The Herd with Colin Cowherd - THE HERD - Hour 1 - Major concerns about Caleb Williams, JJ McCarthy looked great when it mattered most

Episode Date: September 9, 2025

Colin has major questions about Bears quarterback Caleb Williams after his first game under new head coach Ben Johnson fell apart after the opening drive Vikings QB JJ McCarthy started out slow but was impressive when it mattered the mostSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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It is the herd wherever you may be And however you may be listening Thanks for making us part of your day We got the herd hierarchy And Nick Ryden one hour Dana White in studio J-Mack I don't know if I've ever quite seen

a quarterback pivot like J.J. McCarthy. First three quarters he threw for about 55 yards. And then in the fourth quarter, he was Joe Montana. He was virtually perfect. So we got a lot to talk about. Yeah, winning time. McCarthy delivers, baby. All right. So I don't start my show with statistics very often,

but I thought this was very interesting, and it serves a point. So in the first drive, Caleb Williams is 6 for 6 with 102 passer rating. The rest of the game, he completed 50% and a passer rating in the 70s. That's a backup in the NFL. J.J. McCarthy in the first three quarters, unwatchable. A 34 passer rating. Look terrified in the fourth quarter, 6 of 8, 101 passer rating. My takeaway, the further the Bears Caleb Williams got off script.

the worse it got. The more J.J. McCarthy could play loose, intuitive football, the better it got. So don't be afraid to have a strong opinion after one game. Caleb on script, velocity, horsepower, he can move on script, look comfortable and daring and good. But that opening drive in the third quarter, you could watch Ben Johnson, who was visibly frustrated with his lack of accuracy. There were also four false starts, 12 total Chicago penalties, eight on the offense. And he was missing badly with open receivers.

So, I mean, I think he's talented enough to beat bad teams and mediocre coordinators, but that's not his division. And he was one in five against his division last year. the only win when the Packers rested starters. So you can't watch that game and not be a little unsettled. Off script. It looks like USC Caleb Williams. Wow, he's talented.

And so was Cam Newton. And in 11 seasons, Cam Newton had three winning seasons because Cam was all over the map and too often relied on talent. His mechanics eroded, his accuracy regressed. It was hit and miss. And that was the knock on Caleb coming in. He had all sorts of talent, but there's a million talented lounge singers working at bad saloons. They're not coachable.

They don't manage themselves well. You know, they aren't consistent. The NFL is so much more than just armed talent. Jay Cotler had a great arm. Justin Fields finally as a passing game coordinator he likes in New York, you saw what he did. I also thought Caleb panicked. when the first and second receiver weren't there. Now, again, Brian Flores, in my opinion, I have said this for like a year,

is the best defensive coordinator in football, in my opinion. I think the staff of Minnesota, this year, the athletic to the piece, it ranked San Francisco's second best overall staff, Minnesota number one. So you may not face a coaching staff this good. Green Bay's is pretty good the rest of the season. But Caleb does too many things that losing quarterbacks do. The false starts. Now it's first and 15 or it's second and 12.

He panics with pressure. His off script, his accuracy dips when he's moving. And he had an extra year ahead of J.J. McCarthy. J.J. McCarthy just hasn't played in a couple years. I mean, he didn't even play in the preseason much. So I thought when you watch this game, there is a way to win in this league. This is what Belichick talked about with Brady. You can't have penalties.

You can't play behind the sticks. You have got to be moving forward. And Ben Johnson's body language, he was frustrated, he was puzzled, he was swearing on the headset. It was just not good enough. You've got to give me more than talent. And here was Ben Johnson after. We said going into week one that the team that would make the least number of mistakes would win the game. and unfortunately we were on the wrong side of that.

We made too many there late in the game. Myself included 12 penalties. That's got to get cleaned up in a hurry. And yet we've been saying that all training camp as well. So, you know, we'll find a way to get that done. It's going to be a collective effort. No one's pointing fingers. First half, mostly on script, you felt pretty good about it.

The further Caleb got off script, Hero ball, panicking, lack of accuracy, all the things scout said they were concerned about. All right, J.J. McCarthy, I've never seen a game like that. I've never seen a quarterback do that. So the fact that J.J. McCarthy ended up with a 98 passer rating after the first three quarters is remarkable. I mean, the Vikings still only finished three for 12 on third down and six fewer first downs than the bears. They were unwatchable offensively for three quarters. But I have found my J.J. McCarthy comp. It's Baker Mayfield.

Play at a college power, tons of emotion, a lot of energy. I wish they were bigger. But all they have to do, Baker and J.J. McCarthy can go into slumps and get reckless. But if they make one big throw and they gain that confidence, their velocity and their accuracy changes. And he, after that pick six, which is about as bad as any pick six I've ever seen. I mean, he was bad in the first three quarters. But then there was a moment for J.J. McCarthy. And this is very Baker Mayfield.

There was a moment. It was in the fourth quarter. He hit Justin Jefferson with a seed. And that, this play right here unleashed something. The next three drives, it was a different. different J.J. McCarthy. And this is Baker. All Baker needs to step into it, one rope, and Baker changes. The ball comes out faster, more velocity and more accuracy. And again, he's got Kevin O'Connell and Josh McCowne. You cannot get better as a quarterback. So what you really saw

from J.J. McCarthy is an old saying, nobody is going to believe in you in life until you believe in yourself and you watched his body language change he's like baker he plays with a ton of emotion he got a little chip on his shoulder he wins a lot of football games but you saw two different quarterbacks the first three quarters was a coaching staff and again he hadn't played much that was protecting him and they were kind of just waiting for it to happen i text somebody last night uh an NFL exec and i say what do you i said what do you make of this game plan and he goes in K-O-C-I trust. He didn't play much in the preseason.

He hasn't played a lot of snaps. They're probably thinking in Minnesota, let Caleb Williams make mistakes with Brian Flores. Let's just try to stay in the game. He'll make a play later, and he did. And I got to tell you, that was a different quarterback in the fourth quarter. Here is Kevin O'Connell after.

J.J. McCarthy for him to make some of the plays he did. I told him at halftime. you are going to bring us back to win this game. And the look in his eye was fantastic. And the best thing is just the belief I felt from the team, the unit. And ultimately, that doesn't get done without him in the second half, two passing touchdowns, and then the critical rushing touchdown, you know, at the end. Now, it does help.

Minnesota's got better ownership, a better front office, a proven coach, a better roster. They were favored in the game. I said all week, this was the last. Lazing five pick. I didn't pick. I picked Minnesota. I thought this was one of the games. I just trusted the Minnesota Viking organization, their coaching staff. I think Ben Johnson's a really good coach, but it's just in big games, Caleb Williams has often been worse than the one o'clock window. So Minnesota, this morning, Jay Mack and I are laughing before the show. What is J.J. McCarthy?

Well, I think he's going to be closer to the fourth quarter than the first three. And again, it is, Kevin O'Connell was called the tall Sean McVeigh when he went to Minnesota. And people have talked about if you drafted coaches right now, he'd be a top three or a four coach. He can build a culture. He played in the league. Tall, good-looking guy with a lot of confidence. Look what he did is Sam Darnold. I don't think J.J. McCarthy is gifted enough to get a defensive coach or an average coaching staff and flourish.

But there is something about Justin Jefferson, the prediction they get their left tackle back soon. they did start to develop a run game, a pretty consistent run game in the second half. That also helped field position and confidence. But if you're a Viking fan this morning and a Bears fan, I know that one quarterback outplayed the other for three quarters, but a Viking fan looks at that fourth and says, I absolutely believe we've got our guy for the next decade. I don't think anybody in Chicago, except maybe Caleb Williams,

is thinking that this morning. I don't know if Ben Johnson's thinking that because the body language with Ben Johnson was disappointment. Even when J.J. McCarthy was struggling, I didn't sense that from Kevin O'Connell. He was just sort of monitoring and watching, understanding the situation. The body language from Ben was these are dialed up to work and you're not hitting them. So, J. Mack, one of the, I mean, how good was weak one of the NFL? Unbelievable. Every big TV game was unbelievable.

Just some more context for McCarthy. So he's only 22 years old, very young guy. Yes. No left tackle. Derisaw was out last night. He's in a couple of, I think he's coming back in a couple of weeks. Adam Thielen was just traded for like five minutes ago. Had a drop.

He had a brutal drop. You know, Jordan Addison suspended. Like everything going against him. And you're down on the road at night in Chicago. I thought that was unbelievable what he did in the fourth quarter. Not quite Josh Allen unbelievable. No, but I'd be looking. Pretty impressive.

Look at the last two fourth quarters we've seen in the NFL. Baltimore dominates a game. Like, it's not competitive. Dominating a game, the wheels come off. J.J. McCarthy looked, I mean, if I said, you know, five adjectives to describe it, you mean, they're just, it looked a little intimidated, a little slow, a little hesitant. Pick six was. It was as bad as Picks.

He literally threw to a bear in stride. Yeah. Real quick. division. Based on what you saw this week, you don't want to overreact. Green Bay is the best team. Okay. Who's the second best team? I would say Minnesota right now. Over Detroit? Oh, I dude. I think those coordinators, I think it's a major issue. Go back several years ago. Think how good the roster was for Philly. They hired coordinators that didn't work. Week 10, they were circling the drain. Coordinators, go look at the Niners defense with Robert Sala. Go look at it

last year. People don't understand. These coordinators are game changers. So this week, Chicago visits Detroit 1 p.m. I believe that's a Fox game, Cullen. That is kind of a huge game for Caleb Williams and Detroit. Detroit can't lose that, can they? Can't start 0-1-2, it's over. But Caleb needs it badly given what happened in the final three quarters. Well, well, Minnesota defensively, in my opinion, is better than Detroit. Yes. They were a top five defense. last year, I think total defense. I like Minnesota's defense, better than Detroit's, which can be a little hit and miss. I do love Branch in the back end.

He's good. That's a top five game this week. There's a lot of good games every week. That's a top five game for me because I don't want to say it's elimination in week two, column, but you know we've seen this. O and two is a big hole to climb out of. I can't believe how good week one was. I cannot believe how good it was.

We were close to, you know, Bears 176. Look like they were about to run away with it. Hawkinson fumbles? No, no, no. And I thought that was a legit fumble. I hadn't seen that. When it was 17 to 6, my take was if the bears get one more drive, and even if they don't score, it is a field position because JJ was playing with no confidence.

I'm like, just pin them deep, make JJ drive 94 yards. We could have a game that's over. I mean, it's just sometimes this league just pull stuff out of a hat. And between the last two night games we've seen, incredible. Incredible turnarounds. One by a team and one by a quarterback. 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.

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I'm an actor, I'm a comedian, and recently, I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives, helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike, I'm a comedian! I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff rant and recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man. If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone, let it ring twice. One ring is too scary.

Cream a chicken suit. Hey, cream a chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrite as part of the Mike Coutura Podcast Network available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I think one of the things that's really troubling if you're a Chicago Bears fan is, you see the Detroit Lions offense? That was the number one offense in the NFL. Did you see it against Green Bay? They averaged 3.8 yards play. They could not move the ball. They could not score a touchdown. And Michael Parsons only played 45% of the snaps. So the Lions offense against the Packers was abysmal. It's the first time it's been bad in three years. It's the first time they haven't had Ben Johnson. Also, Ben Johnson was able on script to create the Bears scoring a touchdown on the first drive. They didn't do that all of last season. Also, Ben Johnson got Tyson, Baygent in the preseason to have a 107 passer rating. Lions, Tyson Baygent, first drive. If there's a struggle here, it's not Ben Johnson.

Here's one of the things that would really concern me. I went and looked this morning, Caleb Williams last year and Caleb Williams against the Minnesota Vikings. And again, he's got moments. He's got that throw to Roma Dense. Last season and this season. Last season, yesterday. He's the same quarterback. Has even Ben Johnson met his match. His numbers last night or his numbers last year. There was

one throw in particular that really would trouble me. It was fourth quarter. 232 left. Now, they scored eventually on this drive, but it wasted 30 seconds. He misses a layup and I mean he misses it by eight yards. And that's what worries me.

There were open receivers. This had a Justin Fields field to it. where you're like, dude, there's people there, they're open, you're not seeing it. And when you do, you're about 55% on getting it there. So there is an analytic, an analytic that is called expected completion percentage. So the passes after everybody watches film that you should complete. I don't buy into all the analytics, but it's an interesting one. Caleb, after last night, dead last, minus 13%.

So he should have completed at least 13% more of his passes. So Ben Johnson is scheming Jared Goff open. Yeah, Jared Goff and Amarron St. Brown. Should they really lead the number one offense in the NFL? Shouldn't it be like Josh Allen all the time? Or Lamar Jackson and Derek Henry? I mean, I like Amar on St. Brown, a fourth round picket. I like Jared Goff.

They shouldn't be the NFL's number one offense. They were. Tyson Bajent. You ever think Tyson Bajent was going to look that good like he didn't preseason? So my takeaway is we've got an elite coach. But for that number to come out, the low tide for the lowest expected completion percentage. That's not good. That's an analytic that people inside the league look at.

Caleb Williams trying to spin it positively. There was a lot of good there. Our communication, you know, I think he was getting the plays in, you know, fast and I've been able to get out the huddle. You know, we need to be better with that. And I've been able to get up to the line, make checks or whatever case may be. But, you know, I think it's a growing process that it's going to keep growing from here. The start, this is the start, but definitely not to, definitely not to end. Now, in fairness, J.J. McCarthy looked bad for three quarters.

Bo Nix didn't look good with Sean Payton. Caleb didn't look bad in the first half. So there were moments for other young quarterbacks where you're kind of, oh, that didn't look great. Now, not everybody's going to be Jaden Daniels. Drake May did not have a good Sunday. I like Drake May. So again, young quarterbacks, the difference between the great ones, you kind of get the same thing every Sunday. You may lose, but you feel like, I always feel like, even with Mahomes losing to the Chargers, you kind of get the same greatness.

And Tom Brady lost games, but about every other year he'd have a stinker. So young quarterbacks are like young anything. You get less consistency. It's up and down. JJ was bad for three quarters. Great for one. I thought Caleb on script in the first half was mostly pretty good. But the further he got away from that script, the uglier and the less accuracy, he was.

he exhibited. That's a real thing. J. Mack with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, Colin, I want to preface this first story by saying last year in week one, there were some craziness, okay?

The commanders got blasted by the bucks. Yeah. Commanders made the NFC championship game. Well, let's go into the Detroit Lions now, and they were bad in week one. They got humiliated by the Packers. They were down 276 before a garbage time touchdown. golf and the offense were held without a touchdown until literally the final minute of the game, Colin.

Now, Goff says we need a lot more urgency. Here we go. Yeah, we'll move forward. Fine. We will. We've got good players. We've got good coaches. We'll be fine. It's just there needs to be an urgency of improvement. You know, it has to be. And today wasn't even close to good enough, I think, offensively.

And we got a lot of work to be making sure everyone's on the same page. Our communication is better and getting lined up correctly and all that stuff. And ultimately, a lot of it falls on me. Yeah, some of it falls on you, but some of it falls on play-calling and lack of ingenuity and Green Bay is really good.

So I'm looking at the Bears last night now. Maybe the numbers haven't been updated, but I'm seeing not many blitzes and they were still getting some pressure. We know Goff, okay? Up the middle was struggling with the backup center, you know, Ragnowton. Bears got real pressure in the first three quarters.

Okay, so if they did it, Without the Blitz, that's good news against Goss. Do you think, what's your early read on this? And I'm not asking you to pick the game on a Tuesday. No, I think this is something I strongly believe in, is when you lose great people in a company and you decide we're just going to hire people that are in-house, sometimes it works because they understand your culture.

But the best people in life in any industry, if Netflix loses their content director, are you sure the best guy in the world is at Netflix? So I think, and that's my takeaway. way, you lose Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, who were the best coordinator tandem in the league. We talked about Ben Johnson for three years. He was offered other jobs. He leaves. Well, let's give it to the mid-50 guy in the building. I'm just being honest. I've said this before. Remember David Cully in Houston? He had been a long time. No, he'd been a long-time assistant to everybody love.

And everybody's like, well, he's a good guy. Houston hires him. Three weeks in, you're like, There's a reason he hadn't interviewed for head jobs for all those years. It's not a knock on people. But the bottom line is staying in-house to hire the second biggest, I would say, head coach is number one in this league. O.C is two. If you have a 17-person staff, the second most important hire is the O-C. And I think you replace Ben Johnson with a guy everybody likes in-house. Roll the dice.

We can make it debaty. they went against the best team in the NFC. You said yesterday the Packers look like one of the three best teams in the league. Packers are unbelievable. Packers are really good. The Chicago Bears did not look great last night, Colin. So now the Lions are at home. Crowd's going to be juiced up.

You're on the turf. You know, I expect this team to look way better. I have a right to avoid betting that game. You do. You certainly do. I don't want to touch it. I don't know what we're allowed to do with mentioning gambling companies. But I did see the Detroit Lions

win total has been adjusted down. To what? It is currently eight and a half. It's juiced. But still, like you've got to lay a little. So what does that tell you? It was 10 and a half. No, it's 8 and a half.

No, that's Vegas telling you, this is a 819. Or is that Vegas baiting you into betting on the lions all of a sudden stinking when they just faced a jugger. Remember when I've never done this before, and all the years I've been doing this. I've never watched a Hall of Fame game and had a definitive statement. Right. The Hall of Fame game. game, the lions were so disorganized. I'm like, sell your stock. Sell your stock.

So part of me wants to buy some stock because everybody, everybody's selling. What does Warren Buffett say? When everybody's going one way, go the other. So I'm torn, but I think I'm like you. They already asked me for my picks for Friday's headlines. You go four in one. Jay, it's Tuesday. We're the picks. I don't have a strong take on this one, but I'm leaning lines. Leaning. It's early. Next up, Colin, is the Baltimore Ravens. Oh, my gosh. Sunday night, just an unbelievable finish. But they started to dig into the numbers. Colin, are you ready for this?

That loss being up two touchdowns late in the fourth. It was the 17th time since John Harbaugh took over as head coach where Baltimore has blown a double-digit second-half lead. Harbaugh knows the number is way too high. Maybe part of it's the fact that we've been ahead a lot. You know, we've won a lot of games. So we've had a lot of, and we've had a lot of two-score leads. so we've kept a lot of those

but I think we've lost six of them if I'm not mistaken that's too many we need to be really thoughtful of you know how we decide that we're going to approach those situations going forward

you know let's give us some thought let me defend Baltimore and Harbaugh on this okay so one no team has had more blowout wins in the NFL over the last five years than Lamar Jackson and the Raiders they blow good teams out

regular in the regular season Secondly, it's hard to convince players leading by 16 points or 17 points with seven minutes left. All gas, no brakes. Coaches coach more conservatively, that is the reality of big leads in the NFL. So it's not just their defense on the back end. They're off. Look at their last three offensive drives. You're trying to convince a team that has dominated Buffalo.

Hey, hey, they're going to come back. When they were down 15 with 3.50 to go, did you think to yourself, we're going to see an improbable comeback? Nobody in the, and if Derek Henry doesn't fumble, they don't lose that game. Some of this is Mark Andrews dropping a pass or Derek Henry fumbling. So I don't think it's an epidemic, but I do think what he says is we lead big a lot. It is hard. You know this. You talk about it all the time.

Backdoor covers are an epidemic in the NFL where you can watch a bad team trail by 17. Then they trail by seven and you lose your bet. So I don't, listen, they got to beat Kansas City. Okay. They have to eventually. they're going to meet Buffalo again and I don't think this outcome will determine or defend or change the next

outcome. Okay, that's a fair argument. I get that. If we could get it on the screen one more time. Colin, since 22, they have blown seven second half double-digit leads. So 2022 is only three years in one game. That's not even 50 games. They've led

and blown seven. Now, I was talking with Zach. Sharp guy, went to Oregon, you know. And I'm you're like, why are they consistently blowing these leads? They've got a dynamic quarterback. They've got a great head coach, right? Harbaugh's a top five coach. Why? And I couldn't come up with a legitimate reason and I like your reason. Okay, okay. Here's another thing. Okay. If you don't play Lamar Jackson regularly, there is no comp at practice. That's why he is so dominant against the NFC. He's like 24 and 1 against the NFC or some absurd number.

you can have a guy that's not mahomes but you can you can find somebody in your training camp can do some mahomes-ish stuff Lamar is such a unique player you can't practice for him and in the first half of games you literally you're on your back foot it's like Tyson in his prime it's like that power okay oh my lord if you could get to round six against Tyson you could kind of figure out Tyson's power and the angles And a lot of times I think a double-digit lead doesn't mean 20. It can mean 10. And then all of a sudden now it's the eighth drive against Lamar. You've kind of figured him out a little bit.

Not bad. That's probably some of your best work on the fly. Because remember, in the NBA, 20-point leads were nothing a couple years ago because of the three. A 10-point lead in the NFL is nothing. Against Lamar and Derek Henry? Did you see what J.J. McCarthy did in the fourth quarter? The last two night games, teams dropped three. touchdowns in minutes. Remember, Flores

adjusted at halftime and the bears couldn't move the football. But just one final thought like, maybe this is on Harbaugh, and he needs to go to Lamar when they're up in the second half and be like, dude, all we do is blow leads. Put these guys on the canvas. Wipe them out. Let's stay aggressive. Maybe they're not doing

enough of that? It's tough when you're leading, but I know when I'm in the men's league and we're leading. I'm jacking threes for the knockout block. Yeah, by the way, I'm sure everybody doesn't love it as much as you do. When you lead big, The remedy isn't Jack threes. We don't blow leads.

Lamar, keep your foot on the gas. Final story. You don't play the bills. Also true. Final story is the Miami Dolphins. Oh my gosh. Mike McDaniel's under fire. I mean, I know he looks cool on the sideline with the aviators, but holy cow, when you lose to Daniel Jones by a billion, it's bad.

Mike McDaniels says things can only go up from here. The good news and the positive is I don't see how it could be worse. and I also believe in, you know, the coaches and players to get it fixed because it wasn't, you know, it's just a shame. It's, you work behind the scenes for months on end and you don't show any of it. It's frustrating, but that can be a good thing. It's not that you didn't show it. You didn't have fight. That's a lack of belief in the coast.

That's, again, Chris Greer has been a GM there for almost a decade. I don't like their roster. You could not watch that game and think the dolphins are close to the Colts in a roster composition. Colts have good players. Oh, but come on that one. They're okay. They've got nice weapons. They got good weapons.

I believe Vegas had the dolphins with a higher win total than the Colts by one game. In the preseason. That's a quarterback thing. One's a pro bowler and one. Before you, it sounds like you like the Patriots this week. Just before you lay the lumber, make sure you check the weather. We always got to see if it's super hot in. September in Florida and you know one sidelines in the shade Miami plays those games just let's

let's not automatically lay the Patriots here folks I didn't say I was picking it in the blazing five up a winning week but I am can it's under consideration all right just they're not going to look as bad Miami's not going to be that bad neither is New England J-Mac with the news well that's the news and thanks for stopping by the herd lie news I like when the raiders win even though I'm a patriot guy and Vrable guy. It's fun when the Raiders win. It's optimistic. I mean, it's just, I got Chip Kelly, I got Pete Carroll,

I got Max Crosby, I got Brock Bowers, I got Ashton Genty. When the Raiders wins, do you see how well they traveled? Do you see how many Raider fans were in Foxborough? What do you even texting staff? You have Pete Carroll, and Chip Kelly, you guys buddies?

I don't bother, but these guys are professionals. I don't bother them. The home you've worked so hard for, don't forget, a herd hierarchy, Nick Wright, top of the next hour. The home you've worked so hard for is going to work hard for you. If you want an equity loan in your house, that's the part of the house. Once you own it, that's the part you actually own. Rocket Mortgage. Rocket Mortgage LLC is licensed in all 50 states. Learn how you can turn your home's equity into cash. Go to rocketmortgage.com

today. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers. And guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, name? Huge news. We created our own podcast called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there. But this one's extra special. So how do we actually come up with a name Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. And we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers.

This is how you guys remember it going down? Yes. I have a very different memory of this. We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, people could call in and say, hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys.

Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. 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 podcast. The story I've told myself about love or relationships can then shape my behavior, and that can lead me to sabotage the possibility of connection. This Mental Health Awareness Month, tune into the podcast deeply well with Debbie Brown and explore the journey of healing, self-discovery, and returning to yourself. We explore higher consciousness, emotional well-being, and the practices that help you find clarity, peace, and self-masters.

in a world that can feel overwhelming. The world is becoming lonelier. We're not becoming more social and connected. We're becoming more individualized, but we actually meet people in connection. If you've been searching for a soft place to land while doing the work to become whole, this podcast is for you to hear more.

Listen to deeply well with Debbie Brown from the Black Effect Podcast Network on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, I'm Joe Dono. You might know me as that loud guy who yells out, help on the internet. Help!

Somebody! Please! But there's so much more to me than me. I'm an actor. I'm a comedian. And recently, I've become quite the helper myself. And on my new podcast, Hope from a Hypocrite, I'll be changing lives,

helping people in need with my sage advice and thoughtful solutions. Sike! I'm a comedian. I'm not qualified to give good advice. Join me and my comedian friends as we riff rant recommend some of the most legally dubious advice known to man. If I'm calling you, even if you're on your phone,

let it ring twice. One ring is too scary. Oh, cream of chicken suit. Hey, cream. Cream a chicken suit. This is Help from a Hypocrite, the worst advice from the dumbest people you know. Listen to Help from Hypocrat as part of the Mike Coutura podcast network

available on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts. Start your Saturday strong with Big Noon. It's a new era. Quarterback Dante Moore leads Oregon's explosive attack into their first Big Ten matchup. Taking on Northwestern, it all starts at 10 Eastern, live from Evanston with the Big Noon kickoff crew.

Then it's Oregon Northwestern only on Fox. By the way, the weather in Chicago, beautiful this weekend. Should make a trip out there sometime. Absolutely glorious. Oregon big in that one. Okay, so listen, nobody wants negative calling all day. So here's the upside.

I would say, if you're a Bears fan, where's the silver lining? So my take is, I could certainly say that Brian Flores is the best defensive coordinator you will face all year.

I believe that to be true. You will not face a more sophisticated, aggressive, difficult coordinator defensively for a young quarterback the rest of the year than Brian Flores. Secondly, the Vikings defense will be one of the top three you face all year. I mean, you play the Ravens, they got lit up. You play the Steelers. They're Justin Fields ate them alive.

If you look at this schedule, the best defenses, the Bears play. Philadelphia, Green Bay twice, and then Miles Garrett. all November. So the early schedule, Minnesota was the one defense with Brian Flores that was a pretty tough row. I see a lot of Detroit, Dallas, Washington, Vegas, New Orleans, Baltimore, Cincinnati. The Giants, oh, the Giants are pretty good. That defense is going to be on the field on a snap basis more than any in the league with that BB gun offense. Injuries, fatigue, disenchantment. That giant's defense, 6-7, Russell Wilson Jackson starts in. May not play like that.

May be banged up because they're going to be on the field a lot. And so my take is this was a tough lift. There's a reason I like Minnesota. I felt strongly about it. I didn't feel strongly about it at halftime. But here's Caleb Williams on what he saw, what he envisions, and going forward. We felt like we were dominant a game, like you said. and we were, you know,

uh, in control up to two scores coming out of half. And, uh, that, that mentality, um, is something that we have something that we,

you know, that we preach and, um, that didn't happen today. Um, and I'm not, it's not a play call thing. It's not a,

anything like that. It's just being able to go out there and execute the plays that are called, um, and be able to, you know, execute them at a high level. And again, what the great coaches and coordinators do?

At half, they flipped the script. That's what great coordinating is. It's not just the stuff on the script. I said this when Matt Lafleur came over from Tennessee to Green Bay. His first year, Packers were great in the first half. He'd never been a head coach. He was great on script.

But he did not, to me, do a great job at halftime. They were not a great third quarter team. But by year two, they were. So it is, I mean, Brian Flores made adjustments at half, and it changed things. And we saw this all weekend where the really good coaches, second half, you get a different version of the offense or the defense. So again, Ben Johnson was frustrated.

Brian Flores versus young quarterbacks has done a lot of damage. It's a young quarterback's confidence in his career. It was not an easy lip. Detroit doesn't have Brian Flores, and I don't think they have the defense. It's on the road, but these days, that's a point to a point and a half. Okay, so now, when I picked the Niners to finish third,

Rams win the division, Seahawks, Wild Card, Niners, third, people freaked out. I said, I love a lot of the Niners, but they're brittle. They're an antique store. It is old stuff breaks. What is the story this morning? Brock Purdy, toe injuries, left shoulder.

So now, Brock has only missed three, games and they're 0 and 3 when he doesn't play and his big surgery was you know after a conference championship game so he didn't miss starts there but the injury report week one for the nineers george kittled now in his 30s out for three to five weeks Trent williams 37 spent time in the blue tent brock purdy banged up it is not a talent issue brock purdy's always been slightly undersized i wish it was a little bigger having the easiest schedule isn't the brag you think it is when stars aren't available and starters aren't available. Here's the other thing.

Do you know who had the most touches in week one? Christian McCaffrey off an injury. That's not great. And remember in this division, go ask C.J. Stroud about the Rams defensive front. So the Niners O line's not great. If Trent Williams gets hurt, it's a bottom five or six O line. Rams twice. They were all over C.J. Stroud.

Seahawks, by the way, had number one. in the NFL in hurries in week one. So in fact, let me see the official number here real quick. Yeah, the most pressures in the NFL week one, the Seahawks defense. You got to face them again. Rams twice. And Arizona spent their entire draft on defensive players. Will Johnson was very good in the opener.

And they have a defensive coach. So their defensive front is getting better. So this is a division. Some divisions like the NFC North, they're offensive divisions. The Rams defense, the Seahawks have a defensive coach, Arizona's got a defensive coach. This is more of a – I mean, even last year with the Rams, when Pooka and Nakua gets banged up, there's not a lot of pop even with Matt Stafford to the Rams offense. They need Pooka to be available.

So here is Kyle Shanahan on Brock Purdy's injury. I'd probably say the toes worse than the shoulder. And what about his availability this week? Yeah, we're not sure. We've got to see how it heals and how the week goes on it. I think Mac had a really good camp going back all the way to OTAs and training camp. He has to go this week. He'll lead the guys.

The guys will believe in him. And I know he'll do his job at a high level. Okay, Mack Jones would play if he doesn't. This just in, Tom Pellasaro, the Niners have waived kicker Jake Moody. Third round picking a kicker. Don't love that. I don't mind drafting a kicker. kicker, got to be late.

They have waived him. Got a kick blocked. Missed a kick. Can't do it. So John Lynch's drafting record has been very hit-miss. They've done really good things late in the draft. Ricky Pirsall looks like a hit. They got Debo in the second.

They've moved him. He was a hit. Obviously, Brock Purdy is the hit of the decade. But the Jake Moody thing, I think Jake Moody, I mean, the, the critical criticism from the media and fans is that the Niners were validating the pick by keeping

him. He was so bad last year. So I think this is one of those to, not to save the locker room, but to really reassure everybody in the Bay, we're not keeping him just because we drafted him. The Niners are moving, they moved off Trey Lance, who they waste all those picks on first. They moved him fast.

And I think people are saying, you missed on Jake Moody. Move him. So I hate it. I feel bad for the kid, but I think you had to. So you see on the screen, it's Niners four and a half. This was six and a half. They are playing the Saints. Robert Sala against Spencer Rattler.

I think it's game set match. I know it's back-to-back road games and a lot of noise, as you like to say. I think Brock Purdy will play. I think he's a tough kid in a gamer. Okay, at Iowa State, he got banged up. He didn't have all Americans in front of him. I think Brock plays. I think San Francisco wins.

And again, I think Robert Sopold. is on a short list with Brian Flores as the best defensive coordinator in the league. And I think with young quarterbacks, that's one of the first things I look at. Who's the young quarterback going against defensively? Do you have a big pass rush? Do you have a veteran D.C.? I like the Niners in that game. Even without Kettle, I like him to win in cover.

They'll have a week to scheme up the new. And who needs Kittle when you got Jake Tongass, whoever that is, the guy who caught the game winner. The other thing is, I was on Arizona in New Orleans, so I watched closely. Tyler Murray was like picking his spots easily. The secondary for the Saints stinks. They traded a lot of more last year. So like they just don't have a lot. I think they're going to be okay.

And by the way, Pierceall, we didn't talk about it. He played well. He looked good. And that Seattle's secondary is top eight unit in the league. That's very, very good. By the way, Seattle, I believe at Pittsburgh is a really good game. It's a field goal game. So something to know, Seattle dialed up a lot of pressure against the Niners.

And the Steelers O line was not. not great. They scored a lot of points, but they couldn't run the ball, and Aaron got smoked. Does Pittsburgh look like a team that should be favored by three? What is the over under on that? I see 40. Okay, I would take the under. I think Seattle's, I mean, that defense looked very fast. I think Seattle, Pittsburgh, under 40, and I hit my under, that would probably be one of my

blazing five picks. Are you going to do more totals than the blazing five? Well, you know, I'm also going to do a proper two. Really? Yeah. Getting exotic on us. Well, no, but there are a couple of props this weekend I looked at it. So I had two props, and I just looked at it.

I remember the Mark Andrews to score that did not happen because they never got in the red zone, because Derek Henry scoring from 60. No, but if you look at the week two schedule, just don't over value week one, but there are things that are true. Seattle's defense under Mike McDonald is hyper-aggressive. They've drafted well. It's young. It's active.

and I think they look at the Steelers O-line and lack of run game and see a 41-year-old quarterback. I think Seattle's looking at film thinking, Aaron doesn't move, they don't run the ball, we've got to get to Aaron fast. So I think you're going to see a super aggressive Seahawk defense in Pittsburgh. And if Darnold doesn't drop the ball, like the 10-yard line, they probably win the game, yeah.

So when we've said this, sometimes teams lose. Like Dallas lost, but it's baked in because everybody watched it. Not everybody watched that regional game. Not everybody watched the Seahawks. Seahawks were poised to win, and Donald bumped into his own teammate and fumbled. Not everybody watched the Titans. Do you want to get to that game at some point? My favorite game of the weekend is Titans at Home, plus five and a half against the Rams.

That's my favorite pick of the week. Cam Ward had to watch the game. He can spin it. Hey guys, it's us, the Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what?

We created our own podcast. called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it, but, you know, tired and sick.

Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and Friends. me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and headwriter, Streeter Seidel,

help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Deanna Maria Riva, and on my new podcast, How Hard Can It Be? I call on my Gen X squad from Ohio.

to Hollywood as we navigate midlife's most fantastic BS. Unfiltered conversations from night sweats to futas to scheduling sex. Wait, what sex? Is it just me or does every woman my age want to look at Pinterest instead of having sex sometimes? They say we can't polish a turn, but we're sure going to try. So let's get blunt with laughs, tears or tears of laughter. Listen to How Hard Can It Be with Diana Maria Riva on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam, it's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast, Point Game, the playoffs.

We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was finally. You just understood. That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come in to you, he's like, you know I love you, dog. You know, it's all love.

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