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'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 Jay. 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 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.

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. Trip 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? Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different. mentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Keer Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free IHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Saturday, come join Fox's big noon kickoff at Soldier Field in Chicago for the biggest pregame party of the weekend. There'll be live music, ticket giveaways, and so much more. Be a part of the live TV.

audience at the Great Lawn on the east side of Soldier Field this Saturday, 9 a.m. Eastern, 8 a.m. Central. That'll be fun. Oh, what a great city. Love Chicago. That's going to be a good game. I'm going to take Wisconsin close, but I already bet Notre Dame. So years ago, it was 1987, and I was sitting next to a poker machine at a bar in Las Vegas at a place called the Union Plaza. And there was a man next to me. I didn't go there by myself. My boss at the time, Don Logan, had to do a sales call. And he said, it's a big meeting. Sit down here.

So I moved over to the bar, order something weak. And I sat next to a guy from, I don't know if he was from Texas or Arkansas. He was very successful and he looked successful. And after about 10 or 15 minutes, I asked him what he did. and he had just sold 22 TV or radio stations. Good old boy. And I said, you know, I'm young. I'm like, you know, young guy.

And give me some sage advice. You know, I like that. I look up to older people. Give me some sage advice. And he said, well, he goes, I just sold my company for a lot of money. And he goes, but I'll be honest with you, root for other people's success, not just your own. don't be insecure about it. Figure out how they did it.

Figure it. Don't be insecure. Don't be defensive. How did they do it? That's what many golfers did when Tiger Woods was dominating the tour. Golfers were smart enough to realize, oh, we got to get in shape. He's just in better shape than we're just stronger. And suddenly all these young golfers went out there and they were all flat bellies.

It used to be like that. The Craig Stattler shape, I was gone. Colin Montgomery stuff. Now these young guys are ripped. Brooks Kepkin, Rory McElroy, Dustin Johnson. They're ripped. And it matters. You last longer, in better shape.

No, they weren't defensive. Like, how is he doing that? How do you last longer? How do you drive farther? You got to work out like an athlete, not a golfer. And sometimes, as Tiger was winning, root for his success. He was elevating the purses in golf.

Everybody was making more money off him. Don't be insecure. What is he doing? So when Tom Brady won a Super Bowl in Tampa, Russell Wilson, well documented, was fuming watching the game in the press box. Fuming. Aaron Rogers. Remember when he and Brady met at the end of that game?

Aaron looks 60. Root for Brady. Brady is going to make Russell Wilson and potentially Aaron Rogers $100 million. So think of what's happening right now. Carson Wentz can't play this week. So Chris Ballard, as good as any GM in this league, can't win football games. Bill Belichick losing record since Tom left. Kyle Shanahan, best young coach, many believe, is now 7 and 27. 7 and 27 without Jimmy Garoppola.

The best coach, the smartest offensive coach, maybe the best GM can't win without a quarterback. So that's the first ingredient here. There's a copycat league. Man, you've got to get the quarterback right. The second thing is, Tom Brady had a very small market when he left New England. Only like two teams, Tampa and the Chargers, aggressively went after him. Now a lot of GMs look like idiots. Russell Wilson's contract is up in two years.

Remember the rumors this offseason? I can tell you that Russell isn't in love with everything about people. Carol, not in love. Happy now. Front facing, happy. But he'll be 35 at the end of this contract. 35. And there's two quarterbacks in this league that I would say are obsessed with their bodies,

their minds, their discipline, their willfulness. Brady and Russell. I mean, are obsessed, like a different level. It's like Aaron loves the game, but, you know, he's out there and hot. No. Russell, Wilson and Brady, like, they're here and everybody else's discipline. a little down here. Does Russell realize at 35 and the market there could be for him?

Does Aaron Rogers realize that Brady also had injuries? Brady's older that Aaron after this year. I look at Aaron and Russell and I think, you know, they look in the moment and you're like, in the moment Tiger Woods humiliate you and beat you by nine. You know, at the U.S. Open and you're like, oh, no, it was really giving you, here's how to get rich. Here's how to be in better shape. Here's how to elevate the entire sport. Brady is going to get so many guys paid at 39, at 40, at 41, at 42.

He's going to get so many guys paid. If you just do your part of the deal, commit to emotional, physical discipline. Put in the time. and make sure everybody sees it on Instagram. And Russell does and Tom does. Tom, don't kid yourself. Tom knows what he's doing. When Tom is throwing in Costa Rica,

it always gets photographed. You ever notice that? He's down there with Giselle. How come it always ends up on the Internet? Tom wants you to know, I ain't getting old. I'm getting better. Russell Wilson, every day in the offseason.

Hello? 100 degrees down here in Arizona. I don't care. It's new. I'm working out. I think Tommy's going to make these guys, don't be defensive. He is opening up a gateway of hundreds of millions of dollars

for 39-year-old quarterbacks. Russell's going to be 35 and two years. They'll be like, it really is, we were talking about this year today. The fact that only two teams aggressively pursued Brady literally looks ridiculous today. You know, like when they created, of the iPhone, Steve Jobs said the late Steve Jobs, the brilliance of Steve Jobs is he created something

that you couldn't live without and you just didn't know it yet. We couldn't live without our phones. That's a genius. That's a visionary. Brady literally has changed the league and there was no market for him. He has opened up a tunnel hundreds of millions of dollars for older quarterbacks because you don't want to look silly. You don't want to look like these genius. You see six or seven of these teams, you're like, the hell, you didn't make a run it, Brady? Tired of sitting around waiting for hot water. Go to tanklessmade symbol.com. Tankless made symbol.com.

It's called Navian 15-year limited warranty only heats the water. Only heats it when you need it. So you never run out. Hour three on a Thursday, Sam Donald Party tonight. My house, the herd. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. on Humor 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 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, there was a big moment for me. 84 is 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.

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. A win is a win. A win is a win. A win. Yep, that's me, Cliford 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 Cliford Show. This is a place for raw, unfills of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Cliford Show on the IHeard 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 IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.