The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd-HOUR-2-Patriots, star players, predictions

Episode Date: August 25, 2020

Colin talks about Bill Belichick's recent comments on Cam Newton, how coaches have to handle star players, and his 5 NFL predictions.Guests: Derek Harper, Sam Acho Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee 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, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter.

Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal, but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque.

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

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

84 was a wild year. It was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Clifford Taylor the 4th.

You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey, or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfilled conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeard 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. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Heard. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Ah, here we go. It's our two. It is great to have you in. This is The Herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, The Herd, live in Los Angeles. Derek Harper in about five minutes. One of the all-time great Dallas Mavericks, now one of their broadcasters. That game is tonight. Mavs, clips. I'm so excited for that. Very exciting. So Joy Taylor is joining me. Bill Belichick's pretty smart.

We admit that, right? I guess. That's safe to say, yeah. So Bill Belichick and Greg Popovich, very similar. Nearing 70, legends. They both had one superstar player, Tim Duncan and Brady. And they were very similar players. They both took pay cuts.

They both sort of carried the water for their coach's rigid system. They would allow to be barked at by Pop and Belichick. Very unique. Most athletes in Leach. don't want to be screamed at, don't want to take pay cuts. And Duncan and Brady, for these big powerful coaches, as those players get older, let's talk Popovich. So Duncan gets older.

Popovich wins less, obviously, because Duncan's a top 10 player all time, top 20. And then who's going to carry the water now for Popovich? So he tried to do that with Kauai. And Kauai is like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. You're not going to treat me like that. I'm not taking pay cuts here. I've been overlooked my whole life. We're not going to do, I'm not going to say what you want me to say.

And Kauai didn't buy it. And what's happened to Popovich? You're irrelevant. Spurs are irrelevant. And I'm not even sure there are an interesting free agent destination now. Because now you don't have Duncan taking the pay cuts, allowed to be yelled at, taking your rigid system, and it's a smart system. here's where Belichick's smart.

So for years, Belichick had Brady. Brady took pay cuts. Brady got yelled at. Brady just carried the water. Coach is right. Coach is right. Coach is king. Coach is right. Anytime there was a marginal controversy,

Tim Duncan, Brady, mute it. Oh, it's no big deal. While getting yelled at and taking pay cuts. Belichick, pretty smart. So here comes Cam. Cam is very popular with players. Because players, I mean, this is why players love Westbrook.

and don't love staffs. Players love athletes. Westbrook's fascinating athletically. Cam is giant. He's got a huge arm. He's an unbelievable athlete. He's MVP. Players like him.

And Belichick, have you noticed Belichick? Third time in a week. Very complimentary of Cam. Cam's doing a great job. I love Cam. See, this is what Popovich didn't do. Popovich didn't realize that Duncan is a once-in-a-lifetime player.

Pay cuts. That doesn't happen. Belichick's figured it out. Most quarterbacks. So Belichick went on the Rich Eisen Show yesterday. And it is just, he didn't compliment Brady like this in 20 years. He's had Cam three weeks. And again, he goes on and talks about how great Cam's been. Being with him every day, he's extremely hardworking player.

First guy in, last one out type of guy. He really studied hard. And he has spent a lot of extra time trying to learn our offense. and our communication, our calls, and nomenclature and so forth. So, yeah, I've been very impressed with that. And, you know, he's done a good job of picking up. He's a very skilled athlete. Do you remember when Belichick gave Brady the team ball last year for a game?

Joy and I were on the air. It was uncomfortable. Bill had to acknowledge the greatest quarterback ever really mattered for a game. This is Belichick getting the temperature of the room. Hey, I'm not anti-phithe. player? I'm not an old rigid fart. Cam is terrific. This is good messaging.

Cam is popular. Now, I don't think Cam's going to be too successful because I don't think New England's very good. They don't have a playmaker on their offense. But I think the messaging here is really smart. Hey, man, we're not that rigid. We're pro player. We like his style. We got this guy's back. This guy's been great. Our system's not that hard to figure out. It's a great place to play.

Popovich. He tried to turn Kauai into Tim and he's like, no, no, Tim's a once in a decade NBA player. Yelled him, pay cuts. Brady's a once in a two-decade player. Actually, Duncan is too. So I think now, now, this leads me into my five bets of the year. They're called future bets.

Fox bet over under. They pick a number over under. My number one bet on the board this year is bet the under on New England. Fox bet has their over under at nine. I think it's an outrageously high number. I think it's a six-win football team. So here are my over-under bets, my five. The Patriots lost four of their last six games.

Jamie Collins was their leading sacker, gone. Kyle Van Noy got more hits on the quarterback than anybody. Gone. They had a league leading eight players opt out. They return only five starters, and they play seven games against playoff teams in the NFL. Well, that's an NFL high. Cam had no camp. Cam shared snaps for a few practices.

This is not a nine-win team. To me, New England, a six-seven win-team tops. My second one is the over on the Ravens 11. They have the easiest schedule in the league and the easiest travel schedule. One of their issues was pass rush, inconsistent. Went and got Callais Campbell. They played just five playoffs.

teams from last year all season. And they finish this season with six games against non-playoff teams. So they have addressed their weakness, pass rush. Earl Thomas situation doesn't bother me at all. They are loaded in the secondary. Ravens over 11s, my second best bet. Here's another one. Bengals under five and a half wins.

First of all, it is the best defense division, best defensive division in football. between the Ravens D, the Steelers Front Seven is scary, and I think Cleveland's personnel is outstanding, although they just lost a safety for the season. This is the 31st-ranked offensive line, a rookie quarterback with no OTAs, no pre-season. It's the 30th ranked scoring offense, and I think Joe Burrell's got talent,

but he's got no snaps in real games. And I look at this. This was a two-win team last year. And I'm told Vegas, the wise guys are pounding the under on Cincinnati. So that's my number three. Number four is the over on the Carolina Panthers five and a half. Okay, they won five games last year, and they were rotating quarterbacks.

And Teddy Bridgwater is a hell of a lot better than Kyle Allen. And as much as I like Ron Rivera, he's not an offensive coach. Matt Rule, and I actually, they do a couple of things really well. First of all, in 2020, they've got a quarterback who decides. distributes the ball, unbelievably coachable. Teddy Bridgewater's the kind of quarterback that you don't need a preseason. He'll figure out the playbook really fast. There's guys in this league, they figure playbooks out quick.

Teddy's that guy. It's kind of like the coach's kid quarterback. Like he just figures stuff out. He works everywhere. He's coachable. They've got two good receivers. They have a superstar running back. They get after the quarterback.

They were number two last year in sacks in the NFL. You forget this. 53. Their schedule is pretty workable. They'll play just five games against teams 500 or better. I like their upgrades. They got Derek Brown in the draft. They fixed their offensive line.

They got Robbie Anderson, the speed wide receiver. This feels like a seven or an eight win team. This feels like the team that will spoil somebody's season. And finally, Green Bay over eight and a half. Folks, listen, I don't love everything about Green Bay, but this is not a 500 football team. Aaron Rogers is still a top eight to ten quarterback. Their offensive line is ranked top. five by pro football focus. They have a star Devonte Adams at wide receiver, a star running back.

And I thought their defense played well. You can't just look at their games against San Francisco and judge it. They don't match up against San Francisco at all. By the way, Arizona is not a good team. They matched up very well. This is a matchup league. Okay. Baltimore is very good. They didn't match up well with Tennessee. Arizona matches up really well with Russell Wilson and San Francisco. Green Bay is a good football team. They'll face teams that miss the playoffs in six of their final eight games. I think Chicago right now I don't trust. Detroit, I don't trust.

Minnesota, I think, has better overall personnel. But Green Bay, in big games, I trust Aaron more than Kirk Cousins. Listen, I don't think Green Bay is a 13-win team. I think they were a 9-and-7 team. But this is the second year for Matt LaFleur and the second year for Aaron Rogers together. Let's not go crazy on this. they're still a really good football team with what appears to be a top seven or eight Hall of Fame quarterback.

All right. So there's my over unders under New England, over Baltimore, under Cincinnati, over Carolina, and over in Green Bay. I knew you would have Cincinnati. You did. Because I remember you saying that the wise guys were telling you to take the under on that. I thought you'd have the Browns. I'm just going to stay away.

They've had, by the way, terrible camp, like seven injuries. Yeah, that's true. They've had a bad camp. I want to go to Derek. Derek Harper was. a great NBA player. I think he still holds the assist record for the Mavericks, the steals record for the Mavericks. He was a first rounder. He was Mr. Reliable in Dallas for years and years. He's now a broadcaster for the MAVs, and he is joining us live as the

MAVs take on the Clippers tonight. Sixteen years, 12 with Dallas. His numbers retired there. So let's start with this. Luca is, it's crazy. I mean, I was talking an hour ago. Chris Broussard is like people forget. You played in the Magic era. Magic didn't even lead the Lakers in assists Derek, his first two years in L.A. Norm Nixon did. Like, he's better than Magic was at this age. I think he's better than LeBron was. Are, I mean, am I nuts on this? Is Luca the best 21-year-old player we've ever had in the NBA? He's in the conversation, Colin. There's no question about it. Thanks for having you, Robert. You bet. When I think Luca, I think along the lines of those two guys that you just mentioned, Magic, LeBron, he puts up those kind of numbers. I think we're

Luca is different is his ball handling skills, Colling, they are better than Magic's ball handling skills than LeBron James ball handling skills. And that's where I think you separate Luca from those two guys. Luca is a remarkable talent. He's a brilliant basketball player, not that LeBron and Magic weren't, but this guy sees things before they happen. Yeah. when you have that kind of a sick, supreme vision as a player, you're going to be one step

ahead of everybody all the time. And if you watch this series against the Clippers, that's what you're seeing. You're seeing a guy that sees it way before everybody else sees it. If I was a GM president and was getting ready to start a team, I would go with Luca. And people think that I'm nuts. You think they think you're nuts. I would go with Luca because he's younger and the sky's the limit.

We don't even know what this kid is going to be. I mean, you can change. We were looking for a nickname for Luca. You can call him stats because he's going to bring a record book or something to that nature because he's going to break all the records in the NBA as far as I'm concerned. You know, it's so funny, Derek, I was saying one of the things I love about the NBA now,

when I was a kid, and even until about 10 years, even until 10 years ago, If you had the best center, you just had an advantage. Yeah, absolutely. I mean, it was, you know, you didn't have Kareem. You know, you didn't, I mean, when I was a kid growing up to Seattle, we had Jack Sigma. That meant we were going to be good, right? Good times, absolutely.

So now I look at the lead, and it's just who can shoot, who can ball handle, who's good on the way. You can create for others? It's incredible. And I look around the league right now, and the center's been very. especially unless he's European and can shoot. Do you like what you see? What do you think it means for the league going forward? Do you like the new NBA?

I think you have to because I think you go back to David Stern. He changed the game when he took the hand check and the physicality out of the game. I think that changed the game, first of all. And now it's very entertaining, I think, to see seven-foot guys that can shoot like Prazingas can shoot three-pointers. The Rockets, they want threes or all the way to the bucket. There's no in-between game. Now, there are players that are savvy enough

and they're cunning enough that they can still play their game. Seth Curry, for example, is really good at getting on the defense and shooting that in-between shot. It's not a shot that the numbers guys talk about a lot and appreciate as much as they should, I don't think. But I like it. because it's so entertaining.

I mean, I like threes. I would love to play in Rick Carlisle's system, the Golden State Warriors, the Houston Rockets. The way these guys play the game is a fun way to play basketball. And it just changes how big, like big kids now have to learn how to dribble, have to learn how to pass, have to do other things than they would ordinarily have to do. And I think the game is in great hands.

I mean, look at the bubble. It's no coincidence, Colin, that the players that are playing the best in the bubble are the best players. The superstar guys are stepping up and having phenomenal games and the numbers are off the charts. The scoring is up. That's entertainment. And I think everybody kind of enjoys that kind of basketball. You know, conversely, I thought James Harden kind of looked tired at the end.

And I think James is in great shape, but I think he looked tired again last night. Hardin's fascinating. There's always been guys in this league that are just unbelievable scores. But they're not always winning ball players. We have a lot of examples of players getting better when they leave Westbrook, although Westbrook's a Hall of Famer. And I look at Hardin's style, Derek. And he has built the score 34 a night.

But there is, there are arguments to be made that that ball-centric style by the end of the playoffs, or maybe the beginning, wears his butt out. What do you make of Hardin as a, is he a championship level player? You know what, Galen? I would say, I like his game. He's a very talented offensive player.

Maybe one of the best scores ever to play this game. But when you start talking championship, you know as well as I know. If you live by the three ball, you're going to die by it. Yeah. And my question for James Harden is, when he's not scoring, when his threes aren't going in,

what do you do from there? Do you have the kind of makeup of a basketball team that you can dump the ball inside to a guy? I thought getting rid of Capella really kind of takes away their ability to really go deep and be a championship caliber basketball team. Again, I like the threes, but I always say on the broadcast, man, when those threes aren't going in, can you get to the free throw line?

Can you do something? to offset the fact that you're not making threes. And unless you're Seth Curry and Clay Thompson and those guys, I don't think that you can really win that way. And I mean, that's the only team to me that's proven that that style of play works. And you can be successful consistently with it. Number 12, retired by the Mavericks. Derek Harper, 16 years in the NBA, the Mavericks TV analyst.

It's a great organization. And you played most of your career for the Mavericks. And this Yonest question, it's been fascinating. to me is I said this last week. I said, if you're an MVP level player, LeBron, Anthony Davis, Yonis, James Hardin, everybody's got an ego. You got to get one and two things. You either need titles or if not, get me the branding and the money in the shoe deal.

And I'm, now, I love Damon Lillard, but Damien Lillard is not an MVP of the league yet, right? Janus is an MVP of the league. will win his second one. And Milwaukee right now doesn't have a number two star. I mean, the NBA's putting them on, Derek, at 1 o'clock in the afternoon. So clearly they're not moving merchandise.

This makes me think, Derek. If they get bounced before the finals, Yonis has to consider. Because that's not going to be a free agent market. You got Middleton's on a max contract. Yonis would get a max contract. You can't get a third guy. Take me into the mind.

of star players you played with or faced, I don't think it's selfish. I've always defended players who are MVP's moving to either make money or get titles. Your gut feeling on Janus if he got eliminated before he got to the finals. Moving. I really feel like he would move.

Why do you play the game, Colin? This is a question that you have to ask yourself. You play to win the game, to quote the great Herman Edwards. You play to win. plain and simple. And when your career is all set and done, and I played 16 years, the one thing that I regret the most is not winning a championship. I played for one in 94 and came up a little bit short against the Rockets. But they're going to have millions and millions and millions of dollars. They're going to have the fancy cards, the big houses. All of those things, all these players

are going to have because of where things are as far as salary structure is concerned. So after that, you sit back with your cigars on your pool deck. Are you going to be able to say that you were crowned champion? And that's why I think that Yannis could easily leave Milwaukee and all due respect to Milwaukee. It's a great organization as well. But it's all about Benjamin's and winning championships, plain and simple. Yeah. What a pleasure.

We haven't had you on the show before. I'll come anytime you need you, Gallen. I'll be here for you. How about that? I love it. You were a pleasure to watch and continued success. Say hi to Mark. I email Mark Cuban.

He emails back within five minutes every time I email. That's Mark. Best owner in the business, man. That's in the business. All right. Dee appreciate you stopping by. Oh, you got it. Anytime.

Good stuff. Great Dallas Mavericks player. See, and again, Derek was a hard worker, a defender, a team guy. But even Derek's like, when you're an MVP, I never buy into this whole thing. The media is funny. The media, I'm mobile. Joey and I move around the country. When a player leaves, it's like, whoa,

if you're in envy, if you're Durant, LeBron, A.D. Yonis, I'm either getting the branding money, the shoe deal, or the tie. You got to give me, I don't have to get everything. I'll sacrifice. I mean, Kauai is like, I'll take less money. I want titles. You know, Paul George, I'll take less money. I don't, I'll defend you either way.

KD took less money when he went to Golden State. LeBron took less money, those guys, Bosch, when they went down to Miami. But when you're in that MVP, of Fame category, you got to get something. You got to give that guy either the title or the Benjamin's. And Derek Harper, you got to give him one of them. And I don't blame, if Yonnes moves, I do not blame him whatsoever. By the way, Chris Middleton yesterday, first three quarters, bad stinkeruny.

Good in the fourth, but Middleton's got a step. You know what I keep saying about this thing. If Middleton doesn't deliver against Toronto, Janice looks around and goes, we've maxed him. I'd be maxed. We can't get a third guy. I can't depend on him. We always bang on the player for being mobile,

yet all of us in our lives, we go for better opportunities. Why can't players? Well, they make a lot of money. So to doctors, they move. So to lawyers, they move. So to salespeople. So to GMs, they all move.

I move. Why can I move in a player? I can work for 40 years. Player gets eight years in his prime. Coming up next, Brett Brown was right, by the way. He was right. Sixers coach got fired.

He was right. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the IHard 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. bet it 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-tapped 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 Jay. 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 you 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. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade. of my own experience in the middle health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking. Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing,

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

while you hear on earth. Are you a good person? because you're free. Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing,

growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the hard way and listen now. Tonight on FS1, we've got a big MLB double header. First at 630 Eastern, the Orioles take on the raise. Then at 9.30, it's one of baseball's first. This is Mookie Bellinger,

lead the Dodgers against the Giants. Catch all the action tonight on FS1 and the Fox Sports app. Dodgers good this year. Dodgers Yankees World Series, folks. Do you know who has the World Series? Oh, wait, that's us. Not sure if you knew that.

Oh, wait, we have it. Dodgers Yankees look really good that Giants tonight. Joy Taylor with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. All right, well, you and I agree on

thing. What's that? This whole Buck's situation really comes down to Chris Middleton. He had not played well in the playoffs so far, but he had come to life at the end of yesterday's game. Big four. Take three one lead over the magic. Middleton scored 18 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter and finished with 10 rebounds after being held to just one field goal in the first three quarters on one of nine shooting. Brutal. After the game, Middleton said Yonis told him to be aggressive, which is what he tried to do. and coach Mike Budenhhhhhuser said it was just a matter of time before Middleton had a breakout game. I think you'd not have to wait.

He averaged just 11 points per game through the first three playoff games. Yonis had 31, 15, and 8. He does get that Toronto's a much better defensive team than Orlando. Well, they'll play Miami. And Miami is a better defensive team than Orlando and a much better offensive team and three-point shooting team. That was not a small fourth. corner for him. Let me just let me just state this. That was huge for Chris

Middleton. He was having an atrocious, another atrocious game. It's probably a little I mean, I don't even know. Do I even believe in fair? I don't even really believe in fair. But we are putting a lot on Chris Middleton, but it's because of the situation with Yonis. And also he got a max contract. Right. Well, I mean, you know, everybody's got to pay somebody. So whether he's, you know, a max player or not, not like this is his opportunity to prove that but there's there's an added weight to it because yonnes may leave Milwaukee if they don't end up winning the championship but you know what that that pressure is we gave you max money and you got to have a good postseason yes not too much to ask

you're professional athlete it's it's not a whole lot to ask it isn't i'm with you i just that's why i said before the start up you can talk about like pressure on the legors and pressure on the clippers like sure there's always going to be pressure on the braun james no matter what jimmy butler can you carry three undrafted guys and be the star of a team that wasn't good. Jimmy Butler, they have asked him to be the guy. But he's always had that personality. Well, well, that's time for Chris Middleton to get it.

Because we're paying you $40, you know, when you're paying a guy buck 50, a million, 150 large, you better be able to handle Orlando in the first round. And they will, and they will handle Orlando in the first round, as we're seeing. I think we all got a little panicky with the, you know, one loss in a lot of these series. But that's why I firmly believe the actual pressure this year is on Milwaukee. Like, they're the only team that if they lose, it's like, like unacceptable. There's a little pressure on L.A., but we kind of feel that they have, this group's going

to be, this band's going to be together for several years. There is pressure, but like I said, there's always pressure on LeBron. And as far as the Clippers go, if the Clippers lose to the Lakers, yes, like we'll talk about it. They're not breaking up, though. But it's, yeah, it's next year. Someone's got to lose. Milwaukee is a different situation. Literally if Milwaukee loses in the eastern playoffs to like a Miami or a Toronto, the league will change.

because Janus is moving. He should. I mean, if he doesn't, then that's going to, that's going to probably, and maybe this is unfair, change how we look at Janus. Yeah, really, that's a great point. It's like, well, he's not really into the whole championship. Right. So Paul George has been in the slump during the Clippers' last three games.

He's shooting just 29% from the field against the map so far, which is the lowest ever, his lowest ever in the playoffs. But that's not stopping Doc Rivers from giving him the green light to take shots. I just let him keep shooting. We clearly. We've got to get him more shots, you know, and that's on us. And that's on all of us. He needs to shoot 20 plus times.

He needs to get the ball up in the air. Thank you. That's what he... He will. I feel very confident about DGA, because I always have. Let's make a bet tonight. Paul George is going to get over 25 tonight. That's my bet.

Paul George will have a very good game tonight. I could feel that coming to. Yep. Paul's going to play very well tonight. Harper will win. Paul George will come down. Well, Christaps is out. And so, listen, you can, sometimes you can live without a good player. Like, for instance, Houston without Westbrook for a game or two.

And then all of a sudden, last night, you're like, they miss Westbrook. Harden looked tired in the end. You can always miss a player for a game or two. But over the course of a series, you need Westbrook for the energy and you need Paul George. Otherwise, you're going to lose to the Mavs. Yeah, I mean, well, Chrisaps being out, like even as I'm, amazing and thrilling and unbelievable as that game was and and a career game for Luca, he had to make that shot,

like from basically out of court in order for that to happen. So yeah, to do that again, to ask that of them again is going to be a lot. I mean, I think the Clippers are going to end up winning this series. And it's been a fun watch. And I'm grateful for that. But at the end of the day, the better team is going to end up winning a seven game series. So the Browns will be missing some second round pick Grant Delpit this season. The rookie safety out of LSU suffered a torn Achilles.

in practice yesterday is out for the year. That stinks. The latest addition to the Brown's growing injury report. Nick Chubb returned from a concussion, still limited in practice. Linebacker Mac Wilson is getting a second opinion after hypers extending his knee. Yeah, they lost a corner too. Corner, Kevin Johnson is in the hospital with a liver laceration. Yeah, that's a, that's a bummer because I don't love their secondary.

It's, there's talent there, but I don't, I love their front. I love their defensive line. I love their offensive talent, but their secondary is not one that can suffer. They can't lose a starting safety in a starting corner. They can't. And linebacker. Yeah, with Lamar in the division, with Lamar in the division and Ben in the division, four games against those two.

Yeah. And, you know, their defense is the side of the ball that we didn't have any questions about. So really rough camp so far for the Browns. Hopefully, you know, when they get a few of them back before the season, but DelPitt will not be one of them. It's a unfortunate. That's a bummer. One of those great LSU players. Joy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. You know, it's funny about this because Milwaukee now suddenly doesn't like me. And it's unfortunate because I go there often. You know, a lot of time spent Milwaukee. But here's the thing you have to realize about the NBA is that the reason star players go play in the Olympics. It's not because they want to beat Tunisia. They want to sell shoes.

And their agents want them to sell shoes. That's why Kobe Bryant keeps going back and Carmelo. And they don't need, they got their money. They'd like to have their summers off. But you go there because your agent and your shoe company is like, go play in the Olympics. And you can sell a lot of shoes. Janus has an agent and a shoe company. The NBA is putting Milwaukee on it one in the afternoon.

Okay. So if they get bounced early from the playoff, this league has been controlled by entire life by agents. shoe companies and one or two star players. That's who, LeBron controls the league now. LeBron, Nike, and two agents. When I was watching with Michael Jordan, Michael Jordan controlled it, Nike controlled it, and David Falk, the agent controlled the league. They were the ones that were moving players around.

So you may think Yonis loves Milwaukee, and maybe he does. But if they don't make the NBA finals, he's going to have a shoe company and an agent that are like, bro, Jason Tatum's in the finals. Pascal Seaccom's a good, but that's how you get shoe deals. You get shoe deals at the Olympics, and you get shoe deals when you're in the finals, because that's when the numbers are gigantic and you sell merchandise.

So Janus may love Milwaukee, but I got news for you. An agent and a shoe company are like, bro, the NBA is putting this kid on it one in the afternoon. In my lifetime, the number one scene. The number one seed with the MVP is a prime time game. Milwaukee's on it one. One! They got two games potentially left with Orlando.

Probably one. Where is it? Early game. It's not where you want to be. So it's not about Janus, like these guys listen to their agents. They listen to their shoe companies. Guys in the NBA, when you become a big shoe guy, Steph Curry, LeBron, Hardin, they make more money from the shoe companies.

then they do their teams. And the shoe company money is a corporation. So you pay a lower tax than you do a team contract. LeBron just paid W-2 from the Lakers. But his business dealings, he pays a lower tax rate. So does Steph Curry. And when you live in California, that matters. So these young players, they listen to their agents.

They listen to their shoe companies. There's hundreds of millions at stake. You don't want to be on NBA TV at one getting bounced by Toronto. You don't. Coming up next, Sam. macho, Manuel's brother, former NFL player, vice president, league, players association. He'll be joining us next, smart dude.

Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all. embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year.

Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm 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 yeah, yeah, yeah. 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 age. on the table right now. Thank you 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. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness 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.

Trip 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. 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 Games, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way. Open your free, iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hard Way and listen now. Sam Ocho played in the NFL nine years. In fact, he played last year a little bit with Tampa, eight games with Tampa last year. And he also, his brother Emmanuel Ocho, obviously, is the new co-host of Speak for Yourself. And Sam just got reelected as the NFLPA vice president. He is joining us live right now.

So let's start with this. Great to have your brother working with us now on the network. He is full of juice and energy and we love him. And let's start with this. You were on that Bucks roster. You know the defense. You know Todd Bowles. You know the schematic makeup of it.

is it better than we think? How good could Tampa be this year, in your opinion? Yeah, I think people are asking the wrong questions. Everyone asking about Tom Brady and the offense and what they're doing and the weapons of Rob Gronkowski, Chris Godwin, Mike Evans. Everybody knows about that. What no one is talking about is Todd Bowles and this defense. Todd Bowles, ever since he's entered in the league,

has been one of the top defensive coordinators in the NFL. I played for him in Arizona, 2013 and 2014 in the years that we were 10 and 6 and 11 and 5 years that Arizona had never seen. He went to New York, had another top defense, and now he's in Tampa Bay, and has led this team to be what's going to be a playoff contender. Yes, Tom Brady is the quarterback. Yes, he's going to help the team, but what's going to be the deciding factor in this team making the playoffs and going to the Super Bowl is Todd Bowles and his defense. You've got Devon White, you've got Levante David, you've got Vita Vea, you've got Adamaicu, Shaq Barrett, JPP. No one is talking about this defense, and that's, I think, what everyone is missing. It is a young roster. Do you worry that Tom Brady at 43, is going to come in and some of the young guys are going to be like, listen, Grandpa, we don't want you barking at us. How do you think he fits in that locker room? Yeah, well, as a player, you got to understand, Colin, Tom Brady has the opposite effect of what you just said.

So the effect that he really has, people look up to him in awe. As a player, we watch guys like Tom Brady, not even guys like, now you actually have Tom Brady. Players understand what an honor it is to be playing with a guy like Tom. I know I'm a free agent now. I was planning and still hoping to sign back with Tampa. But as soon as I heard that Tom Brady had signed, I started working out that much harder. That's the kind of effect that a guy like Tom Brady brings to the team.

You know when you play with the goat, you got to set your game up. So you went to college with Earl Thomas at Texas. You told me during the break, you guys were bowling buddies. He has had a very difficult last two years. He didn't leave Seattle on good terms. He had a personal issue, the Baltimore situation. If not to guess here, but I don't remember him being. difficult. I just saw him as a great player out of Texas. Unbelievable range, athletic ability,

a team guy. What's going on? Do you think? Do you think he still has a place in the league? Yeah, I hate this question because we're talking about a player named Earl Thomas, who I played with in college, right? We came out the same year, but forget all that. This is a future Hall of Famer, perennial pro bowler. Now the question is being asked, does he still have anything left in the take? We saw Buda Baker, who's a great player, just get paid a lot of money, the new highest paid safety. And Earl Thomas has played at a high level for year and year and year to come and years to come.

And so Earl still has a ton left in the tank. I think obviously the thing we're not talking about is what sometimes success does to people, right? You go through these ups and downs, egos, I understand that, right? And Earl's had his bouts with being at the top level and having to understand, hey, what is my role on this new team? And so Earl Thomas still has everything left in the tank. He's going to continue to play at a high level. He has played at the high level.

He just has to find the right team to go and make a good fit. You know, it's really interesting when you were with Tampa and Arizona. And, you know, there's teams in this league that we know are great. Baltimore stacked Seattle, Russell Wilson, Kansas City. And then there are teams that we know are young. Cincinnati. We know the Giants right now, Washington are young. Give me a team or two around this league, Sam.

that, and maybe it's Tampa, that people just don't understand how good they are. And you think there's a team out there ready to pop in the NFL this year that you've faced? Yeah, well, the team that everyone is sleeping on, and people probably aren't going to like this pick, but the team everyone's sleeping on are the Washington football team. The Washington football team, and here's why. I've been in the NFL for nine years going on my 10th year. Teams rally around situations that can adversely affect them. Prime example, Alex Smith, broken leg, out for a couple seasons.

Now everyone has seen he's back. People rally. Now look, Coach Rivera, he just got diagnosed with cancer. Now everyone's seen he's going to rally around and rally the team behind this cause, right? Adversity produces greatness. We've seen that. I saw that in Arizona with Bruce Ariens and we had seven, eight, nine, ten guys go on IR. We still made it to the playoffs, right?

Our quarterback went down and Carson Palmer. The backup went down. And now we had our on our third string quarterback still in the playoffs, right? And so I've seen adversity help teams win. and that's what you're going to see with the Washington football team this year. Everybody looks at Dallas and their stack. Everybody looks at Tampa and their stack. Everybody looks at all these teams at New Orleans and their stack.

But no one's talking about the adversity, the team atmosphere, and the mindset, the power that happens when you rally behind your team, your coach and players who have been through some tough times. By the way, no OTAs, no preseason, Sam. How rough is it going to be for rookies? Well, it's not going to be too rough for rookies. I came in, my first in the NFL, we came into a lockout. So there was no OTAs, right?

We walked in, we literally walked in to training camp. And so during that year, I actually benefited from that because as a rookie, I got more playing time. The vets were easing back in and had their off days. I think we're going to see a lot of rookies who are going to get better quicker. I look at just some of the young receivers who have been playing at a super, super high level with no preseason games. I think they're going to really excel. I think that rookies actually benefit from no OTAs, even from no preseason games, because they get a chance to show what they can do in practice.

So I said, got about a minute and a half left. I said Baltimore looks like a team that could go 16 and 0. But that's kind of a college thing. What was the best team you were ever on? Did guys ever talk about going undefeated in the preseason before the season started? Yeah. Well, I mean, in college, the best team I was on was obviously the national championship team with Earl Thomas. We went to the national championship.

We played Alabama, and they had Mark Ingrove. and Derek Henry and we are quarterback got hurt. We lost that game. But in the NFL, the best team I was on was that Arizona Cardo team with Bruce Ariens as the coach. When BA came and coached that team, we went from average to good. And even as he continued to coach,

that team went from good to great. And so this issue we're talking about is more about who are the coaches that combine those players and help those players become great. BA, Todd Bowles are two coaches in Tampa Bay that will help that team become great. And I think that the question we need to ask is not about the Baltimore Ravens, right?

because obviously Kansas City still has a guy named Patrick Wilmes, who has 450 million reasons to be back in the Super Bowl. So I think we need to really talk about what happens when you get a coach like Bruce Ariens, Todd Bowls, or even a coach like Ron Rivera, who's going to help make his team great. Yeah. Sam Ocho, reelected NFLPA, his brother, of course, Emmanuel Ocho, is on speak for yourself. Good luck.

Are you still looking to get on a team? Yeah, still training, staying in great shape. I've obviously got a book coming out as well called Let the World See. You can find that at sam macho book.com. It's about what it means to be seen, known, and the adversity that you go through not only in an NFL season, but also outside of a locker room. And so writing, speaking, and also training for another NFL season. Great meeting you, great talking to you, and good luck to you, Sam.

Thanks so much, Colin. You bet. Loz, do-it-yourself projects. Just finished mine to Bar-Cart. Do-it-yourself. Go to Loz.com. Your transformations in your house. I moved the bar cart right out by my pool table

where I dominated yesterday, crush the family. It always feels good for my self-esteem to dominate others. Good to have Sam Ocho and Emmanuel. We'll be coming up in one hour and 10 minutes with Marcellus Wiley. Yeah, I'm very, did I, I already gave you my over-unders on the NFL, right? Yes, we did that. Plus I have Peter Schrager next hour. I have Jim Jackson.

He's in the bubble. Jim Jackson's in the bubble. Yeah, last night that Laker thing got out of hand. We'll talk about that next hour. It got out of hand. It was 50 nothing. It's like, okay, Portland's done. There's just one of those games where I turned the sound down,

I turned the sound down, just hung out, you know, just hung out, had a cocktail. I was like, okay, that game's over. I didn't have to watch the, I gave up the last eight minutes. I just stopped watching it. All right, hour three, Peter Schrager, NFL News from Camps next. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite.

Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman, help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform?

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

Others say it's unleashing huge. human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all, embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clifford Taylor the Fourth. You might have seen the skits, my basketball and college football journey or my career in sports media. Well, now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show.

This is a place for raw, unfilled of conversations with athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. So let's get to it. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. On the Look Back at a podcast. For 1979, that was a big moment for me.

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

I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Thank you.