The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd - Hour 1 - Hard loss for the Cowboys

Episode Date: November 6, 2023

Colin gives you his reaction to a devastating Cowboys loss as they failed to execute late in the game against the Eagles He questions the direction of the Bills following their loss to the Bengals and if Sean McDermott can get this team to the next level Colin has believes the Chiefs will be fine after their win over the DolphinsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

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Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of tauntons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule. of two. Listen to Stuff to Bole Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio in noon to 3 Eastern 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Now let's get this party started. You're listening to

Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. It is a Monday. Live in Los Angeles, it's the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening. Thanks for making us part of your day one hour from now where Colin was right, where Colin was wrong. A lot of both.

This was one of the better TV weekend. Saturday I watched three college football games. All great. Start to finish. Yesterday, you didn't get a ton of great games, but you got three or four that mattered. No game mattered more than Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles. J. Mack, it kind of looked last Thursday, Friday. We kind of made predictions on what it would look like. I don't remember yours. I remember mine, and I feel pretty good this morning. You nailed the Eagles, but they tried

really hard to give that game away, Colin. Really? They really did. So it looked like I predicted last week. Dallas would play well. They have the personnel to match up on the O line, D line, about as well as anybody can do against Philadelphia. DAC and CD Lamb are like Jalen Hertz and AJ Brown. You're not going to stop them. That's what I said Friday. But I also said I'll take the Eagles to win by about four points over the Cowboys because of situations.

Third, fourth down, red zone, late game decisions. That'll be the difference. And it was. Total yards, time of possession, penalties, third down efficiency, both very even. Colin, DAC was great. So was Jaylen Hertz, who finished with a higher. pass or rating. Dax's foot is just out by an inch there, but only two things could not happen down the stretch. They couldn't take a sack and they couldn't have a penalty. And in back-to-back

plays situationally, that's just what Dallas did. Their final five plays were a penalty, a sack, an incompletion, a penalty, and throwing short of the goal line. And stop with the excuses. Dax in his eighth year. McCarthy's in his 17th. How come Philadelphia with a younger quarterback, a younger head coach, a younger coordinator. How come they're so organized in key situations? The Cowboys always looked a bit chaotic and disheveled and panicked in those situations. It's not the roster. It's almost impossible to match up with the Eagles' O-line D-line. But Dallas does pretty well. Philly had to keep in tight ends to block after the first half. That's not the issue. It's not that they don't have personnel. And I know you think the

officials are out to get them, but when's the last time these cowboys stacked up on the road against a great team and a great quarterback and won? They get close all the time. Late in games, Philadelphia looks like a perfectly coordinated 4 by 100 relay team, perfectly handing off the baton, and the cowboys look like people in a potato sack race falling all over each other. That's what we predicted. We said Dallas would play well. Dallas had match up, but it would be situations here at the end of the game was classic. They get it to CD Lamb, but the Eagles, it's like they practice it all week. All camp right in front of the goal line, swarm, suffocate, and pushback.

It looked like they were really well coach late. Philadelphia does this. This is who they are. They win pretty, they win ugly, they win close, they win situationally. It's not that Dallas doesn't have the players. But it does feel like, considering McCarthy's in year 17 and DAC is in year 8, they're not a real smart football team late in games. I mean, even that play, throwing in front of the goal line when clearly Philadelphia stacked their entire secondary at the goal line and move forward. It never ends.

It's the same thing. That's why Dallas has become, for me, so easy to predict. You know how these games are going to go. It was going to be close. It's a division rivalry game, right? This isn't going to be San Francisco and Dallas. This is going to be a close game, TV game. Dallas can match up.

Jalen Hertz wasn't 100%. But in the end, it was the end. The end of the game. Sacks, penalties, confusion, disheveled, a little panicky. It just never changes. But there's always tomorrow. It's a game of inches. It's why you got to love this game.

It's tough. It's tough to win. We fought our asses off. Obviously, they did. Great NFCs matchup. They came out with it tonight. An inch or two on one of those three plays, and we could be talking about a different outcome.

But, you know, they got this one. It sucks. We're going to take it. We'll move forward and use the fight, use a lot of the success, a lot of good things. things came out of this game despite the loss. That's why at the trade deadline, I said Dallas should get Derek Henry. How many first downs did Dallas get rushing yesterday?

Three. They've become very reliant on DAC and CD Lamb. Tony Pollard's a nice number two pitch. But I start looking at this. Total yards, Dallas had an advantage, penalties the same, time of possession the same. but when you look at rushing, Dallas needed Derek Henry at the trade deadline. They just couldn't move the chains running the football. They had to go to the air.

And in the end, C.D. Lamb came up just short. I think it's a big mistake by Jerry. He loves to tell you what a wheeler and dealer he is. Derek Henry was there. The phone lines were open for Tennessee, regardless of what they said publicly. Three first downs rushing the ball. Philadelphia now is more of a passing team than a running team. They'd over double that.

All right. So Bill's Bengals last night, we talk about this all the time. We look at young men. 22, 23, 24, 25. I do this all the time. Well, he's got a ceiling. That quarterback's got a ceiling. Coaches have a ceiling, too.

Sean McDermott, I watched last night. He's Chuck Knox, former Bill's coach, Seahawk coach, Ram coach. he's Marty Schottenheimer. Sean McDermott did a great job to clean up the mess. Very good with details, organization. Football 101 stuff. But I don't think like Chuck Knox or Marty Schottenheimer, he's a visionary.

He's a creative. This team is getting worse. After that opening drive by Joe Burrow to score, I really never felt Buffalo had a shot. I didn't. Josh Allen had a bad shoulder. and yet because they've never had a top five running game under McDermott, despite having Josh Allen.

I mean, Baltimore's got a quarterback that moves. Why do they always have decent run games? McDermott has never developed a run game. Seven years, it's always, hey, Josh, can you save us? Now he's starting to break down, like early Cam and early Big Ben. Even at 6'6-255, he takes too many shots. he is starting now to show his age and McDermott is starting to show his ceiling.

Football's not just about organizing stuff. We all know somebody like that. The great organizer in your family. You want to make them executor of the will. You want to have them the paperwork, cabinets, files, everything online. But who's the vision of this football operation? Defense, they're now 17th. Offense, they're now 17th.

Special teams, PFF rates them 30th. What do they do well? You do not have to be in a salary cap league, a perfect team anymore. You just can't be average at everything. You've got to be great at something. You've got to be able to lean into something. Kansas City, it's creativity. Cincinnati, it's Burrow and Chase.

Philadelphia, it's Jalen Hertz and the O-line D-Line. You don't have to be great everywhere. I don't love the secondary play by Philadelphia. I don't love the receiving core for Kansas City. Cincinnati's O-line is okay. They've spent money and resources on it. It's never great. What is Buffalo good at?

That is the responsibility of a head coach. You can't blame the quarterback. You can't blame Joe Burrow if the secondary for the Bengals isn't tight. This morning, this is embarrassing with Josh Allen, one of the three or four seminal talents in the world playing quarterback. They are one game ahead of the Raiders. The Raiders. A tire fire.

They're one game ahead of the Raiders and behind the Jets now was Zach Wilson. No excuses. It's time to pivot. Chuck Knox. Older, I know, but that's what I grew up with. He cleaned up the Rams, the Bills, and the Seahawks. But then he would hit the ceiling.

Didn't have great vision. Marty Schottnheimer cleaned up a lot of messes. But you've got to be able to get to the next level. see stuff before it happens. There's a certain rigidity about Sean McDermott, and this franchise is now regressing. They're not Baltimore. They're not Cincinnati.

They're not Kansas City. They're not Philadelphia. I don't think they're San Francisco. I'm not sure they're Pittsburgh. Here's the coach after. We got after a really good start in a rhythm, and then after that it was tough sledding. And so,

that can't happen, right? I mean, against a good football team that's known for scoring points and a good quarterback, you've got to be able to score points, and we didn't do it enough. Josh Allen, Stefan Diggs, a capable offensive coordinator, a pro bowler on the offensive line, very little rhythm, no-run game. Hey, Josh, save us.

I know it's an uncomfortable conversation, but the coach that can clean stuff up often doesn't have the vision and sort of leans into rigidity. That's what makes a good organizer, right? Spotting all the little messes, cleaning them up. But right now this organization is stuck and regressing. Just stuck. Cincinnati's not.

Kansas City's not. Philadelphia is not. San Francisco's not. Baltimore certainly isn't. Jacksonville surging. Look around the AFC. This isn't working. It's not.

What are they great at? 30th special teams, 17th offense defense. I mean, they've got some good defensive personnel. They can be very special at times in the red zone. But you watched it last night. Cincinnati March right down the field opening drive, controlled that football game. I never felt in the second half Cincinnati was in danger.

Not one time. J. Mack, Colin right, calling wrong, 50 minutes from now. I love, absolutely love waking up to Mahomes and Tua. I love wait. I know everybody hates those early games. Watched it, ended, went for an hour hike, came back, watched the next window, and I'm thinking, nothing goes better with a strong coffee than Patrick Mahomes. I love those early games.

I mean, the game was fantastic. Will you feel the same way about Gardner Minshu and Mack Jones next Sunday morning at 630 a.m.? No, I will not. I will not. I'll go for the hike during the game. Ah, yes, that's a good take by you. All right. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays and New World.

New Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the IHard Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes,

creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Cliverts Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me, or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics

from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of ton-tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I don't know why I talked myself out of taking the Kansas City Chiefs, but I don't need to watch the Kansas City Chiefs again until January. They're going to be fine.

Watching Andy Reed and Patrick Mahomes' awful loss was an absolute pleasure. It was a complete clinic, 21-0-0 quickly. Miami and Tyreek Hill talk a big game, but flashy, fast, and fun. It's got a ceiling, and it's an outdoor sport where you tackle people. And this speedboat has run aground, as we predicted. Super Bowls are played mostly in rain, cold, and snow leading up to them. Teams need all-weather tires, and Miami doesn't have them. Kansas City is flashy and fun, but they're

They play defense. They make a point of it. Baltimore and Cincinnati, a lot of fun to watch and can be flashy on the perimeter, but you see a toughness. The first half was just manipulation. It was manhandling. It was undressing the dolphins. Let's be honest about Tua.

You got to set that play up. You got to give him time. He's not going to make anything happen athletically. Once Tua is uncomfortable, he's a very average quarterback. So Miami really is what they thought. we thought they were, which is a lot of speed, a lot of fun, highly creative, built for September in the first couple of weeks of October. But this sport, it's outdoor, and there's a lot of northern teams that are good.

The Baltimore's, even Buffalo, Cincinnati. I don't even know if Cincinnati has an indoor practice facility. I don't think they do. And I watch Miami, and they are what we thought they were. they're a pitcher without a second out pitch. You know, and they'll continue to be a marvel with speed. But my entire life, I've watched this sport. The fastest team does not win the Super Bowl.

They just don't. The fastest team doesn't. You've got to have speed. There's a difference. New England's slow. Can't be that. But this is not a track meet. You tackle people.

It's outdoors. You play in snow and wind. Here was Tyree Kill after. We got to be able to fire ways to not shoot ourselves in the foot. Because as you see, we can play with any team in this league. We do believe that every game is a missed opportunity if we lose, man. So it's our job to come out here and win these games, especially the way that our defense played today. Those guys play tremendous.

And if we want to say that, we're the number one offense in the league. We got to be able to make plays when it counts. Also, you can have all the speed in the world. in the world on offense, you got to block. That offensive line's not good enough. Baltimore's got a great pass rush. I mean, go look at all the teams in the NFL that are good. Dallas has a great pass rush. Detroit does now. Philadelphia does. San Francisco does. Buffalo usually does. Cincinnati does. Baltimore does. Miami can't block those teams. They can't block them. Spend less money being the fastest team in the world. Spend more money on tackles.

But they just, especially with Tua, got health issues, eyes issues, not hyper-athletic, like they are not built to win right now going forward. J-Mac with the news. No, no, no, no, turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, Calh. I feel like we got a really good show coming up here. Colin, maybe the best show in the NFL Sunday, C.J. Stroud.

Wow. What a performance. 470 yards passing, a rookie record, five touchdown, zero interceptions, should be noted. And, I mean, Colin, this final drive against Tampa Bay was incredible. Remember, Todd Bowles is a defensive guy. And Stroud just was nails on everything, including the game winner to Tank Dell with six seconds left. 39-37 win.

Listen, a lot was made of C.J. Stroud and the, what was it, the S-2 test? Oh, he didn't do well on it. I don't know. Is he going to follow the draft, Colin? C.J. Stroud was just remarkable yesterday. Well, when you watch those highlights, I mean, what's the one thing that hits you? Go watch, roll those highlights again. His receivers never break stride.

You've got to throw the ball accurately. He throws it where you can't intercept it. You're sitting back in a pocket. That's a muddy pocket. That ball is perfect. That ball is perfect. That was amazing. Let's watch another throw.

Again, literally perfectly thrown. Now, I'm not going to, this is picking mitts, but Tampa did lose their best cornerback in the game. He was injured, and everybody they put in and just got roasted. Still, he was making the throws not a great offensive line for the Texans. Colin, are you ready for this stat? This blew my mind yesterday. C.J. Stroud has more career passing touchdowns than Kenny Pickett. That's in eight games. That's it. Kenny Pickett's in year two. I mean, C.J. Stroud has been awesome. Kenny Pickett has great weapons. Yeah.

Two excellent running backs. Like, listen, everybody. Very few people thought C.J. Stroud was it. Obviously, Carolina thought Bryce Young was, and I think Bryce is working with nothing. But this is a win. In the last five days, Will Levis and C.J. Stroud looked like potential hits. That's a good point. Okay, that means two teams that you can turn the television on and not throw up in your mouth. Because there's a lot of bad quarterback play.

So Will Levis looks like they got a guy. Houston's got a guy. So it's like if Anthony Richardson can stay healthy, he looks like he's a guy. And then I do think you've got to give Bryce more. They have nothing to work. He's got no one, two, or three. I mean, I text. I think I texted you yesterday.

I feel bad for Bryce Young and you were like, what happened? He just, he looks awful. He doesn't look like it. I joke, remember joking about the helmet size in the summer and he looks so tiny behind the offensive line? Yeah. Like these are, he really doesn't, he just doesn't look like it. I'm not saying it's over for him.

Right. We saw Troy Aikman had a rough start to his career. Eli Manning started really bad. Yeah, looking the part does matter. I mean, when I watched Tua, who's acknowledged he can't see over the line sometimes, when I watched Tua, he looks small. He does. And it does.

Kyler Murray. I like him a lot. He looks small. This is a big man's game. So it does matter. I mean, they change the offensive play caller, and they have two touchdowns in two weeks. I mean, the Colts could not stop the Saints last week. They just, a Saints went up and down the field.

And Bryce Young throws two pick sixes. CJ Stroud looks like the offensive rookie of the year. Stroud is amazing. All right. Next story, the Raiders. Best performance of the season for the Silver and Black. Wow. Under interim coach Antonio Pierce, I mean, this was a bloodbath.

Vegas 30, the Sad Sack New York Giant 6. After the game, Josh Jacobs, listen to these quotes about how the team rallied around their new coach. We wanted to do it for AP, man. I think we all came to that conclusion. We all sat down and was like, man, no matter how this, goal like we gonna play with everything we got for that man because the vibe and the energy is just you know it's just electric right now man like I said this this is the most connected I feel like we've been as a unit and just to go out there and have

fun and play celebrate after there after doing things good and you know the defense stepping up and holding on it's just it was just fun day did you see the Jay Glazer report oh goodness great that basically Glazer reports that Antonio Pierce gave a speech to the team and Josh McDaniels was upset with it because he kind of took a dig at the Patriots and Josh said, hey man, don't do that again. And then it was like, let's get rid of Josh McDaniels. The worst part was McDaniels asked Pierce, hey, can you say something to the team? And if the team rallies around Pierce, it's like, goodness gracious, I will say, they've taken like shots at McDaniels down for like four straight days, all the players from the basketball in the locker room,

Devante Adams. It was, it's bleak for McDaniels. That being said, Colin, I know we're not going to talk about the Giants, probably the rest of the season. They are a true dumpster fire right now. Daniel Jones, it was just announced ACL, he's done. Yeah. It's time to draft a quarterback. Their GM, by the way, was at the USC Washington game. The Giants need to draft first round a quarterback. Were you guys hanging out at? No. I watched it on the tube. Had a great time with my buddies. But it's time to draft a quarterback. Daniel Jones is not it. Stop convincing yourself its play calling in the O line in receivers. He's not it. Look at the sport. Go watch Dak and Jones.

Jaylen Hertz last night. You think Daniel Jones and that division is even close to those guys? He's not close to Dak. He's not close to Jalen Hertz. By the way, I don't think he's nearly as good as Sam Howell. And I think Sam Howell's a one more year, even a franchise guy. Daniel Jones is not as good as Sam Howell. Yeah. A catastrophic mistake by the gym. Two quick notes. Number one, listen, we like Brian Dable. He's awesome offensive mind. Colin, they can't move the football with their third string quarterback. Kevin O'Connell in Minnesota took Josh Dobbs, who just arrived at the facility, like 96 hours ago, and is going up and down the field for the Vikings. I know Josh Dobbs is a better quarterback. Way better. But what do we say about Brian Dable? They haven't been able to do

anything with Daniel Jones, Tyrod Taylor, and now DeVito. Well, if Tyrod Taylor was healthy, they could be competitive with a lot of teams in this league. When you get to a third quarterback, as you see with the Giants, that's one of the, that's just not, you can't move the chains with that as your quarterback. So the final note. So the Raiders were on a short week. And the magic number for defensive players being on the field is 80. If you're on the field for 80 snap, the next week, you should regress. The Raiders on a short week were on the field for 81 snaps against Detroit. That was my only pause for concern with this Raiders against the Giants. The Giants couldn't move the ball in the Raiders. Like, is this team suddenly, are they, they're four and five?

They play my Jets this coming Sunday. Are the Raiders, like, can they start thinking Wildcard? AFC is tough. You know, if the Chargers, you know, like tonight, if the Jets win, they're not going to win that division, but if the Jets could win, you know, then there's no good for the Raiders tonight. They want both the Jets and the Chargers to lose because that's who they're going to compete against. I'll take the Jets to win it tonight. But listen, I just think the Raiders are one of those big brands,

the sports better when they win. For years and years, the Warriors were a great brand. Everybody out West knew it because they grew up. the Rick Berry teams. And then when they were great, you're like, I had no idea. They had such a ribald, incredible tribal fan base with the Warriors. Raider fans are all over the West. They're in the Bay. They're in Los Angeles. They're still the most popular NFL team in Los Angeles. They really are. Raider fans, outnumber Ram fans and Charger fans, maybe combined in L.A. So it's, I want to see the Raiders win. They have a great brand. They're fun. They're the rebels

of the NFL, they always have been kind of a contrarian franchise. I want them to win. I thought yesterday was great. Final story, Baltimore Ravens proved by they're one of the best teams in the league on Sunday. Colin, this is the second straight time they faced an NFC division leader and just spanked them. I mean, they won 37 to 3 over Seattle. The Seahawks had 150 yards of total office. Six first downs.

In the game. Why? I've done this three weeks in a row. We're one of my favorite picks. I talk myself out of it because there's a betting number that scares me. Listen, I should have listened to myself. If you've never faced Lamar Jackson, you're an NFC team. And it's in Baltimore, you're getting steamrolled.

See, and the other thing is, can we be honest about this? We like Pete Carroll. But at some point, defensive coaches sometimes lack the urgency at the quarterback position. Like, to me, like Sean McDermott lacks the urgency with a run game. Bro, seven years, figure it out fast, hire somebody to get a run game. There's no urgency with it. We've said this with Kenny Pickett and Mike Tomlin. Pete, stop with Gino Smith.

Nobody in this sport, not an executive, thinks he's ever going to hold a trophy. You're in your 70s. You want to win. Drew Locke, by the way, is not the answer either. Seattle does not have a lot of needs. Now, they're going to be drafting late first round because they're a good football team. I don't think they need to move up. I don't.

But I think Seattle has drafted so well. last two to three years. That's one of the franchises I think could give up a couple of first, move up 10 slots, and go get a Bow Nix or a Michael Pennix. Because this roster deserves better. The Gino Smith thing is a great story. He's not a great player. Let's kind of, let's be honest about it. Okay, a couple things on Seattle. So, listen, I'm with you. We both predicted Gino Smith would regress a little bit. Cullen, he has six turnovers in the last four games. Like he is a bit of a disaster right now. They've got a good team. Seattle does. The receivers, they drafted Jackson Smith, the jig, oh, he's going to help Gino. Nothing's helping Gino. Do you consider

a turn to Drew Locke in season just to settle down? No, definitely not. No, no. I mean, just, Gino Smith is better than Drew Locke. The quarterback position for Seattle is not good enough. Yeah. And so I think they'll figure out a way they'll go back playing home games. They'll win. They'll probably get in as a wild car. I think San Francisco will eventually write the ship pair win a bunch of games. Sam Fran Jags this week is a really good game. That's the best game of the week. One other thing on Seattle before the Ravens. So I heard you say Michael Penix. We both like Pennix a lot. Just remind people, he's 24, he's had a couple of ACL surgery. One of these draft guys put out a draft board, top 50 players. Penix wasn't in it. There is some chatter

that Pennix may not be loved by the NFL teams as much as the media. We like Pennix. Seattle could have a shot at him in like the early 20s. There's a real chance. The people that do drafts do never consider fear. Michael Penix will go top 12 to 50. Doesn't matter what you think of him. There are eight teams. GMs have their beautiful daughters in private schools and have big mortgages. And they're going to talk themselves. And coaches are in the same neighborhood with a $6 million house and their kids are in private school. That's how the league operates. That's why the Jets go and get Aaron Rogers. Those two guys, Robert Sala and Joe Douglas, they like where they live. Yeah.

Nices houses they've ever had. The bottom line with this stuff, GMs and coaches, don't tell their owner everything. They're going to talk their owner into Michael Pennix. He's like won 16 straight games. At some point, you start looking at the numbers. Now, it's laughable to think Caleb Williams is a much better prospect. Never had the surgeries, much better athlete.

But the idea that Pennix, if Pennix just this is it, and he doesn't play bad, but he doesn't elevate above this. He's a first round quarterback. He's a bigger, too. I would say so. Quickly on the Ravens, have you ever heard of somebody named Keaton Mitchell? Ravens plugged him in. He had 138 yards on nine carries.

Lamar didn't do much. He's on my fantasy team. He had like nothing. I got smoked. They're winning without Lamar with random running backs we've never heard of. And now a defense coordinated by a guy McDonald, who two years ago, people didn't know who he was in the NFL. This is a scary team right now.

just starting to, I think they're still ascending, Colin. By the way, they're only laying like five and a half six this week against Deshaun Watson at home. What are we doing with that game? I mean, I already looked at the numbers. I may have already bet this. No, there's two games that, the best game next weekend is Jacksonville hosting San Francisco. I like the San Francisco roster.

I love the Jacksonville quarterback. That is a must-watch early game. Chargers Lions play in the afternoon window, which is really good. And don't forget tonight. Jets, Chargers. It's a big game. This is a wild card game. The winner of this has a leg up in the wild card race.

Yeah. Because neither one, I don't think, I mean. Well, let's not rule the Jets out. Sorry, let's not rule the Jets out of AFC East. Okay. Buffalo lost. Miami lost. I told you, this is the perfect storm. Jets win this game.

Look at the Division Standing. Miami's schedules, brutal coming up. Yes. You're going to be no fun to deal with. Tell me you're not excited tonight. No, tonight's a good one. Yeah. You see next week's Monday night football game?

Jets Raiders or Sunday night. That Sunday night. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I will be in attendance, but don't tell Raiders fans. Oh, you're going to be there? I don't need the truth. The staff told me I can't come back Monday morning. I have to fly back in the middle of the night or drive in the middle of the nights.

It's a big boy, John. I got to be back, yeah. It's not an internship. You got to be here. Jay Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Live News.

I saw one of the most amazing things I think I've seen in pro football yesterday, and I want to talk about it next. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd, Weekdays at noon Eastern, 9 a.m. He's by Carmen. I'm Dan Byard. We have a brand new fantasy football podcast called I Want Your Flex. Twice a week, every Tuesday and Friday, we come up with new episodes to not only look back at what happened, what you need to do at that minute, and also look ahead of what's coming up in the fantasy football world. That's right, Dan. Every week, we're going to scour the waiver wire to find the pickups to turbo boost your fantasy lineup. Sit, starts, fantasy football players' rankings to get you ready to dominate the competition. Listen to I Want Your Flex with Mike Harmon and me, Dan Byer, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged.

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

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

One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok.

Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far far away, such as the biology of taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Tonight, let the games begin as the Big East opening night tip-off show takes over FS1.

We take you around the league for all seven games. Catchy action tonight at 630 Eastern on FS1. Well, Jimmy Johnson years ago, I asked him, I said, what's the number one trait you look for in football players? And he said, intelligence. You lose a lot more games than you win. I want smart players. Well, that was on display yesterday.

Josh Dobbs, and we had said last week, Minnesota, go get Josh Dobbs. He is a four-point graduate aerospace engineering from Tennessee, probably the smartest player in the league. Football isn't rocket science, but if it was, Josh Dobbs would be okay. What he did yesterday, he got traded Tuesday, arrived Wednesday. He did not have a practice rep. He didn't know his teammates' names.

Basically, they were teaching him the offense through the headset. He was missing his star left tackle, Justin Jefferson. K.J. Osborne got hurt. I mean, it's really one of the most remarkable things I've ever seen. Andrew Lertney said he basically memorized the Colts playbook in two days. well, this kid, he didn't even get a practice. Baker Mayfield did pretty well after a practice with the Rams, but this kid was just in a game, making it up, didn't know teammates,

didn't have his left tackle, didn't have a star receiver, third best receiver got hurt, and then engineered late game drives to win it. I mean, you were watching just raw intelligence on display, and here was Joshua Dobbs after. What's up, y'all? Josh Dobbs, honored to be in Minnesota, introduced myself to everyone. Tremendous game, like team effort. I know obviously the circumstance that was put in was a little abnormal for a Sunday in the NFL.

It's like if you were taking Spanish all year, and you showed up, and Wednesday, someone told you, you're taking AP Spanish, and someone told you have an AP French exam on Sunday, and you've got to go, like, execute, you know, someone's going to talk to you in Spanish and translate it to the French. So that's kind of like what was going on out there.

Even his answer is brilliant. It was just one of the craziest things I've ever seen. And Jimmy Johnson always says that. He said, you know, the margins are very thin in pro football. You'll lose a bunch of games. You'll win very few. You know, it's just all this situational football, considering he was missing maybe the best left tackle in football

and the best wide receiver in the game. That's how good the Vikings offensive stuff is. It's just, there is, there is, no comp for what he actually did. And Colin Wright, wrong, top of next hour, that's one of the ones we predicted. We said last week, midweek, Tuesday, go get Josh Dobbs. Everybody loves him.

Can figure a playbook out in three or four days. We didn't think he could do it without a practice, without a rep. But he did. And it's awesome. So watching Joe Burrell last night, and when he came into the league, I said he's a better version of Tony Romo. what he is watching him last night he's joe montana cool and tony ro moe playmaking mobile um i think he's honestly you can make an argument he's surpassed mahomes in situational quarterbacking third down fourth down

he's very jeter in the clutch he's very mj he's very brady um he's 82 percent completion percentage in the red zone since week three eight t d's no picks he is better in crisis And that's what I said. Mahomes is a crazier raw talent. Lamar is much more explosive. Josh Allen's more powerful, bigger, stronger. But in a big spot situationally, when trailing with four minutes or left, that's the hardest quarterback play in the league.

You're trailing late. He has 113 passer rating. And so when you don't have the right quarterback, all you talk about is play calling and officiating and how many passers. your wide receivers drop. Have you ever noticed that with Joe Burrow? Those are never topics. They're just not topics. You don't talk about that. That's what happens when you have a Mahomes or a Trevor Lawrence or a Jalen Hurts. Stop talking about play calling. Is the play calling for Cincinnati great? And here's the other thing. So he shows up in Cincinnati. They and remain have a weak owner. They're cheap on free agency.

they have no real GM, no momentum, and an awful offensive line. He solves all of them quickly. Again, if you're making excuses for your quarterback, you don't have the right quarterback. There is no reason Cincinnati is as good as they are. They still have the same owner. It's not considered an elite. They're not a wheeling, dealing front office on draft day. They just make their picks.

I mean, they just, they don't have an, I don't believe they still have an indoor practice facility. In Cincinnati in the winter, they've always been frugal. O-line, they put money, draft capital. I don't know if it's good or not. It's okay. It's passable. But he has solved all their issues. And, you know, coach's kid, ho-hum, Joe Montana cool,

Tony Romol movement. He talked after. Yeah, we're coming along. We've played by the last couple weeks. We've got to keep it going. We're going to keep getting better every day in practice. Keep talking through routes. Keep talking through what we're trying to accomplish.

go from there. This was only game, game eight. We still got nine games left. So we're five and three right now. We're a great spot. We just got to continue to get better. So everybody was freaking out in September, in first week of October. Everybody was freaking out because Cincinnati once again was not good.

And that's because, you know, Joe, for whatever reason, is always healing in September. He's had multiple surgeries. This year, it's a calf strain. But here's the way to think about Joe Burrow. just about the time your favorite coffee place is selling a pumpkin latte, he gets great. Just about the time the leaves change and you go to Starbucks or Pets or wherever your local coffee place is and they've got the latte, the pumpkin spice latte, that's when he takes over. October, November, December, he's money.

By the way, I'm told they just opened their indoor practice facility last year. My bad, I've got to get a complete list of indoor practice facilities, but that was like a running joke in the league. How can you be a cold weather franchise? The local high school had it. One of the high schools had it. It took Joe Burrow getting to a Super Bowl. Finally, they'd had Carson Palmer, Boomer, Osiason. They'd had good quarterback play. They had Ken Anderson when I was growing up. Finally, the owner's like, yeah, I may want to protect that guy. I mean, he has solved all their problems. I think you can make the argument. I know it's taboo, but situationally, he's every bit as good as Mahomes, maybe better. Red zone, trailing. I'm not saying he's the raw

talent of him, but it's really unbelievable to watch him play. And we talked about Buffalo earlier. Once they marched down the field and got that first touchdown, I don't know about you. I'm watching that game. I'm thinking it's Cincinnati's night. Like Dallas, Philadelphia, there were many times I thought Dallas deserved a win. They got a couple of calls that went against them. Dallas had some momentum. Dallas was getting to Jalen Hurts. Like there were multiple times I thought Dallas is going to pull this off. They deserve it today. Of course, they were Dallas.

They had penalties and sacks. But like in this game, I really never felt like Cincinnati was threatened. And I think that kind of goes to, if you have the right quarterback, you're not sitting on message boards talking about play calling and officiating. The quarterback just solves all that stuff. And I think Justin Herbert against the Jets tonight has some of those qualities too. He's on his third coordinator, his second head coach. they tend to be frugal.

The first round picket wide receiver's not playing. Mike Williams is hurt, and he makes them very productive. We'll see. He's not Burrow. Herbert's not Burrow. He's bigger. He's stronger, but he's not Burrow in terms of situational greatness. But that'll be an interesting one tonight because I do think Herbert has had to overcome

some things with that organization. He's gotten him to the playoffs. Burroughs gotten to a Super Bowl. And Burrow, I think, had more to overcome. I think the owner for the Chargers, better than the owner for the Bengals. but they both inherited horrible offensive lines. The Chargers more quickly solved theirs. The Bengals kind of sort of did kind of.

But what you're watching is just that's, whenever you complain about stuff, Burrough solves all of it, walks in the door, got to a Super Bowl with a weak linebacking corn on an atrocious offensive line. Nobody cared about wide receiver drops. Well, he's got good weapons. You know what? You make them good. The quarterback makes the receiver more than the receiver makes the quarterback.

All right, Jay Matt, Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, top of next hour. College football, did you watch any college this weekend? It was very interesting. So both Oklahoma and USC are struggling. Oklahoma, it's over. Well, it's over for USC. It's interesting. Be very careful.

Never forget why executives draft quarterbacks. It's not win-loss record. It's traits. Caleb Williams' traits, power arm, strong. long moves, hyper-athletic, very passionate. If Caleb Williams went, remember, Mahomes had a losing record in college. Nobody cares. Danny Werfel was great in college.

I covered him. Couldn't play. Tebow was great in college. Couldn't play. Anytime Caleb Williams loses, I would draft blankety-blank in front of him. I told you this with luck. I told you it with Trevor Lawrence. I'll tell you with Caleb Williams.

He's going to be the number one pick. You're going to draft Caleb Williams number. He could lose every game here on out. They're blaming the coach. They're blaming Alex Grinch, who just got fired. That kid is insane. And I'm telling you, I don't know what USC does well in the entire program. They don't even have a special teams coach.

But that kid's running around, making stuff happen. Don't blame anything on Caleb William. You mean, I love him, and he painted his nails. You don't draft him. It's like not drafting LeBron. Just draft him and figure it out later. Largely agree. You know how the process works,

leading up to the draft. Like we saw Stroud last year against Georgia in that national semifinal looked like the number one pick. Everybody thought, you're watching that game. Stroud's number one. The process goes through and it's Bryce Young. Don't be shocked if somebody tries to talk themselves into Drake May. I'll say sometimes is there too much backyard football from Caleb Williams?

Not a lot of structure there. I know he's making plays, but can you do that in the NFL consistently? Well, Mahomes does a lot of it. Josh Allen does a lot of it. Mahomes is one of one. I mean, Lamar. Josh Allen's a turnover machine. Yeah, but Stroud was not a lock for anything going into the draft.

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

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential.

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

Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fans, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away,

such as the biology of Tontons and Wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.