The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd - Hour 2 - Colin's new Herd Hierarchy

Episode Date: September 19, 2023

Colin's new Herd Hierarchy Nick Wright joins the show to tell Colin why the Chiefs will be just fine despite only scoring 17 points in week 2See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

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

for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. Live in Los Angeles, it's the hurt. Wherever you may be in, however,

you may be listening. Thanks for Megan House, part of your day. Jay Mack heard hierarch in a couple of minutes. How are you feeling after two complete weeks in the NFL? Well, I was just reading about Sean McVeigh explaining why he kicked that field goal. Yes, two days later, I'm salty. The cover is great against the Niners. I'm at 5-5 in the big players.

heard a theory for that. Well, they just literally just spoke to the media about it. I'm parsing through his words. Basically tiebreakers end of the year. Point differential? Point. Get out of it. What?

Point differential matters. Oh, yeah. Okay. Three points, yeah. Well, it's three points. Stop it. Come on. That's not realistic.

When does that ever happen in the history of football? Well, it probably has. It came down to a playoff spot. I don't know. It seems significant to me. Oh, yeah. Yeah. It's hugely significant.

Anyways. We're rallying. I love week three's card. Love the card. No, it's a good card. Very good card. Karen, you can hand that to me. Nobody cares if they see you on TV.

It's all good. All right, here we go. The herd hierarchy. Let's roll it. Heard hierarchy. Time is now. Let's go. The top 10 NFL teams, according to college.

Number 10. I got to be honest, I was blown away by the Washington commanders. Take out that nonsense, Hail Mary. They dominated second, third quarter on the road. And by the way, they leave. They lead the NFL over the Cowboys with 10 sacks and 20 quarterback hits. Sam Howell, 3 and 0. I liked what I saw.

I said this before the season. We liked their personnel. We're not sure about the coach and the quarterback, but Howells played well. He's got a little juice. And now with Chase Young back, they're going to get you a pass rush. I thought, forget that silly Hail Mary. I thought once this game got off script, Washington was the better team easily. Number nine.

The Rams are shocking. Number two offense in the league. Stafford has been sacked only once. Stafford's one of two quarterbacks with 300 plus passing yards in each of the first two games, and that's in Seattle and against the Niners. I don't care what the preseason people said. This defense is young and fast. Puka Nakua leads the NFL with 25 catches.

They're going to move Cam Acres. Maybe they can get a little bit of an edge rush. I don't know what they're going to do. But I'm watching an offense right now that's clever, good protection, excellent quarterback, and Cooper Cups coming in in a couple of weeks. I like what I see Rams at 9. Number 8. Jacksonville. They're seven and two over their last nine games. Trevor Lawrence wasn't good in the red

zone against the Chiefs, but the second highest-granted quarterback this season, according to PFF. They're going to be okay. Listen, they can't beat the Chiefs. Okay. Baltimore can't beat the Chiefs. Okay. That's a problem for virtually everybody. This is a really good roster. Tough game. Indeed, they figured out a way to win. They were in this game just bad in the Red. head zone. I got Jacksonville at eight. Number seven. Buffalo's going to be fine. You know the one thing they're not right now, they lead the NFL since 2020 with 27 wins by 10 plus points. That's why J. Mack had them last week. They roll downhill. If they get a lead on you with that pass rush, watch out. But the other thing to remember, no giveaways against the Raiders. They shorten the routes.

The bills, Josh Allen, leads the NFL right now, believe it or not, completing 76% of his throw. So They're shortening routes, more tight end, more easy completions. Stop throwing the ball downtown and getting picked. Buffalo at number seven. Number six. I like the Baltimore story. They're banged up, but they had 25 plus points in their first two games. Mark Andrews coming back to tight end.

Lamar Jackson, seven and one in his career against the Bengals. I'm telling you, this team is, they're just, it's hard to prepare for him. There is no other Lamar Jackson in the league. and they had 178 rushing yards against the Bengals. When they start getting the lead, they're running the football, you're running out of time, their defense is better than I thought, Baltimore at 6. Number 5. Philadelphia has an identity crisis.

Just run the ball with Jalen Hertz. He's a power running quarterback. That's what you are. DeAndre Swift had a good weekend. Number one rush defense, number two rush offense. Don't be embarrassed. This is what Jalen Hertz is, a power running quarterback. slide, run out of bounds, no problem.

But let's not try to make this offense anything other than what it is. Power run game with the Great O line, Philly at 5. Number four. Final four teams, inches not feet. Kansas City, listen, Mahomes has been sacked only once this season. The story with this team, Mahomes getting good protection, and their young defense is inexpensive and really good. 14 different players, though, have had one catch.

I think they're trying to figure out their receiving core. So with Travis Kelsey, let's be honest, that's the number one target. Then everybody else is getting one or two catches. I still think they're trying to figure out the offense, but their next six games, they've got a lot of doubles. The teams they face in their next six games are 1 in 11. Bears up next. Number three. The Cowboys, they lead the NFL in point differential.

one of five offenses without a giveaway. Their defense, seven takeaway. So the recipe is rinse and repeat. Conservative offense. Micah Parsons is unblockable. Force fumbles, make picks, hyper-aggressive back end, Dallas at three. Number two. Niners are two and O, both on the road.

Brock Purdy nine and O as a starter take out the playoffs. 19 TD's two picks. If you take out the NFC championship due to an injure, Bottom line is pretty moves better than Garoppolo, so they move the pocket better. They have never lost 12-0 in the regular season, which Christian McCaffrey is a starter. So this team is, they're loaded. That's the best roster in the NFL. They do not have an identity crisis like Philadelphia.

They're not trying to figure out their receiving targets like Kansas City. They've got more zip to their offense than Dallas, San Francisco at two. Number one. Miami's blowing me away. Two and O, both on the road. they've scored on 11 of their 22 drives. They're really good. They can play power football.

They can do finesse. They do speed. Tyree kill. Three touchdown catches already. Again, it's really dependent on the health of Tua. You cross your fingers on that. But I've got to be honest, watching them go on the road and just, they are so creative. They know exactly what they are.

And they can do multiple things. A lot of these teams right now are trying to figure stuff. I think they will. Kansas City receivers, Philadelphia, their identity. Jacksonville's never going to beat Kansas City. People are trying to figure stuff out. I think Miami knows exactly what they are, and they're just trying to keep Tuah upright and healthy. There's the herd hierarchy. J. Mack, your one complaint. Flabagastard that you would put Washington at 10 and the Rams at 9. I mean, I don't know. I know we got a guess to get to. Just give me five minutes later to just rant on. Washington, Colin?

Because they beat Arizona and Denver to winless teams? Okay, Arizona, come on. Took a three touchdown lead on the Giants. And Denver out, take the Hail Mary away, dominated the second, third, and fourth quarters against Sean Peyton and Russell Wilson and a pretty good defense. And I mean dominated the game. So I need to go put the bills minus six and a half against Washington.

I need to go put my kids' future college tuition on Buffalo. And I'm not touching that game. I'm just telling you, say what you want about Sam Hal. We don't think he's great. It's got a mid-90s passer rating as an NFL quarterback. That's what it is. He almost lost the game to Arizona. That's how bad he was in the opener.

Now because he shreds a bad Denver defense. Oh, he's so amazing. Well, first game, O-line, nobody plays starters. I give everybody a pass in week one, including my picks. I'm going to go get a Matt Mulano jersey. Go bills this weekend. All right, Nick Wright, first things first. Now joining us.

So, point out, look, he's already got a smile. See, he's already going to come. No, I'm just thrilled. You know why I have a smile? Why? I was thinking about something. And this is going to sound, I don't know, self-congratulatory, maybe even arrogant. But, Colin, is one to one-thirty on Tuesdays on the herd, the best half hour in all of sports television?

The herd hierarchy right into you and me, and then J-Mac pokes holes in the hierarchy? I think this might be the best 30 minutes in sports TV. It's just what I, and I was like, and for me to be a part of it is thrilling. I'm smiling. I actually like the hierarchy in large part. I want to talk about the Eagles for a moment. And then, of course, we can get to the disrespected and overlooked defending champion chiefs at four. So on Friday, it seemed like a lot of the conversations surrounding the Eagles of people were asking questions was about their offense.

That's not my concern for Philadelphia. My concern for Philadelphia is much more simple and to me much more obvious. Is their past defense downright bad? And I understand that sounds odd because they get to the quarterback so well. But last year, Colin, they played six above average quarterbacks. Golf, cousins, Trevor, Rogers, Dak, and Patrick Mahomes in the Super Bowl. Five of the six lit them up. Five of the, you take Cousins out, they average 33 points per game.

This year, they've let Mack Jones throw for 300 yards and three touchdowns, which is like letting a real quarterback throw for 400 yards and five touchdowns, and Kirk Cousins throw for 360 and four scores. Is Philadelphia's secondary and back end of their defense the weakest unit of anyone in the top five, you know, on either side of the ball? I would argue yes, and I think that's a big problem for them, Colin, if this year they don't get 70 sacks like they got last year. That's my concern for Philly. Now, I will say this.

There is psychology to football because there's an intimidation aspect to hockey and football, maybe over a baseball or basketball. It does look pretty clear to me that when the ascending young talented Jags face the experienced chiefs, they gaggle. little. Like you can, you could feel late in that game. You could feel Jacksonville get a little tight in the red zone. Like, oh boy, and it was a real thing. It came to the TV. You can sense. It's like Sacramento with the Lakers for years. You're like, they match up pretty well. And they can't make the jumpers. Like, I think Jacksonville has a chief's issue. I, well, so, and by the way, the record reflects that, Colin, I don't know why more people weren't pointing this out. Jacksonville's last 13 games, they are 9 and 1 against the league

and 0 and 3 against Kansas City. So the last 13 games, they've been awesome, except for the three times they've played the Chiefs. And by the way, the last two, the Chiefs were getable. The playoff game, Patrick Mahomes gets maimed by Arden Key in one of the dirtiest, potentially most criminal plays in NFL history. I'm not sure if that invests. investigations even closed. They couldn't get them there. And then on Sunday, the Chief's offense was not sharp, that Jacksonville seemingly lived in the red zone,

and you know how much I love Trevor, and I believe in Trevor. They couldn't punch it in. They couldn't make it happen. But on the Chief's side of things, if I may, Colin, I understand, you know, I said they were going to go 20 and O, and they promptly lost week one. So everyone's having a nice laugh at their old buddy Nick Wright. That's fair. I earned that.

That's fine. But if you were to tell me going into the year that two weeks into the season, not only would the rest of the AFC be in disarrayed, the Bengals haven't won, Burroughs dinged, Josh Allen is up and down. The AFC West is a total mess as it seemingly has been since the problems got there. But you would also tell me, guys, there's a big concern with the Chiefs, one overwhelming problem through two weeks. And it's the passing game, I would have been over the moon.

Because you know what? I think 15's going to figure it out. I think the most talented quarterback we've ever seen will make it work. Oh, Nick, but how can they win with these receivers? They did last year. Well, they had McCole Hardman. McCole Hardman can't get on the field for the Jets. They had Juju.

Juju can barely go on the field for the Patriots. They won with these receivers last year. And the reason the Chiefs right now might be, by the end of the season, the most dangerous Chiefs team since Malmes has been there is Colin. this is going to be a top eight defense and maybe a top five defense. Yeah, it is. They've spent all that draft capital on defense. Chris Jones is back and really giving a testament to a training camp,

meaning nothing at least for certain positions. And that defense is fast. That defense had the second most sacks in the league last year, but nobody cared. And so if you're telling me, the thing the chief's got to work on is Andy Reed and Patrick Mahomes, passing game. I think they'll be fine. This Chief's defense might by the end of the year, Colin, be a top two defense in the AFC and a top five defense in the league. So I was thinking

about this is that a quarterback and a coach don't have to be best friends. Brady Belichick didn't have dinner 20 years as long as they win. Russell and Pete Carroll were fine when they were winning. They're two different people. So sometimes you get lucky. Montana. Hannah Walsh, personality works. Don Coriel, Dan Fouts, works, right? The clever coach. Mahomes and Reedland. That's ideal.

But you can win with a coach and a quarterback who are different personalities. You can get along if you win. Russell, Pete started losing trouble. Well, I look at Sean Payton and Russell Wilson. I could argue. There are not polar opposite personalities in the league. that are greater than these two. One guy is urgent,

harsh, authentic, not polished, can get himself in trouble. Sean Payton, the other guy is refined, optimistic, always the light at the end of the tunnel. It works only one way

if they're two and oh. Right? They're o and two. Your takeaway on how fast this could go sideways. And I'll add to your argument, I don't think Tomlin and Big Ben have a lot of similarities, but it worked really well when the team was really good and they were winning. And so I think you make a good point.

So I think the Broncos right now have a lot of issues. And I want to be clear here. Russell Wilson has been better than he was last year. Yes. He also has been in the second half of games, a bottom five quarterback. In the second half of these games, he's been terrible. both weeks. They just blew an 18-point lead at home to Sam Howell and the Washington commanders. That can't happen and Russ needs to be better. Also, Sean Payton has put himself

in a rough spot because when you say, I'm going to be pissed off if we don't make the playoffs, and you say that was the worst coaching job in NFL history when through two weeks you've lost to Jimmy G. and the Raiders, you've blown an 18 point home lead, you lead the league in penalties. There's a lot of the same getting the play in, the kind of slow process that plagued Nat Hackett and the

Broncos, you're going to all of a sudden going to catch some heat, which is why, and I said this a month ago and those jackals that I work with on first things first laughed at me, but I think Baker Mayfield

will be the starting quarter for the Bucks for a longer time than Russell Wilson will be the starting quarterback for the Broncos. Sean Payton is not going to go down with the Russell Wilson ship. He's just not. And while people can say whatever they want, you can read intention through action. And two years, $10 million for Jared Stidham being one of your major offseason moves, that's not in case Russell Wilson gets hurt.

that's in case they need to pull the plug on Russell Wilson and if you look at what they have they play the Chiefs on a Thursday and then the Packers and then the Chiefs again before they're by they're going to lose all three of those games they have a couple games between then you know playing the dolphins which is not an easy one I think Russell Wilson doesn't make it through the buy

is the starter for Denver with the way things are going Wow yeah let's see I mean Miami they'll beat the Bears And they could, they'll probably beat the Jets with Zach Wilson. Yes, but all of a sudden that's the Jet Super Bowl. J. Mack thought they were going to be in the actual Super Bowl, but now it's the Nat Hackett Super Bowl. Week 5, if there was ever a game, they're going to be motivated.

We got to win one for old Nat Hackett. I'm just saying. But even if they win Bears Jets, Chiefs Packers' Chiefs is a rough spot. And then by the way, Buffalo, the following week after the buy. Okay, so there is an argument to get Kirk Cousins in New York. The argument is you're renting

him and then he's gone. They have about $10 million in cap space. That's about what he would cost, right? Because the Vikings have they've paid most of it. And then basically you bring him in and you let him go as long as you don't have to give up draft capital because you need a left tackle, another young quarterback, more weapons. You don't need defense. That's

the argument for it. My argument against it is, oh really, you think Kirk Cousins would Nat Hackett in that O line? In a division now where Miami looks incredible, New England will be a tough out because Belichick, and Kirk Cousins is learning the playbook in the season. It feels like chaos. I mean, are you for it? I'm for the Jets doing something at quarterback. They cannot, the status quo is not palatable, and they know it. And the Jets knew

Zach Wilson wasn't the guy last year when half the team was on the sidelines wearing Mike White T-shirts in front of Zach Wilson. And now they want us to believe through the power of Aaron Rogers' osmosis that they all believe in him.

No, they don't. Listen, I don't blame Zach. It's not his fault. He's being asked to do something he can't do, which is play quarterback in the NFL. He can't do it. I've seen him do the roll right, throw left across his body a hundred times. He gets gotten picked off 15 times in his young career.

It's not going to work. So I don't know if you have to go as extreme as Kurt Cousins. I do think they should absolutely call New Orleans about James Winston. I do think there you have at least a shot if the defense is as good as people hope it can be. Here's what I know, though. I know and the Jets know and Robert Sala knows that Zach Wilson is not starting the next 15 games. And neither is Boyle that whoever their quarterback for the majority of the season is going to be is not currently on the roster. So the sooner they admit that to themselves and to everyone, the better chance they have of salvaging something.

Because while the Super Bowl hopes almost assuredly went down when Rogers did with the team this young, Allen, playing relevant games, sneaking into the playoffs and getting that experience for the head coach, for Garrett Wilson, for Sauce, for Quinn and Williams, that's valuable, in my opinion, and they have no shot of doing it with Zach Wilson, none whatsoever. You know, it's interesting. If you go back to the history of the league, I mean, the Patriots are an outlier chiefs have been. But generally speaking, even if you have a great quarterback, there's a down year. You know, Aaron Rogers got hurt. Packers were bad. It happens. I look at the Bengals and I'm like, something doesn't feel right. This calf injury, I've had one before and have had friends who have had one. They last forever. You can't get rid of them.

You think you're over it. You play, you restrain it. I look at Cincinnati and I'm like, this isn't just a reboot. They're a mess, right? You're from hell. Might be the, listen. And I, you know, Colin, I know that, you know, there are certain things I believe in that you maybe don't. And one of them are the sports gods. And, you know, I just can, every time I get a

chance, I, you know, present you a piece of evidence, and I let you decide if you're going to continue to be a nihilist or if you're going to agree the sports gods exist. What I would tell you is the Cincinnati Bengals were the hottest team in the NFL. They had won 10 games in a row. Yeah. They had gone to Buffalo and blown them out in the playoffs. And then in the waning moments of that game, I don't know if you remember what happened, but I do. A new word came into the lexicon, and that word was Boroughhead. Burrowhead Stadium was where they were going, and they were going so excited to be back to Burrowhead, where they had won a grand total of one game ever, because they owned Patrick Mahomes. And since then, the Cincinnati Bengals have not won a game as a franchise.

That's just the facts. And their star quarterback is limping around and is playing the worst football. he's ever played. So I'm not saying correlation causation. What I am saying is it does feel a lot like a year from hell for them, Colin. And they also made a very, I respected it, but a risky decision this offseason in what they did or more accurately didn't do with T. Higgins. So they could have traded T. Higgins for a first round pick because are you really going to be able to re-sign chase and keep T. Higgins in free agency after the inevitable contract goes to Joe Burrow? They said we're running it back, we're that close. Well, if all of a sudden this year goes to hell and then you can't resign T. Higgins,

I know Joe Burroughs said the Super Bowl window is his entire career, and that's true to a degree. But that doesn't mean it's always as open in one year as in the next. And if you look at their schedule, Colin, they have four more divisional games. They're 0 and 2 in the division. I think they have Buffalo, San Francisco, Jacksonville, Seattle, Kansas City. It can get late very early in Cincinnati. And the line moving from six and a half to two and a half tells me Vegas thinks Joe Burrow is not playing this weekend. Yeah, and the other thing that hurts them, whereas the Chiefs doesn't,

dominate their rivals in division. Lamar Jackson owns the Bengals, and the Browns have played great against them. You know, for years, Big Ben's dominated Cincinnati, dominated Cleveland, just put four and O down. They struggle in division. They can't block Cleveland, and Pittsburgh's got a great defensive front, so Cincinnati's got a real issue. They are in a division with teams that match up really well with them.

Chargers kind of match up with Kansas City, but you don't trust them. Raiders don't, and Denver's a work in. progress. That is a big advantage. So Nick Wright, first things first. The show is on fire, ascending a comet growing. You guys. Well, we're doing okay. That's you guys. You and J. Mack just, I mean, ratings bonanza. That's why, that's why, and by the way, I mean, the best half hour in sports television, Tuesdays, 1 o'clock on the herd, that's what you should market it as. You and me we did some commercials or something. Talk to you later. All right. See you, buddy. I'll talk to the executives upstairs. Yeah, it's a, there are, I know it's only two games,

I think the Bengals, you look in division. The Cleveland defense, really good. The Pittsburgh defense, really good. They don't match up. And Baltimore, by the way, Baltimore has got the Bengals number. I know it's two games. But if I had to make one change to my predictions, I don't know if I like Cincinnati winning that division.

It's early. We need to go back to something he said briefly. What? James Winston? He's really advocating the jet should go after James Winston. A guy who hasn't started since 20, The last time he started, Colin, this is Rich. He led the league in interceptions with 30, I think set a record for pick sixes.

Yeah, he did. They get Tom Brady in and win the Super Bowl. Okay, that's what the Jets were hoping to do. But you think you're four Kirk Cousins. Let me see the result this weekend, but I am like 80% that I want to make a run at Kirk Couss because I want to try to do something. Hold on. I was an entrepreneur.

You are an entrepreneur. You make big swings. Right? That's what you do. You've got to try. trotting out Zach Wilson for the rest of the season is not trying. I'm sorry, and you cannot argue that. It's just not.

So I got, I had a little text exchange last night with an NFL executive. So I was told before the season it would be a crazy trade deadline. Crazy. Because they're Caleb Williams, Drake May. I texted an executive in the league last night and said it may go the other way. And I'm like, why? He goes, because Bo Nix and Shadur. Sanders are way better than anybody thought, so you don't need to tank.

You could get them at 12-14. No. That the quarterback play has been so good at college, the takeaway is there's six first round guys like Riley Leonard, the Duke kid. People are like Travis Jordan. I'm just saying I was told before the season. It was basically Drake May, Caleb Williams, and then a gap to Michael Pennix who had been hurt a left-hander from Washington.

Pennix has looked better. He's great. He is great. And now Bo Nix. And now Deon's son, if he comes out. And the takeaway is, listen, new information, new opinion. He said, be careful about that. He goes, you may draft 15th and get Riley Leonard as the sixth quarterback.

He goes, because there's great defensive ends, two great tackles, the best wide receiver in 20 years. He goes, there's a lot of guys that aren't quarterbacks getting drafted in the top 10. One quick thing. here's the schedule coming up for a team that's 0-2 right now and in the Caleb Williams sweet stakes. Are you ready? They're 0-2. Blind resume. Wow.

They face Dallas, San Francisco, Cincinnati, hopefully with Burrow, Matt Stafford and the Rams, Seattle, Baltimore, Cleveland. Who's that? Arizona Cardinals. Okay. O and 9 is in play. We know they're going to get Caleb. We kind of give that one out. Everybody's going to be chasing them pretty damn soon.

I'm telling you, if Deon's kid comes out, he and Drake May are a process. Whether there are stars in the NFL, those are a good prospect. This Michael Pennix kid at Washington, he looks. He's got an injury history. He's a little older. He's a lefty, I get it. And he's got great receivers and a great offensive coach. But he is a first round quarterback.

If you're the Minnesota Vikings, Colin. And you know, Cousins is done. I don't see why you wouldn't just move off him and then go in the tank. No, no, I think. There's also Vikings fans talking about the nuclear scenario where they're like, why don't we try a Justin Jefferson trade like Herschel Walker? and get everything for Justin Jefferson so we don't have to pay a receiver, and then we set ourselves up like the Cowboys did with the Herschel Walker trade.

Who would get Justin Jefferson? Huh? Who would take Justin Jefferson? I'm not paying anybody. There you go. Justin Jefferson's a superstar. Instantly makes quarterbacks better. I don't know the Vikings fans are going to want to hear that.

They're going to kill me on social media for saying that. Yeah, whatever. But you know the Herschel Walker trade made the Cowboys in the 90s. But Herschel Walker was not. He was the greatest player in SEC history argument. Okay, but he'd taken a lot of hits. Justin Jefferson has eight more years of prime. I mean, Justin Jefferson is just moving into his prime.

Big market for Justin Jefferson if he gets a market. Well, again, if you could afford, well, no, he's on the rookie deal. Rookie deal. But you've got to pay him when you get it. Like, Tom, he's going to be the highest paid receipt. Whatever Tyreek got. I'm just trying to think of a team that is good. I mean, you do it if you're not paying your quarterback.

And you need a receiver. Well, Caleb Williams and Justin Jefferson would look decent in Arizona, huh? One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the game. games and with the athletes for a full year.

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To be clear, 84's big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really?

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Say hello to endless hot water. Go to tankless made simple.com. It's called a Navian 15-year limited warranty. Here's J. Mack with the news. No.

Turn on the news. This is the Herd Line News. Let's talk about your Rams running back. Cam Acres. You've been on this for, I think, a little over a year. He and McVeigh don't click, and they got a kid from Notre Dame, fifth rounders, had a great opening to the season. Kyron Williams, right?

He's been a really nice player, hard runner. McVeigh came out and said, you know, Acres was a healthy scratch, and Acres is on the trade block. Very rare that you hear a coach. Yeah, he's just not committed to blocking. He's not the guy. They got a new guy they like. I looked up Acres because I remember he was.

He was a stud at FSU. No, he's got talent. He was a top five recruit in the country. No, I'm a five-star kid. I will argue, if you're a team that needs a running back, he is a plug and play guy. Well, assuming he's going to fall in line and listen and, you know, not be upset when someone else gets care. If I give up a six-round pick and he can get me to the playoffs, I'll do it in a second. So Nick Chubb goes down last night with a gruesome injury.

That's the first team I thought of. Well, the kid Ford, he broke off a 70-yarder. He's got some juice. He's got some pop. He's got speed. So I don't think they're the team. Well, wait a minute. That's just one guy.

What about the Vikings? Madison. He hasn't been what they thought. Vikings are 0-2. I don't see them going after. But I think the Browns could be in the mix. How about the Giants? Sequan on the shelf for three weeks.

Now, listen, Daibold, I don't think we're going to do it today, but Daibold just came out and said, I'm not ready to rule Sequin out yet. I don't know if these gamesmanship or what. I think the Giants, I think you have to look at the Giants as a real team form. How about Tampa? They can't run the football and they're 2-0. My guess is McVeigh would like to move him to the AFC.

instead of having a potential to see him down the road in the NFC. But who knows? Bottom line is it's not working for acres with the Rams. Next up, T.J. Watt. Oh, my gosh, I love this guy. In the second quarter last night, he became the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise leader in Sacks. Yeah.

81.5. Breaking James Harrison's previous record of 80.5. Watt also had that game winning touchdown on the scoop and score. Colin, T.J. Watt is 28 years old. And in the storied history of the Steelers, he is the career sacklead. It's not mean Joe Green. They've had some great edge rusher. Watt is a joy to watch.

He is really so good. Some of these guys, Watt, Miles Garrett, Mike. I don't remember a time in my life. You could argue who the five best pass rushers are. I think I'd take Miles Garrett, just body type Mike a second. And then I look at T.J. Watt, they win like 75% of their games. What about the both of us? I think they're very, very good.

There's really no wrong answer. There are six. And by the way, Chase Young is not in that group. No, no, no, no. But he's the next eight or nine that can also play. Washington didn't even pick up his fifth year. He's had the injuries. But he's got talent.

So I look this up. Do you want to guess where T.J. Watt was drafted? He was in the same draft as Miles Garrett, who went first. Fifth. Wisconsin fifth. No. Fourth. Not even close. What?

30th. He went 30th in the first round. T.J. Y. so guys drafted ahead of him. Jets got Jamal Adams sixth. You know what? Did he get drafted higher? Was he a dominant college player?

Did he get drafted because of his brother? I don't, maybe they thought he was under size. He was a good player in college. There were two pass rushers drafted just before him. Taco Charlton to Dallas. He didn't work at all. Free agent. And Tack McKinley to Atlanta.

Currently a free agent. TJ Watts setting records. Well, I mean, the draft. I know what happens. Some guys develop later. Some guys just develop later. I mean, he was pretty good as a. As a rookie, hey, you and I have talked during the commercial break.

We want to let everyone in on this. I'm seeing a flashing buy. The Steelers is the best. The Steelers is the first or second bet of the week. I'm a fan of the Chargers is the best bet. Steelers' second best bet. We can kill Matt Canada who has not looked good, the O.C. But they were going up against San Francisco.

San Francisco's amazing. They were going up against Cleveland. Cleveland's defense might be the best in the AFC. Now you face the Raiders defense, which is toothless, and I'm being generous. They got nothing. I think the Steelers' offense can have some success, and this will look like the Pittsburgh team we talked about in the preseason. Pittsburgh this week.

Final story. Let's talk about the Jets in their quarterback situation with Aaron Rogers. Nick Wright wants James Winston. Jason McIntyre wants Kirk Cousins. Robert Sala was asked about this, obviously, by the New York media, the ink-stained wretches, who are just coming down Salah's throat. and Sala says, we don't anticipate bringing in anyone.

I don't think they should. I don't think they should panic. I just think you just extend the Zach Wilson tryout as long as you can. If they beat New England, all of a sudden, rainbows. But wait, wait, if they beat or does Zach play well? Because you can win. They won some games last year and Zach wasn't good. Yeah, if you see growth, like our knock is we don't see growth with Justin Fields, right?

We don't see growth. If you saw growth and he played well against New England, let's just not panic and let him play the rest of the year. Aaron's coming back. Aaron's telling he's coming back in the playoffs. Did everyone? Stop. Everyone hear how Colin said that Zach Wilson experiment.

What year is this to that experiment? Well, I wasn't a fan to begin with. So to eat their own, it wasn't my pick. I didn't like it, but, you know, I'm not here to dance on anybody's. I mean, I feel bad that he's got to, he has to work with Nathaniel Hackett now. Well, let's. What's your trust level with Nathaniel? You're ranking the OCs.

I don't rank OCs. Well, maybe you need to. I mean, I guess not in the upper crust. I'll give it consideration tonight. When I'm having a bowl of nachos, I'll consider ranking OCs tomorrow and leading with it. Be quite a stirring segment.

Wouldn't it? Ben Johnson. And then I'll rank special teams coaches in the second segment. They'll cancel the show. Patriots props for that one. All right. J-Mac with the news. Well, that's the news.

And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd line. Be sure to catch the. live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Hey, what's up everybody? It's me, three-time Pro Bowl of LaVar Arrington, and I couldn't be more

excited to announce a new podcast called Up on Game. What is Up on Game, you ask? Along with my fellow Pro Bowler, T.J. Hushman Zada, and Super Bowl champion. Yep, that's right. Plexico Burris. You can only name a show with that type of talent on it. Up on game. We're going to be sharing our real-life experiences loaded with teachable moments.

Listen to Up on Game with me, LaVar Arington, T.J. Hushmanzada, and Plexico Burris on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast from. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast, Superhuman, documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds.

I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball. to college football or my career in sports media.

Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told,

and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking.

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

I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed cracks. starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Saturday on Fox, we got a pack 12 triple header as UCLA faces Utah at 3.30 Eastern. Then Oregon State takes on Washington State, followed by Caleb Williams, leaving fifth-rank USC against Arizona State. Good weekend of college football. Good weekend. So listen to this. This is from Jake Trotter.

So they have some cool analytics out there that, you know, we just didn't have these 20 years ago. Maybe somebody was keeping track of it. I didn't know about it. This is the, what they call it is the quarterback off target rate. These are underthrows, overthrows. They don't count like spiking it or, you know, killing the clock or a throwaway. This is, you have a receiver, it's underthrown, overthrown. The most accurate quarterback in the league so far,

Dak Prescott, only eight point, don't roll your eyes, J. Mack, it's a data. Only 8.1% of Dak Prescott throws are what they would call off target. they're underthrown, they're overthrown. Again, if you're throwing the ball away, they're not counting that. Deshawn Watson is 32nd at 27.6 off-target throws. Now, you would expect some of the Kenny Pickett, Bryce Young, Anthony Richardson. They're all in the 20s, 22, 23, 24. Deshawn Watson, DAC is number one.

Only 8% of his throws are off target. That's a damn good number. Deshawn Watson, they are locked on this contract for years. 27.6% of his throws are off target. Didn't play for two years. A lot of pressure. Now, their defense is good enough. They're going to win some games.

But, you know, like when I see the numbers here, Anthony Richardson, Bryce Young, Bryce Young's got nobody open. I mean, they got no separation at wide receiver. Kenny Pickett, pressure. he's running for his life against the Niners in Cleveland. He had Jordan Love. He didn't have Christian Watson in game one. He's got very young tight ends.

I'll give him a little bit of a pass. Deshawn Watson's a disaster. And Dak's been excellent. They're just not asking Dak to do a lot. And he's got a number one in CD Lamb. He's got a good run game now. So he plays with a lead. Folks, the difference between the halves and half-nots of the NFL quarterback

is the great ones can play from behind. Joe Burrow, Justin Herbert, Trevor Lawrence. Lawrence, Patrick Mahomes, they can play from behind. Everybody looks good with a lead. So, Dak so far is playing, you know, they won the first game 40-0, and then they, you know, they roll against the jet. So it's going to go up in the double digits. But so far, DAC has looked very good. Only 8% of his throws are off.

It's not terrible. It's not terrible. You're waiting for me to come and regale you with a great stat. Well, I was just able to find one. So there are various advanced stats that look at how far passes travel through the air before being caught. How aggressive are you as a team? Dak Prescott is 26th. He's not throwing the ball deep.

I mean, you don't need to yet. It's tough to judge him fairly until the 49ers game. Well, you face Daniel Jones with a shaky O line and Zach Wilson with a shaky O line. You're playing with huge leads. So you shouldn't throw the ball down the field. Yeah, that's why the Trayvon Diggs numbers are inflated. Daniel Jones can't throw the football. and Zach Wilson, we know his struggles.

So like Trayvon Diggs, locked down cornerback. Oh, he's only giving up one catch. Like, settle down people. But that was good. I gave you how accurate he was, and then you followed up with he's not throwing it down the field. He's checked down Charlie right now. That was Jay and Matt consulting right there. Basically, yeah.

I set it up. You hit it out of the park. That's the kind of teammate I am. Distribute, hit the jumper. Shoot too much, but nonetheless. Hour three next. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite on. Humor Me with Robert Smygel and Friends, me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman

help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but in Encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast.

Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan, so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far, far away, such as the biology of taun tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the iHeart Radio app,

Apple Podcasts, or wherever, you get your podcast. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.