The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Jerry Jones, Michael Jordan, & the AFC West

Episode Date: August 29, 2019

Colin responds to Jerry Jones’ comments about Ezekiel Elliott, the NFL schedule, why Michael Jordan is still popular today, and his thoughts on the AFC West. Guests include Peter King, Greg Cosell, Stanford Routt, and Warren Sharp.  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,

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 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.

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 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, 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. 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 Heard at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the Iheart Radio app by searching heard. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go on a Thursday. This is the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening. We are live in Los Angeles on IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1. One hour from now, one of our most popular guests, Greg CoSell. He's been breaking down two conferences per visit in the preseason. People love that stuff. And he will be joining us

in one hour from now. Joy Taylor is here as always. Joy, how are you? I'm great. Good morning, everybody. So the Cowboy holdout. There's two holdouts with two great running backs, the one with the Chargers and the one with the Cowboys.

Not a shocker. The biggest brand in the NFL of the Cowboys, the one getting all the press. And Zeke is considered better than Melvin Gordon, but this is what happens when you're the Cowboys. Every holdout becomes the story in the NFL. We've had two huge stories before the season starts. Andrew Lux's retirement and Zeke's holdout are the top

to buy a mile. And so Jerry Jones, first time, sort of hinted that they may start the season without Ezekiel Elliott, which I've been saying for months now, I am okay with this. I am okay with this. I think it's smart for a lot of reasons. I'll get to those reasons next. But here's Jerry. We may very well play without a player that is not coming in on his contract.

If that's the case, we'll just play. And we'll play and we'll play well. We've got a marathon here, and we want Zeke when we get to the playoffs. We want Zeke when we're in the dog days of this season. As you well know, you have to plan your personnel, and you have to manage a player the caliber of Zeke. We have to be prepared to play without any given player. Okay, so the two cowboy contracts that we really deeply care about are Zeke.

that's the most important because he's holding out. And number two is DAC. We'd like to keep that number 30 to low 30, not 36. You can kill two birds with one stone here, Dallas. Look at Dallas's schedule. I can make an argument they get more breaks than any team in the league. First of all, they play the rebuilding giants twice and Washington twice in their own division. Four games against rebuilding teams.

They have better rosters than both and a better quarterback than both. They should go four and oh. There's only four games on their schedule where they should be underdogs, at the Saints, at the Patriots, at the Bears, and at Philadelphia. But let's look at some of the breaks they get. They start very easy. They get three rebuilding teams to start, Giants, Washington, Miami. In the middle of the schedule, they get both New York teams still rebuilding and a buy.

Then at the end of the year, oh, they face the Rams. Oh, but look, they get extra time, 10 days for arguably the best team they face on their schedule at home the Rams. Ooh, they've got a short week because they play on Thanksgiving. Who do they play in the short week? Buffalo. They also get Kurt Cousins in prime time. That's a W. They only go back-to-back road games once, and one of those is against fourth place Detroit.

By the way, the second time they face the Redskins and the Giants, it's possible they'll both be starting rookie quarterbacks, Daniel Jones and Dwayne Haskins. Folks, this schedule is made to order. They get a short week break, a long week break, a Kirk Cousin's primetime break, two rebuilding teams in their division who both may play rookie quarterbacks the second time. It starts easy. It's easy in the middle. Oh, yeah. They never play west of Dallas. Come on.

If you, if Dak Prescott, with the surrounding wide receiver, offensive line and defensive talent, and upgrades at coordinator, can't go nine and seven with Tony Pollard, then you've killed two birds with one stone, then he's not a $33 million a year quarterback. There are tough schedules in this league. The Cleveland Brown's first eight games are brutal. There are teams in this league and scheduling matters.

That's why New England is a dynasty. Because to go five and one against their division every year, get a buy and then two home games. It matters. New England's never been as dominant on the road. I think Tom Brady's got a losing record on the road in the playoffs against Denver. Schedules matter. Dallas got a huge break, a short week against Buffalo,

extra days against the Rams, rebuilding teams two in their division, Kirk Cousins in prime time, only once back to back, never go west of Dallas. If Dak Prescott, with the surrounding talent and upgrades, can't go 9 and 7, or you've figured out maybe you do need Zeeke and maybe you don't need the quarterback. This is a scheduling break. And so I'll say it again. I would just keep waiting. And I would just keep playing without Zeke.

And I think they'll go 3 and O. And then maybe they lose at New Orleans and go, you know, three and one. But then they get a host of Packers and face a rebuilding team in the Jets. I'm looking at Dallas's schedule and it looks like 4 and 1 to start for me. Then after that, it's Philadelphia. but at home, then a buy, then the crappy giants. You know, I'm sorry, but if you want leverage in this stuff, you can get leverage with Zeeke and Dac. Let's just roll the dice.

And a lot of things will be answered. And if you're a 500 team six weeks in without Zique, you've answered a question about DAC. And by the way, even if you still want to re-sign DAC, you got some leverage back from his agent. 38 million's not going to happen. 35's not going to happen. 31 probably does happen. All right, let me shift to this. There are several assets in our life.

Take away people, obviously, husband, wife, children, cousins, relatives, you know, obviously. But I'm talking about like things you can grab assets. For most of us, it's our house, it's our car. I would argue I have so much information on my iPhone. It's one of the most valuable things I have in my life. Take out people. My house is valuable, so I sleep there at night. My car gets me to and from work.

commerce and my iPhone. I've got my alarm clock. I've got all my contacts. I've got account numbers. If you went to the Verizon store and when you have an asset, you have to get insurance for it. I have insurance for my house. I have insurance for my car. When I go by or you go buy an iPhone, if you don't get a protective case as insurance to protect it, you're a dope. I mean, that's why they upcharge you because they can. You need the protective case. You can break those things. I've broken a few early when I didn't buy the case. I was a dope. So when you get in the NFL and you have a quarterback, Andrew Luck just retired, job number one isn't building your defense. Getting a running back, star wide receiver. It's protecting him. When Sean McVeigh came to the Rams,

they went and spent money on that O line. Carson Wentz, Eagles, spent a lot of money on that O line. Tom Brady, 19 years, never had a bad O line. Andrew Luck just retired. We have another player in this league that could become Andrew Luck. He's one of my favorite players, Deshaun Watson. Last year in a game against Buffalo, this is one game. He was hit 19 times. Look it up.

It doesn't even sound right. And I never thought Buffalo had a world-class pass rush. Last year, he was sacked 62 times, knocked down another 132. That is outrageous. That is 200 times a year. And remember, as the Texans consider what to do with Jadavian Clowny, trade him, Andrew Luck is out of your division. You can no longer justify spending for two great pass rushers.

Okay, the Rams and New England ended up in the Super Bowl. Neither had an elite edge rusher. Once Andrew Luck announced retirement, Your division is now Nick Foles, Marcus Marietta, and Jacoby Brissette. You cannot justify needing two great pass rushers. What you need is to protect Deshawn Watson. Of the 10 teams that led the NFL in Sachs last year, six missed the playoffs. New England was near the bottom, but they were near the top in pressures.

The idea that you need the all-time great pass rushes, rusher to get the sack. No, you don't. What you need is good enough players along your defensive front and good enough coaches to mix up your pass rush to create an uncomfortable situation for the quarterback. Often letting him throw the ball away into my team's hands is an advantage. But when you have a Patrick Mahomes in your division, or you have, you know, a Russell Wilson or an elite quarterback Andrew Luck or Brady. Then you can justify Khalil Mack, by the way.

Chicago can justify his salary because Aaron Rogers is in the division. When Peyton Manning was in the division, the teams in the division against Peyton Manning would spend money on pass rushers like the teams do in Brady's division. But when Andrew Luck retires, you cannot justify paying

JJ Wat and Janavian Clowny. What you can absolutely justify, like insurance on your car, your house, your iPhone, is up, rating this offensive line. Okay, we're looking at the next Andrew Luck here. Deshawn Watson, 19 times last year, he was hit against one team.

And by the way, the reason the Patriots let Chandler Jones go and Trey Flowers go, why? Because they don't feel there's an elite quarterback in their division. They don't need an elite pass rusher. If Sam Darnold becomes an elite great player, New England will start spending money on pass rushers. But right now your division, Marcus Marriota is the second best quarterback? You're going to spend big money on JJ Watt and Jadavey and Clowney. By the way, the Texans should know this better than anybody.

The Houston Texans have no excuse here. The all-time single season most sacked leaders. Quarterbacks sacked the most in a season. Three of the top seven are Houston Texans. You've already blown other quarterbacks that wear your uniform out of this league by not protecting them. When you buy the iPhone, don't be a dope. Get a protective cover. It's insurance.

When you get to Sean Watson and Andrew Luck, don't be dopes. You don't need two pass rushers in Houston. You need a left tackle. There you go. Coming up next, you know, there's always been this argument. I thought this was fascinating today about, you know, the goat, LeBron, MJ. You know, I've always said MJ's the best basketball player. LeBron and Magic are closer than people think, but it's hard to argue with Jordan, his success, blah, blah, blah.

But a remarkable number with Michael Jordan came out, and it shows his enduring legacy. Why is he so damn popular still today? I'll explain why I think it is. That's coming up. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. 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 Slic Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, 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.

Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth? Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different 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, this linebacker walks up to me. He goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her.

What? Come on out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford Show. on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practical. that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected.

We're becoming more individualized, but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast. This is fascinating. Michael Jordan, it was announced today. They announced shoe sales.

Forbes magazine did shoe sales. Michael Jordan's been out of the NBA for 16 years. Sold $130 million. He made that much in annual income on shoe sales last year. LeBron, $32 million. Kevin Durant 26. And Durant made more money in China than America. There's a lot of factors for this.

why Jordan is still five times more popular in terms of apparel sales than LeBron James, and he's been out of the sport for 16 years. One of them is Michael's game was more fun than LeBron James. Carl Malone was a great player. So was James Harden. Their games aren't that much fun. They're at the free throw line a lot. Michael's game was fun.

The huge hands, hang time. It was artistic. The tongue, the hang time. I mean, I can think, I'm showing you some here. of a dozen iconic shots from MJ. His shots were memorable. LeBron's been playing for 16 years. He's got one of those.

The block against Golden State pops right into my head. And that was a great play. Michael was more artistic. His game was more fun. Not all great players are fascinating watches. Kareem was not fascinating. He had one shot.

Carl Malone, John Stockton, James Harden. I don't think are riveting watches. Westbrook is actually a riveting watch for all the criticism. Number two, and this is hard to quantify, but Michael Jordan was cool. Durant and LeBron sometimes feel like they're trying to be cool. Michael was just naturally the earrings, the body, the suit, the smile, the look, the way he walked. He had a cool walk.

Like, you can't teach that, and you can't. fake that. Michael's game was more fun to watch, and he was cool without trying. The other two things that are fairly remarkable about Michael Jordan, and people think I don't like Jordan, Michael was unbelievable, is that Michael, in an era where everybody has to rush to Twitter and tell you about what they had for lunch, Michael has largely disappeared. He doesn't hold press conferences. You see him sometimes in the suite at his game. He's got four and five guys. He runs with, his boys, his guys, his wife. He's disappeared.

There's not a more famous person in America that you see less of, except on shoes and logos than Michael Jordan. He is disproven or proven the fallacy that you don't have to rush to social media, show us every bikini shot, every chicken parm you had for dinner. If you're great, you're frozen in time. I still laugh harder at Johnny Carson clips on YouTube than any current host. The other thing Jordan has proven, there's a belief in media circles today and the media is wrong, that everybody has to talk politics.

If it's authentic to your brand, do it. But Tiger Woods doesn't, and he's the only logo in golf shops in America. I was told this morning that Dave Chappelle may be the most richest comedian this year. He just did a Netflix special. wouldn't talk politics. Tom Brady this morning was named the most popular brand in the NFL. He won't talk politics. And Michael wouldn't either.

Doesn't mean you can't. Aaron Rogers does. He's popular. All he did, he was popular. But Michael Jordan's popularity is a lot of things. His game was amazing. He was cool without trying. And in my lifetime,

I don't think there's been another person outside of President Ronald Reagan. that was more Teflon. Michael quit the sport twice, failed in baseball, has been an awful general manager and a so-so-at-best owner, then ended up with the Wizards, who he couldn't even engineer to get into the playoffs, had a brutal Hall of Fame speech. It doesn't matter.

It just doesn't matter. The style, the cool, the logo that's international, he's effortlessly cool and wildly entertaining and he's disappeared and he doesn't like politics or at least won't talk about him and so you don't have to rush to social media and show us what you ate for lunch

and you don't have to talk politics if you don't feel it's natural or authentic to your personality and you can still 16 years out of the game be five times more popular than arguably the second best basketball player in the history of the planet. LeBron James. Joy with the news. No, no, no, no, turn on the news.

This is the herd line news. So we discussed yesterday that the NFL is looking to find ways to shorten the preseason without losing the revenue that it brings in. And according to Mark Maskey of the Washington Post, the league will likely focus on expanding the playoffs. instead of the regular season with a shortened preseason. So the potential change would give each conference seven playoff teams and eliminate one of the two buys.

And one of the six first round games could also be played on Monday night. So there'll be two more playoff teams, one in the AFC, one in the NFC, and then... Keep the regular season the same and shorten the preseason. So in order to make up for the loss revenue, because we've been talking about there's too many preseason games, people aren't starting their starters, it's just become dredge, basically. how do you fix that without taking away revenue, which is going to affect everyone's pockets, which is obviously the bottom line,

what everyone is discussing here, the NFLPA and the NFL. The NFLPA doesn't feel comfortable with expanding the regular season because that impacts everyone, every player in the league. But if you add playoff games, then you're replacing the revenue loss

from the preseason, and it doesn't affect every single team. How about that? I think that's... Do you like that idea? Well, listen, I still don't think you need 18 games. I'm really good with 16. Yeah, I'm very against that.

I think it changes the entire sport. Because it takes away some of the urgency that makes football, the NFL, so compelling. Yeah, it takes away some of it. You know, the NFL's got two or three things going for it. One, gambling is becoming increasingly legalized in America, so that's going to really help the NFL. That's a sport we bet on. So I don't think it'll hurt their ratings. But I do think, and I also think the preseason should be shortened, so that I like.

I think the preseason should be shortened and I think they should stay with 16 games I don't necessarily like another team in the playoffs either but I think it's funny if you go to 18 games and there is less urgency if you add one more playoff team that keeps the discussion for another city because if one more gets in that means probably three more battling for it. So you're saying if they expand the regular season and expand the playoffs then it works. Yeah yeah so what I'm saying is

if you're going to add a playoff team to each conference that's two extra teams but those teams probably don't run away with that slot. They're probably competing with three other teams. So three in the AFC competing, three to four. Competing for that spot. So that is like seven to eight cities in America in the league that are competing at the end. The longer you can get more cities to believe they can make the playoffs, the better any,

that's why baseball, the season lasts forever and not many teams make the playoffs. You know, it adds an, it adds in more hope for more cities. At the end of the year. At the end of the year. But I still think you keep the regular season the same if you do expand. because it just adds a whole other element of health, and it just complicates it and changes the game a lot. So the Giants received a ton of grief, obviously,

for drafting Daniel Jones with the six overall pick, but his teammates seem to be very happy with the choice. The athletic pulled 29 Giants players, and the majority voted Daniel Jones as the most impressive in camp. Wide receiver, Reggie White Jr., said he's had all the critics saying, he can't do this, he can't do that. He's just shown day by day making throws, making adjustments.

so you can tell he really made a big leap from OTAs until now. I'm excited for the season to see what he can do. Oh, boy. Oh, boy. We talked about this. Whether or not you and I should buy into the preseason. It has changed the discussion, right? Because remember last time when Ben McAdoo benched Eli, everybody was against it.

If Pat Shermer, after one and four start benches him, it's nice to know the teammates are behind it. And the fans. And by the way, Joy, having lived in the Northeast for 10 years, talk radio is influential. Like, like, so when the calls start lighting up the, if you're one in four, everybody's like, it's time to bench Eli. That owner hears that. Unequivocally, that has influence on his decision in marketing. Yes.

How the Giants start the season is instrumental to how Eli's career will end in the NFL and how Daniel Jones career will start. I mean, that is how important. that they get off to at least a decent start this year because that's, of course, going to happen. This isn't just, this is the giants. Like, there are expectations, even if they are in a rebuild. There are eyeballs on this franchise all the time. Even if they have no chance of making the playoffs, it is important and what happens with them.

And the fact that the team is kind of behind Daniel Jones is not great for that situation. When I was in New York, Connecticut area, and I had never experienced this because this is not the case out west. And it wasn't the case when I worked in the South. But what I experienced was that the media is angrier, louder, those, and they have influence. I've seen trades made and stopped. Owners in the Northeast, pro-owners, listen to media. And let me tell you something, the giant fan base, Joy, is old. It's not.

There's a lot of fan. Oregon football has got a young fan base because they've been good for 15 years. Michigan's fan base is old because they've been good for 100 years. Giants are a cornerstone franchise in the NFL. And let me tell you something. Those old fans defended Eli to the end, and they would call and complain about benching him. They're not going to call anymore if Daniel Jones, I mean, everybody's talking about how good he looked. Now the players are.

The worst case scenario for the Giants and Pat Shermer was that Daniel Jones had the preseason that he had. Because if he had looked iffy or like he wasn't ready, then you would feel comfortable. Okay, he needs a year to sit behind Eli. Maybe at the end of the year, if it's a disaster, you start getting him out there against some reps. But this is the worst case scenario

where the team is behind it and he looks good and the fans are going to be watching to see how Eli does. Finally, the Cowboys are still stuck with their three top offensive players looking for new deals. Zeke's been holding out of camp and Zach and Amari were been at camp, but they're going to open contract extension.

for them, or they're open to contract extensions for them even when the season begins. But when asked about how he is working to get these deals done, Jerry Jones admitted that he prefers to deal directly with the players. When you cut out people in between the money and the player, we all know that agents, attorneys, all have their agenda. By the way, they're all taking money out of the pie, too, when they're there. And so the straighter it goes from the source to the... one receiving it nine times out of ten, that's more efficient.

Of course. Yes, of course it is more efficient. Of course, Jerry doesn't want an agent. Of course, it's more efficient. It's also not legal. So this is from an anonymous NFL agent. He said the team that is notorious for trying to go around the agent, going right to the player and getting the player to believe,

hey, it's better to be a Dallas Cowboy and take less money and be here. In this case, the difference is Ezeko Elliott and even Dak and Amari Cooper. They're not buying it. Maybe Jerry Jones is starting to get a little frustrated because some of his old tricks aren't working. So dealing directly with players who are represented by agents violates the CBA. Yeah, it's illegal. It also violates federal labor laws.

If you have representation, you can't go around them. Obviously, we could all... I mean, Terry just admitted, like, he does this. You know, here's the thing, is that it is illegal. And you and I have both had agents. And we both had bosses. It's one of those things that's illegal, but companies still have a way of letting you know things are getting uncomfortable and they have certain budgets.

Every, you know, I mean, it's like, this is why Jerry, by the way, goes out and talks publicly. That's his way of connecting with a player through eliminating the agent, just come out and talk about that pie thing. And it's probably another reason that Zeeke's agent has him far, far away from Jerry and far away from the team because he knows, I mean, Jerry Jones can be very compelling. Everyone talks about how charming and great Jerry is at what he does. I mean, he is the best at what he does. That's why he's Jerry Jones. I bet you Zeech's agent has him at a hotel that doesn't get American television. And when they ask, do you want a USA today in the morning?

No, we don't want the USA today delivered to our combo hotel. He just has him bunkered down. I mean, this does make perfect sense. And obviously, like you said, if it's a company or Jerry Jones working directly with the player, you're going to be able to influence them more. That's why people hire agents. That's why you pay them because they get to be the bad guy and they know all the ins and outs of how these contracts were. Right.

So good luck with that. but it could be why he's frustrated because that is an easier way to get things done. Holy Jerry Jones. Joey with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Line News. Peter King is going to join us in about five minutes.

You know, I was talking about schedules. And I've said that the Patriots are amazing, but they do get a scheduling break because they go five and one in their division. That gives them a buy-in-a-home-field advantage in the playoffs. Obviously, they'd rather play in Foxborough in nine degrees, you know, then have to go somewhere else or playing a dome. You know, it's an advantage. So schedules absolutely matter. One of the reasons I like Pittsburgh over Cleveland this year is I think Pittsburgh gets scheduling breaks, and I don't think Cleveland gets any. And this is a prime example.

So if you look at Pittsburgh schedule this year, now we look at New England as the first game at New England. That's the bad one. But then if you look at their scheduling breaks, Seattle, home. Indianapolis, now no Andrew Luck, Rams home. Their last six games, no Pro Bowl quarterbacks. Big edge at quarterback last six. So they end the year with significant advantages. Now let's go back to the New England game.

New England has a better playoff record the last five years than a September record. And I think this is going to be a very choppy September for New England. First of all, yesterday they made two trades to get offensive linemen. They got issues on the offensive front due to their center having a blood clot issue. Also, Chris Hogan left, Gronk retired. Edelman's been hurt. Demarius Thomas hurt, and they have two rookies battling for playing time. The problem is Tom Brady doesn't like to throw early to rookies. Now, by November, maybe.

But early in the season, Tom, it's all about trust. He may love McKeel Harry. You think in September he's targeting him 17 times? That goes against everything I know about Tom Brady. Josh McDaniels came out this week and said, we don't really know what we are offensively yet. And I think for one of the rare times in New England history, they're honest. I don't think New England's going to be much offensively. Josh Gordon came in late.

Edelman Hurt. Damarius Thomas. Grunk retires. Two rookie tied ends. Just made two trades to the O line. So that's the game on the schedule. You're like, okay, that's an L for the Steelers. I don't think it is.

That's another scheduling break. Now let's go to Cleveland. So Cleveland has the youngest roster in the league and a rookie head coach. They don't get a scheduling break. It's the opposite. It is brutal for the first eight months. At Denver, at New England. at San Francisco.

They play Baltimore, but on the road. Their buys a little too early for you'd want for the season. And then they get the Steelers two times in three weeks. So even if they went out and beat the Steelers, you'd have to play them 13, 14 days later. It's very difficult to beat Big Ben, Tomlin, Steelers personnel two times in three weeks. You can beat them, but you'd like some separation,

seven to eight to ten weeks, so they forget about it. So it's funny about schedule. I think Pittsburgh gets a serious. of scheduling breaks. I think Cleveland doesn't get any scheduling breaks that I can see. And that's why I think even though Cleveland made top to bottom have better personnel, I think Pittsburgh wins this division by at least a game. Peter King is around the corner. 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 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 gains is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the 4th. 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, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown

and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized. but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land

while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Football Morning in America, three-time national sports writer of the year.

He bounces around to all the camps. Joining us now, Peter King via the Coward Global Satellite Network. So you were at Colts camp on August 4th, and I know you talked to Andrew Luck, because on the internet I saw a picture of it. Did you have any inclination? August 4th, Andrew Luck is at least wavering? No, I said to him flat out. I said, is there any doubt in your mind with this bad cap you have right now? Any doubt that five weeks from today, you'll be taking the field against the Los Angeles Chargers? And he said, no, no doubt. those three words, exact quote.

So to say I was surprised when this announcement was made would be an understatement. I had no idea it was coming. Obviously, our first takeaway was circumstances made us defend Andrew Luck completely. There was some pushback. And over the last couple of days, there are people, including NFL players, who have said, listen, the timing stinks. Now that we have the time to contextualize it perfectly, and you talk to as many people, Peter, as anybody in this league,

Have there been at least a few people that said the timing could have been worked out better? No question about it. I think that's the one thing. I would say more than the timing, Colin, would be why wouldn't he have gone on injured reserve with a designation to return after eight weeks? You know, the NFL has a rule. Basically, it used to be you go on IR for the, you go on AI. you're out for the year. Right.

But you now can put two players on IR after final cut down and you can designate them to return midway through the season. Yeah. And I think a lot of people feel like, and hey, Chris Ballard, the GM, Frank Wright, the head coach, tried to convince him, please do this. Go on injured reserve and go and go somewhere, go anywhere. If you don't want to be in the way of Jacoby Brissette and you don't want to be in the way of Jacoby Brissette and you don't want to, you know, have people asking you every day, hey, how you doing?

You know, rehab somewhere else. But he didn't want to do that. His whole thing was, I'm never going to have a season again where I'm hurt all the time. And so I think people justifiably can criticize him for not agreeing to go on injured reserve. But by that time, I just, Colin, I think mentally, You know, football to Andrew Luck began to represent pain and not joy. Yeah. And then I believe it was time for him to go.

Yeah, no, that's a good way to put it. You know, it's interesting. Jadavian Clowny is out there, and he is potential a trade opportunity for teams. And my theory now that Andrew Luck is out of the division, you cannot justify having two expensive pass rushers. If Patrick Mahomes is in your division or Tom Brady or Breeze, I'll pay. The Chargers should pay for two pass rushers because of Patrick Mahomes. Teams did that with Peyton Manning. Now Deshaun Watson's the best quarterback in that division, Peter.

They got to upgrade that offensive line. He was hit 19 times last year against Buffalo alone. I think Clowny is a guy you got to move. Do you believe you should and what could you get for him? Where would he fit? I think he would fit on a team that feels like it's one pass rusher away. from being a huge factor in the playoffs this year. And when I say one pass rusher away,

I think you have to look at teams like the Rams. Yeah. You know, if the Rams thought that they could fit him in, look, it's going to be very, very hard for the Rams to fit him in. I think it would be impossible for the Saints to fit him in. But I think it would be very hard for the Rams, not only because they're already paying one guy on their front more than any, you know, defensive linemen right now in Aaron Donald.

But I also think that you're looking at a team that is probably going to, at some point this year, pay Jared Gough. Yeah. They're already paying a running back. They're paying Brandon Cooks. They just gave a big raise to Robert Woods. They have to, after this year, I believe, invest in another. tackle. I mean, they've got a lot of people that they need to pay. Yes. So it's hard for me to

imagine the Rams making space for them. But in terms of football, I think if the Rams could get clowny even to get them on a shorter deal, maybe a three-year deal or a two-year deal, I think it would be really smart for them to do it. You know, analytics have changed sports. The general manager now hands the lineup card to the manager in many instances. In the NBA, A analytics have really hurt seven-foot guys, especially back to the basket seven-footers. And in football, analytics are doing Melvin Gordon, no favors, and running backs. I just this morning wrote down the best running backs in the league, and I got to about 24, Tareke Cohen. And then I was like, okay, now I'm struggling to name them.

There's a lot of running backs. They come from everywhere, North Carolina, A&T, and undrafted. I mean, are analytics part of the ZEC issue? Is ego part of it? I mean, why wouldn't they have him wrapped up in your opinion? Because the Dallas Cowboys have three guys on offense they have to pay, including one of them. They got to pay $31 million or whatever the number for Dak Prescott is going to be.

They got a receiver they're going to have to pay, pick a number, 17, 18, I don't know. But, and then, you know, you got to pay your running back. So you ask yourself, this question, even in a friendly cap era where you're talking about, let's say for the sake of argument, you know, a cap next year that'll be around 190, somewhere around there, are you going to take three offensive players and pay them an average per year? This is like an average per year of 75 million or 70 million. That is a heavy, heavy ticket. And keep in mind, and keep in mind, you got a couple of defensive guys on that team who you've got to pay too, not just Jalen Smith.

So, I mean, if you're the Cowboys, you've really got to be careful because you've got a good team. You have the best team of the Jason Garrett era. Yep. But you've also got a potential tinderbox of a team. Yeah. Finally, I'm just taking predictions before the season. I have Pittsburgh, who's the best team I've seen in preseason. I think they really upgraded their defense from a variety of angles, college, free agents, got a cornerback from Kansas City.

I like Pittsburgh to win the division over Cleveland. I think Pittsburgh gets a little bit of a scheduling break this year. I think Cleveland's schedule with the youngest roster and a rookie head coach is brutal in the first eight weeks. I think they'll be good late. If I ask you today, Steelers, Browns, Ravens, let's just take Cincinnati out of it, most do. How do you think those three stack up in the AFC North? Steelers win it. I like their depth.

I like their peace. I think Cleveland's going to be second. I think Cleveland, the biggest thing for Cleveland right now is that they have a totally new world. Every game for them is going to be really a big event, a big game. National TV, two of the first four or five weeks, prime time, whatever it is.

I mean, they've got, they have big, big games early. How is a young team going to handle that? How healthy is O'Dell going to be? He's not been healthy totally for either of the last two years. Can he stay healthy and justify the hype? I think, look, I like Cleveland. I'm probably not going to pick them to make the playoffs. But I like Cleveland.

I think they're on the rise. But I think they have to deal with almost a New England level of attention paid to them every week this year in the NFL. Peter King, football morning in America, NBCSports.com. He's got a massive microphone next to him, but the little one that we put on him is working better, I'm told today. That little cheapy, not that gigantic piece of art next to you, Peter. Thanks for talking. Good story.

All right, Colin. All right. By the way, I saw this this morning. I was talking about running backs. Sequin Barkley last night was in New York. There was a media event. He talked about I'm the best running back in the NFL. And he certainly, you know, Lavian Bell, Zique, Sequin's been great.

He's a home run hitter. He's going to give you two pops a game. This is what I say about Zeke. There are so many running backs in this league. Next hour, I'll do this. I mean, I just jotted him down. Like running backs that came top of my head can really play. I got the 24.

Now, I get to about nine quarterbacks, and then I've got, like, doubts. Running backs, I mean, I got Leonard Fernette at like 22. People like Leonard Fernette. I don't know if he loves football. I think he likes it. Health issues. When you have a position in any job in America and it refills constantly,

it's not great for the employee at that position. Running back, it's just an easy position to fill. 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 two.

Live in L.A. This is The Hurt, wherever you may be and however you may be listening. High Heart Radio, Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Still battling influenza. It's been brutal. You've got to be honest with it. Prep. You have a legit flu?

I've just been sick for all week. I can't miss this week, though. Big week. We've got Andrew Luck on Monday. The world's changing. You have been sold room through. I have been really battling. Let me tell you something.

I play hurt. But not injured. It will not play injured. but I will play her. By the way, aluminum carry-on luggage from away luggage is absolutely amazing. Go to away travel.com slash Colin, 20 bucks off. The stuff is great. Away luggage. In three minutes, Greg CoSell is going to stop by. We love him on Thursday. NFL meat sandwich. He's going to break down the AFC West and the NFC West. He's been taking divisions. I want to say this, though. Sequehuan Barclay last night talked about how many he thought he was the best running back in the NFL.

And I don't think he is, but he's really, really good. but it does go back to people think I'm an anti-Ezekiel Elliott. No, I'm pro-analytic. And I just think running back is one of those positions in American sports. There are a lot of them and they're easy to find. And they come from Division III, FCS, Canada, college, big college, small college, power five. Conferences you've never heard of. It's just a position in the NFL.

It's also an instinctive position where you can come into the league and play pretty soon. You didn't have to have great coaching in college. I mean, running back, go back to when you played at seven, eight years old. The best athlete was a running back. You tossed the ball back to the little boy, and he would run around and nobody could tackle him. Quarterback's hard, offensive line, there's technique. Not a lot of technique at running back. Best athlete when you were seven years old got the ball and ran around and nobody could tackle him.

It's the most instinctive position in football, and Seekuan Barclay is very good. But this goes to my point about Ezekiel Elliott. I think the Tony Pollard guy for Dallas looks pretty good to me. I don't know if he's a star, but he looks pretty darn good. I went and this morning, I just, I wrote down running backs where everybody who has one of these running backs thinks this guy is a big time player. Look how many there. I'm not sure if there's a position in the NFL that's close to this. There certainly aren't this many tight ends in the league.

So I put in order, Zeke, Levian Bell, Sequin, Alvin Kamara. Then I go to Melvin Gordon, who I think's going to be better now than Todd Gurley, Christian McCaffrey, David Johnson, Gurley at 8, because he's hurt, he will not have, he won't be the same running back. Delvin Cook, Joe Mixing, Kareem Hunt. I think Aaron Jones, Green Bay, very good. Derek Henry can't catch, but I have him 13. Philip Lindsay Denver, Nick Chubbs, Sonny Mishone next to each other. Chris Carson, Seattle, underrated because he didn't star in college. Marlon Mack, 900 yards in just 12 games. Jane Conner, Devaney Freeman, can't stay healthy, Mark Ingram, Leonard Furnett, Adrian Peterson was a top 10 rusher, and then I have to get to 24, 24 until I get what I would consider sort of a specialty back

Tareke Cohen of the Bears. And I'm not mentioning Austin Echler with the Chargers who was really good and we'll start for them. There's about seven other guys I'm not mentioning who are either a little too much of a specialist or they have been backups. I mean, Seattle's got Rashad Penny. He was a first round pick. They like him a lot. They just have a guy in front of him, a seventh round pick, Chris Carson, who's been unbelievable, a complete find for Seattle. So there's another six or seven guys.

You got about 30 to 32 guys in this league that can make people miss, outrun people or run them over. It's just the position. It's just the position. So Sequin Barclay is good. And Lavian Bell, and, I mean, Lavian Bell is great. But what's the drop-off? Lavian to James Connor. It's a drop-off.

But 17 million to a million, I can get three more players. I mean, that's what it comes down to with Zique. All right, let's go to Greg Kossel, 30-plus years. NFL films. He's breaking down the AFC West and the NFC this week. So let's start with the AFC West. Very good at the top. A lot of people are saying

Patrick Mahomes will come back down to Earth. I don't think so. I think Andy Reid's a great play designer, Greg. I think his weapons are still excellent. I like their offensive line. Do you see a drop-off for Mahomes? I don't think there'll be a drop-off in terms of his level of play. There could

be a drop-off in statistics, Colin, which is a different thing. But I watched them through the preseason, and just looking at the personnel they put out there on the offensive side of the ball, it's pretty good. I mean, I remember to Marcus Robinson coming out of Florida, and I guess he had three or four suspensions, which is why he dropped in the draft. But he was a top five receiver in that draft based on my film study, and he's a guy who's not even talked about, given what they have. So I don't think there'll be a drop-off in the level of play, in the scheming. it'll be a fun offense to watch whether he throws 50 touchdowns. No one can answer that.

Let's go to the Chargers. Not going to have Derwin James. Maybe their best athlete on defense will not have Melvin Gordon. But because of their blocking schemes and Anthony Lynn, other backs have average close to four yards of carry or more. How much of a drop off is the offense without Melvin Gordon, in your opinion? Well, I think the biggest issue for me with their offense, and it showed up at times last year with their offensive line. And there were times that Philip Rivers, because he's so good and so timing, anticipation-based, can compensate for that.

I don't think the loss of Gordon will be highly significant. He's a good back, but I think they'll be able to make up the production. He sort of morphed in the NFL from a college runner who was an explosive guy to kind of a grinder. and so therefore I think that they can probably make up for the production. The big issue to me is their O-line. I think the receiver to look at this year in that offense, and I studied him this week pretty hard, I went through all his targets, is Mike Williams. I really like Mike Williams, and I think he'll become a far more important piece of that offensive puzzle.

I think Denver's funny because we all kind of think, okay, they'll be third place over the dysfunctional raiders. But they have elite pass rushers. Vic Fangio's a tremendous defensive coach. I don't think they'll be a riveting television production, but they could be, I think, a fairly interesting team. They've got a top back. Flacco's still got some juice. Excellent DC.

Great pass rushers. What are the preseason? What do you suspect we see at a Denver? Being built on defense, run the ball, try to hit big plays off their run game. You know, eat up clock, shorten games, let their defense play fewer snaps. ideally and therefore let those pass rushers really get after you in those critical situations. I don't believe there'll be an explosive offense. I don't think you'll see a team putting up 30 points very often unless it's a function of defensive turnovers. So there'll be an old school team

the way that they're structured and the way I think Vic Fangio probably believes you win. I think Oakland's interesting because John Gruden said yesterday, kind of giving a hint to Derek Carr, throw it to Antonio Brown. He said, I want Derek Carr to take some big shots down. the field. Well, Antonio Brown left a better offensive line in Pittsburgh and a very good deep ball thrower and now inherits an average offensive line and an average deep ball thrower in terms of Derek only attempted 56 throws last year over 20 yards. So it's an interesting mix. Will Derek Carr and Antonio Brown click? Do you think they do? Well, for me, Derek Carr is a cautious quarterback, much like back Prescott. And I think that what Gruden is probably

trying to get him to do is to be more aggressive. They've got Antonio Brown. They've got Tyrell Williams, a big receiver with under 4-4 speed. I think he's trying to get him to be more aggressive to turn the ball loose. And again, no one wants turnovers, obviously, but this league now offensively is built on, for the most part, has been a cautious quarterback. And I think Gruden knows that from studying him, and he wants him to just be more aggressive. Let's go to the NFC, West. Start with a offensive line is aging may not be as good. Gurley is not going to get the production load this year. Translation, maybe a little more on Jared Goff's shoulders.

Can he handle it? I don't know if that's going to be the case. I had a fascinating discussion with a defensive coordinator that plays the Rams, and I presented a theory to him, Colin, and I believe, I think their run game is scheme-based, not Gurley-based. And the defensive coordinator agrees with me. I think it's a scheme-based offense. Gurley's a good back, no question.

But I think they can get production in their run game, even if Gurley is not the workhorse. I think that you'll see Sean McVeigh do more things personnel-wise and formation-wise. I think he learned last year going through the season into the Super Bowl. Yeah, that's interesting. That is interesting because they paid Gurley a year early, and I had a guy in the NFL tell me, why did they do that? Right. And C.J. Anderson, by the way, came into town and ran the ball fine for him, so to back up your point.

Now, I like the 49ers. I still think they're rebuilding the back end of their defense. I don't think they're a great team. I do think they'll battle for a wild card spot. They are very young at wide receiver. Yes. And so I think there's going to be growing pains. I think they could be better late than early in this season.

What say you? I would agree with that because I think they've got three young receivers that I really like. Dante Pettis, the second-year player, D. Bo Samuel, and Jail and Hurd, who were rookies. I really like those receivers. I loved their work coming. out of college. I thought Tettis in and out of injury last year, quality receiver. So I think they've got

pieces. We know about George Kittle. I think their O line is solid and not great. You know, it's really, Garapolo is going to have to become more consistent. Garapolo is, he's a snap thrower. His accuracy at times. His ball placement is

not exactly what you want. He's not scattershot, but ball placement is a different question from being scattershot. Because Shanhand does a good job, of creating throws, getting the ball to receivers on the move, and you've got to hit them in stride. That's how you gain yards after catch. Garoppolo needs to become a little more consistent in that area. Yeah, that's one of the things Brady and Breeze do very well as older quarterbacks.

They get it to you at the right spot. Seahawks, Chris Carson, they have two backs now. Chris Carson, the seventh rounders, beat out the first rounder Rashad Penny. The O-line coaching is better, not sure if the personnel is. They had an interesting draft. I think they need a couple of young guys to pop. When you look at their overall personnel outside of Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner, do you like it? Well, I think offensively they'll do the same thing they did a year ago.

This is old school. They'll run the ball. Carson fits that exactly. He's a grinder. He's a sustainer. His feet are a little lighter than you think, but he's not explosive by any means. And what they want to do is being second and five and third and three. That's when Russell Wilson is very, very difficult to defend.

So that's what they want. Now, defensively, there's a lot of different. parts. I think we're uncertain as to what they will be. Look, last year they relied on a four-man pass rush. Frank Clark was their most disruptive player up front, and he's not there. So who's that guy? That's a big question right now, because that's the way they want to play. They want to play with the four-man rush being the key to how they go about defense, particularly on third-down situations. So there's some uncertainty in that area for the Seahawks. Arizona, is all of this Kyler Murray, Cliff Kingsbury

talk a lot of hot air because the offensive line is just not equipped to make this team work. It may be the weakest part of their roster and that we're just, you know, Kingsbury's got high cheekbones and Kyler's amazing, but what's it matter if your offensive line can't

sustain any blocks in the running game? What do you make them? I'm going to be interested to see their offensive line because if you just look at the talent, theoretically they should improve as the year progresses. This is not an offensive line. that's terrible. If you go from left to right, what they started anyway in this last preseason game was Humphreys Pugh, Mason, Colt, Sweezy, and Gilbert, the Pittsburgh right tackle.

That as individuals, they're not a terrible group, and I don't know who they're all-line coaches off the top of my head, but if they can improve, Humphreys was a first-round pick, he's been injured a lot. So we'll see, you know, and we'll see what Kingsbury does. He didn't do a whole lot in the preseason, and we'll see what happens when the regular season starts. But their all-line may not be as bad as some think. And then one other question. Andrew Luck Rickard retires. Jacoby Brissette, to me, is good, potentially, but not special.

And I think Chris Ballard, to win that division is going to go for special, to beat Deshaun Watson for the next 10 years. Brissette, what do you see you like and maybe you have pause with? I like him out of college. I think that with Frank Reich as the head coach, he'll speed him up. to Brissette when he played two years ago. He played behind a very poor O-line, but he was a little deliberate in his movement.

They'll speed him up. The nature of that offense will do that. There's a spectacular nature to his game as well. He showed in the preseason some better ability to navigate within the pocket. I like Jacoby Brissette, and I think that this team will still compete. I don't see a significant – I'm not going to sit here until he'll be in the Super Bowl, but I think this team will still be a solid football team, and if they're not, it won't be, in my view, because of Jacoby Brissette. Yeah, by the way, they do have a staple of running backs, none of superstars like Marlon Mac.

Their O-line's good. They upgraded receiver. Their tight-end grouping is spectacular. And frankly, Chris Ballard has upgraded that secondary in the last two years. Actually, it's a very thorough roster if they can get a couple of the young guys to play early out of college. Greg CoSell NFL films over three decades. Great talking to you. Thanks, Colin.

Appreciate it. Man, good stuff. Yeah, John Gruden was quoted yesterday. saying Derek Carr, I want him to air it out. Translation, throw it to A.B. And I don't think Derek's... It's funny when Greg Kosell watches tape, he's like, that's not Derek's personality.

So sometimes dramatic people, not just A.B. He's kind of a dramatic personality. Dramatic people tend to be short-term thinkers, not long-term planners. I think A-B in the moment wanted out of Pittsburgh, but I think he left a better O-line and a better deep ball thrower. I don't think it serves A-B over the rest of his career, and we'll see how that plays out. But Derek's not 56 times last year.

He attempted a throw over 20 yards. It's not what he does. It's like Dak. Dak does not throw the ball deep often. Some guys, you know, all air it out. I watched that kid at Clemson, Trevor Lawrence. That kid, he thinks every ball he throws is going to be caught. Every ball out of his hand.

He's like, that's going to be caught. That was very much John Elway. John Elway, Joe Namath. Guys Marino. Guys with big arms are like, oh, yeah, Brett Farve. Oh, I'll just squeeze it in that little tiny keyhole. Derek's not that guy. Ben is more of that guy, and I think it benefited Antonio Brown.

Good stuff. Oh, by the way, a guy I don't know if I've ever had in the show today. I'm told he's very outspoken, former Raider and former Texan. Greg assures me he's outspoken. A dynamic television personality and joy is coming up next to. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeard Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed the 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 Slic 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? 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 Clever Taylor the 4th. 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 the game. This linebacker, this linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Look, quarterback on office blue 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her.

What? Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. The story I've told myself about love or relationships, can they and shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier.

We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized, but we actually need people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Every Thursday from this point forward for the next 20 weeks, I will make. make three college football picks at the end of my Thursday show, you can actually win money on these. In fact, millions and millions of dollars will be won, just not by one guy, probably. But stick around, end of the show. It'll be in our best for last every Thursday. You know Friday

I do my Blazing Five. But I'm going to start doing college picks, and we'll keep it running total. Feel very good about it. I got three this week. I'm fired up for. I'll try to as much as I can pick the biggest games of the weekend on TV. So I'm not going to pick, you know, some directional school against Panera Bread. I'm picking the games we're all watching. Here's Joy with the News. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news.

This is the Herdline News. Oh, Baker, Baker, Moneymaker. Yeah. It's only his second NFL season. He's already made his name for himself in Cleveland. And now he's going to do it all across the country because he has a new sponsorship with Progressive. He's a partner to show fans that he feels at home. with the Browns, so him and his wife are doing a series of commercials for Progressive, and they're actually kind of funny.

I don't want to watch this. Matt, do it? How about now? No! I just don't know. I mean, I don't know who labeled this thing. Yeah? I like that.

You know, I'm starting to really like this young man. I thought it was cute. I thought it was great. And finding out which circuit is hooked up to what in anyone's house is always impossible. A circus? That is exactly how it goes every single time. Now, that's a really good commercial for Baker Mayfield. He's funny.

His wife's in it. He's likable. He's not cocky. He's kind of can't figure, like the rest of it, he can't figure our house out. Right. Yeah. I mean, that's the vein of the commercial. So there's a couple other ones out there.

But yeah, I like it. It fits Baker. It's like he's like the every man's guy. Yes. And they're cute. And I like that his wife's in it, too. Yeah. Because, by the way, they just.

A brand thing came out yesterday, Joy, about the most popular brands in the NFL. And it wasn't all cool guys. It was some young guys, some old guys, some quarterback. Sometimes it was a running back. But the one thing it wasn't, Odell Beckham wasn't number one. Boring Tom Brady was. So there's a lot of different ways to be popular. You don't have to be cool.

You can be relatable and likable. And you just always be authentic. Be who you are. Yeah. We'll get to that story in one second. But before we get to that, Jerry Jones doesn't seem to be too worried about Zeke's absence from camp. He even thinks it could benefit the Cowboys if Zeke joins the team later in the season. You have to be prepared to play without any given player,

and we may very well play without a player that is not coming in on his contract. So if that's the case, we'll just play. And we'll play, and we'll play well. We've got a marathon here, and we want Zeke when we get to the playoffs. We want Zeke when we're in the dog days of this season. Fresh Zeke, as we got on into the end of the season, would be great. That's one way to look at Zeke missing some games this season. I don't think it's a terrible way to look at it.

The only problem with that theory or approach is you better make the playoffs without Zee. If you just said week one, if you made a decision as a camp, we're not going to sign in week one. It's a roll of the dice. If you lose, you're going to lose leverage. But if you win and you get a win one in O, you can kind of keep playing the roll of the dice game until you have a losing record, can't you? Yeah, you can't you? Yeah, you can. I mean, either it's all is all going to be determined on how the season goes if he misses games.

If they're losing, he's going to gain leverage. If they're winning, he's going to lose leverage. But in the Zeeke's situation, what I don't understand him being two years out and having the experience that Zeeke has had in the NFL with the off-the-field issues and the way that the Cowboys backs him up, to me, I don't understand where he feels like he has the leverage to be paid more than Todd Gurley in this situation. And I understand that, you know, you obviously want to get the most amount of money. money. And I'm all four guys getting paid. But the offer that at least the team put out there is between Todd Gurley and Levy on Bell, which is between $13 to

$14 million. Right. And you're coming in at $17 million, allegedly two years out from your deal while having missed games for suspension, it all feels like a bit of a stretch, which is why I'm still, I guess I'm just kind of hoping that they get the deal done before week one, but it's going to be

interesting how it plays out, especially if Jerry's going to hold strong to keeping Zeke fresh into the into the season. So finally, you mentioned it a few seconds ago. Tom Brady is arguably the best NFL player of all the time, certainly does quarterback of all time. And now he takes the top spot in another category. According to a sports business journal poll, Tom Brady is the most marketable player in the NFL. Fascinating list, isn't it? It is. If I was to just tell you who would you think was the most marketable, I think most people's guests would be O'Dell. Because we all kind

of consider Odell to be, you know, the NBA player of the NFL. He's very, he's international. He's young. He's huge on social media. Patrick Mahomes, I would have guessed one, Odell two. Because Patrick plays the quarterback. Yeah. I would just say Odell just because he's more international than Patrick Mahomes. But Tom Brady, followed by Patrick Mahomes, then Odell. Fourth is Baker Mayfield, then Saquan Barclay. Makes sense. New York. Aaron Rogers, then J.J.J. Watt. Juju Smith Schuster is kind of interesting. Yeah. Drew Brees. And then Dak Prescott. So not. Could I make.

this argument. So two or three of those players, Baker Mayfield and Juju Smith-Schuster are two guys that have engineered a lot of their own marketing. So they didn't depend on anybody. Ju-Ju went out and said, I'm going to market. Baker went out and said, I'm going to market.

Longevity obviously helps Brady, Breeze Aaron Rogers. The brand of the Cowboys clearly helps Dak. The city of New York clearly helps Sequin Barkley. I mean, if he played for Cincinnati. You know, Joe Mixon's good too.

What's fascinating about the list is it shows there is no one way to be. There is no handbook on this thing. You got young, old, self-promoters, non-promoters. JJ Watts also done a great job with his own brand. He's really done a lot of self-promotion, very smart stuff. It's a fascinating list. The one thing that sticks out to me about this list is all these guys on here have done, I mean, aside from Drew Brees, who I don't think has a.

a pretty big social media following. If he does, I hadn't noticed. But mostly everyone on here takes advantage of social media in a big way. I mean, Patrick Mahomes, obviously, League MVP, like, that makes sense. He's now in that conversation with Tom Brady. But Tom Brady has, as of late, especially with Tom versus Time. And now, you know, his Instagram, he's grown in that way as well, which is obviously a huge marketing tool that all companies are using now in social media.

So Tom Brady thing didn't, it didn't shock me. But it is interesting because you don't think of Tom Brady as being this dynamic personality. And, you know, his commercials are not really like him talking or doing like Baker-like stuff. Put the list up again. This is also the great thing about the NFL. It's the shield, right? It's always the shield. So the players are from Kansas City, Cleveland, Cleveland, Green Bay, Pittsburgh, New Orleans.

Like, this is where the NFL. I've always said the NFL should borrow some marketing from the United States. the NBA. Yeah. But don't become the NBA. The NBA is star-driven, often becomes overly beholden to MJ or magic. Look at the cities here. It's irrelevant where you play in this league. And it's also a good mixture of non-quarterbacks as well. Yes. And even a defensive player, which is good. And that was my argument for something that the NFL should take from the NBA, because that year that we had all those injuries, it's like you need to develop your stars and their brands more. Who's the only player on that list?

Who is yet to be defined as a great player? Dak, obviously. And then I would argue Ju-Ju. Like this year is Juju's year to show that he can fill Antonio Brown's shoes as a superstar. He's already a star, but... I was going to say Baker and Dak are not yet, to me, the production... Yeah, Baker, yeah. But in both cases, Baker's been very self-promoting.

Dak has Jerry promoting. So even among those two, the least productive guys in the list, there's two different ways they got there. Right. So there is no absolute. There's no formula. There is no formula. Be authentic to yourself. Sometimes the brand helps you sometimes.

The city doesn't really matter, though, much in the... I think New York does help Sequin, but it's as much about the franchise as the city. Joy with the News. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Heard Lye News. You know, I saw another list today. not to go too listy here, because we got

Stanford route coming up from the Texans and the Oakland Raiders. Warren Sharp will be joining us in studio. Mr. Analytics, fascinating stuff. But I, you know, I saw a list. This came down today. I don't even know guys who gave me this list. It's the most division titles and playoff berths

since realignment in 2002. And all of the top five teams, at the top, it's all about the quarterback. New England, Indy, Green Bay, Seattle, and Pittsburgh. Brady Peyton Manning and Luck, Aaron Rogers, Farrve,

Russell Wilson, and Big Ben. So at the top, you get the quarterback right, get a star, you go in a lot of games. But what's interesting is the bottom 10 are not all about lousy quarterbacks. It's about weak ownership. Titans, Jets, Redskins, Bucks, Jags, Lions, Raiders, Dolphins,

bills, Browns. Now, Shod Khan at Jacksonville is respected among owners. He hadn't been around the league months. so it doesn't have much of a profile. But by and large, in the NFL, the quarterback guarantee, a star quarterback guarantees at least a modicum of success. This is why I doubt Cleveland. Baker Mayfield is clearly good enough to win playoff games.

Tim Tebow won a playoff game. Brock Osloidler won a playoff game. Blake Bortles got to the AFC championship and was a play from the Super Bowl. Rex Grossman got to a Super Bowl. It's not that Baker can't win games. myopic Cleveland guy. My doubts are upstairs. If you go look since realignment,

the teams with the fewest playoff bursts, it is bad owners. I mean, if you told me make a list of the owners that you doubt, 10 of the 12 are right there. That's the Cleveland issues. We know Baker can win games. I'm not worried about that. I mean, again, Tim Tebow and Brock Osweiler won playoff games.

Blake Bortle has won a lot of playoff games. Rex Grossman, good arm, not much. much else. They won't playoff games. That's not the question. Baker can win playoff games. But did they hire the right coach? Did they hire the right GM? They hired a GM who had been fired. They hired a coach who the GM can push around who didn't have any real coordinating experience of note. That's always the issue. That's why I picked Pittsburgh. Owner, Pittsburgh over Cleveland. GM, Pittsburgh over Cleveland. Coach, Pittsburgh over Cleveland. Quarterback, Pittsburgh over Cleveland. O-line, Pittsburgh over Cleveland. That's my big five.

And it starts with ownership. The Roonies have been unbelievable. I mean, they've had three football coaches since I was born. Chuck Knoll, Bill Cower, Mike Tomlin. I don't know when Chuck Knoll got the job, but it was around, you know, I know he was there in 1973 and four or five when I was watching the Steelers as a kid. All right. Good stuff.

Got my college football picks next hour. Warren Sharpen. Stanford Rout, former Rader, former Texan, right around the corner. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd. weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHard 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

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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, Tript 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.

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What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. 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, 42. A rep, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Ms. Parker. Listen to The Cliverts show on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior,

and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized, but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more.

Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Stanford Rout played eight NFL seasons initially drafted by the Raiders, then some stops with the Chiefs and the Texans. He played at the University of Houston. Now does sports radio. Now you're in our world. Sports Radio 610 in Houston. Good for you. And Stanford Rout is joining us.

All right. So the Houston's become very fascinating because of a variety of. reasons. Number one, there's three holdouts in the NFL. Well, there's two. There's Zeke and there's Melvin Gordon, but you've got a Jadavian Clowney situation where now that Andrew Luck, Stanford, is out of the division.

I don't know if I can justify paying two great pass rushers, because now I got the best quarterback to Sean Watson. I would move Clowny and I would go get offensive line help because I saw him get hit 19 times last year against Buffalo. In the city of

Houston on sports radio, if I proposed that because Clowny's still a really good player. He's out offensive linemen in. Would that float? Would that fly? I think that if you bring in a top-notch offensive lineman, somebody who's the upper echelon in the league, I think that the fan base probably could get behind that. But seeing Chedebion, over the last couple years, become one of the top defensive players in the league, has been to three Pro Bowls in his first five seasons. That is something that's going to be a hard sell unless it's going to be an upper echelon type of an offensive lineman who's a difference maker. Okay, so in a league

where past rushers matter, it doesn't feel like I mean, this is my takeaway. They don't have a GM, Houston. So it's Bill O'Brien's making all the moves. Is it possible that Bill O'Brien's just more into J.J.J. Watton is not into Jadavian Clowney. That happens. That's what a lot of it is,

especially the growing sentiment around the city of Houston and even my belief is that I don't think Bill O'Brien likes Jadabion Clowny. Now, I don't think that it has anything to do with what's on the field. I think personally, he just is not a Jadevion Clownie fan, but you look at a player like him of his caliber. Obviously, you can't bench him because he's a great player and obviously he's a difference

maker. But I think that in times like this, whenever it's a contract situation, when a player is up for a free agent contract. Get personal. Exactly. That's when you see that if the coach really likes the player, he'll bring him back at the number he wants. If they don't like the player, obviously you'll see he'll just go on to Greener Pastures.

And I think that's what's happening right now. Is it that Clownie is, uh, uh, he's had. some injuries, but he's mostly after his rookie year played 15 games a year. He tends to be a great highlight player. There are been games I've watched him where I think he sort of disappears, but he makes explosive dominating plays. Is it quite possible that JJ Watts just more consistent, more productive, and the coach is like, I'm not paying both of you? Or do you think it's, well, what would be the genesis for the problems? I think that Jadavion Kani obviously wants to be the highest paid defensive player in NFL history. And in this climate of the NFL, when it comes to

free agency, the latest guy is going to be the highest paid at his position in NFL history. That's just how it goes. And I think for JJ Watt actually going 2016, 2017, missing pretty much both of those seasons to injury, and then coming back with a vengeance last year in 2018, I think that's when ownership, the front office is like, okay, you know what, let's pump the brace, because I think they were already to give Jadawian County that big monstrous deal. But when JJ came back, now just to your point, you got $200 million. defensive linemen.

And Andrew Luck's gone. Yeah, so I think that that's pretty much what I think halted the deal on top of Bill O'Brien, obviously having his qualms with Chenevianne, whatever they may be, he clearly has something. So I think that playing alongside JJ obviously is going to be something that could be a detriment to certain players because you get overshadowed by how good JJ is. Let's talk about Andrew Luck. Obviously, he had his way with Tennessee.

He often had his way with Houston. He had his way with the division, to be honest with that. He kind of owned the division. So I said the other day, it really changes the division. I mean, Tennessee, I think Tennessee's 0-12 against Andrew Luck. To me, they'll be 2-0 against Jacoby Brissette, who I like. I don't love, but I like. So let's talk about the Andrew Luck situation.

As a former player who is now in the media, when Andrew Luck went out and you're texting with all your buddies, and some of them are saying stuff, you wouldn't report on the air. But were there some guys that said, I said, dude, we're a week out of the season. I mean, I get you were beat up, but a week out? Have there been any guys that have texted you in the league that didn't love the luck retirement and thought Andrew could have picked a better time? There hasn't been anybody that's texted me and actually said that,

but I get why some people have their issues with that because the timing is horrible. Horrible. But to me, that's why I give a lot of respect to him because for him to do it at that time, obviously shows that he really had that harsh talk with himself is that, you know what, I just want to walk away. I remember that something you said on your show a while back about how oftentimes

as men, whenever we come to that harsh decision, a lot of times we make it when we're by ourselves just in the car. And that's probably what when he made that decision, that you know what, my heart's not in it. And I need to go ahead and just walk away from this because you could tell that he's mentally worn down. He's tired of the cycle of playing, injured, rehab, rehab. Go back, Stanford, go back to your career.

Okay, very good player. You didn't play 14 years. So you're eight years in. You had a good college career. What was the car the moment that drive the epiphany? Was there something about it to you was I don't feel good? Yeah, I think that for me, it just got to a point where, you know what, I don't have the love for this that I once had. And let me go ahead and just bow out gracefully.

I made pretty good amount of money throughout my year's playing. I'm still healthy. I can go ahead and do other things, going to broadcasting, coaching, what have you. So everybody's going to reach that plateau, or should I say reach that moment in their career where they realize, you know what, I do need to go ahead and walk away. Oftentimes, I've always heard that within this league, you're either going to leave this league two years too early or you're going to leave it two years too late. And a lot of times some guys leave it two years too late, their bodies broke up,

they're worn down mentally, and they're not able to have a fruitful life after football because of obviously physical issues, maybe even mental, things like that. Sometimes guys leave it early. I'd much rather see a player leave two years too early than rather two years too late. Let's go. There was a list that came out. It was interesting. A list came out today, my staff got it to me.

Since 2002, realignment, the winning his teams and the losing his teams. Now, the winningest teams, the top five, they all have Hall of Fame quarterbacks. Russell, Wilson, Ben, Aaron, Peyton, Luck, you know, Brady, that's easy to figure out. but the bottom 10 teams, it wouldn't know it was about the quarterback. I looked at that list and I was like, these are crappy owners. Oh, boy. Okay, you played Chiefs, Raiders, Texans. Does ownership matter to a player?

Ownership does not matter until it comes to contract time, unless you have a lot of turmoil within the organization, a lot of things that are just outrageous. But for the most part, day-to-day, ownership does not really matter to a player. No, it does not. Did you have one of your three teams? Was there an owner that you liked more? Oh, obviously, Al Davis, God rest his soul.

I think he's one of the best owners in all of sports history. I know some people would probably push back on that. Well, the end he wasn't great, but he was a maverick when he started. His first 30, 40 years, he was a maverick. Yes, and I think that so much is misconstrued about the situation in Oakland because a lot of people say that he was control-free. And, yes, Al Davis was very hands-on. In Kansas City and in Houston, the ownership was willing to let the coach's coach,

let the GM oversee the team, things like that. Now, in Oakland, conversely, where the issue was is that because Al was so hands-on, you had a lot of pushback from the coaches. So it would be a power struggle. So you could have a situation where Al may want a certain kid to play. And the coach is like, okay, I don't really think he's that good. I don't want him to play. So you would have the coach literally put the kid out there because that's what the ball says.

But he'll put him in positions not to be successful, also he can basically go back and be like, see, I told you he couldn't play. And a lot of people didn't realize that, but there was a lot of that going on within the organization. Yes. By the way, how do you think the Antonio Brown-Darick-Car situation works? And I said, listen, there are people that are just more dramatic and expressive. My wife's an artist. She's expressive.

Okay? If she's mad at me, she tells me. And so she's an expressive person. The upside of that is you get a very creative person, a very expressive person. Many comedians are expressive and performers. The downside is sometimes those people want to win the moment. Long-term planning isn't smart, but they're funny as hell in the moment, right? They make decisions based on high emotion.

Antonio Brown's a very emotional guy. I think long-term, he made a mistake leaving Big Ben. He made a mistake leaving that offensive line. Big Ben's one of the best deep-ball throwers of my life. I don't think Derek Carr's a great deep-ball thrower. I don't know if it works in Oakland. Do you think it works? I don't think it's going to work from Antonio Brown's standpoint as far as what he likes the number of targets, the balls he's going to be catching, the plays he's going to have on the field.

Now, obviously, he wanted more money. He got his money. The Oakland Raiders gave it to him. They granted his wish. But I think Antonio Brown's days of 1,500 receiving yards, leading the league in receptions, I think those days are probably going to be behind him, not because he's losing a step, but simply he's in a different organization. He's in a different situation. Big Ben, like you said, it's going to get the ball to him. Pittsburgh, like you said, plenty of times.

I mean, name a team that's better at drafting receivers than developing them within the NFL right now. You think about this too, Stanford, is that Oakland's O-Line is, at best, a work in progress. The Chargers in their division and Denver both have great pass rushes. So for Antonio Brown to run deep routes, Derek Carr has got to have time. that division has two of the best four. I mean, let's be honest. Von Miller, Bradley Chubb in Denver. You're playing them twice.

Then it's Bosa and Ingram in the Chargers. You're playing them twice. Thank God, Kansas City got rid of D. Ford and Justin Houston, or you'd have to play six of the best pass rushers in football. So I do think sometimes, I don't think it's going to be a great fit for AB. He'll have yards. He's a very good player. If I just said to you, who do you like out of the AFC?

Obviously, we always got to go with it. no other Patriots. Until somebody unseats them, they're always going to be the class of the AFC. NFC, I think that's a toss-up. I think there's so many good teams. Dallas, obviously, if they get this Ezekiel Elliott situation figured out, I think Dallas could be a team that actually could maybe not go to the NFC title

game, but they're going to be a tough out in the playoffs. Philadelphia, you got Carson Wentz coming back. I think that obviously the Los Angeles Rams, they're not just going to disappear after that Super Bowl loss. I think the Green Bay, Aaron. Rogers is going to come back with a vengeance this year, seeing so much bad press, so many bad things being said about in this past offseason.

Good stuff. We got to run. Stanford Route 6-10 in Houston, the herd. 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. Warren Sharp,

majored, got an engineering degree from Virginia Tech. But, I mean, who wants to do that, right? I mean, come on, let's talk football. So Warren decides I want to get into football analytics. Sharpfootballanalysis.com. He's been doing it for a decade. About three years ago, I noticed him. And I said, let's get him on the show.

What I love about what you do is that I trust my eyes a lot. Most of us do. I like analytics, but I let you guys chase those down. I trust my eyes. I think it's fun when analytics say, Colin, your eyes are deceiving you. Now, I do think in most instances, my eyes are mostly right. but there are things that go against the grain. So my eyes tell me

New England's good with analytics. Are they? Yes. New England has a lot. Move that Mike a little closer. New England has a lot of things that they do behind the scenes that we don't know about. So unlike some teams like the Philadelphia Eagles,

who will tell you more about what they're doing with analytics, the Patriots are looking at a lot of things. They're exploring the edges of the rulebook. They're exploring everything that they can possibly look at to gain an advantage in the league. And that's what more teams should look to do. Are there teams in the league that frustrate you and do not or are more predictable and not necessarily anti-analytics, but don't lean on them as much as they should?

Yes. I mean, any team that is running the ball too much on early downs is giving up efficiency. And when you're able to take advantage of the fact that passing is more efficient than running the football, that's when you're going to gain a bigger advantage in the league. So there are too many teams that are a little bit old school in their thought process. Give me a couple. Well, I know a team that you like is the Tennessee Titans. God!

And I don't know if this has to do with Marcus Mariotta and the lack of confidence there. Obviously, they didn't sign him to a new deal. They're letting him play out as fifth year option. But, you know, that's a team that should be throwing the football more often than they are. And they're resorting to too much running with Derek Henry. All right. Let's talk about Jacoby Brissette. Andrew Luxe out.

Jacoby Brissette's in. Vegas goes from nine and a half to six and a half wins, right? It's like the – I tend to think they're around five. What an analytics say on the drop-off? Well, a lot of people don't know this because they look at Jacoby Brissette and they say this is a four-and-12 quarterback from 2017. But the reality is the Indianapolis Colts in 2017 led entering the fourth quarter in nine of Berset's 15 starts. Wow. They're the only team in the last 20 years to enter the fourth quarter at least nine times with a lead and only win four games.

Wow. So they were a lot better than what they looked. Now they've also upgraded the defense, Warren. so they were losing leagues because they were terrible on the back end of their defense. That and predictable play calling. They got rid of that coaching staff. The offense corner, they were running too much Frank Gore late in those games when Marlon Mack was far more efficient in the fourth quarters. They also were very predictable from a personnel standpoint.

Anytime they had three wide receivers on the field, they passed the ball. If they had less than three wide receivers on the field, they ran the ball. That's how they lost so many leads in the fourth quarter in 2017. This year, I love their head coach, the play calling ability that they have. massively upgraded offensive line, I think they're going to be less predictable. And like you mentioned, their defense is better. How about that? How about that? That's interesting.

So you start looking at Jacoby Brissette. Don't take earlier numbers. Much better roster around him, much better play caller around him. Okay, we were talking about if I ran an NFL team, I would rarely pay big money to a running back for a second contract. Now, that's not saying I wouldn't pick one in the first round. If I thought he was the best player available and we had a hole, I would draft him. But it is a position I'd be cautious with big money beyond the third or fourth year.

Analytics. With Zeke, my takeaway is Tony Pollard's pretty good, and they got a lot of mouse to feed, and the offensive line is healthier. If Dallas's offensive line was getting old and wasn't healthy coming in, I'd probably be more willing to pay him. What do the numbers say on Dallas's dependence on Zeke? It is as big as I keep hearing on the talk shows. Well, it's interesting because I think there's two keys that are very difficult.

The waters are muddied to separate in the NFL with things depending upon one another. The first is a play caller and the quarterback. It's very difficult to separate out a quarterback from his play caller. You can have a great play caller who can elevate a mediocre quarterback. Look at Jared Goff for one example. And the second thing is the offensive line and a running back. It's very difficult to separate out exactly what is this running back bringing to the table that the offensive line and a replacement running back couldn't do without that elite running back.

So in Dallas's situation, they've got the most expensive running offensive line. The highest paid offensive line the last two years, they're getting their centerback, Travis Frederick this year. I think they're going to be a really good run team with or without Ezekiel Elliott. The way that Dallas is going to win games later in the season is going to come down to new play caller Kellyn Moore and how dynamic is this offense going to be. and Dak Prescott's ability to pass the football. It's not necessarily going to be whether or not Zeke is there to carry the ball 25 times during the game.

It's going to be can they pass the ball well and call the efficient plays on early downs to build leads? You know, Aaron Rogers took a lot of heat for Mike McCarthy, and I think it should be duly noted that the relationship was fine for most of it. You know, there are marriages that are not chaotic, and then in year 15, there's an issue, and for 14 to the 15, it could be a fine marriage. he and McCarthy won a Super Bowl. They won a bunch of games. They won the division.

It deteriorated late. So here comes Matt Lafleur, a one-year coordinator, who can be, from what I'm told, not always great in the room, can be kind of blunt, but he is a young, kind of a progressive thinker. My gut feeling is this is a better personality fit. You know, McCarthy always looked like a Milwaukee cop, and Aaron looks like an L.A. model.

These guys, even standing next to each other, may be similar thinkers. when you look at the analytics of what LaFleur did, again with a different level quarterback and Aaron Rogers, what are your hunches here on Green Bay, Matt and Aaron? It's interesting because I can paint the picture both ways. You know, in Tennessee, LeFleur ran the ball more often and less efficiently than in either season of the exotic smash mouth, which preceded his arrival. That is scary.

But it could be because he had Marcus Mariotta, quarterback. He has said, though, that he wants to build behind the run game. And when you have a quarterback like Aaron Rogers, I don't think you should be building behind the run game. But I think there are going to be a lot of things that he's going to bring to the table that are different than what Mike McCarthy had that are going to improve this team. Like what? Okay.

I think that they're going to be more dynamic with their play action game, utilize play action a little bit more. They're going to throw the football to running backs a little bit more on first down, which Green Bay never did that. And Green Bay, when they did throw to running backs, actually averaged 7.3 yards per pass attempt, which is a very high number, respectively, toward, you know, among running backs in the league when you throw the football to them. And additionally, I think he's going to use more dynamic personnel. One of the things that was really good about Green Bay last year is they were very efficient when they passed the ball at a 12 personnel,

but they used 72 percent 11 personnel. So far this preseason, the offense is down to 50 percent usage of 11 personnel, and they've really ratcheted up, 12 and 21 personnel, which is a heavier personnel grouping, should make it a little bit easier for Aaron Rogers to pass the ball because they'll be less predictable. It might look like run to the defense, but they're actually passing out of that formation, and I think it's going to benefit them.

A position in the NFL that's sort of fascinating to me is wide receiver. I've said before, if I owned a team, there are certain things that matter to me. One of the big ones is, does your production help us win? Odell Beckham's biggest games in New York, the one-handed catch game, they lost. His big production games did not necessarily translate to wins. J.J. Watt, many of his greatest games, didn't produce wins.

If Tom Brady or Aaron Rogers have big games, they win. And I look at wide receivers, and, you know, I look at how DAC forced the ball to DES, and how 10 of 16 Big Ben interceptions were two Antonio Brown. When you look at analytics on wide receivers like AB, the star wide receiver can be a game breaker. But I do feel there's a psychology that quarterbacks feel like I've got to feed him the ball or I'm going to hear it on the sidelines from this highly emotional player. Is there anything on analytics that state that sometimes the great receiver talent can be at times a burden as much as a benefit? Because that's what my eyes tell me. Yeah, and it is true.

I am very against the stats that say, if this guy has so many catches or if this guy has so many targets, then the team has this record, right? It's about what is our most optimal play to call in any given situation. And if a quarterback is matched up on a backup cornerback is matched up on a wide receiver, you should attack that guy more often. If you have an advantage and it's in your interest, then go ahead and attack him. But oftentimes you've got the number one DB lined up on your number one wide receiver. and it might be in your advantage to take the double team and go the opposite side of the field. So you really just have to call plays that are in your best interest every single time that you're out there. It's a small sample size sport.

We have a limited number of play calls offensively. You can't just feed a certain guy the ball because you think you need to. You need to go after the most efficient targets at the best time to go after them. If I said, give me a player in the NFL that plays quarterback. the glamour position that is better than people think. That if you carve out the numbers, he's simply better than maybe his record. He's had bad coaching, bad old lines. Kirk Cousins feels like he's paid more than he's worth.

That's a different argument. Is there an underrated quarterback in this league that has been undercoached and underprotected fewer weapons that he deserves? I don't know about fewer weapons. I do think of the quarterbacks that are kind of like in the middle tiers. I look at a guy like Ben Rothesberger, and I say that Ben Rothesberger, it's going to be really interesting what he does this upcoming season. But, you know, nobody knew anything about A.B. when he first came into the league, right, and look at what he's done in Pittsburgh. Ben Rothesberger gets a lot out of that offense. So I think that Ben Rostberger is a guy who's a little bit in that second tier of quarterbacks that is a little bit underrated or overlooked when you're looking at the landscape of good quarterbacks.

I've always argued that Cam's had better weapons. He's had three different offensive linemen make a pro bowl. Greg Olson will get Hall of Fame boats. He's had some pretty good running backs. McCaffrey's certainly a nifty player. Wide receivers hit and miss on those, but his defenses, five in eight years as a starter have been top ten. I've always argued that Cam's had better talent than people in Charlotte want to acknowledge.

Do you believe that to be true? I think so in general. Cam's an interesting guy because he's so unique. He runs the ball more often. He's very efficient when he's running the ball in short-guarded situations. I mean, he brings a dynamic to that team that most other quarterbacks don't bring because of the ability to run the football. And a lot of times, that's extremely valuable for an offense is a quarterback who can run.

But in terms of his downfield passing and his accuracy, I've been impressed with what Norv Turner did with him last season. There was no question. He was better last year. I thought so. Yeah, oh, definitely. Better than I thought, too. I was worried about that marriage between the two, and I mentioned earlier how it's very difficult to separate out a play caller from a quarterback. And I was worried about how that dynamic was going to work, but it ended up working out really well in Carolina.

And I think that Carolina, even though I agree with you on Cam, I think Carolina is a team that is built to surprise some people this upcoming season. I mean, they're predicted to finish third in that division, seven and a half wins. I think this is a team that is at least a 500 team. Good stuff. Sharpfootball analysis.com. He's an analytics guru, an engineering guy. It's amazing how many analytic people do not come initially from sports. They come from math or engineering, and they figure out very early, sports is way more fun. I'm sure that's not.

Way more. Way more fun. Warren's great to see you again. Thank you. All right, Joy with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news.

So Zeke and Melvin Gordon have been huge holdout stories through the preseason. And one former player who supports these stars waiting for more money is Hall of Famer, Ladanian Tomlinson. He told Yahoo Sports that he advises young guys today to take notes from the NBA. Think like a basketball player. Don't be caught up and staying with just one team or saying, oh, I want to be with this team so bad that I'm willing to take less. It's a business. I was fortunate the team said, you're right.

We're going to pay you like this. so I didn't have to hold out. I was prepared to do that. But I tell these young guys that right now, you've got to think like a basketball player. Now, he reconstructed the deal with the Chargers in 2009 to give the team some cap relief. And Barry Sanders agreed with Tomlinson.

And he said, I had to hold out several times in Miss Camp. Yes, absolutely get your money. You've got to do it. And he also praised Levyon Bell for leveraging his financial worth last year. Now, obviously, we don't like to compare the NBA and the NFL when it comes to money in contracts because really they aren't comparable. There's so many more guys you have to pay in the NFL. It's a hard salary cap.

Who even understands how the salary cap works in the NBA anymore? And there's really no such thing as a bad contract in the NBA, as we've seen with Chris Paul. I mean, you can pretty much get out of any contracts. You can really wiggle out of bad contracts. You have a lot more. Except John Wall, that's the last. Yeah, that's a huge outlier. So you don't want to use that as the standard for how those contracts work.

Because for the most part, you can move around. But I do understand what he's saying. There is this idea associated with the NFL because it is, shield and it's a different culture that you have some sort of loyalty that you have to display to the team and there's, you know, obviously Tom Brady is notorious for giving the Patriots pay cut. So he's kind of set the standard of, you know, what it takes to be the top player on a team and make it work for everyone else, although I don't think that that's really fair when you have, you know, a combined net worth as a family of over $500 million.

But that said, there is something to giving the team as Le Damien Thomas. some cap relief by reconstructing your deals. These guys are trying to get paid, and the position, as Barry Sanders and with Danny Thomas in play, as we've talked about today, has become very replaceable and interchangeable. For the record, folks, most of the great athletes all do get paid. I mean, I know we talk about the guys not getting paid. Zeke's going to get paid.

Right, right. It may not be 17, it'll be 15. But let's not make this out to be Zeke goes from 17 million his wishes to 6. Melvin Gordon is going to get $8 million a year. He's probably not just going to get $11.5. So most of the athletes who we all think deserve the check, they get the check. In fact, I'd say there's far more overpaid players than there are underpaid. Right.

And holding out of camp only is dramatic when it's a situation like Zique or Belvin Gordon where you're in that championship window where it's going to affect things. And interestingly enough, Levion Bell and Todd Gurley are very interesting cases because Steelers did not make the playoffs last year without Levy on Bell. And then Todd Gurley is the standard for the contracts of the highest paid. And he was in the Super Bowl and did nothing and they lost. So to me, it's just a pendulum swing. Like it's some years running backs are highly valued and get all the money.

And then some years it's like this where we feel like they're interchangeable. And if you're up for a contract, it's harder to get the high-end money. So we reported yesterday the NFL is looking for ways to shorten the preseason without losing the revenue that the preseason brings in. And according to Mark Maskey of the Washington Post, the league will likely focus on expanding the playoffs instead of the regular season with a shortened preseason because the talk was will increase the regular season to 18 games if we lose preseason games in order to make up the revenue. Obviously, the NFLPA is not interested in expanding the regular season because of all kinds of issues, money, injuries. You have potential health problems there. Now, that change would give each conference seven playoff teams, eliminate one of the two buys and one of the six first round games.

could also be played on Monday nights. Do you like this as an alternative if they lose preseason games? Yeah, anything to get rid of the preseason. I'm for, I'm not for extending the regular season. I think it's kind of an interesting idea to add a playoff team to each division because that will not only ensure two more cities get in, which is good, but it will ensure probably three to four more cities in each conference, at least at the end of the season, think they can get in.

So I'm a big believer in hope. I think baseball season's too long, and 30% of the league is out by the All-Star break, and 70% is out two weeks after that. I like the longer fans think we got a shot. Yeah, no, the sense of urgency in the NFL is perfect. Every game matters to the highest level, every down, everything is important. If you add games, it's going to change the urgency level. I think it'll change the game entirely.

So this, to me, is the best solution that's been presented for how to shorten the preseason and keep the revenue, which we all know is not fun, but it's also very important to everyone involved with the sport. So I like this as an alternative to that. Finally, Cowboys are stuck. The three top offensive players are looking for new deals. The Sikh is holding out. Zach and Amaria at camp,

but the Cowboys are open to contract extension to the season with them. But Jerry was asked how he is working to get these deals done, and he says he prefers to deal directed with the players. Oh, I'm sure he does. When you cut out people in between the money, and the player. We all know that agents, attorneys, all have their agenda. By the way, they're all taking money out of the pie, too, when they're there. And so the straighter it goes from the source to the one receiving it nine times out of ten, that's more efficient. Don't fall for it,

an anonymous NFL agent said that team is notorious for trying to go around the agent, going right to the players and getting the player to believe, hey, it's better to be a Dallas Cowboy and take less money and be here. In this case, the difference is Zeke and even Dak and Amari Cooper. They're not buying it. So maybe Jerry's started to get a little frustrated because some of his old tricks aren't working. You cannot deal directly with the player if they have representation. But I would tell my player if I was an agent, there's no state tax in Dallas over the course of a huge contract. That's a savings. And you are going to get with the Cowboys quarterback, more endorsements. So there are some benefits to where Jerry's like, listen, you're going to lose

$13 million of this contract was for the Rams, the 49ers, or the Raiders. No, no, no, for sure. There are definite benefits. Obviously, the state tax thing is huge. Trust me, you live in California. I don't even think about it. We don't even talk about it because it makes everyone upset instantly. So we don't even acknowledge it.

It's just something that we all deal with and we're just in it together. Thank God we have good weather. Yes. That is the trade-off for that. But there's that. Being with the Cowboys, you have a lifetime of appearance money and Jerry is notorious for keeping a family structure. You know, you can always go back.

They're like, there's clearly benefits and the money may equal out. But again, it's just, it's not legal to deal directly with the player. Like, according to the CBA and labor laws, like, if you have representation, you got to go through them. Yeah. And that's the way. You know, it's just Jerry. It's funny that he admits that. Players should have representation.

Yes. Absolutely. It would be a billionaire versus a 21-year-old kid would not be fair. Yeah, it's not nonsense. Enjoy with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The herd my news.

All right. I'm so excited. I'm going to debut something here from Thursdays for the next 20 weeks minimum. I'm going to do the marquee three. I'm going to give you my favorite college football bets of the weekend. I got them all lined up. You can win money. I'll explain it.

It's coming up next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the I Hard 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 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 beaders 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 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, suit 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. Kier Gains is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clivert Taylor the 4th. 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? Where's she at? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast.

The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility. of connection. This mental health awareness month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-mastery in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized. But we actually, actually meet people in connection.

If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more. Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. All right, I've been doing Blazing Five for a long time. And I've never, you know, I have success at it. I love it. But everybody knows.

I get people coming up to me all the time. you love college football. And I'm like, yesterday we had a Joel Klatt segment. I got so much feedback on that. I love college football. It was the first sport I really fell in love with. I grew up in the Pacific Northwest. We had the University of Washington.

They were more prominent before the Seahawks were. So I was a college football fan. Then I moved to the South. So I'm a huge college football fan. And Fox Sports Bet is now a real thing at our company. And I said, let's come back to our roots. Let's do college football picks on Thursday. I will give you three picks every Thursday.

I will try to get you. games that are somewhere on TV. I want to pick the SEC game. You know, the Oregon game, the Ohio State, the Michigan, the Texas, the Oklahoma, as often as possible, a game that we can all watch together. So here we go, debuting it, our marquee three. Ready to make some sweet cash, Colin's going to give you his three sure bets for the college football weekend. It's time for the Fox Bet Markey 3, Auburn versus Oregon. All right, this is the biggest game. Oregon 11th ranked Auburn 16. They're playing on a neutral field in Dallas, and that is a real thing. Oregon's got a significant edge at quarterback, but I don't trust them. Oregon's become, and I talk to their head

coach about this, at some length about a month ago, Mario Cristobal. When you get them out of Otson Stadium over the last two years, they're awful. Outside of Ottson Stadium, they're four and eight, which makes no sense when you're a really good football team with a first round NFL quarterback and many perceive a very good coach against non-conference opponents, the last four games they placed them, ranked, I should say non-conference opponents, they're 0-4. Oregon has got to prove to me they can get away from Outson Stadium and win. And frankly, when SEC teams play Pac-12 teams, you know where I'm going to lean unless it's in a Pac-12 stadium. Auburn has won 11 of 13 of the last openers.

everybody loves Oregon's offensive line, but Auburn returns all five of their offensive linemen. Auburn was top three in the SEC and sacks. They always get after the quarterback. I'm going to take Auburn to win a very close football game despite a significant quarterback advantage. I'm going to take the SEC team in the trenches to win the game late, run the football,

27 to 23 in coverage. Northwestern at Stanford. Okay, so now Northwestern is getting six points here. They're the underdogs. So Northwestern's getting six points. I like Northwestern in the upset, and if nothing else, I like them to cover the spread. Here's why. They were very good at the end of last year.

They won eight of their last 10. Took them a while to figure out who they were. They got very hot late. They were also a great road team. Northwestern went 5 and 0 on the road last year, often played better on the road. Nobody's seen their quarterback players, named as Hunter Johnson. He went to Clemson. He was a five-star recruit.

You know why he transferred to Northwestern? because they have Trevor Lawrence, and he's like, I want to play. And he's a smart kid, and he went to Northwestern. He's a big-time talent. Northwestern, I don't think he's had a quarterback this talented in the history of their program. Stanford last year could not run the football, not very Stanford. They had their worst defensive team in several years. Again, Northwestern, very well coached, has an excellent quarterback.

Six points is a ton in this game. And frankly, Stanford, K.J. Costello, been a little, beat up in camp. I'm going to go with the healthier team. Upset City. 24, 23. I love the six points here. Win or not? Too many points to give Northwestern. Fresno State and USC. I don't think this USC staff is intact at the beginning of next year. But I like USC here, even though they're minus 14 to cover the spread.

Here's why. USC wins home openers. 17 to the last 18. If you take out Notre Dame, they haven't lost to a non-power conference team since 2001. They're very good at home. 21 and 5 at home over the last four seasons. Like Oregon, you get them out of their comfortable environment. They're a mess. But at home, USC's good.

Graham Harrell is their new offensive coordinator. The strength of this football team, wide receivers. Fresno State was terrific last year. They lost eight starters. on offense. And Fresno State is rebuilding the interior of their offensive line. And USC's strength of their defense

is their defensive tackles, the middle of their defense and their middle linebacker. This is a match-up issue for Fresno State too young, biting off too much here. And I think USC over the course of the season having to go to Notre Dame, having to go to Washington,

Oregon, Utah. I think USC is going to end up being a very close to a 500 team. But in this, spot, I'm going to take USC to cover the spread and win the game 36 to 20. At home, opener, non-power 5 team. That's where USC is good. So I'm taking Auburn to win and cover close, Northwestern in the points, little upset, and USC minus the points. Go to the Fox Bet app, the Fox Bet app right now.

Tomorrow on the show, Andy Reid, very exciting. By the way, another college football note, UCLA plays tonight. The PAC 12 last week, Arizona, a huge favorite, lost to awful Hawaii. The PAC 12 has not had a big win for their conference since Oregon beat James Winston and Florida State the first year of the playoff. UCLA is the second biggest revenue program in the PAC 12. They are an underdog tonight to Cincinnati who plays in something called the American Athletic Conference. Pack 12, get it together.

Chip Kelly, get it going. Excited. Andy Reid tomorrow, it's the herd. 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. And nobody's telling you exactly what happened.

That's where Sports Slice comes in. 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 Sports Slice on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slica Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite on Humor Me with Robert Smygel and Friends,

me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to Humor Me with Robert Smigel and Friends

on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth. And on my podcast, the Clivert, So 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? Quarterback on office blue 42. Hey, ref, my mama want you to wave at her. What? 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 harmed.

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.