The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd-HOUR-2-Right & wrong, Jon Gruden

Episode Date: August 17, 2020

Colin explains where he was right and wrong and gives his thoughts on Jon Gruden's recent comments on Marcus Mariota.Guests: Kevin O'Connor, Albert Breer. 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 Podcast, 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. Welcome in hour to live in L.A.

This is The Hurt. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, we're on Fox Sports Radio and FS1 right here. A little heat wave in Southern California this weekend. Dogs didn't want to go outside. I didn't want to go outside yesterday. A little heat wave. It is hot.

I feel like it's a heat wave all over the country. Everyone's talking about how hot it is. But yeah, it's warm here. It is. It's like an uncomfortable. But you know what? I'm not somebody who sits around and watches TV all day, but, you know, I mean, I watch my sports and my politics or whatever. But yesterday I just, I went in heavy on Netflix and documentaries, and it was just a great day.

Is that in the AC? Oh, I just had the AC going. And at one point I went out in the patio and smoked a cigar and had a beer and watched a little more sports. It was a good day yesterday. Today, yesterday was just lazy. I can't see you just like sitting around smoking us a cigar. Oh, God, love it. I don't know why I can't picture that.

I'll get on the phone, put on, what do you call that when I can hear you? The speaker phone, scar, Heineken, that's great. So lazy. I like a cigar. Oh, you do? Yeah. My dogs do not. You have to, you know, I think I like cigars because my brother loves cigars.

Yeah. So the smell always like, it's like a, you know, nostalgic thing. Yeah. Buddy doesn't like him. Yosey and Buddy do not like my. Nah, not into them. But it was a great day yesterday. All right, Colin right, Colin wrong.

Plenty of both. Here we go. Where Colin was right. Russell Wilson's my guy, but I've been saying something for several years here. He's carrying this franchise. And offensively, it's just outdated. It's kind of like a 1994 power offense. And Russell Wilson, in the friendly Russell Wilson style, finally called his coaches out suddenly.

Getting ahead is a key thing. I definitely believe in finishing strong. I think we want a lot of games in the fourth quarter and, you know, I've been to do some fun things in the fourth quarter and end of games. But, you know, let's treat every quarter as the fourth, you know, and I think that's kind of my mentality always. This is what people in analytics have been saying. Pete Carroll, lighten it up, run less, pass more, game is changing.

Finally, Russell Wilson comes out and says, There's a lot more tension in Seattle than people think. Where Colin was wrong. I said the NBA should have gone right into the playoffs. There's no reason for a regular season. But I did think the regular season bubble experiment was really good. Phoenix 1-8-0. I think several stars emerged.

Michael Porter Jr. in Denver. John Morant was spectacular. We got a lot of different fun storylines. The intensity has been excellent. The energy has been excellent. excellent. And it was two and a half weeks of really good basketball. And frankly, we probably needed this. We'd our appetite, get these guys in shape. But it, but it was way better than I thought it would be. I thought it was going to be sloppy and uninspired. And it was just fantastic for the last

16 days. Where Colin was right. Been on this for years. You can criticize Tom Brady for his age. Can we get past the arm strength thing? It's fine. Watch the games. Chris Godwin, Tampa receiver, over the weekend, said, dude, he's zipping it. He's letting it rip, man, he can really throw it. Bruce Ariens told Peter King over the weekend, people questioning Brady's arm, quote, they're not smart. Tom Brady can throw it. Now, now, he was never athletic, and he's lumbering around like an old batting cage now.

But if you watch Brady play, remember, Foxborough's got wins. Foxborough is cold. Foxborough is not an easy place to throw a football. Thanksgiving on. Last year, it was not about Tom not throwing it deep. It was that nobody was open deep. Brady's arm, and I've talked to Drew Bledsoe about this in Aikman. The last thing you lose as a quarterback is your arm.

You lose your legs years before you lose your arm. You lose your desire and your ability to want to go to practice. But Brady's arm is still top 10, 12 in the league. where Colin was wrong. If I was Justin Fields, I would consider going pro and not playing in the Big Ten. Instead, he's the opposite. He launched a petition to play football in the Big Ten. It's got like 150,000 or more signatures already.

200,000 now this morning. So he is all in on playing Big Ten football, which is surprising because, A, he could get hurt. B, a lot of teammates could back out that are going to the NFL and see. It's going to be January, February crappy football weather with no. no cream puff Youngstown State on the schedule. So I don't think it behooves him as an athlete. He's not going to go up in the draft this year. I think he can go down or get hurt, but he is all in on playing.

Where Colin was right? We've said recently the tight end position is massively undervalued in this league. If you told me I get George Kittle or a star receiver, I'd take Kittle. He can block. He's crucial in the red zone. They're a matchup nightmare. And George Kittle just signed a massive $75 million. later that day, Travis Kelsey of the Chiefs signed a contract extension.

The smart coaches in this league, Andy Reed and Kyle Shanahan, not surprisingly, draft them and pay them. This is what Bill Belichick did about 10 years ago with Aaron Hernandez and Gronk. He took back the center of the field before anybody else did. The smart offensive coaches get this. The tight end is the hardest guy to defend. He's too big for defensive backs and he's too fast for linebackers. You can send a couple corners on a great wide receiver. You can't cover Kittle.

You can't cover Travis Kelsey. Nobody that can guard him on the field. You don't, maybe there's one or two, you know, there's a maybe Jamal Adams or a Derwin James at safety, but it is rare. Where Colin was wrong. I've been wrong in the Miami Heat all year. First of all, I didn't get why Jimmy Butler was going down there and I couldn't understand why Miami wanted Jimmy Butler. They've been excellent. People think they're going to beat their favor to beat Indiana.

Jimmy Butler has worked down there. And frankly, Jimmy Butler leaving Philadelphia didn't make any sense to me. I'm like, dude, it's a championship level team. But now that we've seen Philadelphia, shocker, be a massive disappointment in the bubble, Jimmy Butler was around those guys and figured it out. They're not winners. They're just talented. So the whole Miami thing has worked.

By the way, Duncan Robinson, who was kind of a role player at, like Michigan, has become a really big three-pointer for them. They got it figured out again. Pat Riley has got it figured out, and Spolstra's got it figured out, and I just thought they were too young, too erratic three-point shooting. Now they're a great three-point shooting team and Jimmy Butler. It just works. He's a big city dude.

He's a star. Miami knows how to treat stars right. Pat's always done that, and it works. Where Colin was right? I'm tired of saying this, but the NCAA, how the hell do you not have a CEO for football? I don't understand it's a $2 billion business. Mark Emmer came out last week. and said, yeah, I don't have any control over these conferences.

How's that possible? It's the breadwinner of your sport. I don't understand the two things you have to get right in college sports. March Madness, get the bracket right, that pays for everything, and college football. March Madness is well run. It's very well run. Pays for everything. The men's, the women's, it's very well run.

College football is just a series of conferences feeding themselves and not carrying off and working against the other rival conferences. And Mark Emmert said last week, it really, the tipping point, I can't control any of this. You run the NCAA. I mean, can you imagine somebody running an airline saying, you know, I just can't control when these planes take off and land. I just, you know, there's schedules. They just do what they want to do.

No, if you're the president of Delta, you should have, you know, meetings regularly to figure out when they fly, when they don't, what airports are crucial, what isn't, where's the infrastructure lagging, where is it flourishing? where is it flourishing. A NCAA. Where Colin was wrong. Carmelo Anthony to Portland works. He had a clutch basket against Houston.

He had 21 against Memphis. He had a very good fourth quarter. He had a bad third and a very good fourth. I mean, he's figured it out, albeit at 36, but he doesn't need to be the number one guy. He admitted this week. Dames, the best guy I've ever played with. He understands his role.

And by the way, it's a real role. They don't have any wing scoring. Now, you know, I'm not going to speak to his defense, but he's not alone being an average defender in Portland, but he matters. If you watch that game against Memphis, Memphis outplayed Portland for, especially in the third, big chunks of the game. But late, Mello was great, C.J. McCullough was great. Dame was great. It was veterans experience beating a bunch of really super talented young kids for Memphis, and Mello deserves it. He's totally accepted his role. I never thought he would,

but he has some self-awareness. And to be honest with you, I'm happy for him. He deserves it. where Colin was right? I've always said college football is, it's got a problem. It's too regional. That you've got to be spread out like the NFL now where Kansas City is good and so are the Seahawks and so are the Eagles and we can't wait to watch the dolphins this year and Tampa. There's a geographical symmetry to the NFL that works. And college football, here's a map for the TV audience of who's playing green and who's not red.

See a problem? This has been the ongoing problem. reason is the PAC 12 is academic and largely indifferent to football and the SEC's own slogan is it matters more here and it does. I'm not saying everybody has to be as focused and as aspirational as the SEC, but this is another reason you need to CEO in college football. Balancing schedules, limiting scholarships, more good teams become very good. The superpowers could scale back. a little bit, that's your problem. Where Colin was right?

I said Baker Mayfield didn't look right last year. He didn't look right physically. He didn't look right mentally and Baker admitted it this weekend. Having success all through high school and college and having that standard so high and then coming into, you know, just the past couple years have been a roller coaster of emotions and not nearly as much success as I'm used to. So I would say I lost myself, you know, not having that success, not not finding out what was working. I think I tried different ways of, you know, trying to have that

success and I didn't find it. So I lost myself in that, and I wasn't able to be who I am for these guys on the team. All right, tip of the cap to Baker-Mayfield, acknowledging it, we spotted it, we saw it, we said it, we were right, but give the kid credit, he admitted it, he admitted it, he knows it, and he also admitted he got hurt, didn't work out as much, couldn't work out as much, and put on some weight, which is something else we pointed to. He just didn't look right physically either. Good stuff. Kevin O'Connor of the ringer, great NBA guy, in the bubble talking about it. Playoffs start today.

Denver is sneaky dangerous. Utah would be, but they've got some injuries, so we'll talk about that coming up. 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 unlawful. Enleashing 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 I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clipper 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 what you need to be. 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.

Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kai Hayes, They 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 Jett.

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 all day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, this is the second episode where we've discussed, correct. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now.

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

Carepies, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase

that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it, and we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth? 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, Keir Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose. On my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now.

On FS1, catch Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr. and the Padres as they take on the Rangers. It all begins at 9 Eastern on FS1 and the Fox Sports app. All right, here we go in 11 minutes. 11 minutes the NBA playoff start. So the last hour and a half of our shows, a lot of football. But now Kevin O'Connor, the ringer, NBA analyst, covered the NBA for a long time as joining us via the Coward Global Satellite Network. Okay, so I was Mr. Big Prediction guy, and I had Portland beaten the Lakers, and then I watched them this last two games, and Portland looked shot.

They looked tired. They played nine straight playoff games. Mello's their best wing defender, and I think I have to rescind my prediction. And by the way, the Lakers, after that Clipper game, kind of felt like they shifted down a little bit. Like, all right, let's beat the Clippers and let's shift down. Your thoughts on what we're going to see Lakers Blazers? Well, good call changing your pick. It's never too late to do that.

Series hasn't started yet. With Portland, there are a couple of wings away from being a real NBA finals contender, but they're not there yet without them. I mean, Trevor Rees is back home. Rodney Hood's hurt. They have nobody who can stop LeBron James. So this Blazers team, they're going to make it competitive. You're right to see that in this team when you have a guy like Damien Loweard and C.J. McCollum,

but they don't have enough defensive wings to get the stops they need against this Lakers team. I want to shift to another Western team. Oklahoma City, it was funny. A couple years ago, I'm talking to somebody in Vegas, and he bets the NBA, and he said, this Billy Donovan guy can't coach. And I'm like, I don't know if that's true. I don't think Westbrook and Hardin and KD were always the easiest group to coach.

Well, I think he's had a great year coaching. Chris Paul, to me, should be a top five MVP. He leads the NBA, I believe, in clutch points. And this is, to me, the shocking story of the league. They play hard. They've got a big. They've got wings. They play with energy.

And in this league, if you play hard, you can peel off a lot of Ws. The Rockets don't have Westbrook. I saw this morning that Oklahoma City was favored in this series. So tell me what it's going to look like. It's going to be harder for James Hardin without Russell Westbrook by his side. You think about the dynamic Mike Dan Tony has had with the rotations that he can utilize in recent years, whether it was CP3 and Hardin, being able to split time controlling the rock are now Westbrook and Hardin. Now you're going to see Hardin having to do what he's done in years past where he's carrying the load.

And OKC with guys like Dort and Robertson and up and down their roster, they have a lot of guys who can at least make life a little bit difficult for James Harden in this series. And the problem for Houston is there's so much uncertainty when they're actually going to get Russell Westbrook back. We're going to have to see Hardin have one of his great, great series scoring over 30 points, over 10 assists with his teammates really stepping up. But more than anything else with Houston, I'm so excited to see this clash of different styles. The small ball philosophy of Houston with a Covington Tucker front court against Stephen Adams and some of the other bigs that they can play, it's going to be fascinating to see what wins out here. Is it Oklahoma City size and brute force

and strength that forces Houston to go big or is Houston able to push Stephen Adams off the court? To me, that's what's going to determine the series because these guards on both sides are going to be able to get what they want regardless of who's defending them. So even Janus admitted yesterday, something's not right. A scout, a friend of mine who's a scout said defensively, their rotations, there's just something not quite there. What is it? They didn't play, by the way, Kevin.

They didn't play particularly well the last couple of weeks pre-bubble. So we know they're well-coached. I mean, there's a lot of stuff we like. What isn't working right now for Milwaukee? I think with Milwaukee, they have a system that has made them the best defense in the league. They play drop coverage with Brooke Lopez, which means he sags down into the paint and their wings, whether it's Yannis or Chris Middleton, really come in and help protect the rim along with him. And I think they've had some issues when they stick to that in matchups where maybe they should switch

or in matchups, maybe they should blitz the pick and roll ball handler and pressure them. So with Milwaukee, I'm going to be interested to see if they're able to stick with this and their first round matchup. But the fact is, regardless of what might be wrong now, whatever pieces might not be clicking on either end of the fourth, they're going to have four games at least, probably just four games in their first round matchup to get it figured out before things get really hard in the second and third round. You know, David Griffin said, this Pelican's job is a great job. And I, and I've always felt a great job is excellent resources and realistic expectations, regardless of the sport. A dangerous job is your resources aren't.

as good as you think and the expectations are absurd. So Zion right now we have a health issue. Drew Holiday, I like a lot, but he's going to be in his, what, 11th, 12th year. I thought Lonzo really struggled in the bubble. And I think Brandon Ingram's a two or a three, but views himself as a one. Is it a great job? But Colin, how many jobs can you coach a transformational talent like Zion, despite any of the risks? This is a great job because of Zion. What other job can have this. Yeah, I don't know. Do you buy into this, like, I love Zion from day one. What does concern you about him? I mean, the defensive ability has fallen off a cliff for him since he was at Duke. I mean, some of those blocks that he would have on corner three-point shooters

are gone now. And part of that's because of his conditioning. Part of that, maybe that's him, you know, really retaining his energy and understanding that he's not at full strength. So that needs to get back to the level that it was at Duke and get even better for them to be the defensive team than they can be. But with New Orleans, with a talent like him and a guard like Drew Holliday and a scorer like Brennan Ingraham, this is a great job undeniably. They just need some of the supporting pieces to get better, finding a big, a Miles Turner-esque big who can protect the rim and space the floor. It's the changes that David Griffin needs to make in the front office, in addition to finding the right coach who can bring some creativity to what they do with Zion and the half-court.

that can really bring this team from just a theoretical threat to a real threat. But there's no doubt, like, if I'm a coach in the NBA, I'd want to coach a guy like Zion. Finally, the XFL may not have worked years ago with Vince McMahon, but the NFL did copy some of the aesthetics, some of the camera angles of the NFL. There's always room, even if you fail. We're probably not going to have an NBA bubble next year, probably. but is there anything you've seen in the bubble and you think to yourself,

they may just take that and use it full time going forward in the NBA? Two things. The playing tournament undoubtedly, that's something that Adam Silver proposed last year to owners and teams and it was met with a mixed response. But my understanding from people who didn't like it before are now in love with it. So I would be quite shocked if the league doesn't permanently install

the playing tournament. So that's one aspect. The second aspect is this neutral site aspect that the league has working here has people thinking as this could be a midseason tournament format. Maybe instead of going to a venue for the All-Star break, maybe you go somewhere for a week or two and have a mid-season tournament where every team's there or a small number of teams are there. So both of these aspects are something the league can roll with.

It's great to see the experimentation has caused them to find something new. And the playing tournament is undeniably something that we should see. Yeah, good stuff. All right, good stuff. Kevin O'Connor, the ringer. Thanks, buddy. Thank you, Colin. Yeah.

We were, Joy and I were saying this Saturday was just, it was intense. It was really, really intense. It felt like a lot of this has felt like March Madness, but it really felt that way. Yeah. It did. It's just, you know, it's funny. MMA, you know, UFC, UFC golf and the NBA. And John said even NASCAR, some, most of this stuff is way better than I thought.

I'm not joking. I'm excited to see the NFL because the NFL, from what I hear, they're going to take the first 10 rows of stadiums, and there'll be ads there, just like you're seeing in the NBA. So for the television product, you're not going to see empty stands. And that to me, you know, there's always been a saying, the NBA thinks of it first, NFL gets it right, and baseball makes the most money off it.

The NBA, I think they got it right and were the first. I think they've really nailed it. And people were, I mean, very skeptical. Oh, I was. I thought it was going to look like a Rucker Park in New York. I did not know what to expect. I had assumed that they were going to block it off, but it just looks so much better than I had imagined it would look. Yeah, totally agree. Joy Taylor with the news. No, no, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the herd line news. Well, some bad news out of Cowboys Camp. Cowboys defensive tackle, Gerald McCoy suffered a right knee injury in practice today.

He will undergo an MRI to determine the full extent of the injury, but the initial report is that it is a torn ACL. He reportedly went down while doing individual drills and was unable to put weight on the leg as he was helped off the field. So really bad news for the Cowboys. They signed McCoy to a three-year $18.3 million deal in free agency. So still waiting on the MRI. Hopefully it's not an ACL, but that is the initial report out of Cowboys camp. So bad news for the Cowboys this morning. Good dude. One of my favorite guests during the pandemic when we were doing everybody from their house. We don't do couch people much anymore. We had him on the air. Remember, he went 30 minutes. Yes, he was great. Oh, yeah, just incredible stories and great energy, wonderful guy. And this was going to be good for him.

Because the Cowboys have kind of patched work the D-line. Like, he was one of their, okay, we have, we've miffed on some draft picks. Let's bring Gerald over. And they had high. This is not an area. Dallas can take a season ending injuries. This is not one of the areas. Stephen Jones just confirmed that he is out for the season. Okay. Well, this is not good for Dallas. Yeah, that's really bad news for Dallas. Receiver, they're deep. That D-line, they're not. So Philip Rivers is bringing nearly two decades of experience to the cult's organization this year. And receiver T.Y. Hilton is expected, excited for their new quarterback to take the team to the next level.

He said, just to get him here in the building in Indianapolis is special, the guy knows a lot about football. He is a ton of knowledge, and we love to have him. He's a blessing to have out there on the field. I know he's going to bring it as well, and we just have to match his energy. We've got guys that can do it all. we're going to be a problem. Good news they have an O-line to protect him. Let's be honest.

Two years ago, Philip was really good. Last year, it was bad. And they had offensive line. They had a terrible offensive line. Yeah. I understand. I want to see it. My gut feeling is without protection.

I'm going to reserve all predictions about the Colts, but I am highly skeptical. I'll say that. If Jonathan Taylor at running back is as good as I think, and they have Marlon Mac and Jonathan Taylor without O'Lont, It's going to be a ball control offense, and then they're going to be fine. That part I would agree with.

I just want to wait and see. Like, I just don't have any expectations of Philip Rivers. The cult organization is a great organization. I understand they have some good pieces there. I just want to wait and see what Philip Rivers looks like. There's just a couple guys that I need to wait and see on. Philip Rivers is one of them. Ben Rothesberger is another.

I just want to wait and see what they look like before they're getting into predictions, which I know is not really fair. that's not really what we do. But I just need to see what they look like out there. So expectations were high for the Browns last season, but the team fell short of living up to the hype. I did buy in. I thought that they would be a playoff team.

I was wrong about that. So I'm done. I'm done jumping on the Browns bandwagon. They almost didn't let me go back to Pittsburgh for that. Well, team owner Jimmy Haslam wants everyone in the organization do a better job of managing their expectations going into the 2020 season. He said, I think we learned a lesson last year about tempering expectations. I don't think we manage that as well as we should have. I think you have to be

realistic. The team has not been in the playoffs since 2002 and we're in a tough division. Baltimore and Pittsburgh are arguably two of the best teams and best franchises. We're excited to go into the year, but realistic. Well, he's right, but can Jimmy Haslam be patient then? And well, that's always the question with the Browns, isn't it? Because as soon as something goes wrong, you're fired. Everybody can say they're patient. When you're one and four, are you patient? That's the key with Cleveland. They say a lot of stuff.

John Dorsey made a lot of promises, and Baker made a lot of promises. Their biggest issue, I mean, they're going to beat Cincinnati twice. The question is, can they go 3-1 or 4-0 against the Steelers and the Ravens? Can they win those games? And if they can, it's going to be a great year. But if they go 0-2 against Baltimore and 2-0- But even if they don't have a great year and they just have a good year. Nine and seven.

You got to be patient there too. Yes. It's about progress. You have a mostly young team. You're trying to build a culture. It takes time to build things that have a good foundation. But the Browns always try to do is rush everything. And last year, all the hype led to we're all being very step.

Like, we're being too hard on them. And we're going to show you and Freddie Kitchens. It's like, no, this is not a microwaveable situation. Every once in a while, you get a team that catches lightning in a bottle, and they're actually legit, and then they're able to build on that next year, right? This is not one of those situations. I do think, though, that the messaging changed as soon as Sifansky got there. It was a noticeable change in what kind of output you heard from Baker,

the rest of the team. Everyone was kind of on this, let's talk less, work more. I'm so into the, I'm so into NFL. I cannot wait for it. College football is bouncing around. I'm so no. There's just a lot of really

great storylines this year. It's hard to predict how good anyone is really going to be that isn't returning with the same coach, quarterback and core starters because of everything that's gone on. But there's just amazing storylines all around the league. Joy with the news.

Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurdline News. saw this over the weekend. John Gruden, Gruden is just making this thing uncomfortable. Gruden said, backup Marcus Marietta has been dazzling, was the word he used. He's a dazzling playmaker for the Raiders. I do not. So here's Gruden going overboard, knowing he's got a sensitive quarterback

in Derek Carr. He's interesting. He took off a couple times today. It really fired me up. He's been hurt. Look like the ankle is really. He turned the corner. He's a dazzling playmaker with his feet, and that's the key to his game. So I saw that, glimpses of that today. It was exciting. Started off slow in seven-on-seven, but picked it up.

Had a nice day. Had a really nice day. So let's be fair about this. Quarterbacks and head coaches, Terry Bradshaw and Chuck Knoll, didn't know his work. Jimmy Johnson and Dan Marino did not work. Phil Sims and Bill Parcells. Belichick and Brady at the end. Mike McCarthy and Aaron Rogers.

Russell Wilson is subtly taking jabs now at Pete Carroll. Adam Gase and Darnold have barked at each other. Garapolo and Kyle Shanahan. Kyle took the ball out of his hands last year in the playoffs. This quarterback thing, head coach thing, there's one in the NFL, one right now, where the quarterback and the coach have been together for over 10 years and it's perfect. Peyton Breeze, that's it. It's not easy.

The problem with Gruden and Derek Carr isn't that they can't get a lot. long. My question is, are their personalities right? Gruden is blunt and harsh, and Derek tends to be sensitive. I tend to be more blunt than sensitive, but I can be sensitive sometimes and less blunt. That'll be the question here. By the way, Belichick Brady actually were very similar, aspirational, driven, intense, curious. My question with Gruden and Carr is, John's impatient, he's blunt, and he's harsh. And Derek Carr sometimes can be sensitive. but let's be fair. This quarterback coach thing

is a lot of bumps. I'm not sure if Lafleur, if you watch the draft of the Packers, I'm not sure LaFleur and Aaron Rogers are going to get along. It's just not easy. It's never been easy. Phil Sims and Parcells and Brady and Belichick and Noel and Bradshaw, it's

not easy. It's a lot of work. And very rarely you can say, what about Annie Reed Mahomes? They're on the honeymoon. Everything's great. They love each other. They bring each other breakfast and bed. You know, that relationship's all Super Bowls and rainbows and birds chirping. Everybody gets along for three years. It's year 10, you're 12, you're 14.

So cross your fingers if you're a Raiders fan. Coming up next, Albert Breer, Gerald McCoy out for the year for the Cowboys. Updates on Camp from a guy who's totally tied in. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged. It's the enhanced games. While 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. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me. Clipper 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 Podcast, 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 with a little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast.

I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so you all right.

But just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, this is the second episode where we've discussed, correct. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS

on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me,

it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hardway with me,

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

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

Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, is we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. Good to have you in.

one of the reasons I like bringing Albert Breer on sourcing folks. He's got contacts all throughout the league, and he is going to join us now. Lead content guy Monday morning quarterback. Let's go to Albert Breer, who's got a nice summer tan. I can tell he's been on Nantucket, one of the great places in America. When I used to live out east, that is as beautiful as America gets. So I am not going to say I was right on Baker Mayfield. There's no reason to pound my chest.

but he did admit yesterday or this weekend, I lost myself. What did you make of the contents? What about the new Baker? Well, I think it's sort of getting back to what he's been in the past. And, you know, I know he'd gotten compared to Johnny Mansell and really was irked by that. The difference between the two guys, Colin, if you want to go back and look at who they were in college, Baker at Oklahoma and Johnny at Texas A&M, Baker was always way more of a team guy and way more of a gym rat. And that's really what he got back to this offseason.

and he's been drilled, he's been drilling down the details. One of the things that they've really worked on, his footwork out of the shotgun. So that's something I think you're going to be able to see in his accuracy, which was considered generational when he was coming out. I also know the staff has been really impressed by his ability to push the ball down field. He's made a couple of wow throws in the early stages of camp. And then beyond just that, like, you know, talk about finding yourself and everything else.

He's been way more vocal in the meeting room. And he's been more of a presence in that way, which I think is something that naturally has to happen with a quarterback, and the Browns, of course, are happy to see that in year three. So Belichick's been very complimentary at Cam Newton. He said he's working really hard. He goes, I don't know much about him. But every time he talks about quarterbacks, he talks about Brian Hoyer,

and he talks about Stedham, and he talks about Cam, you're there. How many snaps is Cam going to get? I mean, good God, we got no preseason. He's sharing snaps with two guys. Should we just lower our expectations for Cam Newton and be realistic about this thing? Well, remember, this is a staff that at one point got Jacoby Burset, who was a rookie at the time coming out of NC State, ready to play in a different offense that they'd run

the previous Sunday on three days notice. And they went and beat the Houston Texans on that Thursday night. So this is a staff that can adjust quickly. I do think it's going to be noticeable how different the offense looks, though. They aren't going to try to put a square peg into a round hole here. He's not going to be running the Tom Brady offense. And I think to some degree for Bill and Josh, this really excites them. The challenge of having to do something new and build a new offense around the guy.

I'll also say this, Colin, for this specific year, Cam is perfect. If you want to go back to 2011, one of the things that Bill harped on with his players coming out of lockout, some teams aren't going to be very well conditioned. You want to be able to run them over. How do you do that this year? You do it with a 270-pound quarterback. And so I think specific to this year, the ability to simplify things a little bit. the ability to make things easier on everybody else in the huddle.

And then Cam's ability maybe to take advantage of some teams that aren't as well-condition. It suits this year very, very well. And so I think the acquisition of Cam is specific to this year with the bonus that you might have a long-term answer at the quarterback position if he plays really well. So Tom Brady, Joe Montana spilled the beans last week. Montana said he talked to Brady during the Super Bowl. And Tom probably didn't love it.

But Montana said, listen, he would give advice and nobody would listen to him. is that opening up what we really knew to be the problem? In the end, this staff and this quarterback Brady, they just kind of, they were tired of each other. I think Tom really wanted to, yeah, sort of, and it's not being part of management. And I don't think he ever desired to be part of player acquisition. But I do know one of the things that he really has enjoyed over the years is sort of the back and forth and the ability to build an offense. In the last couple of years, I mean, let's call it what it was.

They had some personnel issues, obviously, Gronk, was injured his last two years. Then he wasn't there last year. They had some swings and misses at the receiver position, so they had to play a different way. And I do think that that puts some stress on the relationship. Now Tom Brady gets to go down to Tampa where they had to recruit him, where they had to make some concessions, and they want to build the offense around him. And oh, by the way, he's also got Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Cameron Bray, O.J. Howard, and then Rob Gronkowski coming down. And so I think it's sort of a combination of things where the Patriots were forced into a box the last couple of years. Brady did,

didn't really like the talent that was around him in the last couple of years. And now he's going to a place that has had to make some concessions for him. So, you know, I was saying the quarterback head coach relationship has been strained all the way back to Bradshaw and Chuck Knoll. Jimmy Johnson and Marino had their issues. It's a reality of it. Very rarely do you get the Sean Peyton Drew Brees. It's wonderful. I look at Derek Carr and I look at Gruden and they're moving and the organizations in transition, and here comes Marioota. And yesterday, Gruden calls him amazing. How do you think it all plays out in Vegas?

I think for the last couple of years, the relationship has been dating, not marriage. And really, the contract has allowed them to be that way. And I actually think, you know, when Mike Mayock was asked about this a year ago, when they were kicking the tires on Kyler Murray and Dwayne Haskins and Drew Locke, I think he was being forthright about it. He said, like, we really like Derek Carr, but we're always open to a better option coming along. And that's sort of the way they've handled the first two years

of the Gruden car relationship. And now I think you're at a little bit of a pressure point where you've brought in an option. And that's what they've wanted to do all along, bringing another option that'll push Carr a little bit. Maybe he winds up replacing him. Maybe not. I also think the talent around the quarterback is going to help them get to a more clear answer

on who they have in Derek Carr. And maybe whether or not Marcus Mariotta is the answer, Colin, I'm telling you, they love, love, love, what they've seen from their two rookie receivers, Henry Ruggs and Brian Edwards through the first couple weeks of camp. And to add them to an offense that already has Tyrell Williams and Hunter Rempro and Darren Wall and Josh Jacobs, they really feel like now they've put together a group

that's going to allow them to get some real answers in the quarterback position. So Russell Wilson, I had a player and an agent reach out to me last week when I commented that Russell Wilson, Pete Carroll, you know, Russell will say the right things, but there's some tension there. Analytics are proving. We've seen this a lot this offseason. Analytic people saying Seattle's got to update that offense.

It's just too middling. And this weekend or this past couple days, Russell Wilson came out and kind of subtly said it'd be nice if we didn't trail at halftime all the time. I don't know if strained is the right word, but I will say that Russell has been vocal since signing that new contract about some concerns. that fair. You mentioned Brady and Belichick. I don't think it's totally unlike that. I mean,

I think Seattle's team building method isn't that far off from what New England's is. And New England's for years was, we don't need to invest a ton around the quarterback because we know he's going to be able to make it work. So let's invest in other areas of the team. And so Seattle's always sort of built with that approach. And, you know, the way they look at it, if we can build a good running game around Russell Wilson, that's going to help us get the most out of him. And then we'll take the rest of the money and invests in defense. Well, where does that leave you a little short change at the receiver position? And so they've had to make it work with a little less there. I really think that that's part of the whole deal here is that, you know, you've got a quarterback who's

in a really good program, a winning program, and that part of it, you know, that satisfies the competitor in them there. But when it comes to personal performance, and that's part of the whole deal too, as it was with Brady, I think he probably does look around him and say, well, I could have a little bit more at this position and this position and this position. Albert Greer, uh, Monday morning quarterback. Any more trips to Martha's Vineyard or Nantuckett before the season starts?

I wish. I wish. No, we're locked in. I'm going to be on the road starting next week. I did my three weeks there. So I, that, that's going to probably have to be it this year. All right.

Good seeing you, Albert. Thanks so much. Good to see you, Colin. Uh, you heard me talk about my bar cart lows. Go to hashtag Lowe's goals. Show us your stuff. Do it yourself projects. We're never.

at home guys, more than we are right now. Lo's, do-it-yourself, DIY projects. David Shaw last hour stops by, Stanford Coach. Joy and I have both said. You know, this funny thing about college football, everything has worked better than I thought, honestly. Baseball feels like fans really do matter in baseball. They really do add juice because baseball is different than with all the foul balls.

It reminds you constantly there's nobody in the stands. Whereas in the MLS is better than I thought it would be. The NBA is way big. better than thought. UFCs better, golf's better, NASCAR's better. MLS, I thought, was very strong. I'll tell you, I think the commissioners are better than our governors. I really believe that. Now, all our commissioners went to Ivy League schools, maybe they're smarter people. But I think sports has been great. College football has been the one sport. I don't really have a strong opinion. You've got a collective. You've got the students, and you've got the athletes.

and they intermingle less so now than ever because everybody's taking classes online. I know I have a college daughter. 90% of your classes are online. And secondly, and this has happened for by a decade, they've built these college football programs and these facilities. Kids just hang out of the facility all day. I mean, now, so kids can go, college football players can go to the facility, take all but maybe one of their classes online.

You wear a mask of the other class. So I think the virus rate is going to be much higher. with the students than with the student athletes. So I'm kind of for playing, but I don't know the answer to it. And David shot at Stanford, a brain center. He'll give us his thoughts and what he hears. Did the Big Ten and the Pack 12 act too fast, too swiftly,

or were they right sooner than the SEC, ACC, and Big 12? Guys, we're getting older, harder to get out of bed, unwanted pounds. Do you want more lean muscle? Check out MDrive for Men.com. Ride Aid, Walgreens, vitamin shop. Have it. MDriveerman.com. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and Friends.

Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and,

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

I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On The Look Back at it podcast. 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, Cliver 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 Clifers Show. This is a place for raw, unfilts 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 Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.