The Herd with Colin Cowherd - THE HERD - Hour 1 - The magic of Mike Vrabel, what's at stake for Sam Darnold, Aidan Hutchinson
Episode Date: February 5, 2026Colin identifies the unique trait Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel has that allowed them go from 4-13 to the Super Bowl in just one season He talks about what is at stake if the Sam Darnold and the Sea...hawks lose this SundaySee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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We just contributed to it.
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Winning on Clay is an art.
The rallies are relentless.
And at the French Open, only the toughest survive.
I'd know.
I competed there for decades.
Join me, Renee Stubbs, on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast for no nonsense breakdowns of the biggest
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Jench who win.
She's an outsider to win the French name.
and she likes Clay.
Listen, Leonard Rabakina is arguably the best player in the world right now,
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Oh, we're going to have a good show.
Who needs sleep anyway?
It is Thursday.
We are live in Los Angeles.
It is the herd, wherever you may be.
However you may be listening.
Thanks for making us part of your day.
Ryan Fitzpatrick, Harvard, Guy.
Funny guy, playmaking quarterback now at Amazon, joining us.
Greg Coasell, Aidan, Hodgson, Lee, and Cohen stopping by.
So we had Christian McCaffrey, and I've said before,
it's in my lifetime.
Walter Payton's probably the best running back I've ever seen.
Barry Sanders is closed.
I'd say Christian McCaffrey in terms of the ability to do everything,
not fumble, catch a pass, make a block, make a run,
make people miss, outrun people.
He was on our show yesterday, but it was at the very end of our show.
and he played a couple different times with Sam Darnold, once in San Francisco and once in Carolina,
so he knows Sam very well.
And he dropped this little gem about slinging Sammy D.
When I first met him in Carolina, from the jump, I was like, this guy's a dude.
And the more and more you see him at practice, you see the throws you make,
you understand why he's a top pick in the draft.
And then you're around them more.
you're like, this is one of the best players I've been around, period.
And it's because of how talented his arm is,
he's way more athletic than people give him credit for.
Yeah, he's one of the most talented players I've ever seen.
And that's a guy that plays with George Kittle and Trent Williams,
the Debo Samuels.
I mean, like, you know, Fred Warner, Abosa,
he's one of the most talented players I've ever played with.
All those Carolina teams, they had good players too.
So the fan's opinion on Darnold is so different than the player's opinion on Darnold and the coach's opinion on Darnold.
I mean, if Sam throws an ugly pick in the Super Bowl, fans will be like, told you, can't play.
When this guy was at the depths of his career, players were always like, he's a dude.
And by the way, players and coaches gossip like the rest of us.
and people inside the game know how good he is.
And I think one of the reasons is
is because first impressions die slowly.
And there's a reason our parents, I hope your parents did this,
my parents, my dad did this a lot,
where, you know, look people in the eye,
tuck your shirt in, firm handshake,
first impressions matter.
Man, never had better advice.
I had a college professor named Howard Hopp
at Eastern Washington University.
he was a very funny guy
small guy projected
wore like a
interesting hat
and the reason
when you had a class project
he would make you come up and present it like a business person
and I can remember him shouting at me
cowhud sit out
I wouldn't buy
triscats from you
stadova
and it was like
first impressions matter
people feed off your energy
or your negativity
and Sam's never been a victim
He's got great energy.
He's a great guy.
And that was through the hard times.
So, you know, but those first images in New York, I'm seeing ghosts on a nationally televised game.
But players always knew how bad the Jets were.
So I think that stuff just gets embedded in our brain, your first impressions.
And I'll give you a basketball example.
Chris Weber, when Chris Weber came into basketball, as a college player, I'd never seen a guy that big with that good of
hands and that good of feet.
I thought he had the best hands and feet I'd ever seen from a big.
Pre-Lebron.
I just, like, he had the feet of a guard and the hands of a catch-and-shoot two guard.
But because he called a timeout in the national championship, that gets embedded in your
brain.
C-Web is a NBA Hall of Famer.
It's a five-time all-pro in his prime.
25 a game.
Tough defender, great rebounder, unbelievable touch for a big guy.
is a great
Hall of Fame level basketball player.
But you say C-Web and you think that
time out, that image,
one second is all that play
lasted. One second.
Scott Norwood made a lot
more kicks than the one he missed
in the Super Bowl. But that stuff
gets embedded with people.
And when I look,
I've said that I've used this stat before,
is that if you go
after the Jets, he went to Carolina
and he got bench for the first time in his career.
Then November 27th, Sam Darnold started again.
From that day to today,
Carolina Niners, Minnesota, Seattle,
highest percentage of 100-plus passerating games,
winningest quarterback in the league.
The dude is a baller,
and the players and the coaches know it,
and if he loses the Super Bowl,
players and coaches will not bail on Sam.
Tom Brady lost multiple Super Bowls,
one to Nick Foles,
but fans will immediately bail on him.
He's just seen differently from one group to the next.
Okay, so I saw this headline,
and I really love this headline,
because you know I like Mike Frable.
And you know I love Max Crosby.
Max Crosby of the Raiders
reportedly wants to play.
Where does he want to play?
This team, that team, the best team,
the AFC, the FC.
Max Crosby wants to play for Mike Vrable.
And running backs and quarterbacks want to play with Kyle Shanahan.
Matt Stafford took less to play with Sean McVeigh.
You see Vrable in the tunnel with players, emotionally hugging them.
And he's not just doing that to the stars.
He's doing that to gunners on special teams and long snappers.
That image is so incredibly powerful throughout the league.
And there are only five or six head coaches.
That's about it in this league that have a brand.
That doesn't mean there's only five or six great coaches, but that have a brand.
Shanahan schemes.
Andy Reed, creativity.
McVeigh, Energy, Innovation, Harbaugh Physicality.
And the two words I would use with Mike Vrable, Tough Love.
nobody is going to be harder on you and love you more than dad and mike brable and
Vrable's brand is virtually impossible to duplicate because of his size and physicality
apparently he intimidated people in tennessee like he was intimidating and there were reports
that when he was interviewing for jobs you know people remarked about his sheer size and and
presence in the room.
And so it worked against him.
I can't imagine it would, but those were the stories.
So you can't really duplicate him.
And the other thing is there's two things in the league you cannot fake.
And I would say among pro athletes, you can't fake a tough guy.
Those who know, no.
You can't fake being a tough guy.
You also can't fake that you really.
really deeply care about your players.
Players can smell fake tough guys.
They can sniff out the guy who says he loves you, but doesn't.
So Vrable, to me, is a very unique coach.
Chris Long, and he's such a good fit in New England.
Chris Long yesterday on their show talked about that.
Mike Vrable is who he is.
What you see is what you get.
Players appreciate that.
And we also appreciate being told the truth.
That's one thing I was appreciate about Belichick was, you know, like I had coaches that would walk a mile around confrontation and telling you the truth and telling you if what you were doing wasn't cutting it or what we were doing as a team.
Something needed to change.
Hiring Mike Vrable is going to turn out to be one of the best decisions a team has made this decade.
And by the way, Sean Payton has some of this.
Vrable and Sean Pate, they'll bark at you.
they allow you to bark back and they don't hold grudges.
I mean, nothing pettier than holding grudges.
Sean Peyton barks at Bo Nicks.
Bow Knicks barks back.
Sean barks back.
Bo barks back again and they don't hold grudges.
He loves him.
And Vrable has that quality.
And even among coaches, you'd think that was universal.
It's not.
There's pettiness in every industry.
And Vrable just doesn't have that.
So Warriors finally made a trade.
Boy, what a big nothing burger that was.
The Jonathan Cumminga era ends with a whimper.
Like a real whimper.
I've got some thoughts on that.
For the record, so all the money is coming in on Seattle.
J. Mack, you have always been a bit of a contrarian.
So I said from the very beginning, this number, if you got Seattle at three and a half,
I'm much more comfortable.
Now it's four and a half.
I think bookies are having a hard time not pushing it to five.
All the money.
And what that means, what that means for Sam Darnold, that's around the corner.
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Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what?
We have some big news.
What's the news?
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.
We're starting a trend.
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
was...
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
where 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.
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Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite therapist,
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And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience
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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
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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.
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Last night, a blown call changed a game.
This morning, the internet lost its mind.
Highlights are trending, opinions are flying,
and nobody's telling you exactly what happened.
That's where Sports Slice comes in.
I'm Timbo.
Every episode, we're cutting through the noise,
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The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis.
And I know firsthand,
because I competed there myself.
I'm Renee Stubbs, and on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast,
I'm breaking down everything happening at Roland Garris,
every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay.
Jenchian won.
I mean, she went down in three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted.
She's an outsider to win the French for me.
And she likes Clay.
Listen, Lena Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now,
and I actually can win on any surface.
Because if she's serving, well, good luck.
Consider this your court-side seat to the French Open.
Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports.
You're now entering the No Bull Zone, sponsored by credible great rates, none of the bull.
By the way, Shams indicating the bucks have indicated they are keeping Janus.
They will work on other trades.
and my takeaway is what we said all week is that what is the value of Janus.
He's still hurt.
He'll be out until like March.
He's 31, several injuries.
He's not a perimeter player.
He has to have the ball in his hands.
I think he could screw the New York Knicks up because Jalen Brunson needs the ball to be effective.
He's not as good off ball.
Well, Janus off ball, he can't shoot, right?
So like, he's a great defensive player.
That would help a lot of teams.
But you have to have an entom.
entire camp with him.
So the first year you trade for him, it's a sunk cost.
So there's just no, I mean, I just, I don't think, I don't think in the current way the game
is being played, if you're going to give me a big, give me Yokic.
He can shoot.
I'll take Yokic.
He works with everybody, elevates everybody, and can shoot.
Janus is very team specific.
You have to be bad defensively so he can solve your defensive issues.
That's why he would work kind of with the Lakers, because Luke is a liability on the defensive
end, and so is Austin Reeves.
and he could be the rim protector.
But it would be hard because you'd be taking the ball away from Luca and Austin Reef.
So even with the Lakers, it's a weird fit.
So the Warriors were interested, but they settled for Christop's Porzengis,
talented but can't stay healthy.
Jonathan Caminga, buddy healed out.
Caminga, they, you know, when I look at what defines the Warriors over the last four years,
couldn't make Jordan Pool work, James Wiseman work,
Jonathan Camingo work, all have some talent.
Moses Moody was okay, but they have not drafted an all-star since Draymond Green in 2012.
And this is the one downside to having a great popular superstar.
How do you end it?
How do you do it?
Bulls had Michael Jordan.
Jerry Reinsdorf, rest in peace, came out and said, okay, this is the last run.
That's why they made the documentary.
This is it.
You think, okay, all right, all right.
Start over.
Yeah, and the Derek Rose Bulls were interesting for about 45.
minutes and but they've been mostly irrelevant since and then you think well the post
tim duncan the spurs won a late one with tim duncan kawai yeah they did and you think they're
brilliantly run they have not won a playoff series since 2017 and they've drafted brilliantly
so post cobi pre lebron lakers were the worst team in the league they were bad so what do you
do when you have this wildly popular star there's no perfect answer you can you can
can cut the ties, you can spread it. I mean, they've been trying to make this thing work forever.
But the bottom line is the Steve Kerr, Steph Curry offense is complicated and cerebral. It is massive
motion. You have to be very instinctive. And a lot of these young guys, Cominga just never felt
like it worked. So the warriors have become very old. They don't get fast break points and very small.
They don't rebound well or get points in the paint. They're a hard watch when Curry's off the floor.
They're just a boring team to watch.
They don't have size.
They don't have speed.
And so they used to be a draft developed team, right, with Steph and Clay and Draymond.
But then they became an acquisition team to fit in with Steph.
And the problem is that is not the league.
The league is so punitive now on acquisitions.
So what they need to be, because they can't, the young guys don't work there.
They don't work.
So you've got to be an acquisition team.
Well, the NBA punishes you.
So basically, what they do now get veteran players, it's too punitive.
OKC, great team, young, nimble.
Detroit, built entirely through the draft.
You know, San Antonio, super young and nimble.
The Warriors are old, expensive, slow, small.
It just doesn't work.
I think they wanted Janus.
But even Janus, my question was,
well, I mean, Steph can't give you 82 games.
Yonis can't give you 82 games.
They'll be more fun to watch.
You know, I mean, you're going to have two stars.
You'll be a playoff team.
But I think, you know, I think this is what happens.
I think the bull struggle with it post Jordan.
You know, you got post-Cobie.
You got post-Duncan.
I don't know what you do.
I don't think there's an answer for it.
But it feels like, you know what they feel like?
The Warriors feel like the old guy that walks into the young nightclub,
and you're like,
Cringy.
You may want to,
Applebee's next door.
This isn't working for you.
I mean, they just don't feel like,
they feel like out of touch
for what the league is.
It's, it's the,
the acquisition,
young guys don't work.
We know that.
Now they don't work.
Kaminga's got talent.
It just doesn't work.
Okay, let's go acquire guys.
That's not what the league is.
That,
that's what Adam Silver has built
with all these aprons.
He's built a league
to really punish you if that's your game plan.
J. Mack with the news.
No, no, no, no, no.
Turn on the news.
This is the herd line news.
It's been a huge week in the NBA column,
but we're starting with the NFL
because there is actual news in the Super Bowl
and it's not great for Seattle.
Nick Umanwari,
the great young talent in the secondary,
a great chess piece who can play in the box
in the secondary,
injured his ankle at practice yesterday,
and we have video footage of him
walking into the hotel last night.
If you have not seen this, it's not great news for Seahawks fans.
Here's a Mn-Wari getting out of an SUV, and you can see he's clearly laboring.
Unless he's hamming it up for the cameras, Colin, this does not look good.
That is a pronounced limp.
Now, maybe you shoot him up.
That's Wednesday night.
Yeah, I mean, okay, so he's got to practice Thursday.
We'll see what happens today at practice.
Then he's got Friday, Saturday.
Young players heal very quickly.
I mean, depending on.
All right.
That just doesn't look great.
That's not natural.
That's what I looked last night out of a car.
Yeah, that's what I heard.
I was getting some reports about you last night getting after it.
Obviously, Emunwari is what really makes his defense go.
Their secondaries loaded witherspoon.
He's so versatile.
And, you know, safety's a position in the league that's in vogue now.
Yeah.
Like a lot of the really good teams are, safeties are moving up draft boards.
So it's a very cyclical league.
Nobody likes running backs.
now everybody wants running back.
These two teams run the ball.
Safety has become a kind of an alpha on these defenses,
a versatile safety who can cover, who can pass rush.
This kid can get sacks.
Tackle in space.
He's a great tackler.
So this is a...
He can match up with your wide receiver, your tight end,
you're running back out of the back deal, all of it.
Like he's all over the board.
This would be a big blow to Seattle if he's unable to play.
But it's still, what's say, Thursday.
Hopefully he'll be fine in time.
All right, let's go to the next story.
Dallas Cowboys, Colin.
They haven't been to an NFC championship game since 1995.
My goodness, so embarrassing.
And, of course, Dak Prescott's at the Super Bowl,
and he's getting asked on his chances of making a Super Bowl in the future.
Monkey Gorilla, you know, he grows.
He gets bigger each year that we don't make it.
And that's real, you know, talking to Micah.
Just, you know, it's one of those things, you know,
you become a rookie, you get in here,
and, you know, everybody thinks they can win the Super Bowl,
and they think how easy it is.
And when you have a year, like I did,
as a rookie year, you think you're going to have multiple opportunities.
to get back and you sit here in year 10 having opportunities in the playoffs and not doing what you
wanted to do as a team and definitely individually it hurts and every year you know it just means even
more you know it's interesting he's a little bit of the opposite of sam darnal so the first impressions
of darnell is bust yeah but inside the league everybody's like now he's one of the best athletes
i've ever seen play the position DAC comes on to the scene as a fourth rounder Dallas
Cowboys Big Brand,
offensive coach,
very quick,
the best offensive line in the league,
the initial imagery of Dak is,
this guy's a Hall of Famer.
Wasn't it like 24 touchdowns, two picks as a rookie?
13 and 3. They had the best own line,
very quickly had Zeke. So the
early belief on
on Dak after like two years
was, it's going to be a Hall of Fame.
This is an elite player.
And Dak has sort of plateaued because he's not a
great athlete. He didn't have a big
arm. Donald's a much more talented player.
But Darnold's initial, the embedded part of Darnold is can't play C's ghost, the initial part with Dax.
So my take on Dack has always been, he got overvalued because he walked into a really good,
if you have the best offensive line in the league.
I mean, for a quarterback, it's hard, it's hard to fail.
I think he started as a third string quarterback in preseason.
It was Romo who got hurt.
Then there was a backup whose name escapes me.
And then Dack comes in.
People are no expectations.
He was, it was amazing.
He had a game at the Colise.
see him. I thought it was a preseason game or something, and people went. Yeah, dude, he was good.
But, but as you later found out, there are limitations when you put him in playoff games
against elite teams. He's been a very average postseason quarterback. So I got a surprise question
for you. It's not on the sheet here. How many career playoff wins for Dak Prescott?
Two. Correct. Sam Darnold has two this postseason. Drake May has three already. And I look at
Jack and I'm like, he hasn't been great in the playoffs, but Colin, has Jerry Jones put a great
team around him? No, my argument is just on the imagery. The initial first two years of Sam was
can't play. The initial, because of what he inherited in Dallas, was unbelievable player. The truth
is today, if you ask GM, Sam's more talented. But those first impressions die slowly. I mean,
Brock Purdy, my guy, five playoff wins.
Five. First impression for Brock was like,
he didn't lose a game. Remember the first time when he came in as the backup?
And now has reality set in with Brock a little bit, he gets dinged up.
There are, he can be a bit reckless.
He does need to have a little better protection.
Yeah, but the first impressions, I mean, by the way,
first impressions of Jalen Hertz.
Whoa, wow.
I heard two things last night at,
a Super Bowl party, the Jalen Hertz locker room stuff is not good.
He is not popular.
The narratives, listen, I got to defend my guy Hertz.
I'm dug in, you know, defending Super Bowl MVP.
Jalen Hertz, let's put some respect on his name.
Final story, Colin, Sean McVeigh and Les Need are locked in for next season,
but now the question becomes, what about Matthew Stafford?
The likely MVP should return for his 18th season.
I'm told he's coming back.
but Sneed addressed that future.
Here we go.
At the macro level, I think we,
when Matthew's own the horse,
we go, let's make the most of our time with Matthew,
and we're well aware that there will be a time
where we have to transition.
So you kind of do both at the same time.
Because there will be two different teams
with or without Matthew,
obviously with the position he plays
and how important that position is
and how well he plays it.
I actually think it's pretty cool.
I've thought about this with the Rams.
They have two firsts this year.
Don't worry about a quarterback, and it's not a great quarterback draft.
Just stack the team because the following year,
you're probably going to have to give up all sorts of draft picks to get your quarterback,
and the Rams are still very young on defense.
So why not just ride with Stafford?
Instead of worrying about his replacement, you got Garoppolo as a backup.
He's capable to win games.
Stack, take every one of these picks.
and make sure they fit with Stafford
and just make a run at the Super Bowl.
I mean, Sean McBade's made two Super Bowls.
He gets to three.
He's on a short list of coaches who can do that.
We're so worried about replacing players.
You don't get many Max Crosby's.
You don't get many
Patrick Surton for the Broncos.
Those are once a decade players.
Don't worry about replacing them.
Just stack players around them.
You may never.
get. The Rams will probably never get a quarterback ever again as good as Matt Stafford. I'm not
drafting his replacement until I have to. Yeah. So, Jay Mack with the news.
Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd-Lie News. Speaking of great players,
he has been as advertised, Aidan Hutchison of the Detroit Lions. He is joining us now live.
I'm not sure if I've ever a Michigan man through and through is joining us live.
You know, it's interesting.
You, when you go to an event like this and you're watching Seattle and New England,
do you have mixed emotions?
I mean, do you, are you sitting there thinking,
oh my God, this is my whole dream.
This is my whole life.
It's like playing at Michigan.
If you can beat Ohio State, it's great, and Michigan's great.
But if somebody went four years to Michigan and never beat the Buckeyes,
you're like, it feels a little.
little unfulfilling. When you're at the Super Bowl, Aden, are you like, this makes you hungrier?
It's kind of, how do you feel this week? Yeah, I mean, at this point, with this being my fifth
Super Bowl without being at the Super Bowl, you know, it pisses you off a little bit because
we know the talent. We got on our team and we know, like, what we're capable of love. We just
got to put it together and play complimentary football and we'll be all right. So that's what we
got to do next year if we want to be in the big show.
We've talked a lot about Mike Vrable this week and that his physicality, his size, it's hard to duplicate Mike Vrable.
Dan Campbell's probably the one guy in the league that is sort of Vrable NFC version where there are just not many human beings, the size of Dan Campbell.
And I don't think you can be, I don't think you can coach like Dan unless you're Dan, right?
Like that kind of, I mean, to me, he's such an authentic guy.
Have you ever in your entire life and all the coaches you've had, high school college pro,
have you ever had anybody that even like Dan Campbell?
Yeah, you know, I mean, him and Harbaugh were similar in that way for their love for football,
but Dan is different in the way that you said it.
It's like, for one, he's like towering.
I feel, I don't feel small in front of many people, but like when someone's like kind of like,
has broad shoulders and like standing toe to toe with me,
Um, he makes me feel a little bit small for sure.
But, um, so there's that factor, but it's also the way he lays it, he lays it on the line.
Like even post games, like if it's a tough loss or even a, even a great win, the authenticity of the reactions and the emotions.
It like you, you feel that as a player.
And even when, you know, stuff wasn't going right for us this year.
Um, it was kind of up and now, a win, loss, win, loss.
We couldn't really find a streak.
And he was really imploring us to just stay in the fight.
Like we're going to catch fire at some point.
And we ended up missing the playoffs.
Man, I think there's no lost belief in him.
Well, you had Sam Darnold in your division a year ago.
And I've always said we were talking about in the show today,
whatever the initial impressions are,
it could be of an actor's first movies.
If they're both great, you just think great actor,
and they could go 12 years without a hit.
Sam Donald's initial impressions are, oh, he can't play.
But every time, Christian McCaffrey came on my show yesterday,
he's like, I played with him in Carolina.
And my first impression was, that's one of the best players I've ever played with.
So the fans are like, yeah, guys, interception.
Players I've talked to are like, oh, I love Sam.
Sam is a baller.
He could be a linebacker.
What were your impressions?
When, like, Minnesota moved off him,
Were you actually, I mean, he was so good.
Were you kind of surprised?
For sure.
That situation is one, that Minnesota situation is just, it can go either way.
And it's whatever way the owner and the GM, they want to take that team.
And they ended up wanting to move on from him.
And now he's in the Super Bowl.
So it's, you know, all I got to say is, I'm not going to, we're going to talk about Minnesota.
I just want to say congrats to Sam, you know, because I think he's had a crazy ride in the NFL.
and to be where he's at and having a good chance at winning the Super Bowl.
Like that is, talk about an adversity story, overcoming adversity,
and looking your obstacles in the face and just not caring about failure
and just keep moving on like that.
To him, he embodies that.
Yeah.
You know, it's the NFL's crazy.
Max Crosby was a fourth round pick.
That's just crazy.
Brady was a sixth round pick.
And then there are guys like you that,
are just physically look different, play different.
You're an easy comp.
It's like, okay, that guy's a first round pick.
That guy's top first.
But they're not many.
After about 15 picks, I've had GMs tell me for years,
it's kind of 15 guys that are different,
and then it's a bunch of really potentially good players.
I look at Detroit, and I've said this many times,
I think your front office is excellent.
I'm like, there's a lot of dudes on that team.
There are a lot of dudes in Detroit.
Does that make losing tougher?
Does that make disappointment tougher,
knowing in that locker room, you got fourth round guys like Amaran St. Brown.
Like, you got guys everywhere.
Did that make it tougher this year?
Absolutely, dude.
I mean, that's, it's, we're no longer, it's no longer 2022,
where if we win a game, everybody's screaming in the locker room, cheering.
It's just the expectation at this point.
And when we're not doing that, not even when, I don't care what people say about us,
I don't care what reporters say, like, the overall expectation for what guys,
believe we should be capable of is that it's winning every week it's playoffs it's super
bowl like the fact that we haven't made one it does piss me off at this point because I
know what we can do and I and I know but don't get me wrong I know in my whole heart I
believe that that we're going to go and and we're going to win it one day and do I know when
that will be no but I do know it will happen yeah you know I look at this Super Bowl and I
our teams, defensive coaches,
athletic quarterbacks
that like to throw the ball downfield,
really good secondaries,
front sevens with a lot of dudes
that have got range and can move.
Offensive lines, okay.
Okay, there's a couple
players, each old lines got
like a really good, Gray's Zabel
for Seattle is a dude.
Charles Cross pretty good.
It's just interesting.
When you look at these two teams, and I know you're
concentrating on the lines, but when you look at these two
teams. Do you think there's one team you go, oh, that team has an edge here? Do you see it that way?
Honestly, I haven't watched a ton of these teams, but like you said, it's like if you say the
offensive lines are okay, like I think really good quarterback play with mobile quarterbacks.
Like they can, in football now, like that can really, like when we play Baltimore, for
example, like it doesn't matter who the old linemen are, you could beat them, but you got to then
get Lamar down. And that's a whole other task. You know, so it's, uh, uh, offenses definitely
make it challenging now with their mobile quarterbacks. Even if you went on the rush, you then
got to take down a quarterback who's running a four or five and, and can juke you out. You know,
so it's, um, it's a tough task. But again, you're right, defensive-minded teams. This is going to be
very defensive game and, um, it's going to be fun to watch as a defensive player myself.
You know, you had, you played and you're playing all the games and you show up every week and you
had come off an injury the previous year.
And for players
like you, it's one thing like
in baseball, I guess pitchers
have arm injuries, but a shortstop can play for
20 years. In the NBA,
you know, guys play for a long time.
Your position is
so violent and you're literally, I mean,
the collisions you are in weekly
are just like, I don't, I've said this
before to fans. You have no
idea what football's like
from TV. Go stand on the
sidelines. It's, I mean, I,
I'm 6-2, I'm bigger than average American.
It's terrifying.
Like, God, do you think about that that you are living a dream?
Michigan, first round pick, got the financial set.
Do you think about that when you play this game as, man, I better cherish every freaking snap.
Now you have a good coach.
You have a good front office.
Half this league doesn't.
How do you, like, how do you think of yourself and your career and your future?
because you're still young in a sport where you age quickly.
That's right.
That's a great point.
That's why I'm really since college.
When I was kind of in the middle of college, I prioritized longevity.
I prioritized diet and my health because I knew, man, if this game that I love so much
really depends on my longevity and how long I can stay athletic, how long I can stay injury-free,
like, why don't more guys than take care of their body?
you know if you really love this game so um man i have so much passion when i got that taken away from me
last year it it hurt you know not being able to go out there especially with a good ass team
number one seed in the nfc last year like um that hurt and so being able to play this year with a
really fun defense really good guys it was um it felt like i was back and and again to your point
it's um this NFL experience is very fleeting and i understand that and that's why i really try to do
everything I can to play as long as I can.
And so at the end of this career, I'm going to look back and go, I'm good.
I did it all.
You remind me of Max Crosby, and I know Max and I love Max.
I just, and that you're willing to talk a little bit during a game.
Like you're a verbal guy.
Do you, I mean, not even, maybe intimidation not.
Do you find yourself verbalizing stuff during games?
Is this like almost, it's a performance.
for you it's three hours of being relentless.
I mean, I've had pass rushers tell me this,
and I haven't had other players tell me this.
I've had pass rushers tell me, bro, I have to change personality.
Like, it is, I am a different human for 58 snaps on Sunday.
Is that you, or you're kind of just the same intense guy?
No, man, that switch flips.
And to me, I'm not as vocal on the field.
I'm like, I like to be more of a quiet killer,
Like, I like, I won't say anything to old linemen, but if I'm, when I'm beating them,
getting them, getting them, getting them, like you see the, you see the wear down,
you see the demeanors change a little bit, and to me, like, that is the war within the war.
You know what I mean?
It's not necessarily what you say.
It's when you start cooking, like that, that, when the demeanors change,
momentum's flipping, and you feel it, that's when football's fun, man.
You got quality hair.
Head and shoulders must be helping you with that.
that quality head of hair, Aiden, that's all I've got to say.
That's a good...
They are, man. They are. Man, I'm out here with head and shoulders,
tackling Dandruff with every wash,
staying consistent every day.
They've been a great partner with me,
and, man, staying consistent with them.
Keeping that dry scalp nice and moisturized.
We've been good, man.
You look like you've been using it to yourself, man.
You look like you got a good head of hair, man.
My age starts with a six, and I still got hair.
Hey, if I can be like that, I'd be blessed, okay?
Because, you know, and luckily, I think genetically I might be all right, but you never know.
But I think I'm looking good for 25 right now.
We still got everything intact.
This is a hairpiece.
I just don't let anybody know.
A little too bad.
Yeah, that's right.
All right.
Good to see you, buddy.
Good to see it, man.
Aidan Hutchison, great, great player.
Man, right now in the NFL, we got some pass.
pass rushers.
Like I understand, but like we talk quarterbacks.
We have got some pass rushers in this sport that are all time good.
Jay Glazer reported this week, Max Crosby is done with the Raiders.
They're going to get a haul for Max Crosby.
I think you can get a bigger than Micah Parsons Hall.
I really believe that.
It's the Hurt.
Be sure to catch live editions of the HARD weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific.
Hey, it's us to Jonas Brothers.
And guess what? We have some big news.
What's the news?
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.
We're starting a trend.
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.
Well, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early
names of our band before Jonas Brothers
was...
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,
where 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 on Humor Me with Robert Smygill and Friends.
Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman
help make you funnier.
This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel
help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.
Where does your group perform?
We do some retirement homes.
Those people are starving for banter.
Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the I-Heart Radio app,
Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get.
your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights
are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where
Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays,
the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source,
the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to
hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From
moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down,
give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered.
SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them.
Listen to SportsClice on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.
And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.
Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me, your host, and your favorite
therapist, Kear Games.
And in recognition of mental health awareness month,
I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience
in the mental health field and conversations
with so many incredible guests.
I'm talking.
Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark.
Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing,
we get so wrapped up in the chase
that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing
and we're still chasing it
and we don't know when we've done enough
because people scoreboard watch.
Life becomes about wins and losses.
Steve Burns, Dustin Ross,
because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth,
or are you a good person because you're afraid?
Because that's two different intentions, bro.
Absolutely.
And that's two different levels of trust.
I want you to just really be a good person.
Join me, Kear 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 Hardway and listen now.
The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis.
I know firsthand because I competed there myself.
I'm Renee Stubbs, and on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast,
I'm breaking down everything happening at Roland Garris,
every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay.
Jenchian went.
I mean, she went down in three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted.
She's an outsider to win the French for me.
And she likes Clay.
Listen, Lena Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now,
and I actually can win on any surface.
Because if she's serving, well,
Good luck.
Consider this your court side seat to the French Open.
Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports.
Boy, I hope the crypto bros are doing okay today.
I mean, first the fuzzy monkeys on NFTs broke them.
Now, what is it down to a nickel?
66,000.
It's almost been halved in three months, Colin.
Yeah. Not great.
When you go out tonight, Steakhouse, try paying in Bitcoin.
See how it works.
Crap coin.
All right.
So, Super Bowl betting report.
Okay, I'm going to play a little sociologist, psychologist here.
According to the market, all Seattle money.
1.76 billion to be wagered legally in this game.
Four and a half point favorite Seattle.
getting all the money.
So what does that tell me?
If Seattle loses, there's going to be a lot of angry betters.
And betters can never look themselves in the mirror and go,
yeah, I took the wrong team.
I do a segment every Monday called Colin Wright,
calling wrong.
Viewers and fans never acknowledge it's them.
So they'll blame two people if Seattle loses.
Number one, Sam Darnold, and number two, the officials.
It could be both.
It'll probably be one.
and so I've said this before.
If Drake May loses, crickets.
If Darnold loses, because all the Darnold critics now, you don't hear a peep from them after the L.A. game.
They've all disappeared.
Like there's a power outage in America.
No anti-Sam Darnold takes.
They'll come flying back because they bet the Seahawks if they lose.
And for all you people that believe the NFL is rigged and you're a sorry lot, it's been a bad season for you.
Patrick Mahomes did not make the playoffs.
Lamar Jackson did not make the playoffs.
Joe Burrow did not make the playoffs, star quarterbacks.
Josh Allen did and then lost on a controversial play.
Yeah, the league was rigging Jarrett Stidman-Bow Knicks to advance.
Both New York teams are unwatchable, yet the Jags made the playoffs and so did the Panthers.
And oh, by the way, the two biggest brands, Cowboys and Packers, you could even argue the Steelers, Cowboys didn't make the playoffs.
Packers bounced early, Steelers humiliated in the playoffs.
So a bad year to believe the NFL is rigged.
Yeah, let's put that kind of nameless, faceless Patriot team where the coach is the biggest star.
And Sam Darnold, who largely viewed by the fans an hour ago as a bust.
So you can just see what's going to happen if Seattle loses.
That means 75% of betters are going to lose, and they've got to blame somebody because betters will not blame themselves.
Here's the other story
Is that Max Crosby is reportedly
According to Jay Glazer
Jay's been on a heater
Is done with the Raiders
So here is this is actually
The Raiders
This actually
Is not terrible for the Raiders
Because Max Crosby has not translated
into success right
Like they haven't had the right coach
And the right quarterback and I think they now have both
but Max is going to get you an absolute haul.
Really good teams, good teams that probably could talk themselves into winning a Super Bowl with Max,
New England, the Bears, and the Ravens all could use Max Crosby.
Okay, the Patriots could use him, the Ravens could use him, the Bears could absolutely use him.
I could absolutely see in all three teams get them up a first round pick or more.
And here's the thing.
Micah Parsons, five-star recruit, goes to Big Brand Penn State, first-round pick, goes to the Cowboys, is viewed one way.
But to me, he's a splash player who disappears against the run and has been overwhelmed by really elite left tackles in the postseason.
Max Crosby goes to Eastern Michigan, fourth round pick, goes to the lowly Raiders.
for a long time, he's viewed another way.
To me, Max Crosby is the better player.
Max Crosby's much better against the run.
Max Crosby is not a splash player.
Max Crosby is a relentless dog,
very much like Aidan Hutchison or a Miles Garrett.
He just doesn't take plays off.
And Micah is good.
I'm not saying that, but I always felt,
and I've had GMs telling me this,
Micah is a splash player.
He makes very memorable plays.
And he's very good.
And Green Bay's defense was not as good when he got
injured. I'm not saying Mike is not
a first round talent.
But Crosby
is better against the run. I think
you get a more consistent effort.
So if the Raiders do move
off him, they're
going to get a haul.
A haul.
When I talk
to executives around this league
and I say
who do you think is a
guy who's a great
player, take out quarter
And I've asked this question for it.
Take out quarterbacks.
Give me three guys in the league you die to have.
Like, without question, Max Crosby gets named.
Here was Jay Glazer this week on his future.
There's a couple guys.
If they tell you their plan, they're playing.
It's not open for discussion.
They're playing.
If there's certain guys, they need it.
Do you think his time with the Raiders is done?
I do.
Before the draft?
Probably, yeah.
What kind of haul do you think, realistically, a Max Crosby gets in general?
He, probably more than Michael.
So the day it happened, no less than 20 teams called me.
20 teams on Max Crosby.
He's only played with one defensive pro bowler.
He's been double.
Everybody knows you've got to stop one raider.
He's Seyquan and Matt Stafford.
He just needs the right fit.
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. 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 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.
Last night, a blown call changed a game.
This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened.
That's where SportsSlice comes in.
I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments
in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline.
And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories,
their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear.
Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.
And for more, follow Timbo Slicelife 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.
Winning on Clay is an art.
The rallies are relentless.
And at the French Open, only the toughest survive.
I'd know.
I competed there for decades.
Join me, Renee Stubbs, on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast for no nonsense breakdowns of the biggest matches, the toughest players, and the moments that define Roland Garris.
Jen, she's an outsider to win the French name.
and she likes Clay.
Listen, Leonard Rabakina is arguably the best player in the world right now
and I actually can win on any surface.
Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app,
Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports.
This is an IHart podcast.
Guaranteed Human.
