The Herd with Colin Cowherd - James Harden, Tom Brady, Bill Belichick, and Jared Goff

Episode Date: January 24, 2019

Colin explains why he's not impressed with the current play of Houston Rockets G James Harden, why New England Patriots QB Tom Brady is an icon among icons, why all the credit shouldn't be given to Patriots HC Bill Belichick, and why he is impressed with Los Angeles Rams QB Jared Goff. Guests include Eddie House, Greg Cosell, Rob Parker, Greg Jennings, & Jason McIntyre. 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. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise,

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Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter.

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Wreck, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season, and I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was harmed. you just understood.

That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Mark keep coming to her. He's like, you know, I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball.

So listen to Point Game on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. 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 SportsRadio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeartRadio app by searching heard.

You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. By the way, I agree with Skip on that. This is the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, we are live in Los Angeles, Iheart Radio. Fox Sports Radio, right here in FS1. Joy Taylor is joining me on a Thursday. Greg Kosell one hour from now.

Going to look ahead of the Super Bowl. It's one of my favorite guests. How are you? I'm doing great. How are you? You were having computer issues this morning. Yes, my meltdown. My gigabytes and megabytes are overloaded or something.

I don't know what's going on. Yeah, I know. I heard the conversation, folks. Believe me, I didn't know what he was saying either, but I appreciate the help. Great to have you. And James Harrow, oh, the world is buzzing about this story. We read all about it. Oh, my Lord, the buzz for this story is just everywhere.

Kids read all about it. James Hardin scored 61 last night, and the Rockets beat those very, very competitive nicks. In the last five games, James Hardin has scored 211 points. And I want you to think about this. Zero have come from an assist. Iso ball. Zero have come from an assist. By the way, Clayton.

Thompson had 44 Monday against the Lakers, all 44, all of them came from an assist. But Colin, Colin, that's because Chris Paul's hurt. Clint Capella's hurt. No, that's not the only reason. For the record, if Steph Curry was hurt Monday against the Lakers and Draymond Green, do you think zero of Clay Thompson's 44 points had come from an assist? This is why the Warriors are a dynasty. Steffs out, they win, Durant's out they win,

Clay's out they win, Boogie Cousins didn't play yet, they win. It's a system. Yes, it's got very good players within the system, but when players leave, they can still win. This is not sustainable. The usage rate, which, by the way, over time is creating resentment. It is.

It's ISO ball. It's YMCA with a ball hog, who's talented, but he doesn't include you. His usage rate is number one in the NBA by a mile, number two all time. And here's the bombshell. Of the top eight usage rates in NBA history, zero have won a playoff series. That includes Michael Jordan, the ball hog before he got Pippin. That includes Kobe Bryant, Iverson, Dwayne, Wade, Hardin, Westbrook twice.

Never won a playoff series. Every year, the board and... NBA media as the NFL is pulling away because it's the playoffs and we're all talking about it. The NBA has got to come up with narratives and stories to fill their space, fawn over somebody going off in January. And the new NBA is all about guard play. And so the usage rate, somebody shows off Hardin, you know, Westbrook. And we all go, oh, my God, this is slam magazine's going to have a 14 page spread on James Harden.

NBA writers have already sealed their envelopes on James. James Harden. It should be noted this is not sustainable, and in the last eight games, the rockets are four and four, and their wins are over the worst team in the league, the Cavs, the New York Knicks who are awful, the Lakers without

LeBron, and the Grizzlies who have a win won this month. For the record, fans are much more in tune to this act than the media who's fawning over it. The fans don't think

it's that fascinating. James Hardin is seventh in the West in All-Star voting. Seventh. It's ISO ball. It never lasts. And even if Clay Thompson, who scored all 44 of his points and who actually likes to play defense and be a good teammate, all 44 of Clay Thompson's points came from an assist from a teammate. None of Hardin's 211 have. And I know. know Chris Paul and Clint Capella injuries are part of the usage rate. But even if Steph and Draymond were out for the Warriors, you know a large percentage of Clay Thompson's points would have come via a warrior assist to him. It's not sustainable.

It creates resentment. And when Chris Paul comes back, Hardin is going to have to dramatically shift his game. And it will mean the end of this team. probably in the first round. I don't buy this for a second. I don't have to cover the NBA and make stories that really don't create sustainability. I don't have to make him into 12-page articles. I don't buy this for a second.

Let me shift to this. You ever heard of Tony Robbins? He's that motivational speaker. That guy's been kicking butt since I was a kid, like 40 years. And a lot of people are cynical. cynical with Tony Robbins. Oh, come on. Ra, rah, rah.

Folks, you do not last 40 years. He's more powerful today than he's ever been. It's all about with Tony Robbins, the buy-in. He stands on a stage. 6,000 people. I'm going to change your life. And for some, he does. Also deals with CEOs,

rock stars, the greatest athletes in the world. Tony Robbins is all about buying. And a lot of people are cynical of buy-in. Tom Brady is the sports version of Tony Robbins. He is the best player on an 18-year dynasty. And he has convinced everybody, everybody in New England that nobody likes us, nobody believes in us. Nobody thinks we can win, which sounds absurd on its face. and Tony Robbins yelling, screaming on stage, changing your life, similarly sounds ridiculous.

But when the star can sell it, buy-in is an incredibly powerful tool. Do you see that game, Kansas City, there's now footage of Edelman screaming at Brady. he has got everybody on this team believing nobody believes in us. Here it is. Nice ball. Nice, baby. Thanks, baby. Tom.

Hey, good show. Thanks, baby. Good job, man. Good job, fellas. You're too old. You're too old. Tom's got everybody buying in. Like Tony Robbins has.

for 40 years and you can be cynical, but it's powerful. Think about this. When you become a legend, you're not only battling rivals. You're kind of battling yourself. You got the money. You got the trophies. You got the supermodal life. You have the legacy. And it's really hard. Your opponents aren't hard. Beating you. The psychology of it's hard. Let's think about this. Tiger Woods became a legend. He couldn't handle it. He went off the rails. Women, money, gambling. Tiger Woods couldn't handle it.

Michael Jordan had to retire. Not to go to the NFL, to play minor league baseball. Michael's like, it's too much. I got to retire. Connor McGregor, complete meltdown. Lance Armstrong tried to ruin everybody's life in cycling. Forget a psychopath. He was a cyclopath.

LeBron James tends to move his family. family and just exit. That's how he coves. Tom Brady, stays put, reinvents, nobody believes in us. That's as impressive as it gets. Kevin Durant has won back-to-back titles with the Warriors. I'm reading a story this morning. He's already restless. Kevin Durant's not struggling with opponents now. They'll win the third straight championship. Kevin Durant's struggling with Kevin Durant. That's why he's on Twitter and Instagram and burner accounts. He's struggling with Kevin Durant. This happens in and out of sports.

Elvis was the biggest star in America. He became fat Elvis, drugs Elvis. Michael Jackson got weird. Bill Clinton, most powerful political figure in the world, Monica. Mike Tyson, personal demons. Similarly, Whitney Houston.

It's hard because once, once you become an iconic American sports, entertainment political icon. You're not just battling others. Kevin Durant, beating teams isn't hard. Staying discipline, staying present, staying in the moment. Convincing yourself is really, really difficult.

Tiger couldn't handle it. MJ needed a break. Clinton couldn't handle it. Elvis couldn't handle it. Lance Armstrong couldn't handle it. They had everything. The money, the trophy. the fawning, the legacy, the women, the wives, the girlfriend.

They had all of it. And here's Tom Brady. 41, 9th Super Bowl, $800 million net worth, supermodel wife. And he's going nowhere, and he has convinced himself. He is so strong emotionally. He has convinced himself, nobody believes in me, nobody believes in us and buy-in is an incredibly powerful thing you can be cynical at tony robbins and you can be cynical of brady but in both instances it works coming up next

one of the biggest stars in american sports he's fantastic and nobody apparently wants him That's coming up. athletes themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slices Life 12 and

the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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. iHeartRadio app search learn the hard way and listen now what's up guys this is clivert taylor

the fourth and on my podcast the clivert show i'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff like being an internet famous referee we're in the middle of a game this linebacker this linebacker walks up to me he goes hey ref my mom wants you to wave at her what time out quarterback on office blue 42 hey rep my mama want you to wave at her what Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas.

And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast, Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows without Luca and Austin Reeves. I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs.

I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nasree. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too.

Steve Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get the flying. He running up the court, licking his fingers, why he got the ball like, after you go through a training camp with that I said, you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball.

So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Pelotons, a game-changing indoor cycling bike, brings the energy of live studio classes to your home. Up to 14 live ride today. Learn more about the Peloton bike. Onepellon.com. Visit the local showroom, their local showroom.

It's so funny. One of the criticisms of my show is Colin, you just talk about Brady during the football season way too much. Well, I mean, does Fox News feel guilty about talking about Trump? Does MSNBC? If you don't talk about Tom Brady every day in your show during the football season, you're a dope. He's going to his ninth Super Bowl. He's the greatest player in the history of the league. You don't think I should talk about LeBron and the Golden State War?

Should I break down tennis? That's what they're doing at the other network today. You can knock yourself out with tennis talk. So there's an old saying. Athletes want to be rock stars and rock stars want to be athletes. Actors want to be athletes. Athletes want to be, you know, Jamie Fox. They want to be, you know, actors.

And I think a lot of times with NFL players, NFL is easily the most popular sport in the world. They look at all the money, you know, the hip-hop star can make or the actor can make or the NBA star can make. and they say our league is way, way more popular. NFL guys look at NBA guys and go, what? I mean, the Pro Bowl is more popular than NBA playoff games. And we don't even like the Pro Bowl. How do we not get paid? Well, you shouldn't.

And here's another reason why. Antonio Brown may be the best most athletic player in the National Football League. He's on the market. Anybody want him? It's a passing league now. as Joey and I have talked about the last six months, it's become a passing league. Nobody's interested, according to a report this morning. Steelers haven't gotten much interest in Antonio Brown.

You ever watched Antonio Brown play? I mean, if he was an NBA player, you can make an argument. He's James Harden. He's unstoppable. Nobody's interested. For a lot of reasons, this is predictable. The current dynasty in a copycat league, New England, proves, even Tom Brady should take a pay cut.

The system's bigger than the players. I mean, Aaron Rogers, if Green Bay two years ago, not Kansas City, had said, let's draft Patrick Mahomes, how valuable this morning would Aaron Rogers, 35 years old and brittle be? Not very. NFL is mostly a coaching sport. The final four coaches this year, Andy Reid, Sean Payton, Sean McVeigh, Bill, check probably the four best coaches in football. The NBA is more about collecting two or three stars. You don't need depth. Golden State has no bench. They've never had a team with less of a bench. It will not matter. Half of the NBA possessions, if you think about it, aren't even plays.

Half the time the team comes down, score the ball. In the NFL, it's choreography. Every offensive play has to be designed and run perfectly. Move your left hand is a wrong. right guard, it's an off-sides penalty. Listen, in the NBA, David Blatt had been to a finals. They were a number one seat in the east. Star wanted him out. He's gone.

Antonio Brown, with a coach many people think it's sort of kind of a little bit underachieving. Mike Tomlin says, get him out of here. One of the reasons I think the NFL is so popular in America is that

you don't become beholden and captive to the whims, needs, and sometimes egos of a 27-year-old kid. I remember when I was 27 years old, I was just not ready to make $100 million and be a star. And when I look around at Antonio Brown, the Cowboys dumped Des, went back to the playoffs. New England got rid of Randy Moss, been to four Super Bowls, one half of them. Seattle moved off Richard Sherman, had a surprisingly good year. In the NFL, man, you got to beware and be very careful about what you think you're worth. Antonio Brown feels like James Harden, kind of an unstoppable force. You literally have to put two people on him.

Jacksonville tried that a couple years ago in a playoff game. It still didn't matter. on the market, passing league, receiver league, not many people are interested. NFL players, you're not worth as much as NBA players. You're not worth as much as Robert Downey Jr. who's doing Iron Man. You're not worth as much as that star, Drake, who single-handedly goes on stage and we can't take our eyes off him.

Football's about coaching, choreography, and system. And if you think you're really, really valuable, no trade offers for an absolutely transcendent, remarkably gifted player Antonio Brown. Joy Taylor with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news.

So ESPN, Seth Wickersham, dropped a lengthy feature on the state of the Browns franchise this morning. report details the heated meeting in which owner Jimmy Haslam and GM John Dorsey told Hugh Jackson that he was fired. It did not go over well according to Wickersham. Jimmy Haslam and John Dorsey entered Jackson's office and told him the team was going to move in a different direction. Jackson asked why he was being fired and the team quit on you was what Dorsey replied. Get the bleep out of my office. That's not great. Hugh Jackson allegedly said in the meeting. Hugh Jackson went three and 36 as Cleveland's head coach before being fired on October 29th.

And then they went on to close the season, five and three. Baker Mayfield broke rookie record for 27 touchdowns in the season and is being considered for offensive rookie of the year. And now Freddie Kitchens is the new head coach of the Browns. This is not the best report you want to have come out after you leave a place. No, I mean, the knock on Hugh has always been, Jason Whitlock calls him hubris, Jackson, is that there's a little. little ego with Hugh. I always thought, I think I told you this, Joy. I think Hugh would be a huge college football success. I think he could, good looking guy, big personality, would go on the road, walk into the living room. He'd be a great recruiter. And I think he really does no offense. There's

no question. Hugh knows offense. He's helped a lot of quarterbacks. But this thing here was, I think you had between Haley and Hugh Jackson, you had kind of combustible personalities with a chaotic franchise, and it was just never meant to be. And then you brought in Baker, who this, they had to make that puppy work. And that was one of those instances where the rookie quarterback had a little bit more leverage than the coach who had gone 0 and 16 and 1 and 32. Yeah. I mean, I think certain personalities are just better catered for college football. Like Nick Saban, I think, is a good example of that. Authoritarian. All-time great college football coach. But just didn't work in the NFL because certain people just, you're dealing with a different, you're dealing with men and you're dealing with kids.

kids in college football. And that's no disrespect to college football players who I'm sure feel like they are men. But you don't have mortgages. You don't have families. You're not making millions of dollars. Kids are more willing to take your word for it. Well, it's also just an entirely different environment in college. Like, it's more about the coach in college.

And it's about the brands and the players in the NFL. And then sometimes that balance is just too tough to reach. So after hitting the free agent market this March, Cowboys receiver, Colby's Lee, suggested the team front office dictates where passes are, not after, ahead of, I'm sorry, dictates where passes are thrown. And yesterday, Stephen Jones brushed aside that notion during an appearance on the Rich Eisen's show. I would hope that's just his frustration, but certainly not at all the case. I mean, we don't get involved in that.

You know, the only thing we ever do is decide to tell you if we're going to pay players a lot of money or we're going to trade for players and give up big picks so that we would never dictate to where balls, go or things of that nature in terms of the game plan and getting involved with what our coaching staff does to get ready to play ballgame. And certainly of all people, Cole is always involved in getting balls and getting catches. I mean, most of this is probably because his targets dipped from 6.14 per game to 4.45 per game after the acquisition of Amari Cooper, which elevated the entire team. And Cole Beasley is a valuable piece.

I think slot receivers really matter. But once Amari showed up, it's like, let's get Amari into this offense big time. Which is, it's inevitable. Cole did tweet yesterday. Some are misunderstanding my point. Every team's game plan in pro sports is dictated by the front office. Big free agent additions, high draftics, etc. are going to get the most opportunities.

I'm not mad at that. I just want to help my team win. All good players want the rock. That's true. But if you come out and say that the front office dictates who gets the ball, you're basically implying that they are literally saying you have to throw the ball to Mar Coupes. That's what it sounded like he said to me yesterday. We used the first round draft pick.

Like, you can kind of backpedal off it now because it seems like he's putting them in a bad position. But really, I don't know that I don't believe it because it is Jerry Jones. And he does run every aspect of it. It's not so far-fetched to me to believe that an owner doesn't come down like, hey, you know, it seems like this guy are paying a lot of money isn't getting all the passes. Yeah, I don't buy it. But I think there have been situations where owners messes. Steinbrenner in baseball was telling people what to do.

It's not the first... It's not unheard of. No, there's NBA owners. I really think it's happening here, but it's not unheard of. And finally, you were just talking about Antonio Brown. The Steelers have apparently realized they might still need Antonio Brown, especially because trading a player of his caliber at $21.1 million.

A cap hit seems like a tough move. Marquis Pouncey said earlier this week that he thought the relationship between the team and Brown could be mended. And now, our owner, Art Rooney, said weeks ago that he couldn't envision around being with the Steelers by training camp, but he said yesterday, there are a lot of factors that we have to take account

on it. We'd have to sit down with Antonio and understand where he is and make sure he understands where we are. There's some work to do before we figure that out. I have said, I do think that it is still a possibility they all get in a room and sort it out. A slim possibility. Lavian Bell is the one player to me of their

two stars. That I, you know, I know there's this like narrative now that running backs, you don't need a big running back, but it should be noted that Todd Gurley and Zique have absolutely helped shape Dak and Jared Gough. So let's not make it that running backs don't matter. No, they do. By the way, Andrew Luck finally has a running back, Marlon Mack.

Andrew Luck had a great year. Look what Sonny Michelle has done for the Patriots. And by the way, I thought the Chiefs were better when Kareem Hunt was around. The Chiefs felt unstoppable with Kareem Hunt. Okay, so this idea that star running backs don't matter. I would pass on Antonio Brown if I was a GM. If I'm the Jets, Lavian Bell was an 80-catch 200-carry guy.

You can say whatever you want. There's not a lot of those guys in the face of the earth. How many Ziques are there? There aren't. There aren't. And that's why I said I really feel like the Steelers should pay Levy on. I know that there's this idea that, you know, paying a star running back is like they're just interchangeable. You can do running back by committee.

Like you really can't. And if you look, like you said, at the teams that are here at the end of the year, they have a strong running game. By the way, this whole running back by committee in New England. By the way, they had Corey Dillon, a star, a Curtis Martin, a New England guy. By the way, Sony Michelle's just not another running back. James White's the best pass-catching running back, maybe of my life. This idea that they used a bunch of, they had Mike Gillisley.

He was a running back by committee guy. Rex Burkhead, but they're not getting big carries. Bottom line is New England has often had really good what you consider like, you know, regular guy running backs. James White was a great college back. I think it was constant. He's a great pass catching running back. I just think we kind of, everyone kind of sold out on running backs a few years ago and that that mentality is still lingering. But when you look at it, having a star running back is literally the game changer because it allows you to have a dynamic offense. And later in the year when you're

playing in cold weather, you know you have someone you can hand the rock to and be, and they're reliable. By the way, C.J. Anderson has been hugely important for the Rams. And he's not considers it. It's crucial. He's the reason they won that game. There was Todd Gurley. Yeah. Joy with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The herd lie news. You know, there's an interesting piece of tape that came out yesterday. And I'd never seen Bill Belichick do this. And it's sort of a behind-the-scenes thing. And I think it's really interesting. So Belichick sat down. It's about seven minutes long.

I'll run about 40 seconds of it. And he went back. And he went back. he looked at the game against Kansas City, and he showed you why, he showed you how New England's defense took out Tyreek Hill and how Patrick Mahomes was sort of glommed onto his go-to-home run hitter, and New England took him away, therefore allowing a little extra time for his pass rush. Here's the video. Mahomes is looking over here, trying to, you know, trying to throw the ball at saying this general area somewhere you know and there's the double coverage on hill and that gives our Russian opportunity to get there another you know double coverage play here on

hill and a similar play to the one we just ran it coverage here is really good as you can see all these guys are nobody's really open here we've got this handle Devon's over the top on Hill so as Mahomes tries to extend the play and get out Trey Flower is able to make the play from the back side so I think that saved us a sure three points there Sure. Very interesting. Mahomes, a young quarterback, has a star home run hitter receiver, and he's looking for him. And what does Bill Belichick always do? Take away your biggest home run weapon. And so Mahomes, as he's looking for Hill, looking for Hill, and they take Hill out. Mahomes,

1001, and they take him out of field goal range. And this is something often young quarterbacks do. they kind of glom on. As they learn the pocket, they kind of glom onto a player or two that makes him more. But this is what he always does. I feel like if you're a Rams fan, show up in Atlanta with a shirt that says, ignore your number one receiver. Okay, but this is where the Rams present a very interesting dilemma. They're very New England-like. The Rams had six guys with 50 or more targets. They don't have a guy. They did have Todd Gurley. Oh, now they have two, C.J. Anderson. They've got two tight ends they throw two. Gough doesn't have a favorite wide receiver.

He did in Cooper Cup and he got hurt. The Rams are very New England-like. They don't have a guy you can take away. They had six guys with 50 or more targets and their go-to guy, girly, you go into the Super Bowl thinking, are they going to use him? They haven't used him. He didn't play the last three weeks. He wasn't great against Alice.

He didn't do anything against New Orleans. He evaporate. And by the way, they did. Early in the season, they were very much about Gurley in a receiver named Cooper Cup. Cooper Cup got hurt. They brought in a kid named Josh Reynolds, who wasn't getting snaps in September. He had two huge, huge plays against the Saints. So between Robert Woods, Brandon Cooks, Todd Gurley, Josh Reynolds, Gerald Everett, Big Bee, they don't, they have a great old line and they do, they present, you know, Plax's,

Francisco Burris faced Bill Belichick many times, and he said, here's what Belichick does. What you do well, he takes it away from him. And you're basically just playing left-handed. You just have to go in and beat them because they're not going to turn the football over. They take away everything that you do well and just make you react on the fly. What do the Rams depend on? I would argue it's kind of game to game. I'll be honest with you.

In New Orleans, Brandon Cookson, Gough made the play of the game. The second biggest play was Gough to Bigby, the tight end. So I think you think to yourself, when you thought of the Chargers, take away Keenan Allen. Okay, take away Keenan Allen, against Kansas City.

All right, keep our eye on Kelsey, take away Tyreek Hill, young quarterback. I don't really know what, you know what the Rams do? they throw to the open guy. And that's kind of Sean McVeigh. We throw, and I would say over the course of the season, early in September, you could make an argument, Gurley and Cooper Cup. On third downs, those were their guys.

I don't know what they are now with Gurley, and Cooper Cup's not there. So I think they're a harder team to look at and go, yeah, take this away. Rams are very New England-like. I mean, I would look at New England and say, take away James White. Like if I was facing New England, I'd be, here's what we're doing. I'm putting my best corner on Edelman, and we are taking away James White. I don't know how many options New England has because they have become very dependent. James White's now getting a dozen catches a game.

And Edelman is clearly Brady's go-to guy. Coming up next, I mean, this nonsense with the Houston Rockets, Eddie House is going to defend this 211 points by Hardin not a single assist from a teammate. Yich. Eddie's going to defend it. Greg CoSell, top of the hour,

don't want to miss that. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Cold and flu season. Trivix Sinex nasal spray works out to 12 hours. Use as directed. Don't just go out there and stick that thing up your nose for days. You got to use as directed. They'll clear it out, but, you know, don't get crazy.

It's when congestion strikes. Have you ever used VIX? I have. My grandfather used to chase us around the house with Vicks whenever we had a sniffle. When I was a little baby, I ate a tub of it. You ate a tub of VIX. Yeah, well, I had problems as a child.

I was made poor decisions. I would classify that as a poor decision. And I ate a bunch of Vicks vapor rub. Well, I bet you weren't sick. Yeah, I mean, listen, I was 38. It was a poor decision. I was very immature. Speaking of, I am so upset with Eddie House.

So first of all, he went to Arizona State. He's one of the two best players ever from Arizona State. The other is James Harden. And he's also a shooter like James Harden. So Arizona State, Sun Devils, and shooters always stick together. So he's going to come on right now, Eddie House, and tell us that James Harden, ISO ball, 61 points, doesn't pass to anybody. It's great basketball.

11 years in the NBA. I'm watching this thing last night. Forks up. So 211 points. Not a single, not even one basket from a teammate. Clay Thompson had 44 the other night. Every point from a basket. Now, I'm not saying the Clay Thompson model is always going to work.

But the eight highest usage rates in NBA history have never won a playoff series. Congrats on beating the Knicks, the Grizzlies, and the Cavs, and the Lakers without LeBron. I don't buy this James Hardin Act. I think it creates resentment over time from teammates. I wouldn't say that. And as far as not getting assisted, who's going to assist to him? Eric Gordon's pretty good, didn't he? Had zero assists.

Well, it's hard to. No, he has the ball. Is he scoring? Is Eric Gordon scored? He's scoring, so he has the ball in his hands. He's not making any assists. He has zero assists last night. Austin Rivers had four assists.

Is he supposed to assist? So you want to take the ball out of the best play? players hands, put in somebody else's hands and say, hey, pass it to him so he could get his shot. I think there's a way to play in the NBA, and I don't think selfish players. I think Michael Jordan initially in the league was a selfish player, gifted. Couldn't get along with Quentin Daly. Couldn't get along with Orlando Woolridge. And Phil Jackson came in and said, so you want to score 60 a game or you want to win?

And he learned how to pass. And Michael Jordan then was still lethal. But many of the great shots were Paxson, Kerr. James, Michael learned how to pass. I think James is going back to what he was early James, which is, I'm just going to do my thing. And he is, by the way, psychologically, he is so good at it, you start believing is I can score 45 a night.

I mean, I understand how you kind of fall into a, hey, I'm pretty good at this. Yeah, well, look, he's on his run right now. And why this run is going on? I mean, we should enjoy it because it's something we haven't seen, right? and understand that it's extremely hard to do what he's doing, especially night in and night out. You don't think that the opposing team, I haven't seen this yet, though.

The only thing the opposing team is trying to stop him from getting 30 or 40. Yeah, they are. He's still able to get it. I haven't seen them double him yet. I think they should be doubling him off rip to get the ball out of his hands to try to slow him down and disrupt his rhythm a little bit, if they want to try to do that. But how he's playing right now is Lightsout,

so it's nothing that you can really do with him defensively. I'm intrigued about tomorrow's matchup, Kauai Leonard and James Harden. I think that's going to be... That's if Kauai Leonard plays. He's going to play. He'll play. He'll play.

He'll play. But that's the reason why he missed the last four games. He was resting for James. Oh, boy. Yeah, so he could be ready for him. I'm going to throw another story out to you. LeBron James 15th year. He's played so many playoff games.

It's almost like two to three more extra years. And he's a human being. We saw Larry Bird. I mean, literally his feet gave out on him. Kobe Bryant last couple years got hurt. Michael Jordan at the end was not a vertical player. He was a really good score, but he wasn't a vertical player. Magic last five years I don't think could guard me or the microphone.

Okay, players get older. So LeBron has an injury. He's been out over a month. He's missed now 14, 15 games. He's not going to play against Minnesota. Chances are he's going to miss 17 games, 35. Can we acknowledge it doesn't do LeBron any good as a 15-year veteran with all these miles in the tires? it doesn't he wants to make sure people think this is no big deal because with lebron lonso ball

being injury riddled brandon ingram's not as good as we thought if lebron is now getting old and this is a real injury how attractive are the lakers to go to loneso can't stay healthy lebron now suffers a real injury i think they're downplaying the injury i don't think they downplaying the injury the injury is a tough sensitive injury to have that area so your hamströmstress your groin, your adductor, and your hip flexors. Very sensitive. In your normal everyday walk-of-life, you can feel better. You're like, oh, I'm good.

But your basketball movements are totally different from your walk-of-life movement. So you might make a defensive slide and be like, oh, and re-aggravated. So what they're doing is just make sure he's 100% because he can't come back early, right, because people want to see him back and get hurt again. And now he doubled his time. They stand no chance. There's no chance of Lakers. The season's done that.

God forbid he gets hurt. there's no way that they're going to make the playoffs without LeBron James. So be 100%. When you get 100%, make sure you all the way right. You got 28 games left. He'll miss tonight. You have 27 games. Five of them with opponents that are in front of you right now in the standings.

You have a chance to make a really good run. And it's out there for him to if they do it and move from 9th to 3rd, where they were before they moved to 9th, you could start mentioning him and possibly being an MVP candidate. But if he missed his 8. I know he missed them games, but the way that he was able to bring his team because he is the most important. He is the most valuable player to his team and to the league. Look at what they did.

They're able to do that. We were talking, Eddie, about this yesterday is it's pretty obvious. Anthony Davis is in their sights. Anthony is a great player on a bad team in kind of a M&MBA NBA market. Anthony Davis has come out and said, it's not about money. It's about legacy. So Anthony's got his mind right. He wants to be a legend, not just rich, right?

So there's a, you know, it's like the elephant in the room. Anthony Davis, LeBron. But it is interesting. We know that Boston now, here's the problem for the Lakers. I think it's fair to say, Lonzo Ball is, what's the term? Injury. He's injury prone. I've watched him now for two years.

He's now an injury prone player. You cannot tell me Lonzo Ball. So now one of their big trade assets is injury prone. Brandon Ingram, and I don't think what I'm about to say is unfair, is a guy. No, it's not unfair. He's a guy. Now, you're not a bad guy. He's a guy.

I just don't think that he fits in the Lakers system. He's a guy that he's a ball stopper, similar to like a Carmelo. Good call. You pass it to him. He wants to ISO. He's not a guy that's going to get the ball, make pick and rolls happen, create situations, and try to make plays. He's going to catch the ball, stop everything, everybody's going to stand.

That doesn't work with LeBron. LeBron's not a guy that's just going to stand around. That's a good point. You need movement. So I think in a better system, Ingram will have a better opportunity to showcase his skills. But do you agree with the fact that Ball and Ingram came into this year? LeBron's belief was, and LeBron, by the way, he didn't even give his best friend, Dwayne, a heads up. When LeBron thinks you're old or thinks you don't help him, he's moving on.

That's okay. I'm not blaming him for it. Brian Winhorse said that much yesterday on a podcast. LeBron came to this organization thinking LeBron, Lonzo would grow into this, and Brandon would grow into this, and I don't think either of them are the assets that we thought they were an hour before LeBron became a Laker.

So what do they have to give New Orleans? They want Cozum, but you can't trade Cozma. Yeah, you can't get rid of Cozum. Because he's going to be your third best player if you got to co-ire Anthony. This whole thing to me is the longer LeBron's out, you kind of see what the rest of these guys are, which is Kyle Kuzma and a bunch of transactions. Yeah, that is what it.

There's no leadership. That's the other thing. When Lonzo was, see, Lonzo could have stepped into that role. He got Andrew, but he's sometime. He's not every single night, that guy.

Some nights you'll get flashes of him, some nights you won't. You'd be like, where is he at? And I think that's where he has to mature if he wants to become that leader, or maybe he's just not going to be that guy. But getting Rondo back is going to help all of those players, though,

the general on the floor to basically calm things down, make sure he gets guys in the right position so they could be effective when they get the basketball and it can help the team try to get some Ws. By the way, LeBron's got a groin abductor hip flexor injury. You said it's really bad. Now, you didn't like defense. Did you ever get hurt?

What you mean I didn't like defense? I'm an all-time leading steals at Arizona State. Yeah. What do you mean? All-time leader in steals. Yeah, at my school, yes. You can be a shooter and play defense. You're right. Hardin didn't play any D there, so you,

Hardin just got bucking. I mean, Hardin is just getting bucked. This is crazy. I mean, this is crazy what he's doing. But think about this. We know he has no CP. He has no Clint Capella. He has to do this.

He scored 58 points and they still lost. So he has to do what he's doing right now for them to even have a shot. Eddie House. Greg Kossel next. Good seeing you, bud. Nice seeing you too, man. The herd. One more herd?

The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week, within the IHart Radio app. Search herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Ah, here we go, hour two. This is The Heard, wherever you may be, and however you may be listening. We're live in Los Angeles. IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1, a couple of minutes. Greg Kosell joins us.

Joy Taylor is joining me. You know, I saw something, you and I had Jay Glazer on before. Yes. And, you know, people, Jay knows his stuff. And when Jay says something, you know, a lot of guys out there talking NFL, Well, they don't know what they're talking about. Well, Jay Glazer says something. He doesn't talk a lot.

It generally has got a beat on it. So he writes for the athletic now, which is a subscription-based service for sports writers and stuff. And Glazer was on there, and he had like a mailbag segment. And he said, he goes, I have nothing to base this on besides a gut feeling. I can see it happening this year. I can see it being Brady steps away before Drew Breeze. This is one of the ones I strongly disagree. And I'll tell you why.

If you were thinking about retirement. Now, I know a lot of you are watching me. You're 18, you're 28, you're 38, you're 48, you're 48, you're not talking about retirement. But if you're 55, 65 years old and watching me and you're thinking about retirement, generally, the thing that gets you out the door faster is the job's harder. If the job's easier, you'll stick around for a couple years. I mean, at this job, I'll do this job for a long time as long as they'll keep me. But if it gets to a point where we're cutting back on staffing and there's more demands,

that's when you're like, yeah, I've done my stuff. I'm going to go hang out at the beach. Just think about this between Brady and Breeze. Tom Brady's in a division with Sam Darnal, Josh Allen, and Ryan Tannahill. That's an easier division to win games than facing Cam Newton twice, Matt Ryan twice. And by the way, James Winston with Bruce Ariens, that's going to be the best James Winston. I don't know how good it's going to be, but it's going to be the best James Winston.

Advantage Brady. It's easier. How about this? Brady and New England have 12 draft picks. They could return all five offensive linemen, guaranteed four. They're fairly young. He gets great protection. The team is getting younger.

Gronks retiring, they'll have cap space or Drew Brees. They have no cap space. They don't have a first, a third, or a fourth round pick. They gave them all up. They were all in this year. Good luck in proving. Here's another thing. Breeze looked very tired at the end of the year.

Last six games, seven touchdowns, five picks. Tom Brady's best game of the year, I thought it was against the Chargers. And he was damn good against Kansas City late. The thing about this, the Saints the last two years, their season has ended on a wildly emotional loss. The controversy against the Rams, that inexplicable loss to the Vikings, it is hard to overcome bizarrely strange emotional loss. The last three years, there have been 12 teams that have made the conference championships,

AFC, NFC. Half did not make the playoffs the following year. Saints, no cap space, no first, third, fourth. Breeze looked tired at the end of the year. Emotional losses last two years. Tougher division. When you're talking about retirement, the easier your life is, you're talking about, you're is, the easier your job is, the younger the teammates.

I think Brady, I can see himself talking himself in saying, we got 12 new draft picks. This is, I'm around a bunch of young guys. As long as the offensive line set for Brady, he tends to be a happy camper. As long as he's not taking hits, he's a happy camper. I think Brady is sticking around longer than Breeze. I think the last two years for the Saints, those emotional losses, I don't know how many of those you can withstand. I do not know how many. The two toughest losses in the NFL, the last two years, both been to the Saints. Those are brutal beatdowns. That loss of the Vikings and that lost of the

Rams. And with that, one of our favorite guests, over 30 years at NFL films, as objective as anybody that joins me every week, Greg CoSell. Greg, how are you this morning? Colin, I'm doing great. How you doing? Well, I got to tell you, when I watched, I felt strongly that I like Kansas City this weekend, and I sat there with my jaw dropped watching the dominant and ball control of New England in the first half. And I sat to myself and I thought all year I kept saying, I don't like their weapons, they're not dynamic. And then I watch them against the Chargers and the Chiefs, and I'm like, am I wrong? Is Edelman, Sony Michelle, James White, maybe they're a little more dynamic than I give them credit for. Well, the last two games,

the two playoff wins, they essentially came out in the first half, Colin, running the ball. Sony Michelle had 16 carries in the first half alone versus the Chargers, and 19 carries in the first half alone versus the Chiefs. In fact, that first-long drive against the Chiefs, they had six first and ten runs, okay? And all six were totally different runs. They have evolved into a team that is so multiple and so diverse with their run game. They run out of 21 personnel with a fullback on the field. They run out of 11 personnel. It's really, I'm sure for offensive line coaches, it's such a fun run game to watch.

Yeah. You know, it's interesting because when you watch Kansas City, I mean, they basically took Tyreek Hill out of the game and Travis Kelsey did not have great influence. So that tells me New England did what they always do, which I didn't think was possible. against an Andy Reed team. Did you feel like New England simply won the coaching battle here? To some degree, yes, because here was the Patriots approach. It was actually the beauty was in its simplicity. What they did is they took their worst corner,

either Jones or Crosson, and put him on Hill with Devin McCordy with a dedicated double team over the top. So Hill was doubled on almost every play. They took a corner, the rookie Jackson, and put him on Kelsey. But the bottom line was everybody else, because McCordy was occupied as part of the dedicated double on Hill, everybody else was playing man-to-man coverage with no help at all. So in that framework, Hill was a non-factor and Kelsey was a non-factor. And by the way, for young quarterbacks, you know, I've seen this Carson Wentz and Zach Ertz,

sometimes young quarterbacks have a favorite target. And, I mean, if you take out Tyree Kill and Travis Kelsey from a Holmes, and he was so good with each, is it possible that he, you know, he pats the ball, he waits too long, they're not open, he became a, and therefore that extra step gave New England's pass rush just enough. They needed to get to him. And the thing is, playing defense the way they did, they pretty much had five to work in the pass rush, and they did that really effectively with stunts up front and caused some pressure. But the thing that when you watch that game, and when I watch it on tape,

there were a few plays in the second half that were really well designed by Andy. read to attack the coverage that he was getting. But there were very few of those plays. The big plays, the majority of them came with Mahomes making those second reaction improvisational plays, which he's outstanding at. We know that. But I still believe it's very hard to live off that. Now, I know people will say they scored 31 points, and they did.

But it was not a really consistent game for the Chief's offense in any way. Rams Saints, I think the Rams present a little bit of a dilemma for New England in this. That early in the year, they were very Todd Gurley dependent. Now, they're not. Cooper Cup has always been, it feels like, Goff's favorite target. He's no longer there. They had six different guys with over 50 targets. Josh Reynolds has ended up being a very nice player.

They've got two backs, two tight ends. Brandon Cooks, I don't think there's a guy that you can just take away, not a Travis Kelsey. Do they present a little bit of an issue that they spread the ball around a little? So you've got to kind of throw to the open guy. Well, they're a bit that's built on scheme more than people. Now, obviously, if you're going to play man to man against them, which my guess is the Patriots will, that's been their track record, then receivers do have to win one. one-on-one. We've seen cooks able to do that throughout the year. I think Robert Woods is a very

underrated receiver. I'm sure he's not underrated by the Patriots and by coaches around the league. I'm just talking from a media perspective. But the other point I'd like to make, and we'll talk about this more next week, it would not surprise me to see the Patriots maybe play a little more zone for this reason in that you want Goff to be able to have to read it out. I think in some ways it's a very schemed offense. He's somewhat programmed, and that's not a bad thing. People take that word to be, you know, a bad thing. It's really well-defined for him because they do such a good job in their design, and we'll get to that when we get to our play, and I'll show you that. But, you know, sometimes with a quarterback, you want him to have to read it out just a little

bit more, and zone presents that normally more so than man. I almost never pick against the Saints in a playoff game at home. I did pick the Rams. And one of the reasons I did is I kept going back to what you had said about Breeze. I thought you were ahead of the country on this is they were a lot less flash than you think of the Saints. They became a little dink and dunk. I think I think Breeze had almost a little arm fatigue late. I thought golf out played Breeze late. Now, I love Drew, but, you know, this is a team that doesn't have a first, a third, or a fourth, no cap space.

I thought at the end of the year, frankly, Greg, the Saints offense was not a big asset. I thought it was very pedestrian. I would agree. And we talked about this, and you know me, Colin, I'm just looking at the tape. You know, nothing I say is personal, and I thought over the last four or five weeks of the season, I thought that Breeze was not as sharp. I thought that he was uncharacteristically inaccurate at times. And when I say inaccurate, it's not scattershot, just his ball placement wasn't as precise, and that has been a major part of his game over the years. I thought he left some throws on the field at times by not turning it loose.

And the one thing they could not count on this year that they had, a year ago, they did not have a consistent week-to-week run game to help bail them out. It is interesting. As you break down, you know, Belichick's background is defense. He takes average defensive guys and elevates him. And McVeigh takes good offense. I mean, Robert Woods was always a nice player in Buffalo. He's been a really, really good player in L.A.

He takes offensive players like golf and elevates them. So it's kind of a generational battle. the old wizard, you know, the iconic Belichick defensive mind against McVeigh, who's known as a brilliant offensive mind, to me it feels like we'll get a real chess match, which I love that part of football. You watch that part of football. I think we've got a real matchup issue. I don't see a wild, high-scoring game.

I see chess, chess, chess match, chess match. Well, I'm fascinated to see Belichick's defense versus the Rams offense, because the Rams are very defined in what they do. Now, with two weeks, things are tweaked. There are some changes. There won't be anything dramatic. It's not as of Sean McVeigh will have a whole new offense in the Super Bowl, but teams do tweak and change if they have the extra week.

And that's why I mentioned. I'll be real curious how Belichick does this, because I think the Rams can do a good job versus man with how they line up in those what we call nasty splits or minus splits with the receivers close to the formation. Oftentimes it's difficult to play press man to that, and then corners have to play with more width and depth, and it's a little bit more difficult. So I'm anxious to see how Belichick handles that.

And as I said, I'm anxious to see if he perhaps might line up with a few more snaps of zone, just to sort of see how Jared Goff kind of reads it out. You know what? Listen, I said earlier that maybe the weapons are a little better for New England than I gave him credit for. C.J. Anderson got bounced by two teams. Now he's become a huge asset. Can I make the comment that the Rams offensive line, it may be one of the most underrated units in the NFL? Because C.J. Anderson running downhill in front of this line, Goff isn't getting hit much.

The Rams O line, when you look at film, is it better than the Chargers? Is it better than the Chiefs? Oh, I mean, yeah, I'm not comparing like that because I don't necessarily think that way, but I think it's very good. And they played with the same group pretty much in every game. Yep, yep. So it's a, you know, it's a coherent group. I mean, they work together extremely well. It's a good, good group. You know, one point, I just have to believe that Todd Gurley's going to play a lot in the Super Bowl.

You know, I'm sure he's hurt, and they didn't want to say so, and McVeigh did absolutely the right thing by taking the blame, so to speak, and not putting it on his player. But now we have two weeks to get ready, and I just have to believe Todd Gurley is going to, I can't sit here and tell you what the yard. is going to be, but that he'll be a meaningful part of the game. Finally, big play of the week. It was in the Saints Rams game. Go ahead.

Yeah, and, you know, just before we run it, this is what I was talking about with how good Sean McVeigh is with the little thing. So let's start the play. This was a 33-yard pass from Rennel, from Goff to Reynolds. And the way they did this was so beautifully done. It was against cover three. It ended up being a cover-three-beater. You see the Saints in Cover-3 right here.

Now, what they do is they take. Robert Woods from one side, and they do the jet action, which brings him to the other side. And it makes it a three-by-one set when he gets there. And here's the routes. Cooks is going to lift the corner vertically. Reynolds is going to run an out and up. The critical part of this as well is the play action in the backfield, because the key player becomes to Mario Davis.

DeMario Davis is a stacked linebacker who's going to have to run with Josh Reynolds because of the jet action by Woods. because what the jet action by Woods does is it widens the formation and forces Von Bell to play in the flat. Okay, he's now a flat defender. We know that Cooks is lifting Latimore. So Latimore is out of there. And remember, this is zone. So what you have is the out and up by Reynolds.

The only player who can now play him is to Mario Davis, and he's a hooked defender inside. He now has to run with a wide receiver. This is the beauty and the brilliance of Sean McVeigh, just by that jet. action by Woods, he changed the responsibilities in the defense for the Rams, excuse me, for the Saints, and he caused all kinds of problems in coverage and got a matchup in zone of a wide receiver on a linebacker. Yeah, that football is, I remember talking to Charlie Weiss about this. He said, what you're trying to do is get fast guys on slightly smaller or slower guys.

And that's it. You got a long, fast, wide receiver on a talented but slightly slower linebacker, and there you go. That's a home run play. has his eyes in the backfield initially because of run action. Greg, great talking to you. Thanks, Colin. Appreciate it. That was beautifully done. Don't go anywhere a crazy last 15 minutes of this hour

when a well-known patriot hater will have a comeuppets on in that chair. That's coming up. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays at noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeard Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened.

That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama,

The triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsSlice on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clifford Taylor the Fourth.

And on my podcast, The Clifford Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue of 42. Hey, rep, my mama want you to wave at her.

What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed.

And finding ways to win no matter what. He's the smartest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows. Without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the game. challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the

lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history too. Steve Nash would get that thing. That man, hell get to fly. He running up the court, licking his fingers why he got the ball. Like, you go through a training camp with that, I said?

you figure it out real quick. Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Big Ten College Hoops, action is coming your way tomorrow on FS1 as number five Michigan battles Indiana in a conference showdown. It all tips off tomorrow at 6 Eastern on FS1

and the Fox Sports app. Michigan's going to end up the national championship. Against Duke. By the way, Tennessee is pretty good too. You know, I've said, I do believe that of all the young quarterbacks, we do have one that's going to be the next Tom Brady. Now, he's not going to go to nine Super Bowls. But I do think Jared Goff shares a word that I think is very important, traits with Tom Brady. But there are three reasons that I think are really important factors that Brady and Goff share.

Number one, teammates love Brady. I mean, they love Brady. You've never heard. And even Randy Moss leaves still loves him. Nobody badmouse Brady. Opposite of Aaron Rogers. Nobody badmouse him. Guys that come, guys that go, guys that overachieve, guys that underachieve.

Teammates love him. The respect Jared Goff shares in that Rams locker room is very Brady-like. Andrew Whitworth is an unbelievable Hall of Fame level left. tackle. He said something after the game that he went into that game Sunday and for the first time in his career, it wasn't about him. It was about his teammate. Listen. I've realized that he's a special kid and you know what? I told my wife before this playoff started. It's the first year that I really didn't, it really wasn't about me. I really honestly felt like I was more nervous for this playoffs because I believe in Jared Gough and I believe that he deserves to win. And

I just want to be right about that. And that's what it means the most of me. And I can't be more I mean, that's a Pro Bowl guy saying it wasn't about me. It was about my quarterback. For professional athletes to say that, Rob Haventstein is another offensive lineman, came out and said, Jared came in the huddle. He said, listen, this is my huddle. This is the way it's going to be done.

This is the way we're going to roll. They really like him. They're really into him. That's very Brady-like. The second thing is Tom Brady came into this league and ran about as fast as I did. at the NFL combine and was kind of mocked for his body. I mean, they show this video all the time, the picture of Brady.

I don't think it's a coincidence that Brady's body and physique and athleticism have been mocked and yet he is now, 20 years later, the most body-obsessed player. He knows that video's out there. He's aware that you don't think he's an athlete, and no professional athlete is more body obsessed than Brady. I think a lot of it says combine stuff. Similarly, Goff came into this league. Look skinny. Couldn't take a snap. Got blown up by Richard Sherman on the sideline. Jared Goff heard what everybody said. He doesn't even look like a number one pick. He looks skinny and gocky. Similarly, Jared Goff kind of got laughed at for his body, for his awkwardness,

for he did it looked like he just couldn't it just didn't not much of a chest he was skinny he couldn't take a snap he looked lot i think goff hears that and will become very much like brady into career longevity take care of his body low alcohol eat right happens to be by the way in l.A. where everybody's a vegan the third thing that i think is big motivation is it it doesn't matter if it's joy, it's me, there's a childhood experience, whatever it is. Motivation kind of separates people. Some people have that chip on their shoulder, others don't. Brady, despite his night's Super Bowl, there are people that call him a system quarterback,

and that is because of one thing, Bill Belichick. When you have a genius coach, if Brett Farb was going to a night's Super Bowl, would we even acknowledge that he had a coach? Nobody ever says, you know, Chuck Knoll is the reason for, Jimmy Johnson is the reason for I don't know. Half the people out there are like, well, I mean, he's good, but he's got Belichick. Who does Goff have? The next Belichick, the genius, who over the course of time is going to take a lot of, he won't take the credit.

He'll be given a ton of credit for Goff's success, which will drive Jared. The three things I really see similarities is their teammates, love them, sacrifice for them. You don't hear that a lot with Aaron Rogers. You didn't hear that a lot with Jay Cutler. You don't hear that a lot with Big Ben. Their teammates love them, want to win for them. Second thing, body image issues, mock for it, uh-huh, I'll show you.

Third thing is, when you have an all-time genius head coach, they get a ton of the credit for your success, and let's be honest. You won't prove people wrong. I think we're looking at the next Brady. You're not getting a nine Super Bowls. But I think golf of all these young quarterbacks absolutely shares Brady traits. All-Star Games Saturday at 8, San Jose.

Discover card key matchup. Get your free credit scorecard today. Even if you're not a Discover customer, learn more. Discover.com slash credit scorecard. Limitations apply. Joey Taylor with the news. No, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. Matt LaFleur has a whole team of Packers, the coach right now, but his relationship with Aaron Rogers is obviously priority. And one of the floor's former quarterbacks thinks his old boss is perfect for that part of the job. RG3 played under LaFleur in Washington and said Matt knows how to navigate those waters. He knows how to identify and pull on what motivates you, which may be different from guy to guy. Most importantly, he knows how to win. And ultimately, that's something that Aaron and everybody in between can jump on board with. there's a lot of new quarterback coach combinations you were just talking about two of them a few seconds ago.

Yeah. I think it's safe to say this one has the most pressure on it. Yes. It's a very interesting situation. It really is. You know, Freddie Kitchens obviously were a little confused by that hire. Sure. You know, you can be optimistic.

Maybe it'll work out. You know, Baker's still very young. So if it doesn't work out, it's not the end of the world. You know, you can make changes. Cliff Kingsbury, obviously, another interesting situation, kind of the same as Baker Mayfield, though, like new head coach, no experience as a head coach, young quarterback. See how that goes. This one feels a little, I mean, even Sam Darnold. Like, Adam Gays probably has a little bit more pressure on him because he has been a head coach before, but it's still, you know, there still feels like it's not the end of the world that doesn't work out.

Let's be honest, Joy, if this Matt LaFleur thing two years in doesn't work. It's a disaster. Well, Aaron's 37. Right. It's a disaster. It's over. Like Aaron's legacy is reshaped. Because I don't see, I don't see Aaron playing to 41.

And you don't even see them making the playoffs next year. How can you? If you start looking at the NFC and rosters, Chicago's roster, it should be noted, is young. I mean, they're still on Trubisky's contract. They can bring in a free agent. They've shown an ability, Ryan Pace, the GM in Chicago, shown an ability to draft. Minnesota's got a good roster. They may not win the big game, but they're,

win a lot of games. I mean, I think they have the third best roster in our division after Minnesota and Chicago in their division. It's really interesting. So it was the non-call heard around the world. The lack of a flag on Nikkel Roby Coleman for pass interference has been discussed nonstop since it happened. And shockingly, the Rams have grown tired of the constant talk. Well, it used to it because you're going to hear it for probably for the rest of time, but at least certainly for the next two weeks. And Andrew Whitworth called into the Rich Eisen show yesterday to talk about it. The reality is like, where do you? you want, like I said, where is the last foul that you want to argue?

And whether it's like blatant or not, it's not a matter. It's whether it's a foul. So it's just one of those things that that's a slippery slope and it's an excuse, wherever you cut it. And the reality is they got the football after that snap. They played in overtime with the football. New England had the same situation and won the game. They didn't score. We did.

We can argue about it all day. But they had an opportunity to win the game and we want it. Yep. And I'll go back to saying this. it would be one thing it was the final play of the game. You know, like you mentioned, the tuck rule. There was a lot of football after the tuck rule.

Remember years ago when Sacramento played the Lakers and the officiating was horrible and people said the NBA's rig trying to help the Lakers, it was game six. Game seven, Sacramento was awful with a chance to win the series. There was a lot of football after that play. I mean, it's hard when it's not the walk-off. I understand it's kind of,

You know what I liken it to the J.R. Smith blunder, right? Like, everyone looked at that situation like J.R. Smith blew the game. Right. And, you know, it's the end of the world. But... But they still had time to play. They went into overtime. They were terrible in overtime.

And to me, I get it. It's demoralizing. It's crushing. It's frustrating. But you got to pull together and say, forget about what just happened. Don't even think about it. Don't talk about it.

Drop all of the energy from the, the entire situation, we have to focus and win the game. We'll discuss it later. Just, just, just, you have to be, what do we always say, emotionally disciplines? Yes. And I get it. It's awful. And the crowd is flipping out, but you have to rise above the situations because they're going to happen. Yes. And there's human error to it. That being said, it's,

it's one of the worst non-calls. Well, and the other thing is, and nobody wants to hear from the Rams in the spot. Like, I get it. You're trying to defend the fact that you're there and there was football to play afterwards. But, but it should be, we've said it on this show before. not about action as much as it's about reaction? I tell my kids all the time. You're going to have bad days. You're going to have bad actions. How do you react

to it? Don't double down on it. Don't make a bad moment, a bad week. The Saints did not react well to it. Could have closed it out. Didn't. Rams did? That's life. That's basically how life works. It's as much reaction as action. I don't know. I always say fair

is for funnel cakes and fried Oreos, but you know, what do I know? That's funny. Finally, Golden State has dominated the league and won back-to-back titles since Kevin Durant joined the team, but there are rumors circulating that he might become free agent leave the Warriors this off season. Yesterday, Tracy McGrady said he thinks KD leaving the Warriors would be great for the NBA. Although I love seeing these guys play on the national on the big stage every year, I just think we need some more parody. Kevin Durant has just completely changed everything when he went there and made it not fair for the league. I would love for Katie to spread the love around, spread it around.

So a team like New York Knicks can come back in the fold and be competitive in the Eastern Conference. How awesome would that be? Time out. So if you really, so you want Kevin Durant, who's worked his whole life to be a great basketball player, made a super smart decision. You want Kevin to give all that up, the best run organization in the NBA, to go to a dumpster fire in New York. I don't understand these players. Well, we really, we all really, really, like, we're never going to give up on the we want the New York Knicks to be competitive thing because it's so frustrating that a team like

the Knicks with the history of basketball in New York and the brand, the way that it is, that they are not contenders. If you love players, if you love players, and I have always supported NBA players in the mobility, because owners leave and GMs leave and coaches league, if you love players, if I was really, rooting for you, Joy. I wouldn't say, you know, Joy, I want you to work for the worst cable TV network in the world. No, I'd say, stay where you're happy, stay where you're winning, stay where you feel. I mean, I get, I get what he's trying to say. Like, it would be cool to have, right, it'd be good for the league. Not good for him. Yeah, it's not good for Kevin Durant.

Terrible for him. And I'm, I feel safe at saying he's not going to do that, but, I mean, who knows? Kevin. I, no one would have believed that LeBron would have been a Laker three years ago. so who knows. But I also don't like this whole idea because look at what's happening in the NFL. Like the point is to build a team that is good for a long time. If you're an organization

that's just trying to win one championship and be out of here, okay, go all in, you know, make it happen, then everyone's gone. But the Warriors have built a dynasty. That's the goal. They made it happen. And I know it's frustrating.

But that's the goal. I know it seems unfair. And Kevin Durant made it seem unfair. But they're, drafted Draymond Green, Steph Curry, and Clay Thompson. Other teams had opportunities to draft them. They weren't the number one overall pick. That's right.

They're doing exactly what the Patriots are and nobody likes it. It'd be like to say, no, Tom, it's good for the league if you go play for Tennessee. I mean, I get being frustrated at Kevin Doreen if you're that kind of person. I don't have any problem with it at all. But if you're really frustrated, be mad at your front office for not being better putting together. Thank you. Joey Taylor with the news. Well, that's the news.

And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lie News. Rob Parker went all in on the Chiefs, got roasted, and the Patriots laughed at Rob Parker, and he, little comeuppance for the robster on our couch, chairs coming up next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. It's cold and flu season. Try Vix Sinex nasal spray. Works up to 12 hours.

Vic Sinex nasal spray uses directed when congestion strikes. So Rob Parker, the FS1 instigator, came on the show late last week, and he said it was over. He guaranteed Kansas City was going to win, and the Patriots thought that was very funny. So after the Patriots won, they put Rob Parker on the New England Patriots Twitter page. Take a look.

This is about Independence Day for NFL America. The reign of terror will finally be over. He hasn't won a road AFC championship. championship game. They've lost their last three dating back to 2006. Let me throw this at you. What if they do win? I think I'm moving to Mexico.

And with that, Rob Parker joins us with his bag packed. Looks like a margarita. A little salt. Rob Parker. What do you have to say for yourself, Rob Parker? By the way, I'm going to

Mexico in about a month and a half, so hopefully I'll see you there. I love Mexico. Okay, me too. I can't. I might have to get a second job on building the wall if, you know, depending on what's going on down. Let's not go there. Okay, they proved you wrong. They did.

I mean, they won the game. One thing you've got to say, I've always said, pro sports is about, has a short menu. It's wins and losses. So I give it to them. They won the game. Yeah. But again, this is the narrative I've been talking about, Colleen, and you know I'm

right. Tom Brady is the load. He's one of the lucky. He's the luckiest of all time. Now, let's just relive that game a little bit. You know there was a couple of plays in there, the roughing the passer. You saw that. That was a bad call.

Terrible call. That hurt Kansas City. Well, whatever. How about the Edelman? That ball hit his thumb. Oh. That ball hit his thumb. Oh, cup rob.

And normally they originally called it that it did hit him. And usually you need evidence to overturn it. I didn't see, I didn't think, I thought it was obvious. It didn't hit him. I wasn't positive when I saw a couple of different angles. And then Tom Brady throws his third pick with a minute to go that would have iced the game for Kansas City. And you know what happens? Offside.

That's Kansas City's fault. No, I get it. And it opens up the door for Tom Brady. And then he goes and does his thing. I've always said he's a great quarterback. But he's also one of the luckiest guys I've ever seen. Things always seem to line up for him. He always faces teams that just.

melt down. And Kansas City, I finally found out that the C in KC stands for choke. Come on, Colin. What was that? They have this high-powered offense. They get shut out in the first half at home. And Andy Weed, who you love. I do.

You do. You think he's one of the best coaches in the NFL. Andy Weed is officially the Wacoat. Worst coach of all time. That's what he is. Can't win a big game. Come on, Colin. I want you to admit he can't win a big game.

Listen, I thought I did think that they were as a team outplayed. I thought the physicality of the Patriots' D.Bs on the receivers, doubling Tyreek Hill. I thought, I felt the same way with the Chargers. I thought, you know what, Patriot staff came in here and did a number on the Chargers. I did think the first half, now I did think Andy Reid at half adjusted. The Chargers never adjusted. I did think they adjusted, but I thought the opening hour and a half, I thought New England out-coached him.

I did. Right. And then the other part is they lead the league to Chiefs. They led the league in Sachs, Colin, all year. They can't get to a 41 quarterback who's not mobile. They can't get to them at all. And if you give a quarterback of Tom Brady's caliber, caliber, time and no pressure, he will pick you apart just like he did. 90 dropbacks in the last two games, he's been hit once.

Right. Once, been hit. You know what I'm saying? So I give the Patriots, they won the game, they were in the Super Bowl, but really, Kansas City, terrible at home. Isn't it amazing, though? New England's so well coached, and yet all these assistants that get jobs from the Belichick tree, none work.

Bill O'Brien kind of works. But this is the argument when people say that Bill Belichick is the greatest coach ever. So what is his philosophy that these other coaches aren't taking with them? And Bill has a way of doing stuff, right? These guys have rubbed up against Bill for years, but none of them have been able to do anything. I mean, there's nothing but failure after failure when you talk about it. The only guy who maybe rubbed off on him a lot was probably Josh McDaniels because he got busted for tape of the teams walk through in London by the league.

So that was the only guy other than that. So if Belichick is overrated and Brady's overrated, and Brady's overrated, then how are they doing this? Most of it is because of the AFC lease. Let's just be honest. They've won 14 of the last 15. In every other division, there have been at least three champions, three teams to win the division.

Other than the AFC lease, that's the only place. And they've dominated. And then once you do that and you win and you get the top seed, then you only have to play two home games to get to the Super Bowl. But if you were overrated, you'd lose those games sometimes. Remember, they did go 10 years between Super Bowls before everybody says that it's a 20-year dynasty. Do you remember? They didn't win between 2004 and 2014.

It was a 10-year window when they did not win a Super Bowl. So let's not say this is a 20-year dynasty. It's not. All right. By the way, I do think you're going to enjoy Mexico because it's a beautiful country with amazing people. They got great food. And you know what? Sports radio down there is, you know, it's a little soccer heavy, but it's still, it's a really, the weather is terrific.

The weather is terrific. I think you'll do great down there. That's probably why he's packing light. Yeah, well, I mean, Rob doesn't need much a microphone and a suit. He weighs 80 pounds now since his diet. That's how small his clothes are. Exactly. And my speed obey the suit.

That's all I pack. Okay. You're not a panic button guy. a little crazy but not a panic button guy LeBron's now missed 32 days, 15 games he's in his 15th year really is 18th if you count his playoff games Lonzo Balls hurt

Brandon Ingram's kind of normal average player not as good as we thought is it possible this is a little troubling for the Lakers in LeBron If I'm a Laker fan or a Lakers organization I'm hitting the panic button I'm panic because first of all You don't know where LeBron's coming back.

They keep, you know, like, well, he's coming back. He's going to be evaluated. The Lakers called it day to day initially. Right. It's 32 days. It's 32 days from day to day. And I get it. It's a groin injury.

But here's the other part. If you're one of those other stars out there and you finally see LeBron, an older player is hurt. And the chances you see these guys as they get older, everybody gets hurt in the NBA. Everybody. Think about this. LeBron, to even his best, friend D. Wade. Saw him get old? Moved. Moot. Right.

LeBron's a businessman. He saw the calves. Kevin Love. Little old. Out. The bottom line here is LeBron has been the greatest opportunist, not blaming him, I think it's smart in NBA history. The minute he thinks you're old, he can't utilize you right, and you can't help. He's out. Well, why would Anthony Davis want to join injury riddle Lonzo Ball? LeBron just had a major injury in his 15th year. LeBron may become a victim of the same thing that he's always done.

And I'm telling you, you've got to take a look at it if you're a big-time star saying, now if LeBron's not healthy, look how bad this team is without LeBron. I'm going to come join this and now I'm going to get the broken down LeBron. Is that the guy I want to join? And I always said, Colin, if they don't win the first two years, they're not winning. LeBron's not going to win in this third and fourth year. It had to be the first two years. No, listen, you and I do not agree on much.

This is one of those where I do agree. You're best served winning it in year two. You know, the first year, you find out who you got, you add a component. But I think what's happened in his departure is the rest of the league is watching the Lakers. And they're like, all right, who do they have? It's kind of Kyle Kuzma. That's kind of it. And the Lakers, if you trade Kyle Kuzma, then it's LeBron at 36, Anthony Davis, who doesn't shoot threes, who's your third best player?

That's the problem. And that's why I'm saying, I think if you're the Lakers, this is like the last thing that you would have hoped is that LeBron wouldn't be able to stay healthy. And who knows, I guess he'll be back soon, but will it be too late? And will it be too late? I think he's going to show up, but I think it's about another week and another three games. He has not had a full contact practice yet. Great seeing you. Always.

Good, enjoy the weather. Mexico. You didn't know I was bilingual, did you? I did not, and I'm just so happy that you are. Buymdrive.com. Buyamdrive.com. Code Herd, read, find your prime, be younger, stronger, stamina vitality. Buyemdrive.com.

One more, Herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week, within the IHeart radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Ah, here we go hour three. What a great hour. I think it'll be our best of the day. This is the herd wherever you may be and however you may be listening. We're live in Los Angeles. Iheart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, FS1. By the way, if you own a sports team, you've got to be informed to make smart decisions. No different when you're buying or selling a car. Truecar.com. Newer use doesn't matter. Check it out. Trueprice with TrueCard.com.

Joy Taylor is joining me for hour number three. We got a very, very interesting story developing. Greg Jennings is going to be here to talk about it. I'm so excited. I am taking a rare day off tomorrow. I'm going to go skiing with my wife. That's fun. My wife and I are going skiing.

So this is my last hour until Monday. I am totally committed, Joy, on making this hour fantastic. Well, that's great for everyone listening. Yes. opposed to the other hours where we just made with it. Yeah, sometimes I just not into it. But this hour is my last until Monday. I'm taking tomorrow off, going to hang out with my wife and go skiing.

And very excited for that. So 15 minutes, Greg Jennings on a story that's developing that he will be great on. In best for last, it's Thursday. And since I'm off tomorrow, Jason McIntyre is going to come for one of our favorite segments. Monday's headlines today. We're going to do that today. First, though, Bredi and Belichick, it's almost inconceivable, are in their 90s. Super Bowl.

And somehow they've convinced themselves that nobody believes in them. So let me start with this. It's all about with Tony Robbins, the buy-in. He stands on a stage. 6,000 people. I'm going to change your life. And for some he does. Also deals with CEOs, rock stars, the greatest athletes in the world.

Tony Robbins is all about buy-in. and a lot of people are cynical of buy-in. Tom Brady is the sports version of Tony Robbins. He is the best player on an 18-year dynasty, and he has convinced everybody, everybody in New England that nobody likes us, nobody believes in us, nobody thinks we can win, which sounds absurd on its face. And Tony Robbins, yelling,

screaming on stage, changing your life, similarly sounds ridiculous. But when the star can sell it, buy-in is an incredibly powerful tool. Do you see that game, Kansas City, there's now footage of Edelman screaming at Brady. He has got everybody on this team believing nobody believes in us. Here it is. Ball. Nice. Baby.

Thanks, baby. You're too old. Tom's got everybody buying in. Like Tony Robbins has for 40 years. And you can be cynical, but it's powerful. Think about this. When you become a legend, you're not only battling rivals. You're kind of battling yourself.

You got the money. You got the trophies. You got the supermodel wife. You have the legacy. And it's really hard. Your opponents aren't hard. Beating you, the psychology of it's hard. Let's think about this.

Tiger Woods became a legend. He couldn't handle it. He went off the rails. Women, money, gambling. Tiger Woods couldn't handle it. Michael Jordan had to retire. Not to go to the NFL, to play minor league baseball. Michael's like, it's too much.

I got to retire. Connor McGregor, complete meltdown. Lance Armstrong tried to ruin everybody's life in cycling. Forget a psychopath. He was a cyclopath. LeBron James tends to move his family and just exit. That's how he coves. Tom Brady, stays put, reinvents.

Nobody believes in us. That's as impressive as it gets. Durant is won back-to-back titles with the Warriors. I'm reading a story this morning. He's already restless. Kevin Durant's not struggling with opponents now. They'll win the third straight championship. Kevin Durant's struggling with Kevin Durant.

That's why he's on Twitter and Instagram and burner accounts. He's struggling with Kevin Durant. This happens in and out of sports. Elvis was the biggest star in America. He became fat Elvis, drugs Elvis. Michael Jackson got weird. Bill Clinton, most powerful political figure in the world, Monica. Mike Tyson, personal demons, similarly Whitney Houston.

It's hard because once, once you become an iconic American sports, entertainment political icon, you're not just battling others. Kevin Durant, beating teams isn't hard. Staying discipline, staying disciplined, staying, present, staying in the moment. Convincing yourself is really, really difficult. Tiger couldn't handle it. MJ needed a break.

Clinton couldn't handle it. Elvis couldn't handle it. Lance Armstrong couldn't handle it. They had everything. The money, the trophies, the fawning, the legacy, the women, the wives, the girlfriend. They had all of it. And here's Tom Brady. 41, 9th Super Bowl, $800 million net worth, Super Bowl.

model my wife. And he's going nowhere. And he has convinced himself. He is so strong emotionally. He is convinced himself. Nobody believes in me. Nobody believes in us. And buy-in is an incredibly powerful thing. You can be cynical at Tony Robbins and you can be cynical of Brady. But in both it works. By the way, a report earlier today that despite his greatness, and, you know, Brady's only had one superstar receiver ever, Randy Moss briefly. Antonio Brown, according to a report, is not getting a lot of interest on the trade market. Antonio Brown went to Twitter, three words today, open for business.

You know, New England again is not good for star receivers because they're favored in the Super Bowl without one. Jason Whitlock talked about that yesterday and speak for yourself. Look at New England. Their receivers aren't divas. The Los Angeles Rams don't have any divas. The ball goes where it needs to go for what's best for the team. You get these diva receivers and you overpay them.

They start complaining. One office starts, man, we paying this dude a lot of money. And the next thing you know, you're doing things that don't make sense in terms of wins and losses. It makes sense in terms of dollars and cents and shutting this person up. For the record, the key to this league, really, getting first downs. Whether it's at seven yards a chunk, 13 yards a chunk, or 38 yards a chunk, I'm for people who can get first downs. New England's not dynamic, but they got a lot of guys. Chris Hogan, James White, Sony, Sony, Michelle.

Gronk, Edelman, Dorset, good hands can catch, good routes. Big time receivers have a place in this league. But this is not the NBA where you have to have stars that you can't win. You know, the L.A. Rams got to a Super Bowl. Todd Gurley was on an exercise bike Sunday. And they went full in on stars. And their biggest star, Gurley, literally didn't play Sunday. and they won in New Orleans.

So watch out. Just be aware, Antonio Brown, Twitter today, open for business. Greg Jennings has some thoughts on that. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind.

Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where sports slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise. breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions,

the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway 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 rapid. 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, is we have real conversations about.

All 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. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game.

This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time of it. quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Wreck, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker.

Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano, and our podcast Point Game is about defying the odds. Like LeBron heading into the playoffs without Luca and Austin Reed. And finding ways to win no matter what.

He's the smart. hardest player to ever play the game. His IQ is at a level that we've never seen before. And he knows. Without Luca and Austin Reeves, I got to manipulate the game. We get a player's perspective on the challenges of the playoffs. I think Joker's going to be exhausted this series because when they don't have Rudy in the lineup, he has to really guard guys like Nas Reid. He has to guard Julius Randall. And then he has to give us everything he gives us on the night-to-night basis on offense. And when IT's friends stop by, like Quentin Richardson, we dive into some playoff history

too. Steve Nash will get that thing. That man, hell get to fly. He running up the court, licking his fingers why he got the ball. Like, after you go through a training camp with that Isaiah, you figure it out real quick. Oh, yeah.

Get your ass up and down the court, and you're going to get the ball. So listen to Point Game on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Don't be the guy in the room in the long, sloppy, look at Untuck shirt, go to Untucka.com. Code Her. GQ calls a perfection.

Put in that code, her, 20% off. Well, Antonio Brown's situation. I have not talked to Greg Jennings since the Patriots, Kansas City, and the Rams Saints. So a lot of things to talk to Greg about via the Coward Global Satellite Network. Deck it in the NFL, multiple time, pro bowler, Super Bowl, turn into a great broadcaster. First of all, you know, I look at the Antonio Brown situation. I just want to start with that. He's a remarkable talent.

But there's no takers, Greg. There's no takers. What do you make of that? Nobody's going to show their hand right away, Colin. Stop it. Let's pause. There will be takers. Obviously, teams, they have the draft that they're preparing for.

They're going through their processes. This is what transpires when you're out of the playoffs. And the two teams that are in, they're locked and loaded on what's in front of them next weekend. So a lot of teams making a lot of decisions internally, looking at the landscape of their team, where they can improve and how they can. can improve. Trust me, he's on the radar of a lot of these organizations, but they're not ready to pull the trigger just yet with the draft looming months ahead. All right. Now you're receivers are always defending receivers. Yeah, absolutely. You were one of the only, you're one of the only, you're about one of 10 receivers who's

low maintenance. You, Larry Fitzgerald, Andre Johnson, you know, I never worried about you. Antonio Brown scares me a little. It's not just, it's not just the 10. It's more that are low maintenance that are high maintenance. We just want to put light, limelight on the ones that are high maintenance. All right. Going into this weekend, Jared Goff was seen, you know, as the fourth quarterback. But he made a throw to Brandon Cooks, a couple of throws to tight ends. When you watch Jared Goff, I say this, I can see Brady similarities. California, the height, low key, work ethic. We mocked Brady's body initially. You know, we look at Goff as skinny, couldn't take a snap.

As a wide receiver, when you look at Jared Goff, what do you see that you would like playing with him? I see his accuracy and his balls, the ball that he throws, it's catchable, both short and long. And he remains accurate with the short ball, the tight throws, the tight window throws, and the deep ball. So he's very versatile, and he has a stronger arm than Tom Brady. So I like all those things and the tangibles that he presents. Can he become Tom Brady? That's to be seen. Can he stay with Sean McVeigh his entire career or a long duration of his career?

That is what will allow us to really draw parallels between these two. Yeah. You know, when I watched the game, obviously, there was a lot of, there was controversial calls in that game. There were also two overtimes. and I just from a player's perspective, one of the teams won the toss New England, scored and it was over.

The other team, the Saints, won the toss, couldn't score. The Rams won. The stats are that about 50 to 52% of the teams that win the toss, win the game. So what it's telling you is, winning the toss does not guarantee anything. My theory's always been, eliminate the randomness of the toss,

and then give the home team the choice or the road team. If you go on the road in the NFL and you're tied after three and a half hours, you've done your job. Okay, you get the choice in overtime. Then the same rules apply that apply now. What would you do if you ran overtime for the NFL? I like everything that you've listed here with the exception of after the 15 minutes are over, we continue to play until there's a winner. I like that concept.

I don't like how you would get to that concept. I think the away team, I like that. Give them the ball. They come to your home and your environment. They deserve an opportunity. But let's not forget, it's not just about the offense here. The defense has to do their job. This is how teams are made up.

Some teams are heavily weighing on their defense to win them ball games. And most in overtime, it's predicated on your offense. So you have to make plays on both sides of the ball. However, I would like to see what they do in soccer. You have a kickoff. Like, bill go units get ready, kickers get ready, pressure kicks. No one gets fatigued in this area after the 15 minutes. And whoever misses first, that team loses.

That's not crazy. You know, everybody thinks it's crazy. But what I want from my overtime is urgency. And what you're saying is if you play an overtime and it's tied, bring out the kickers. Let's get this puppy done. So that's Greg Jennings. Let's, I want to go, New England's favorite in the Super Bowl. New England should be favored in the Super Bowl.

But too often, I mean, you ran well. You were a big target, good hands that ran. That's why you're a pro bowler. Most guys aren't as big as you, as fast as you. But when I do watch New England's targets, and I was criticized them all year long, but I'm watching them take apart the Chargers' great secondary. I'm watching them make catches against Kansas City.

Is it possible that sometimes we overvalue the burner Tyreek Hill, who had one catch? And we undervalue Robert Woods. who runs a good route. We undervalue Julian Edelman or Chris Hogan. What did you make of New England's time of possession dominance with those weapons? Well, first and foremost, I think we value both. There's a place in our league for both.

We've seen it. We've seen what Tyreek Hill can do with his speed. And we've seen what guys like Julian Ellman can do and Chris Hogan can do with their speed, but not as much, but effective in between the hashes. the numbers. Having said that, I think what you have and how you use it is what separates the teams and what New England is able to do with what they have. They know what they're looking for. They know what to draw. They know what to pull into their system and they know what works. They don't try to make something that they don't do well or has not worked for them in the

past and pull it in and try to make it work. They will experiment, but you won't be the staple of their offense. And I think that's what makes them special. And so, So, yeah, I've heard so many people say, you know, you take Julian Ellum, and you look at West Walker and Danny Amandola once they leave. Systems make players and players make systems. That's why they're both. That's why you have both. And I think this is a perfect situation for a Julian element. I'm not saying he wouldn't be a great player outside of New England, but he is right where he needs to be and he's making the most of it.

What is your gut feeling on the Rams Patriots? When you hear the matchup and you see it, you know, you went to a Super Bowl, New England's been to nine, and the Rams, they got a baby coach, a baby quarterback. Take me to Super Bowl Week. Is it a huge disadvantage for the Rams in the experience department? It is not. It is not. I've said this years prior to this. It is not a huge disadvantage.

is sometimes the hunger that you have playing without having that experience, without ever having had that opportunity puts you over the top. We were playing the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2010-11 season, and everyone was talking about their experience in the lack we had, but we knew what we were. We knew what we had and we were hungry. However, we weren't playing the Patriots, who for some reason they find a way to dig deep and grab

and grasp whatever is out there. We've heard you, I hear you talk about it all day today. Julian Ellumann in the soundbite, you're too old. You're too old. They use whatever it takes to get to the core of them so that they can pull out their best when their best is needed. And that's what separates this team, and that's what makes this team scary.

And I just can't, it'll be hard for me to pick against them. We'll see who I'll give my picks next week. But, yeah, I like the Rams too. Yeah. I think it's fun. I think it's the old genius head coach and the new genius head coach. I think Goff is very, very similar to Brady. That teammates love him.

We kind of mock their body. They've got the genius coach. I think, I think, I'm not saying the Rams are going to be the Patriots, but McVeigh, Belichick, there's some parallels. Gough, Brady, there's some parallels. I can't wait for this thing. Greg Jennings, great talking to you about his olas. Always a pleasure.

All right, good stuff. Jason McIntyre's joining us before the end of the show. We call it Monday's headlines today. You know, his overtime's interesting. It's a little like soccer, like he said. I had never thought of that, and I actually love it. Well, he said during the commercial break, he goes, the problem, he goes, New England scores six minutes, and Kansas City scores six minutes,

and then you've played another quarter, and they're tied. That's exactly the opposite of what the league wants, because the two places players get hurt are kickoffs, and overtime. I mean, what's more exciting in sports than penalty kicks? Nothing to me. I mean, it's the ultimate pressure. It really, you can no longer undervalue kickers

because that's what they're really going to get paid for. You know what? It's really interesting. Think about this. A couple years ago, Joy, was it two or three? The NFL said, we're going to change the PAT. Now, just think about that. Yep.

The PAT had been done one way forever. And the NFL said, you know, it's kind of boring. we're going to change it. That's not a little change. That's a fundamental change to the game. No, because it's no longer a giving point. Hell no. And by the way, if your kicker misses the extra point, he goes into a tailspin, emotionally goes to the bench.

It used to be where a kicker got his confidence back. But now if you miss a PAT, the guy's in the tank for three weeks. The NFL changing the PAT. Now, where would you put the overtime kick at? I would make it five to eight-yard 10 yards further than a P.A.T. Only 10? Make it a 44-yard kick.

So you should be able to as a professional kicker, but it's no day at the beach. And then you go 44 to 49. I think probably getting the average of field goals for the league. All right. Right? Like make it something arbitrary like that. I really like that idea. It is football after all. It is.

Joy with the news. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. I'm upset. I didn't think about that. What? That seems like a joy idea. A joy idea?

Yeah, a joy idea that doing the overtime like that. Although I'd probably get called a ridiculous word. So I'm glad. And then people would go, how can you have kickers deciding Super Bowls? And I'd be like they start increasingly. They usually do, actually. Patriots eight Super Bowls. The average score has been three points.

Field goals have won Super Bowls for New England. England and lost them. Yeah. So ESPN, Seth Wickersham, dropped a lengthy feature on the state of the Cleveland Brown's organization this morning. And the report details a heated meeting in which owner Jimmy Haslam and John Dorsey, the GM told Hugh Jackson that he was fired and he did not go over well. According to Wickersham, Jimmy Haslam and John Dorsey entered Jackson's office and told him the team was going to move in a different direction. Jackson asked why he was being fired. The team quit on you is what Dorsey replied. And then Hugh Jackson said, get the bleep out of my office. allegedly, obviously, according to the report.

Not exactly the way you want to leave an organization, but it's pretty on brand for what that situation was because from all accounts, this was just an ego war between John Dorsey and Todd Haley and Hugh Jackson. I'm from the very beginning watching Hard Knocks. We got the feeling like there is a severe lack of structure within this organization. Haven't we always said, Joy, that the key,

Well, I've always said it, but I believe I was told this years ago, a decade ago by an executive. He said, the key in this league is do you have an A owner, an AGM, an A coach, and an A quarterback? He goes, if you do, like Philadelphia, even though Philadelphia had some problems this year, Jeffrey Lurie's in A, Howie Roseman's an A, Carson Wenton, Doug Peterson, I think you have to put him in the A group. Here's the thing with Cleave. Jimmy Haslam is not an A owner. John Dorsey got fired in Kansas City. we don't know if Baker's in a quarterback and Freddie Kitchens is hell no in a coach. This is still an organization

with a lot of bees and season it. So this idea that everybody like, ooh, they finished in third place, this league is a history. If you don't have four A's in the four key spots, you're going to be a roller coaster ride with streaks, good months, bad months, good halves, bad halves. I don't

blame Cleveland for being optimistic. I mean, Baker did in the end have a great year. I mean, a record set of year. For a rookie. For a rookie. For a rookie. That's what he is. He's a rookie.

So he did what he was supposed to do. But Patrick Mahomes had a great year. Baker had a... He's technically not a rookie. I mean, I feel like he's a rookie, but he's technically not a rookie. He'd be a rookie in the NBA. So I get them being optimistic. They have something to look forward to.

They're excited about it. I just think maybe just be a little... Do you think Cleveland's a playoff team next year? No, I do not. By the way, their schedule at New England, at Chicago, play the Colts, the Ravens, the Packers. This is going to get clipped and played on the loop in Cleveland. No, I'm not saying they're banned, but.

I'm not either. And again, we want Cleveland to be good. It doesn't help anyone if there's just this dudd franchise and that you get every week when someone plays them. It's like, not talking about that game. We want every game to be good. So we're just waiting to see. Finally, well, next.

According to ahead of hitting the free agent market this March, Cole Beasley, Cowboys Receivers, suggested the team's front office is dictating where passes are thrown. Yesterday, Stephen Jones brushed aside that notion during an appearance on the Rich Eisen Show. I would hope that's just his frustration, but certainly not at all the case. I mean, we don't get involved in that. You know, the only thing we ever do is decide to tell you if we're going to pay players a lot of money or we're going to trade for players and give up big picks that we would never dictate to where balls go

or things of that nature in terms of the game plan and getting involved. with what our coaching staff does to get ready to play ball game. And certainly, of all people, Cole's always involved in getting balls and getting catches. Yeah, by the way, it does not make the Cowboys out

to be completely dysfunctional. They've proven through the draft, they're pretty functional. That's something that would be for a crazy town team. I don't think they're crazy town. I don't. Well, it's not unheard of

that the front office would meddle in on the field situations or on the court situations in any sport. It's not some concept that's never been heard of before. Right. I think that this situation comes down to the fact that Beasley's targets dropped significantly once Amari Cooper showed up. Yes.

And guess what? Yes. Amari Cooper is the number one receiver. So they're going to drop. That's kind of how it works. You're a slot receiver. That's not a bad thing. That's actually the balance of how it's supposed to work.

So it's what we would have predicted would happen. Right. Now, what he kind of backed off of it on Twitter and said, you know, the front office always dictates, you know, on the field situations because they're the ones that drafts and do the trades. and like, okay, we all know that. So you're really implying is that they're saying they have to throw it to him. Finally, the Steelers have apparently realized they might still need Antonio Brown because also maybe trading a player at $21.1 million cap hit. Might be a little difficult.

Team Captain Marquis Pounce, he said earlier this week that he thought that the relationship between the team and Brown could be mended. And now, after Art Rooney the second, said weeks ago that he couldn't envision Brown being with the Steelers by training camp, he said yesterday, there are a lot of factors we have to take into account on it. We'd have to sit down with Antonio and understand where he is and make sure he understands where we are. There is some work to do before we figure that

out. Now, the Patriots at the beginning of the year were completely unpatriot-like. We thought there was a huge rift between Kraft and Belichick and Brady and it's unfixable and who knows what's going to happen and they're going to be terrible this year. And we all know how that worked out. Now, I'm not saying that the Steelers have the ability to do what the Patriots

do in that regard. But I do think that this is a situation where it's as simple as trading Antonio Brown away. And it's going to not be a cap hit on the next two years, but this year it is if you do. And he's an all-time great player. So you may actually want to keep him on the team. If somebody gave me a starter and a second round pick, I'd do it in a second. If you gave me a starting interior defensive lineman, who I thought would be a 16-game

starter and a high-level player and a number two pick in a second. I don't know. I think it's a possibility that he's still getting in a room and figure it out. A slim possibility, but I mean, everybody may not be interested in Antonio Brown like that. Somebody will get him. Joy with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by.

The Heard Line News. You know, I can't believe today that Rob Parker and I agreed on something, which is a LeBron James situation, which is, I don't think LeBron is, I said when LeBron got hurt, I was told early. The Lakers said it was day to day. I was told it was more serious than day to day. I said that two weeks ago. I said, you know, I'm hearing it's not a day-to-day thing that it's a real thing. Well, LeBron's now missed 15 games. He's not going to play tomorrow night against the T-wolves.

Probably not going to play until next week. Has not had a full contact practice. You know, and remember when Rich Paul came out, you know, he said, I don't give a blank what nobody thinks. We're going to do what's best for LeBron. When he feels he's best, he'll play. So there's been this situation where the Lakers, you know, released kind of a pedestrian press release.

Rich Paul represents LeBron came out kind of over the top, angst. My takeaway on this is it's a sensitive issue because LeBron has bailed on even his best friend, D. Wade, when he felt people got old or they weren't servicing sort of his greatest needs. If LeBron, if this is a real injury, they're trying to downplay it a little bit. If it's a real injury, that's okay. But if LeBron suffers before the end of the year a second injury, LeBron's now an old guy. And that's a big deal. Because I think increasingly, Lanzo Ball is injury prone,

and Brandon Ingram's been a disappointment, and they are no longer top assets on the trade market. And they're not going to give up Kyle Kuzma, because then if you get LeBron at 36 and Anthony Davis with no Kuzma, that's not a championship team. It is not. I don't buy that Kevin Durant's leaving. I just don't buy that.

I don't think Kevin Durant's going anywhere. I think Kevin Durant realizes he's in the perfect place for Kevin Durant, which is on a team where he doesn't have to be the emotional leader. He can just be a score and have fun and have a life and hoop it. And that's what Kevin Durant wants to be. Kevin Durant doesn't want to go to New York and have to sit in front of the microphone for 45 minutes after every game, be the emotional leader, the spokesman of the team. Kevin Durant's in the absolute perfect spot for Kevin Durant.

He can be a score and hoop it. He loves basketball. basketball loves him. He doesn't have to be the best defensive player. They didn't have to be the best ball handler. Doesn't have to be the emotional center of the team. Doesn't have to coach the team. And I don't think an old LeBron and Anthony Davis is a championship level team.

He didn't come to L.A. just to sell pizzas for Blaze Pizza. So this injury, I think they've been a little sensitive, and I think it was initially worse than everybody said. And Rob Parker agreed with me, and that's the last time we'll ever agree on the show. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Big Ten College Hoops action is coming your way tomorrow on FS1 as number five Michigan battles Indiana in a conference showdown. It all tips off tomorrow at 6 Eastern on FS1 and the Fox Sports app.

I'm going to make a bet Jason McIntyre is a huge, huge college basketball fan. Let's not go over. I do like it, but you've told me that I'm not allowed to talk about college basketball that often. Let's just make a bet. Okay. Dinner bet. Michigan wins the national title. I'll take the other side.

Yeah, I don't think they'll win the national title. You have to pick a team, Duke. No, give me the field. You get the whole, you get 360 teams I get won. I'll take you to the Magiamo your spot. Are you confident about it or not? Yeah, I'm very confident. Then it doesn't matter.

You're going to owe me money from the Jimmy Butler trade. Remember I texted you. As soon as Butler was dealt to the Sixers, I said, there's no way he's signing there. You said, oh, I think he will. No shot, by the way. I'm confident my wife will never leave me. I still have a pre-nup. I mean, just because I'm confident, I'm not an idiot.

No, Michigan will be. 160 teams, I get one. Fine, I'll take, give me two. I'll take Gonzaga and Virginia. The 2019 All-Star game in the NHL Saturday in San Jose brought to you by Discover. Get the free credit scorecard today, even if you're not a Discover customer. Doesn't hurt your FICA credit score.

Discover.com slash credit scorecard limitations apply. All right, we do Monday headlines today with Jason McIntyre on Friday. I'm off tomorrow going skiing, so we'll do it on Thursday. So let's start this. Super Bowl headlines today. What will be the big headline about the Super Bowl? Well, this one's obvious, Colin. The huge headline about the Super Bowl is going to be the young versus, obviously,

who do the Patriots have, the restless veterans? You know, I look this up, okay? So Belichick is 66. McVeigh's 33. Isn't that incredible? What was, when McVeigh was coming out of the womb, where was Bill Belichick? He was coaching Lawrence Taylor and the Giants defense in New York. I mean, leading them to, I think, a couple Super Bowls in the 80s.

It's incredible that the gap in age and, and talent, if you want to say, a quarterback with Goff and Brady. But I do want to ask you this. Didn't we see this last year with the Eagles? Nick Foles, almost no playoff experience. Doug Peterson, it's like a high school football coach 10 years ago. I think the media is vastly overrating this angle.

That's why we're mocking it here. The Young versus the Restless. I personally don't think it means anything for the game. Number two, what will the big question be heading into the Super Bowl? Super Bowl headlines today. I think this was one of your favorite stories, the Monday after the Super Bowl. And I think the headline Monday after the Super Bowl,

who will Belichick bench this time? Malcolm Butler last year. Remember that one? That was a little crazy because it was an unsolved mystery. Did you ever watch that show? Robert Stack, Unsolved Mysteries. To this day, Colin, it's been what a year? We still don't know why Malcolm Butler was benched.

If you're a Patriots player this week and you're going into Atlanta, you're kind of walking on eggshells, are you not? It's a situation where, geez, they benched. Butler, we don't know what he did. I better fall in line. I think that's going to be a storyline to watch. Who will Belichick bench this time? All right.

What's the story that people are overlooking Super Bowl headlines today? You know, kickers aren't really the sexiest player to talk about, but the guy to watch, Greg the Legsler line. Here's your headline, coward. Honestly, all on the zurline.

I like the funds. I like it. Hey, by the way, nobody's really talking about how good he was in New Orleans. You were great. Late kick in the fourth quarter. Then the overtime 57-yarder that would have been good from like 65. Look at how much Sean McVeigh is leaning on his kicker. Eight attempts through two playoff games, that ties a record. If you noticed, and my guys at the big lead are kind of beaten up on McVeigh, he's not being as aggressive as I thought he used to be. He's leaning on his kicker. He's kicking a lot more than he should. Keep an eye on this because remember, when these two teams met 17 years ago,

Adam Vinatari won it for the Patriots. Obviously the SpyGate Super Bowl. Is it going to come all full circle here? And Greg the Legg wins it. I don't want to give away my pick yet. But Greg the Legg, keep an eye on him. He's tremendous. One of the best kickers in the league.

By the way, we've said this before. The kicker for the Patriots, Stephen Grutkowski, is their seventh highest paid player. Belichick has always been a big believer. He'll pay his kicker. He will. He'll pay his kicker. By the way, Matt Slater. has been on that special teams.

Yeah, forever. Forever. UCLA receiver who was a marginal receiver. He's been with the Patriots forever. They had, I don't know if you heard of this yesterday, it was on the internet. They were really keyed up and their special teams about Tyreek Hill. So Belichick, don't kid yourself. Belichick is all in on special teams.

And McVeigh, to his credit, the Rams special teams last year were easily the best in the league. They've taken a little step back, but they've got the best pass throwing punch. in the league? Yes, Hecker. I mean, I believe he's one of the best fake punters in the league. Remember, they lost a playoff game last year against the Falcons because of the two fumbles. Cooper. Yeah, Farrow Cooper. And that special teams, like, people don't love to talk about this stuff, but it's massive. Greg the leg, that's a guy I like. Eight Super Bowls, the average difference in every game for the Patriots has been three. And the blowout was the overtime game where I think it was decided by four.

All right, Super Bowl headlines today. Who's going to win the game? Yeah, I don't like giving my pick away this early, but Colin, I talked about it on my podcast. When you look at where the money's headed for this Super Bowl, where is it? Heavy on the Patriots. I know. It's so far, 90% of the money is on the Patriots. So, Colin, when you look at the headline, I believe the Rams will win the Super Bowl. Yes, Rams win the Super Bowl.

And when you know Vegas is going to need the Rams, which side do you want to be on? You want to be with the casinos who, you know, are very wealthy and profitable? Or do you want to be with the public? Now, that's not the only way, obviously. There are matchups, but one key thing, I don't think enough people have talked about. When you look at the Chargers and the Chiefs, they were great off the edge. D. Ford, Melvin Ingram, Patriots, shut them down. Aaron Donald up the middle, much more significant.

That defensive line is the best the Patriots will have faced. Brockers, Donald, Sue, Dante Fowler. This is very interesting. You know, it's funny. Somebody said this about two weeks ago on the show, Joy, you were here, that when you bring in these big stars that have their moments, money like Sue and Akeeb Taleb. They picked their spots.

You know, like week nine, when you have a four-game lead in your division. Dante Fowler. Massive. Has been great in the last month. Indomac and Sue was unbelievable. It was his best game last week, I think. And I thought, Akib Taleb, did you see him on the sidelines against the Saints? He was coached.

By the way, did you see Michael Thomas of the Saints? He couldn't get open against Tili. So it's, it is very interesting that these star-driven players, you don't always get, you know, the rookie player is busting his butt. It's almost like the NBA. Good teams that haven't won a title, Toronto, Milwaukee. They try so hard. Every night. Golden State, you have to beg them to play defense.

Totally. That's a great point. And Wade Phillips, defense of coordinator for the Rams. He's been here before. Do you remember when he shut down Cam Newton a few years back with the Bronx? I mean, like, it's a situation where I like this Rams defense. I think they'll get pressure without blitzing. And, you know, their secondaries a little better, I believe, than the Chiefs who were. Geez.

Have you seen the videos? online of the Chief's secondary, just totally lost. Guys on the Patriots running so wide open all game long. Like Brady missed some easy touchdowns. The Chief's defense, what an embarrassment. But I like the Rams. Have you made an official pick yet? I have not, but I do think the Rams O line is too good for it to be a blowout.

Yeah. And I agree with whoever said it earlier, maybe it had been you, Joy. Todd Gurley's going to play. We're not going to get Todd Gurley on an exercise bike in Atlanta. Plus 1,800 to win MVP. And you could argue who's the best. Best player in this game, obviously outside of quarterback.

Gurley? Plus 1,800? Give it to me. All right. Super Bowl headlines today. What will be the big controversy surrounding the game? You know, this one is a tough one. We were having some fun with it.

I believe the headline of the controversy will be Saints set record for longest whining streak. Colin, I don't want to go overboard. We're what? Four days past the game now. Yes. And there's these Saints fans freaking out. Like, oh, we got robbed. I'm not watching the Super Bowl.

like settle down. You didn't get, the call was awful. We can agree on that. It was bad. It was a missed call. But Sean Payton wasn't very good. You led 13 nothing at home after a quarter. Saints fans, you got to just put this to bet.

It's unseemly that there's still whining about it. You got the kickoff in overtime at the Superdome, the hardest place to audible for an opposing team, and you didn't take advantage of it. The other thing is, I don't have time to do this, and I wouldn't even know how to do this. Do you think, do you think, do you think over the Sean Peyton Drew Breeze era,

they've gotten a few breaks at home from the officials? Just a couple. A couple? Like, let's slow down on this, that the world's against you. By the way, the Saints are a bigger brand than the Rams. If the NFL really had it rigged, you'd pick Drew Breeze and the Saints over the Rams.

Drew Breeze is the kind of beloved athlete who will go on 60 minutes one night, you know, and then pivot to the Today Show. like nobody knows about these Rams guys. Jared Goff walks in the studio. Oh, I think I recognize that guy. No disrespect. The rating in Los Angeles, I could not believe this, was double for the Patriots game, then the Rams game.

So the Rams are a growing, this isn't the Dodgers or the Lakers in L.A. This is a growing, fledgling business that's still trying to buy and sweep fans up. But where are you, where do you come in when fans are complaining, like four or five days after the game. Listen, this is... We were robbed. Even my friends drive me crazy. You got friends complaining about this?

No, even my friends, whenever they say, you know, the officials and I'm like, I want to hang the phone up. Like, stop. I always ask this. How many penalties your team have? Did you complete 32 or 32 throws? Did you have a fumble? Don't, it's called, it's called recency bias. Don't take the last call and go, that's why we lost.

New Orleans got a huge face mask penalty break. That's right. Or the Rams would have a first and goal and taking a 24-20 league. Okay, but we can both admit, we can all admit, it was an egregious. No denying. No, no, no. The game is, of course, 60 minutes. Fans are not interested in all the rational things that you're saying right now.

Fan is short for it? Fanatic. They're crazy. All right, let's get our bet down. I've got Michigan to win the national championship for dinner, and you have two teams are Gonzag and who? Let me switch from Virginia to Duke. I'll ride Zion Williamson.

Virginia's not a bad pick. They're not bad. But if I get Duke, come on. I watch Virginia this weekend. Virginia's good. They're pretty. They lost to Duke. Well, it was a good showing.

Duke didn't have their point guard. You know, ZipRecruiter is a great company for a lot of reasons. But, you know, when you created the big lead, the hardest part about creating the big lead was not your amazing talent. It was finding people that you could hire. Because, you know, sports writers, by and large are a bunch of knucklehead lazy guys. So you had to go out there and find the next you. You had to hire. like 10 guys. If you had ZipRecruiter, you would have found him much faster.

Coming off the top rope on a read, huh? I mean, you know, you had to find guys without bias and agendas in the media. That's impossible. Liberal bias. Speak for yourself around the corner. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. In every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories,

their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to SportsSlicse on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. 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 headwriter, 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. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, The Cliverts show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What?

Time out. Quarterback on office blue 42. Hey, rep, my mama wants you to wave at her. What? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clippers show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast, Point Game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was primed. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis keep coming to, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love.

This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.