The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd-HOUR 1-Lakers, Dak Prescott, Drew Brees, Clippers

Episode Date: September 23, 2020

The Lakers will be fine because of LeBronWhen it comes to Dak Prescott vs Russell Wilson, Dak is secondPeople need to be honest about Drew Brees and Tom BradySomeone in the Clippers organization is leaking storiesGuest: Nick Wright Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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For 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s.

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Ah, here we go on a Wednesday, raring to go. Live in Los Angeles, this is the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening. Thanks for joining us. This is Fox Sports Radio and right here on FS1. Nick Wright in 30 minutes, he'll argue with me. He always does. Joy Taylor is joining me this morning.

Joy, how are you? I'm good. That was a fun game last night. Well, so my wife at one point said, well, what's wrong with the Lakers? And I said, okay, so I've been watching this league for four decades. The better team wins the first two games, and then the better team comes out in game three and is completely flat. And it's like, this is the way it works. And then the Lakers made a mad dash at the end, the better team, and they can't quite catch up.

But I want to start with that because by saying that, everybody in Denver is like, you don't give us any respect. That's a big thing for guys and teams. I can't speak for women. It's a big deal for guys. You can pay a guy $10 million a year, but if his rival makes $10.5, you don't respect me. You are not showing me respect. So Denver will say, well, where's the respect? It's not that I don't respect Denver, but this is the year of the duo,

and Denver's duo is excellent, but it's not as good as the Lakers duo. It's just not. Denver's a really good team, certainly capable of winning the series. But after all these years, don't you trust LaBron. in the conference finals? You know, since he hasn't lost one in 11 years. It was Orlando. He was in Cleveland.

Don't you trust LeBron in this space? I mean, the Lakers have problems that the Denver Nuggets don't even have. I can describe every single Laker except LeBron with these words. Old, unreliable, strange, flaky, inconsistent in big spots.

That's AD. Denver has none of those problems. There is no flaky nugget. There is no old guy. I mean, maybe Paul Millsap. The Lakers have all sorts of issues. In fact, this morning I wrote, I always do this when we talk about big games.

I put down the 10 best players in this series. LeBron 1, AD2. The next five I put down are all nuggets. Yokits, Jamal Murray, Michael Porter, Gary Harris, Jeremy Grant. Then we can argue over the last three. Let's not waste any time on that. I'll go, Kuzma, KCP, Paul Millsap. Rondo, Millsap, old guys, but whatever.

I'll take Millsap. It's a lot of nuggets. One through seven is five nuggets. And right now, Jamal Murray, at any given time, outplays AD. It's not that I don't respect Denver. It's just after 10 years of seeing something, I just give you the benefit of the doubt. If you were a salesperson and you made your number 10 straight years, I trust you'll make it in your 11. I mean, after a while, if I give my daughter money and I say, I'm going to give you a little extra money here, don't, don't burn it, bring some money back to dad, and she brings it back 10 straight years, I trust she'll do it in year 11.

LeBron hasn't lost a conference final in 11 years. I just trust he'll figure it out. Denver's capable. Denver doesn't have any flakes. Denver's not very old. Denver's not very unreliable. Their players have played better in the bubble. This bubble is all about young teams.

Miami, Dallas, Phoenix, Boston, Denver. overachief. The old guys are falling apart, except the Lakers. I mean, last night's classic Lakers is that Yokic can literally go to the bench for seven minutes, and Denver goes on runs. Their young players go on runs. LeBron goes to the floor, or like last night, not really engaged early, and the Lakers are like, you're just crossing your fingers. I mean, they need LeBron for everything, and we know AD is one of the top five, six basketball players in the world. It is not a lack of respect. I mean, last night, classic Lakers, whereas they had, let me look up the exact number.

The Lakers had like, yeah, 27 assists. LeBron had 11, 25 rebounds. LeBron had 12. They've got the Lakers, I've said it all year. Flakes, old, unreliable, crazy guy, limited guy, falling apart guy. Denver doesn't have any of those issues. But if you keep showing me something for a decade, I just trust LeBron will figure it out. I think Denver's got more players that contribute.

They've got less baggage. They've got fewer issues. They're more athletic. Their top seven players are more trustable. Denver, Denver, Denver, Denver, Nuggets, Nuggets, Nuggets. It's all Denver. You do something for a decade. You make your number for a decade.

Sales guy, saleswoman. I trust you're going to make it the next year. Here's LeBron. By the way, last night, LeBron not as engaged early. Then they get all fired up, you know, race back. And, you know, Jamal Murray, is a great player, hits a basket. put him away. Here's LeBron after. And we understood we had 12 minutes left to try to make a game of it.

We was able to do that. You know, when you dig yourself a hole like that, you know, every shot that they make, every shot that we miss, you know, it feels like the game is collapsing. So, you know, we played a pretty good ball in the fourth quarter, but those first 36 minutes I heard is obviously. Obviously. Still like the Lakers, still like LeBron. In fact, I really don't like the Lakers. I like Leacres. I like LeBron. I don't like all the Lakers stuff. I said it all year. I don't really like him. I just like LeBron. I didn't even like AD until he played with LeBron. Now I like A.D.

None of you like Frank Vogel until he coached LeBron. Now we all kind of like Frank Vogel. I'll take the Lakers still. All right. This is an interesting weekend in the NFL. It's kind of a cool weekend where you get two young good quarterbacks, Jared Goff, Josh Allen. Oh my gosh. We get Patrick Mahalms against Lamar Jackson. We get two icons.

We get Aaron Rogers against Drew Brees. Well, it's interesting, right? Let's say an interesting weekend. And then we get Dack and Russell Wilson. Now, a lot of you think I like Russell Wilson way too much. I mean, I've been hearing this now for three years. Oh, get off it. You and Russell Wilson, what is it?

It's ridiculous. And I also hear simultaneously, you're very, very rough on Dack Prescott. That's why this weekend's important. Now, I want you to think about that as Russell Wilson faces Daxe Prescott. Dak Prescott, Tyron Smith is back, has a better offensive line this weekend. He's got the star running back. He also has a better trio of wide receivers. He also has, Dak has the better defense.

Seattle now has allowed the most passing yards in the NFL by a lot, and they have no pass rush. So Dak has the better O line, the better star back, the better trio of receivers, and the better defense. And Russell Wilson's favored by five and a half. but he's at home. Oh, wait, no, they don't have any fans. If fans were allowed in the stadium, the five and a half point spread would be seven.

Because Seattle, New Orleans, Green Bay, tend to have the best home field advantages, according to Fox Bet, and, you know, the guys that gamble for a living and make lines. This is the difference. Is that Russell will, if this, we went into this game and we said Russell Wilson's got the better three receivers, the better running back, the better defense, the better offensive line. this would not be a fascinating football game.

What makes it a fascinating football game is that DAC has better assets everywhere. Now, by the way, Dak's going to get all sorts of stats in this game. Why? Because he's going to trail and have to throw. Number two, Seattle has no pass rush. Last in the league, they have no pass rush. So, Dax's going to throw from a clean pocket.

All quarterbacks in this league that start are pretty good with clean pocket. Also, Dax's got good weapons. He's got good weapons. You can't C.D. Lamb. Michael Gallup. Zeke can catch. Amari Cooper. Even their young tide ends are fine. They're not great, but they're fine. And DAC through two games, once again, is giving us all sorts of stats.

But the difference is Russell Wilson tends to make his greatest plays in the biggest moments. Dax's greatest stats are often early when the game's not in doubt or late when they're catching up. And it's not a play to win the game. it's a play to get back into the game. But I think it's very interesting for those of you who think I am two pro-Russell Wilson and two anti-Dak. There are three games this year, really fascinating games, that DAC is in quarterback battles.

So this is the first Russell Wilson and they're contemporaries. They're not rookies anymore. They're not kids. These are guys that have seen every defense. This is the first. then DAC is going to go against a baby, Tyler Murray. That's coming up.

Keep your eye on that. And then DAC's going to go up literally a contemporary. Lamar Jackson, they've both been in the league roughly about the same time. Very interesting. Those are the three matchups I want you to watch for those who think I'm far too critical of Dak Prescott. This is the first of three. He faces a legend, a Hall of Famer Russell Wilson. then a young kid, Kyler Murray,

and then a contemporary Lamar Jackson. And my guess is, after all three, DAC will have stats in all of them, he'll have losses in all of them, and you'll feel he's the second best quarterback in all three of them. For those who think I'm too rough on it, I don't think I am. You do, I don't.

Coming up next, I criticized Drew Brees yesterday, got some pushback on it. I'll double down on that. And I'll also be as honest as I can and frank as I can about the limitations of Tom Brady. And what's happening in the NFL through two weeks is actually fascinating. I'm going to give you something and you're going to be like, oh my God, I didn't see that.

And I didn't see it either until late this morning. Plus I will play Detective Colin later in the show. I'm going to be a detective. You can join me in our detective, special. agents later this hour. Undercover. Interesting story. And I want to play special agent and the audience can help us later this hour. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on

Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the IHeart Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's superhuman. documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what 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. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-taped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people.

I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do a little kill? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack.

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

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness, this month. I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the middle health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we

are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth, or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person.

Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the hard way and listen now. You know, the sports is really cramping my style, Joey Taylor. So, you know, in the football season, now with all these sports going on, so during the football season, I can't go out with my wife for dinner on Sunday

because of Sunday night because there's football games. And Monday nights, it's Monday night football, I can't go out. And Thursday night, it's Thursday night football and I can't go out. And Saturday night I can't go out, usually because of either college football or because I have the Sunday show, I have to get up at 5 in the morning. Sure. Four days are off. And then last night I'm like, oh, I take my wife out.

I got a Laker game. So I wanted to go out. Rob Stone, works at the company, his beautiful wife. And I thought, let's go out. And it's just like, I got there. I'll watch the first half and then constantly doing updates like, you know, I don't want to bring my phone. My wife sees it. I'm thinking this sports thing's really getting the way of my social life.

Well, yeah, I mean, having NBA basketball playoffs during football season is an interesting situation. I mean, if you're single like me and you have nothing but plants, then, you know, it's fine. You just spend a lot of time on the couch. It's incredible. There's, if we had a full slate of college football, can you imagine, I mean, there's just no, like literally Wednesday night is it for me now. I'm telling you, just stream it on your phone. You can go to a nice restaurant. No, you can't do that.

I do it all the time. You just pop it right there. You're not married to Ann. That's fair. You cannot do that with Ann. That's fair. Anne needs attention. If I'm looking out, if I'm looking at Yokic,

passing the ball to Jamal Murray, instead of my wife's beautiful eyes. Well, yeah, that's true. That will not end well for me. That's fair. I understand. Speaking of not ending well, I was really tough on Drew Breed yesterday,

and I said, listen, he's Kirk Cousins now. He's accurate. He's good at the line of scrimmage. He looks a lot more like. Kirk Cousins than Patrick Mahomes to me. Of course he does. He's 40 years old. I was told yesterday the Saints had to talk him back into playing. He was ready to go. And Sean Payton said, you got to give me one more year. Is he all in? I don't know. But Brett Farv said yesterday, stop picking on Drew Breeze. Stop picking on Tom Brady. Here's the legend Brett Farve.

It's way premature to think either guys over the hill. I think physically speaking, they're fine. You're not asking Drew Breeze or Tom Brady to be Pat Mahomes. or Lamar Jackson or Russell Wilson, what they do, the way they play and how they play for so many years, they still have that. They're not asked to be very mobile. If you can protect them, they'll pick you apart. There's no difference today than eight years ago other than the age based on how you ask them to play and how they play. You know, what I'm talking about is more mental.

No, there is a big difference. It's called the league. here's the 2-0 quarterbacks in the league. Notice a trend. Russell Wilson Mobile, Lamar Mobile, Patrick Mahomes Mobile, Aaron Rogers Mobile, Big Ben extends plays, Josh Allen Mobile, Tanna Hill was a college-wide receiver. We never ever doubt Tanna Hill can run.

It's always been the throw. Derek Carr, he's very Tony Romo can move. Kyler Murray Mobile. Mitt Tribesky Mobile. Jared Goff. Colin, Jared Goff is not mobile. Oh, but yes, he is in the Rams offense. Because the Rams, 70% of the time the Rams, enjoy to my witness, you as my witness, nobody moves the pocket more than the Rams.

They move it more than Baltimore and Lamar Jackson. They roll out every time. They're multiple. No team in the league moves the pocket more and manipulates it at a dizzying pace like the Rams. So in this offense, and by the way, Goff throws very well on the run. He's not Matt Ryan at all. He throws very well on the run. He's not DeWain Haskins, whose accuracy dips when he moves.

Goff's a very good thrower, especially throwing to his right side. So that's mobile. Even Mitch Trubisky, who most of us think is limited, do you realize in the NFL that it's so catered now to mobile quarterbacks, he's 21 and 10 under Matt Nagy? He's 21 and 10. He's 25 and 18. That includes the rookie year with John Fox, who didn't know what the heck he was doing with him. Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, the two quarterbacks we've seen we like.

What are they? Oh, they're mobile. next year Trevor Lawrence, Trey Lance, Justin Fields, the top three quarterback prospects. What are they? Mobile. Now let me give you a list of many of the quarterbacks who are Owen, two. Matt Stafford, Matt Ryan, Teddy Bridgewater, Kirk Cousins, Daniel Jones, and Ryan Fitzpatrick. They run out of necessity. They are not mobile.

That's the league. That's why I can't buy into the Saints as a Super Bowl team, did not last year. It's why I can't pull the trigger on Tampa Bay as a Super Bowl team. It's not, not only are Breeze and Brady old school, they're old guys and old school. The league is demanding more. Tribisky is a quarterback Chicago. People in Chicago don't believe in. He's 21 and 10 under Matt Nagy.

This is too much data to disregard. The league is changing. Mobility at quarterback is 70% of it. pocket guys unless they have, you know, and by the way, DAC, DAC is one in one. But for those who like Dak, DAC is mobile. So it's nothing against Breeze and Brady. They're old school guys who are now old.

But the league seven, eight years ago was not this. You could not go and I could not give you a chart and say, oh, all the mobile guys are two and oh. It was often the opposite. The guys that ran around a lot, you're like, yeah, they've got to be a pocket guy. I just think the league's changing. it's only two weeks, but we have evidence. I cannot consider the Saints a Super Bowl team.

And as much as I like Brady, I think their story is really right now much more defense than offense. And I don't know if they ever click. I think they get better. But it's very tough in 2020 in the NFL, to be old school and old. Joy of the news.

No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. The Giants have signed running back Devante Freeman to a one-year contract worth up to $3 million. He'll fill in for Saquan Barclay, who is out for the rest of the season with a torn ACL. Freeman could get some playing time this Sunday against the 49ers.

He played in 14 games with Atlanta in 2019, 184 carries, 656 yards, and two touchdowns. Obviously, Sequin Barclay only missed three games last year with a high ankle sprain, 217 carries, over 1,000 yards, six touchdowns. Saquan is not a replaceable. piece for the Giants, obviously, not just from his performance, but he's also the face of that franchise at this point. Which doesn't have one beyond him. Right. And the Giants are

0 and 2 losing to the Steelers and this week to the Bears. There are stories emerging. I got to tell our audience this because I don't think most of our audience knows this. The New York television ratings for the Jets and Giants are the lowest they've ever been. So the NFL's ratings are right now holding steady when the biggest city in America has turned off football. The Jets ratings over the weekends were like a three. That's a Yankee regular season baseball game. And the Jets have a lot of fans. There are discussions in New York today. Trevor Lawrence, these are the two worst teams in the league we've seen. Easily, Jets and Giants are the two worst teams. Both, they may pick one and two. Do they go with Trevor

Lawrence? If I'm the Giants, I got to think long and hard about it. But if you're the Jets, because they don't have a marketable piece, Trevor Lawrence is not a number. only great. He's not only a plus prospect, he's marketable. He's been the best college player for now two to three years. So just ask yourself this. Washington appears to be too good defensively to get the top

one or two pick. Jacksonville is too good offensively to get the one or two pick. And they seem to like Gardner. It is developing very quickly now. Which team which team quarterback would you bail on? I'll talk about it later, but it's a real top of next day. I want to talk

about this. But I'll just throw this out. There are discussions now, Trevor Lawrence, the Jets are the Giants are the two worst teams in the league, and Joy, I don't even think it's close to this point. I don't think it's Detroit's the only one I'd even mention. That's great news if you're Trevor Lawrence. I mean, Trevor Lawrence, either of

those teams, just because they're in New York, is amazing. It used to be Joy, we gave quarterbacks. Eli Manning's third year in the league. You get no time. He was awful. His fourth year, they won a Super Bowl. He led the NFL and picks. Baker Mayfield has had three coaches, four, if you can

count an interim. And we expect him to not only be great, but he has to get it done this season or he's probably going to be gone. So the whole Giants Jets thing is the ratings in New York are terrible. What's telling you is there's nobody put your arms around. There's nobody in the city. There is no Eli. They don't have their Jeter. They don't have their stray hand. They don't have their, God, for a while it was Victor Cruz. They don't have their Odell Beckham. There's no start. Now Barclay's out. Trevor Lawrence to the Jets and Giants is a real possibility. I read two stories yesterday. It's not smoke. It's like

the discussion in the league right now. Well, the Giants next four opponents are the 49ers who are obviously very banged up, but still, even with injuries are going to beat them. At the Rams. They'll lose. At the Cowboys. And then they have Washington. So it could be really bleak for the Giants

very quickly. So Cam Newton has been a great fit for the Patriots so far. He's only on a one-year deal, but he says getting an extension with the team is not a priority right now. That is Literally, the last of my worry, money at this particular point of my career is not important, right? And let's be honest. Like, I've made money, you know, but for everything that I play this game for, I haven't received yet.

And that's why I'm playing. So it's not about money. It's about respect. Cam's saying all the right things, but obviously they're kind of poking him there a little bit. you know, there's some momentum with the Patriots now. We're kind of starting to talk about is this more than a temporary situation. But he's right. He's not thinking about money right now.

He knew what the situation was when he came to New England. Well, he wouldn't sign with him if money was the issue. Right. And he's made around $122 million just in the NFL. That's not counting endorsements and whatever else he's made outside of the league. So money is not an issue. Once you're making over $100 million, like he's in a situation where he needs to recreate his career. And he's doing so, but we're two games in.

He's not thinking about money. He signed an incentive, incentivized contracts, a one-year deal, based salary of a million dollars. Even if, even if the Patriots thought we want to get one of these new quarterbacks, wouldn't you sign him to an extension to at least be a mentor for a year so you wouldn't? Even Trevor Lawrence, I'd rather he sit for six to eight games. Just to stabilize it. And guys, we're still in the middle of a pandemic. Like, we're getting through this season.

We have, I know everyone and I, myself included, is talking about like 2021, as if it's going to hit New Year's and everything is going to be different. Like I think we're all just kind of hoping for that. But we have no idea what next season is going to look like either. Like having someone who's in your organization who can stabilize moving forward is important. I do think Cam's going to be there next year if this continues to trend the way that it is. We'll talk about that later. But I think there's a couple of things that play into Cam's favor on playing next year.

A couple of really interesting things. And if they beat the Raiders this weekend, well, we'll get into it. But there are a lot, I didn't think this was possible three weeks ago. There are two or three things playing out here if they beat the Raiders. You can absolutely see them extending Cam's contract in New England. I never thought I would say that a month ago. No. So finally, the heat have played from behind every game this series against the Celtics.

And after the loss in game three, Jimmy Butler was criticized for not being aggressive enough early. But he doesn't seem too concerned about it. Miami has a 2-1 lead. And Butler said as long as his team wins, there's no problem with anything. He had 17 points in game three. He is averaging less points against the Celtics than he has in the playoffs so far. He averaged 20.6 points throughout the playoffs and 17 against the Celtics.

They're a better defensive team. They are a better team. So that's to be expected. They had a 14 point deficit in game one, 17 in game two, and 20 in game three, which would explain why they weren't able to come back. But they do need to start more aggressive. You can't continue to have these kind of deficits against a team like the Celtics. Game three was bound to happen.

You need to come out in the first quarter. quarter and be aggressive. You can't get down that much to a team like the Celtics consistently. You're just not going to win the series. Listen, Kansas City Chiefs are the best team in football, right? They're down 10 points all the time. Like, they're, I mean, but they're the, they're one of the best, and not that the heat are not, but like, you're going against, they're not going against the best team in the league every, every week. Like, what they did in the playoffs last year was remarkable. You don't want to be behind in every single playoff game. That's, that's a risky way to play.

So in the first half, he's averaging 7 points, 2 rebounds, and 1.3 assists against the Celtics. So he needs to come out a little stronger. By the way, you may see a familiar face in the digital stands tonight, just saying. Are you there? I am. I'm very excited. So you're the digital.

I'm entering the bubble digitally tonight. Oh, that's fun. I'm very excited. That's great. Joy Taylor with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Heard Lye News.

All right. Just bring on my buddy. last week, you know, sometimes why do I bring him back? I mean, I just get criticized. It shows you that I must be very secure in myself because it's just I sit here for 10 minutes and I'm a speed bag for Nick Wright, first things first, joining

me brought to you by Mercedes, Ben's the best or nothing. So I think we're going to agree on the first thing. You know, people are so ridiculous. Like even Michael Jordan didn't sweep series. Nobody sweeps anybody in the conference finals. That's stupid. So I don't really care that

the Lakers lost last night. Do we agree on that? Yeah, of course we agree on that. Folks are out of their minds. Like, weird thing happens. The most popular pick for this series was Lakers in either five or six. That means they're going to lose once or twice. Yet as soon as they lose, folks are like, oh my God, I think LeBron's old. A.D., he'd just hit that game winner, but he didn't have a rebound.

Jeremy Grant, if he goes for damn near 30, again, they're in trouble. Here's a fun stat for you, Colin. in the last five years, there have only been three playoff winning streaks longer than the one the Lakers just ended. The Warriors had one, obviously, the Cavs with LeBron had one obviously, and oddly enough, Joy Taylor's beloved Miami Heat had one earlier this year, their first seven games. You don't go on five, six, seven, eight game winning streaks in the postseason. The Lakers didn't play well in the second half a game two when they escaped. They didn't play well for the first three and a half quarters yesterday, and they, of course, didn't escape. They almost came back.

But they're going to be fine. They're going to win Thursday. I think remember when Moses Malone, Colin, did foe, faux, foe, talking about the Sixers sweeping their way to the finals. I think the Lakers are going to go five, five, five, five, five. I think they're all going to be five games series this postseason. I've been saying that for about a week now. I think the wins game is four and five and be fine. Yep, I agree.

Let me shift to Cam Newton. I'm just, I mean, listen, Cam drives me crazy. But here's what I like. You're wrong. I believe in structure. Antonio Brown is talent. He left great structure and he's no good. Where I'll give Cam credit.

He is totally embracing. I can be independent and do the Superman and be crazy outfits and have funny comments and ad lib. But he's buying the structure. Right? This is why this is working. It's not because Cam's the world's got his quarterback. He's buying into the Patriot. You can acknowledge that, right?

No, I can't acknowledge that. I will acknowledge nothing on Cam Newton until you stare straight down in the barrel of the camera one day and say, not only was I wrong about Cam Newton, but I deeply apologize to Cam and his family. Until you do that, I will give no, I will give not a single inch.

This was a guy who was just out, just available. Your good, you know, it feels to me like you have good friends in the cult's organization. They give Philip Rivers 25 minutes. million bucks. You love that move. Cam's just sitting there hanging out. Chicago Bears, they trade a pick and then give Nick Foles 20-some million guaranteed. Oh, that's fine. Cam's just hanging out. Oh, is he healthy? I don't know. Do you have access to Instagram? He was posted videos all summer look totally healthy. And now he's in New England and he's killing

folks. First game he did it with his legs. Second game, he did it with his arms. And while he didn't score on that final one-yard run, it shouldn't have come down to that. If Julian Edelman can the perfectly, perfectly placed, pardon me, touchdown pass. He threw two plays prior that Edelman just dropped. He's been awesome. He's been a great teammate. He's been a leader. They're playing Kirk Franklin at Patriots practices.

Everything's coming up in New England somehow. And I hold you and others like you personally accountable for this even happening. The Patriots were supposed to stink. They were supposed to have Trevor, what's his name? Jared Stidham, pardon me. They were supposed to be tanking, for Trevor by playing Jared.

But because you guys all depressed Cam Newton's value like you were insider trading on a stock, Belichick gets Cam Newton. It's infuriating. It's absolutely infuriating and you owe him an apology. Like it's insider trading. That's funny. That laugh was of a man

who maybe has done some of him and so that made me a little nervous how much that resonated with you. It is funny. Okay, let's go back to something we agree on. Listen, all the things everybody likes about Drew Brees, Kirk Cousins has all of them. He was Kirk Cousins Monday. There was no pass rush from the Raiders, and he still kept dropping it off to his running backs. I mean, Drew Brees will win some games, but we agree. Like, it's Drew Brees is, you can't win a

Super Bowl with that offense. You can't. Listen, he's, he's old, and he's showing it. He's one of the greatest quarterbacks ever. But, I mean, he's 41. And an old 41, if such a thing exists. Like he turns 42 during the playoffs this coming year. So I don't want to kill him for it because he's playing better than any 41-year-old not named Tom Brady has ever played,

but that's still not very good. But that's not the story with New Orleans. And I can't believe this. I feel like I'm just a one-man campaign to try to get people to start talking about this. The best player on their team the last three years is Michael Thomas. Yes. Why

wasn't he out there Monday night? Because he suffered a high ankle sprain. Why did he suffer a high ankle sprain? Because Sean Payton, who's known to be a bit of a jerk, not necessarily in a bad way, but a bit of a jerk, and like to run up the score and like to stick it to his opponent, Sean Payton, when they could have taken knees against the bucks, they were in a kneel down situation. He wanted to get to 40 points. They were at 34. He wanted to hang 40 on Tampa to remind them the division still goes through New Orleans. And with a minute 20 left in an 11 point game at the 8-yard line with the Bucks having no timeouts, you're still running offense, and the best player in your team gets rolled up on. He missed last week.

He's going to miss this week against the Packers. When he comes back, he won't be 100%. The Saints have put all their future salary cap eggs in this year's basket. And the fact that it is now at least partially derailed because their coach was trying to run up the score. We saw in week two, Colin, how brutal the NFL can be just regularly. You can lose guys at any given moment. If you have the ability to take knees, take the damn knees. Sean Payton did it.

He's getting a pass for it. Michael Thomas should never have gotten injured. And especially with only one buy coming out of each conference this year, it severely hampers the Saints ability to compete for a championship this year. Good take. By the way, I saw a column this morning kind of made me laugh. this whole let Russ cook thing, a columnist come out and said, let DAC cook.

And I thought, oh, that's not really the same at all. You, all right, so Dax put up through two games. He's, you know, 68% completions, a lot of yards. Are you moving off your criticism of DAC, which has been very consistent for three years now? Well, yeah, listen, I moved off it enough to pick them to go to the Super Bowl. ball, even though I don't think he's going to be one of the 10 best quarterbacks in football. I think that I underrated DAC slightly, not drastically, but slightly.

It does appear, and I've long been a Carson Wentz over that guy. Carson Wentz right now got to worry about being better than Daniel Jones, and then maybe he can compete with Dak the way he's playing so far. But, no, I mean, I don't think, I don't think Dak is part of the problem in Dallas, far from it, and I think he is playing well, and he's about to make a ton of money. But with all that said, let's let Russ cook. Russ is the second best player in the whole sport.

Let's not conflate what Russ should be doing in that offense with a limited offensive line and a limited running game the best way for Seattle to win. And the Cowboys, a good offensive line when they're healthy and Ezekiel Elliott, to me those are two very, very different situations. But yeah, listen, DAC has proven over the last couple of years, I think he can be the quarterback of a really good team. and if Dallas gets their act together,

maybe he will be this year. Yeah. Very good today. I think we can stop right there. We had two. Thank you. Can I say one more thing? Just real quick.

Sure. Just real quick. I have to say something to. All right. The NBA already, for some reason or another, won't give me an awards vote. I submit a ballot. They send it back to me every year.

They just mock me. And now I was told I'm not eligible to be in the virtual fans. And then I hear Joy Taylor say she's going to be in the virtual fans. fans. I can't get a vote. I can't even be a virtual fan. The hell's going on. Well, who did I offend in the NBA office? What's happening? All I do is rep the beautiful sport and Joy's going to be there waving her heat pom-poms. I'm be watching from home again. This is what loyalty gets in. By the way, I was offered it and turned it down. I was. You're a bad friend. I'm leaving.

I was a week ago. By-bye, everybody. That's Nick Wright. Yeah, a week ago they offered it and I said, I'm busy. And you'll be on there tonight. Yeah, I can't wait. And nobody talks more NBA than Nick Wright. He should be the ambassador of the sport. That's funny. Amazing.

All right. Coming up next, Joy and I, I'm going to play detective next. I want to play detective next. Coming up next. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

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

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

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

Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with a little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it.

Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so you're just so you're not. But just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, this is the second episode where we've discussed correct. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now.

Thank you finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast.

Learn the Hardway with me, your host. and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark.

Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing and we're still chasing it and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth,

or are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free, our heart radio app.

Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Life-changing sleep happens at Casper. Only Casper mattress is align your spine to eliminate aches and pains. 86 supportive gel pods. Casper Mattress, casper.com. So my wife has said this often. She would love to be a detective. She's very good.

If my wife and I watch a true crime movie or a story, she's just quick. She can figure, spot stuff out like nobody's business. And I wanted to be, I wanted as a kid to work for the FBI. So I grew up in Washington State. I've said this a few times in my life. Ted Bundy was a legendary serial killer, and as a kid I was reading, stories were in the newspaper constantly. I was fascinated by it.

So I thought about working for the FBI, but my grades didn't get me into the FBI, right? So in my background, my wife and I would like to be spies, and we're kind of fascinated by it. And so Detective Cowherd today, I'm going to be a special agent. The picture on the wall, Detective Cowherd. Now, in sports, when stories leak, they leak because somebody wants them out. Right? Like, you have secrets, Joey, I have secrets. Goulet's got secrets.

We've all got secrets in our life that don't get out because we don't want them out. So in sports, Joy and I covering sports forever, stories get out when somebody wants them out. Clippers. Kawhi Leonard is the lone untouchable clipper in the off-season. Story gets out according to Jovan Buha of the Athletic. Somebody leaks the story, meaning outside of Kauai, Paul George is available. Second leak, Paul George's speech after the Clippers game seven lost to the nuggets met with eye rolls. There was no media in there.

Somebody leaked it to Shams Sharanya. Third leak, multiple teammates had verbal spats with Paul George throughout the postseason. Chris Haynes had that. Not all of these were visible. We have three leaks on Paul George. Fire up the music again. Why do people leak stuff? They wanted out.

That's the first reason. They want it out. Why joy do they want it out to protect their interests? So Detective Cowherd is suspecting these leaks are coming, perhaps from Doc Rivers, because then Paul George is blamed for the loss, not the coaching staff, which got out coached. And that is kind of where the narrative is leaning currently. Okay. There is, it could be leaking from a Lou Williams wants his money.

Paul George, these guys, remember, both Kauai and Paul can opt out. You step up the financials. Could it be a veteran player looking at Paul George as a financial threat? Could it be? Now, I'm just throwing it out there. Now, here's the thing to remember. Regardless of who it is, this is absolutely point of no return. If I'm an player in the NBA and I'm getting people leaking stuff, doesn't that change the relationships?

If I thought you were leaking stuff constantly in the media, three different examples, I'd be like, our relationship would change. Or vice versa. You wouldn't trust me. So who is leaking stuff with the clippers? Your guess is? Yeah, I'd have to lean towards the coaching staff there. The coaching staff with the clippers protecting themselves is. leaking it so that Paul George takes the hit.

Because these stories do not get out if somebody doesn't want them out. Well, the blame was naturally pointed at Paul George. We didn't really talk about Kauai's performance, even though Kauai was not great towards the end of that series. He wasn't. Yeah. But because Kauai has won a championship and clearly carried that team to a championship. And clearly the better of the two stars.

Right. And that just happened last year. He's kind of going to get a pass in that situation to begin with. So, Doc Rivers also has a championship. So it kind of naturally fell on Paul George. All right. So Detective Cowherd, the audience today, is it the coaching staff of the Clippers?

Well, in these situations, you always have to look at who gains the most from Paul George looking like he is the reason why they lost. I mean, I'm looking at, I'm looking at, Kauai doesn't talk. So is it a veteran like Lou Williams? Well, Kauai has nothing to gain from that, unless he really believes. that there's someone else available who's that much better than Paul George. And what's the word on the street? Detectives do listen to that. Is the word on the street?

I haven't put my ear to the streets for this yet, but. It's just very interesting. It is. I mean, you're absolutely right. Those are multiple stories to multiple different outlets. So this is a campaign. This is a campaign against Paul George. Now, here's the other thing.

Are the clippers letting it out? So when they move them, they can justify it and go, well, I mean, God, you don't wasn't getting along with teammates. Right, you don't want an overreaction from the fan base or from the media that they moved too quickly. So we have a John Goulet. Music, please. We have a motive. The motive is to soften the reaction.

To soften the reaction. Paul George is leaving. Well, I mean, God, he couldn't get along with his teammates. There was eye rolls. He had multiple altercations. Listen, you can't get an 88 mile on our fastball past this show. Not, not with these detectives. skills. I'm not blaming

Lou or Doc. I'm just saying right now. Somebody wants us to happen. I'm a detective. I'd like to talk to Lou and Doc. And the executives. Our 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 on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth.

Listen to Superhuman on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. In 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English.

Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the 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. This is an IHeart podcast.

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