The Herd with Colin Cowherd - THE HERD - Hour 3 - The 49ers have issues, Aaron Rodgers & the Steelers, thoughts on the Packers this season, Mark Sanchez

Episode Date: October 1, 2025

Former NFL quarterback and FOX Sports analyst Mark Sanchez joins the show to talk all things NFL, including: Brock Purdy and the 49ers' offensive struggles Why Aaron Rodgers is the perfect fit for the Pittsburgh Steelers Are the Green Bay Packers ready to be legitimate Super Bowl contenders? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Hey, guys, it's us. The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called, Hey, Jonas.

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

you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the ice. Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Toledano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast, Point Game, the playoffs. We're digging into the biggest surprises of the season. And I'm looking back on some of my greatest playoff moments. If we didn't talk ever again, I was crying. You just understood.

That's how personal it got. Wow. Then after that game seven, Marquis come in to you, he's like, you know, I love you, dog. You know, it's all love. This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the, iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

This week on Crimless, Rory and I welcome a very special guest. When I did podcasts, I wear my sleep masks. I like where this is going. So if you guys will indulge me. That's right, the incredibly talented and hilarious Will Ferrell on an episode dedicated to crimes committed by people named Will Ferrell. You're good for 300 crimes? Yeah. We got two.

I'm ready to go. right up to present day. Listen to Crimless on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Thanks for listening to The Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio in noon to 3 Eastern, 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd at Fox SportsRadio.com

or stream us live every day on the IHartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Fox Sports Radio. Well, he played 10 years in the NFL. He's got a new digital and YouTube show called Rearview. Mark Sanchez is joining us live. Your guest was Josh Allen, who is, I think honestly is the most talented quarterback, just physical traits I've ever seen in my life. He's a small town kid.

Tell the audience the story about he and his dad and their new business venture. Well, they actually have this partnership with wonderful, pistachios. And Josh Allen is from Fireball, which is outside of Fresno, Central California, known for produce and farming and agriculture. So he's a small town farm kid. And him and his dad had their first yield of crops, pistachios, and it takes five years. The last time I talked to him about it was exactly five years ago. So he's fired up about this partnership. And we got to break that down a little bit and his agricultural skills. And also, talk a little bit about this occupation he has playing quarterback in the NFL, so it was fun.

Yeah, it is remarkable how many of these great quarterbacks grew up as small town kids. It is unbelievable the numbers if you go back. So, you know, I was saying this about Brock Purdy. When Brock Purdy was FBS, the four years he started at Iowa State, the reason he dropped in the draft is he led college football and interceptions. He was a little small and he threw a lot of picks. So he goes to Kyle Shanahan's system and you don't see a lot of picks. He cleaned it up.

But now he's playing hurt. And that people, fans don't understand. You're forcing things. You're playing hurt. Maybe you don't have quite the velocity. And now he's making more and more mistakes. My take is some of this is just the injuries because I thought from college to pro Mark, I thought he had kind of cleaned it up.

I thought his judgment was very good. Where do you think the interceptions come from? He's obviously not totally healthy. Is that part of it? Oh, that's a huge part of it. And I think he went from a steady distributor type point guard to a guy who's got to score a lot more. And they're leaning on him a lot more to make plays with, you know, a different type of roster than he came into the league with. Remember, he had guys like Brandon Ayuk, George Kittle, Debo Samuel, and then halfway through the first year he started to get Christian McCaffrey.

So three of those guys are all pros or pro bowlers, perennial all pros and pro bowlers. and they all knew the system. They'd been in the system for years. So he just has to look at a wristband, spit out a call, and go do his job. Now he's working with different players, younger players, first year, second year players, that he doesn't have a ton of rapport with. And it puts you in a position where sometimes you get a little riskier with the football. And sometimes you just kind of press a little bit.

And I feel like that's kind of where he's at. He's trying to overcompensate for injuries and lack of personnel around him. I do think if you get into the argument of him versus Mac Jones starting, I still think even with the toe injury, he gives you a little more mobility. But yes, there's some of those riskier decisions, you know, that kind of echo from his college days that seem to be cleaned up. Also, I would argue that the pocket is, you know, not as clean as he's normally used to. So he's having to move around quite a bit. They're showing a little age on the offensive line. And then they're starting some young guys.

Connor Colby, the left guard, is starting in place of, uh, uh, of banks and Burford and all the guards that they've gone through. So there's, bottom line is, I don't care if you're Steve Young, Joe Montana. You need guys around you. And even if those guys came back into play right now, the best ability would be Steve Young's legs because, you know, it's tough finding completions right now for San Francisco. And there's still three and one.

Don't forget. All this being said, they're three and one. So they're still in prime position. They've got a big one tomorrow night. So one of the things, you know, I've said this about presidents before a long time ago is they never get credit for the mistakes they avoid. Like, you know, there's decisions that could be made. We don't know behind the scenes.

The president goes, we're not going to do that. You don't get credit for stuff you don't do. But this happens in life sometimes. You could be a husband. You could be a quarterback. I think Aaron Rogers is the lowest rated PFF quarterback. And I said, time out. I said, time out.

I've watched a lot of quarterback play this year. I think Aaron has figured out on the fly. And I thought he did it in Dublin. multiple O-line injuries with Minnesota, Vikings right out of the gate, got a great pass rush, and Aaron said, I'm not throwing the ball into trouble.

I'm throwing this ball underneath. I'm getting completions. I'm going to let our defense win. And I'm just, I'm saying that's what I saw, but he's low-graded by PFF, and their takeaway is he doesn't throw the ball down the field. And I'm like,

I'm watching Minnesota's O-line, can't protect Carson. He shouldn't throw the ball down the field, and you're laughing at this one. Why? I'm just, okay, 1121 Pacific time. Colin Coward is defending Aaron Rogers. I don't know if I've heard that. Give me, I'm 22nd. This could be a full, Colin. What's going on? I know. We flip the script here. Listen, I totally agree with you. I think, you know, he's the veteran conductor of the orchestra. It's not flashy, but he's, he's, going to get the whole group in sync and hit every note. Reminder, this division is theirs for the

taking. With Joe Burrow down, with Lamar Jackson down for who knows how long with the hamstring, I mean, they're playing Dylan Gabriel and Jake Browning next. Are there two starting quarterbacks that they're going against? So they finally figured out how to use D.K. Meckhaff, and that took some time. You know, they don't have a ton of time on task, Aaron and D.K., And then Arthur Smith, getting him involved and understanding that's exactly what he does best. What we're watching on this highlight. He's a catch and run guy. He's a big body contested ball defender, a catcher like that.

That's exactly the way you want to utilize him. And when it's available, you take it. When it's not, you're going to have to go dink and dunk and do some other stuff to get the ball down the field, get the run game going. But he's got plenty of gas left in the tank, and he's got plenty for deep balls and all those splash plays, but they're going to have to generate some of those splash plays on screens, wide receiver screens,

half-back screens, tight-end screens. That's where they're going to get some of their stuff because they're not just to launch it down the field type of team. But this post-by week for them, they're on by week right now. I mean, it's set up pretty nice for them to potentially run the table in the AFC North. So you have the Raiders at the Colts

this weekend, and I'm watching the Rams Colts game, and I'm texting a friend, and I think Jay Mack may have been one of the people. I'm like, first of all, Indies O line, Indies teams good. They got dudes. Indies a good team. And I said, second, okay, he's not Stafford,

but Daniel Jones is making big boy throws. Daniel Jones is playing with a ton of confidence. His second interception, it's late. You don't have much time. I don't even, I don't care. I'll say it. I never gave up on Sam Darnold.

I gave up on Daniel Jones. I don't even know what I'm watching. I mean, seriously, Mark, I'm watching him. I'm like, oh, that's a starting quarterback in the NFL. Big moves, big arm. Are you surprised a little? Well, just add them to the list of former New York players that leave and go have success. I don't care whether you're Giants or Jets.

I mean, it's incredible to see Xavier McKinney, Sequin Berkeley, Leo Williams, Daniel Jones, just add him to the list. So what Shane Steichen has done as assembled a roster, a strong offensive unit, a strong offensive line that can keep the pocket clean. They got a great run game. I love their running back. And they have everything that Daniel Jones had in the year he went to the playoffs and won a game on the road in Minnesota with the New York Giants. I mean, it looks very similar. Remember, they had Sequan Barclay that year.

And, you know, now they're working with Jonathan Taylor. It's like a very similar setup. The guy is surgical. He's an intelligent player. He's more athletic than people give him credit for. You see some of his scrambles. I mean, this guy can pick up 15 to 25 yards like that. And then, you know, they got this rookie tied end, this Ty Warren kid, Tyler Warren, out of Penn State.

I mean, he's a big body, all of 6'6, big catch radius, and he's still a rookie. He's still trying to figure it out. And he's making this kind of contribution early. I mean, this is scary. They have plenty of talent in that division. I think it's kind of them in Jacksonville right now, at least out of the gates, this first month of the season, that can really make a run in that division. And that thing's wide open for those two teams.

Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific. Hey, this is Jason McIntyre. Join me every weekday morning on my podcast, Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre. This isn't your typical sports pod pushing the same tired narratives down your throat every day. Straight Fire gives you honest opinions on all the biggest sports headlines,

accurate stats to help you win big at the sports book, and all the best guests. Do yourself a favor and listen to Straight Fire with Jason McIntyre on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, it's us to Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, name?

Huge news. We've created our own podcast. called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there.

But this one's extra special. So how did we actually come up with a name Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should call it. Oh, we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band. Before Jonas Brothers was... This is how you guys remember it going to. Don't? Yes. I have a very different memory of this.

We were talking about a thing, a bit for the podcast, people could call in and say, Hey, Jonas. And then I wrote down on my little notepad, Hey Jonas, and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast. But thanks for remembering that, guys. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL, late-night comedy guy.

Not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smigel and Friends. me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter.

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise.

Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athletes themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you content. and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports Slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them.

Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slicelife Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis, and I know firsthand because I competed there myself. I'm Renee Stubbs, and on the Renee Stubbs' tennis podcast, I'm breaking down everything happening at Roland Goals.

every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay. Jen she went. I mean, she went down in three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted. She's an outsider to win the French for me. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lena Rubakina is arguably the best player in the world right now, and I actually can win on any surface. Because if she's serving, well, good luck.

Consider this your court side seat to the French Open. Listen to the Renee Stubbs Tennis Podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast. or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of I Heart Women's Sports. By the way, Ashton Genty, breakout game. That's not a great O line. You're looking at film.

He kind of, you know, I mean, it's Boise State. It's a big jump up. It's not a great O line. What did you make of his performance? Well, I thought they had an excellent performance last week. I think Austin Powers Jackson does a good job for them up front. He's their right guard, has played center as well. now they're going with Meredith at center,

but they also just lost Colton Miller, their left tackle that they really loved at UCLA. So that's going to be huge. Who's going to step in? But I loved his ascension. And remember, this division, the AFC West, it's a street fight every week. All those teams want to run the ball,

whether you're Sean Payton and the Broncos, you know, Pete Carroll and the Raiders, Chip Kelly, they want to run the football. John Arbaugh, they want to run the football with the guys they have. They want to control the clock, own time of possession, and just wear you down and then knock you out at the end of games. So this division is right where they want it. It's just do we have enough playmakers in the past game for when people act the box?

Because that's what teams are going to do, especially after this breakout game. They're going to just load up the box and force Gino Smith to beat everybody with, you know, Trey Tucker, Jacoby Myers, and, you know, Brock Bowers, who's wearing that knee brace because he got to knicked up a little bit early in this season. So that's going to be where they have to take their next step. And they played poorly this past week. And they still had a chance to win it with a field goal. The Bears blocked the field goal.

And that ended the game. But even with all those mistakes and guys that aren't quite household names on their roster, they found a way to play some inspired football. And Coach Carroll has this unit playing really well. So they just dropped one, you know, kind of a tough loss at home, especially. Now they go on the road to Indy. so we have that game this week. So I've two questions.

One of them would be tape, but here's my last question before tape. So I watched the Packers, and I said, they're the youngest team in the league, and there is something. Remember when Seattle lost to San Francisco week one, and I thought they outplayed them?

There is something about young teams, Seattle's young, green, beige, young. There is, sometimes with young teams, they don't quite know how to seal games when they're the better team. And it's a thing. It's a skill. There's a reason Kansas City wins all these close games.

And Philadelphia. It's a skill. And I watch Green Bay and Dallas and I'm like, they just don't. The clock. They're just quite not there. That was my interpretation. Jordan loves but great. He's playing great football.

You got a terrific coach. They're going to be fine. But it's the process of winning games against inferior opposition. And I think it's harder than fans and media think. that it's a skill, or am I just fishing here and you don't buy it? No, that's 100% true. These are learned traits, and then soon it becomes part of who you are and how you, the coaches teach it, but until the players, you know, handle it and experience it,

then they go back to the well for more saying, okay, that worked, I trust you, let's keep this going. But the analogy for them really is like that little league team that's like the 10-year-olds and they kind of stay together because they've been the youngest team in the league for like three years. So they kind of stay together at 10 years old, but they're playing up a division against the 12 and 13-year-olds. So by the time they get there and they're 12 and 13, it's like, hey, we've done this for a while.

Now we just got to go prove it. We didn't win all the tournaments before, but now we got a shot in the finals every time. Now it's just doing it a couple times. And then it turns into riding a bike like teams you're talking about, like the Chiefs. They just know how to win at the end. And the first way to finish games is to stop beating yourselves.

turnovers and penalties. As soon as they eliminate those or even cut them in half, it's a no-brainer. And they might start lapping teams. They might start winning by 14 points if they get their stuff together. So I think most NFL games truly are lost and you don't have to go steal them at the end. One team will just end up giving the game away. And so they're a young, deep, resilient group that can survive this war of attrition that is injuries.

You know, it seems like they've been pretty. healthy so they have a chance to run the table in their division and i like where they're headed but you're right it's all about finishing finally uh i watched the niners and the jags first of all the nineers special teams have been lacking to be diplomatic for about three or four years and that was a part of the game um you know trevor lawrence i loved him in college and there have been moments in the nfl um you got a play you want to show it Where are you with Trevor Lawrence? Yeah, it's interesting because that was a huge part of our broadcast last week.

And, you know, I don't want to be a quarterback apologist. You know, the numbers are the numbers. He's got over 70 turnovers in his career. And at this point in your career, going into year five, that's not okay. But you look at the surrounding cast and the environment he's been in, four different head coaches, four or five different coordinators. Finally, he has a coordinator that comes from that Shanahan-McVey kind of tree that gives him options at the line of scrimmage.

This is one of the first times he's really had to go through an entire, you hear these quarterbacks say, can, can, can. Well, they're going up to the line of scrimmage with multiple plays, and when they say can, they throw a play in the trash can and get to a new play. Or completely audible, which he did and won a game against Houston after playing poorly against an all-out cover zero blitz. So he's doing a lot of this stuff and going through this can criteria for each single run, going run to run, run to pass, run to pass, pass to pass.

I mean, he hasn't had to do as much of that, and that hasn't been on his plate. His plate is completely full. He's got a center, thank God, who's been in the system before. I felt that with Mangold when I got to New York as a rookie. There's a lot to handle in the run game. And so I think he's finally getting a chance to get these guys in the right play, give them an advantageous shot at each down. And, you know, he took care of the football last week, looked really good,

and part of it is the scheme. So we're going to go to the tape, and I'll show you exactly what they're doing on the goal line. They're using their big personnel, using the best five or six skill guys they can get on the field, and they're putting defenders in a bind. You see a ton of teams do this. You see McVeigh do this with Stafford.

You see all the pre-snap motion and movement, different personnel's. So you're going to see the motion. It's going to look like run. This has to look, feel, and smell like run because everybody's playing man-to-man across the board. And if you can get these guys to bite and get to these specific spots with the right distribution, after you show the presence of run and the threat of run, it makes these guys hesitate on defense for just half a second. and that's all you need to buy on a quick play fake, downhill, you see Hunter Long, hit the end.

Mikel Williams, the rookie, trying to make up for Nick Bosa and his big injury on the defensive line for San Francisco, and there goes Siegel, the rookie having to play again, number 36. He's playing man-to-man against the tight end and also has to go fit up that run. If he gets the ball, the half-back, he's got to go hit that guy.

And so Trevor places this ball beautifully upstairs for his big target to go grab. It's a lot distribution, and it looks a lot different for him. But the real magic I see is, you know, him being able to get these reps under his belt. He's drinking through a fire hose. Don't get it twisted. He is learning a lot on the fly and doing things he's never done before. Footwork, under center, making checks at the line.

But the real secret sauce is this Anthony Campanelli defense. Look at this turnover reel. This is just from one game. I mean, teams would love to have this highlight reel of all these punchouts, these tip ball interceptions, Brock Purdy's trying to run like a little trick shot kind of play, throw it back to the half bag, boom, tip ball, Devin Lloyd, right in your grill. Tip ball, Devin Lloyd, same story. And then look at this punch. Dennis Gardek, a cast away from Arizona and the Cardinals finds a home in Jacksonville.

And then your former 49er, Eric Armstead, who was a pillar on that D-line for years, punches the ball out. and here comes Foyer Luka, you know, encroaching on a thousand tackles in his career already. I mean, they got guys that are completely sold out and bought in to taking the football away. They're not happy with making the offense punt. They want the ball back, and that's it. There's no bones about it. Mark Sanchez, as always, money. And Josh Allen, on Rearview with Mark, watch.

These are great episodes. If it was available to buy, I would buy that new show. If it was available, get your Fox property, and I can't. All right. Good seeing you. Yeah, good stuff. We'll do herd line after the break. And, you know, these baseball series, I'm going to go.

I'm going to throw it out there. Padres even it up today. Padres even it up. Dodgers win again. Yankees even it up. All right. One more herd? The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week,

within the I-Hard Radio app. Search her to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Hey, it's us, the Jonas Brothers, and guess what? We have some big news. What's the news, name? Huge news. We created our own podcast called, Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast?

Well, we didn't invent it. We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. Pretty, yeah, pretty wide range of podcasts throughout there. But this one's extra special. So how do we actually come up with a name, Hey Jonas, guys? I honestly don't remember. I think it was on a call about what we should.

call it and well we were thinking I'm originally calling it one of the early names of our band before Jonas Brothers was this is how you guys remember it going down yes I have a very different memory of this we were talking about a thing a bit for the podcast

for people could call in and say hey Jonas and then I wrote down on my little notepad Hey Jonas and offered it up as a potential title for the podcast but thanks for remembering that guys listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app Apple Podcasts or wherever or you get your podcast.

Just listen. We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman

help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes.

Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and friends. on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo.

Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the truth. triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context and ask the questions everybody wants answered.

SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsClyce on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Slic Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. The French Open is one of the toughest tests in tennis. first hand because I competed there myself. I'm Renee Stubbs, and on the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast, I'm breaking down everything happening at Roland Garris. Every match, every upset, and what it really takes to win on Clay.

Jenchian win. I mean, she went down in three to Rabakina, but I'm delighted. She's an outsider to win the French for me. And she likes Clay. Listen, Lina Rabakina is arguably the best player in the world right now, and I actually can win on any surface. Because if she's serving, well, good luck. Consider this your court side seat to the French Open.

Listen to the Renee Stubbs tennis podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Presented by Capital One, founding partner of IHeart Women's Sports. Good stuff today, Mark Sanchez, Joel Clat, a lot of baseball. Really fun day yesterday. We'll be as well today. A J-MAC with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news!

This is the herd line news. Let's talk about Drake May and the New England Patriots. Colin May had a good, good performance against the hapless Panthers. Easy dub for me on that one. Three total touchdowns for May. How about this? He's leading the league at 74% completions. I mean, May is really cooking right now.

In a recent radio appearance, Pat's former quarterback, Ty Law, believes New England has found their guy. He is the guy. He's proven himself. This is the second year when people, you know, when quarterbacks tend to either they make progress or they regress in the second year. For Drake May to make a step forward, which we've seen some quarterbacks in the past. They took a step back in their second year. I think this is a good sign for New England. Now you've got to get some pieces around him so he can continue that success.

But I think now we finally have our successor. to Tom Brady. Yeah, no, I think it's absolutely true. He's big. His thing was he had the Justin Herbert comp. The difference is he wasn't polished. But look at what they have. Five things that are very important in the NFL.

Good owner, good head coach, excellent offensive coordinator, left tackle, quarterback. And they have one elite corner. Like this league, Indianapolis for years, I've been arguing had a good roster. but before Daniel and Shane Steichen hooked up, they couldn't get the quarterback right. It's not about being a perfect roster. Do you get the owner, the coach, the offensive coordinator, the quarterback, left tackle, one elite weapon and somebody on the defensive front. Now, they don't have an elite weapon.

I think their running backs are both B, B, B, plus running backs. But I mean, I do think your A.J. Brown discussion is smart. The thing they lack to be a team that can win playoff game. is a weapon. I think anything else, now they're young. Drake's young, Will Campbell's young, Henderson's young, it's a new staff. They're not a multiple playoff win team. But, but, but they could win a playoff game if you gave them an AJ Brown to me, one playoff game. Okay, so, I largely agree with you, but you know, I'm not here to ballwash you. We disagree, and we, I think we make the audience smarter. Colin, I'm going to tell you the four opponents

that Drake's May has faced this year, okay? The Vegas Raiders, that's a bottom five, defense in the league. The Miami Dolphins, bottom five defense in the league. Pittsburgh Steelers. This season, so far, bottom five. And then Carolina, which is just awful. So I like May, remember, I was higher on him than Jane Daniels. I took a lot of flack for that. I believe in May. I just need to see a little more. Now, I don't know if we'll see that against Buffalo this week, because Spencer Rattler moved the football over down the field against Buffalo. And then May faces the Saints. So I don't really know what to, I don't want to go full all of it. in on May? Are you ready to do that? You're saying he's the guy. No, I said in that draft,

I liked every quarterback in his class. J.J. McCarthy had reservations. I still believe in all of them. I think Panics is inconsistent. So is Caleb. But I'm, I think they're, I think they're, once you get the quarterback and the head coach right, as a fan, just renew your season ticket. Get a better bargain, buy them for the next three years, because they're going north. Miami is circling the drain. The Jets are perpetually circling the drain. Josh is going to mostly win the division, but this is going to be a playoff team going forward. Okay, how about this? They've got to upgrade somewhere

on the sideline. Scenario, Broncos stun the Eagles. A.J. Brown has three catches for 40 yards and he's pissed again. Do the Patriots pick out of the phone and say, listen, we're close? Well, let's go get A.J. Brown. Yes. Let's put a second and a fourths on the table and see if they do it. Yes, because they're a very,

very, first of all, they don't have a ton of absolute urgent needs. I think their O-line needs to just keep getting better. And I think they need a weapon offensively. But the truth is, you're never going to, once you pay May in a couple years, you've got now, because of Drake May's contract, you've got two years. Maybe three.

But, yeah. To go big game fishing. So Drake May is a guy I would pay early. Why? You know he got, Jaden Daniels, pay him early. Bo Nix. Those kind of guys I'd pay a year early to get a better deal on the contract. Because you're going to have to pay them.

I don't want to, you know the way it works with quarterbacks. The longer you wait, the uglier it gets for the team. 100%. But I think you have two full years with Drake May. If you're going to go big game hunting, you have a major need and you have not as an organization drafted that position well at all. All right, let's go to my Jets. Listen, we're not going to be talking about them a lot this season because they stink. They are 0 and 4. Titans are winless, Saints are winless, Jets are winless. New York has been the fourth most penalty yards this season, not good. And my guy, Sauce Gardner, I know Jets fans are upset with me for talking about trading.

Well, listen to this nonsense. He's upset with officials, but listen to the logic, Colin. I think I get called for more stuff just based off of us and just not winning. I watch these winning programs, and it'd be some egregious things, and it don't get called, like letting the players play. Like, I got caught on something today where it's like I know the route, everything, and I'm just supposed to let him just push off the top of the route. I'm seeing kind of steps, all that, like,

is you not going to catch the ball regardless. I just feel like in general, even the Mike Evans ones, I just feel like us not winning, it's just what goes on. Can I throw this at you? Rams. No, well, I think it's interesting. I will say this, is that there's a reason Mike Shoshchewski was hard on refs, because it probably got him a couple calls.

And I do believe that Belichick for years was so respected his corners were so handsy and so physical, and Bill was so respected, and they were so physical that some stuff you just let go. Jerry Sloan, the late great coach of Utah, they were so physical and so chippy, you couldn't call everything. And I do think when you're a bad team,

and the game is, let's say, out of hand, you don't get that call. They're just going to, a ref's going to say, I'm just going to call it. And when a game is tight and it's, close and it's a winning team with a legendary coach. I don't think it's rigged. I think it's the advantage of being successful in life. It's like the advantage of being tall or good looking. People just assume you know what you're talking about. I think being on a successful team

in close games late, a lot of times officials, almost subliminally, swallow a whistle and let them play. And you don't do that in blowouts and you don't do it on bad teams. You just sort of, It's almost innate. You're like, well, they're sloppy. They're not well-coached. And you're more willing to call something. If Sauce Gardner was on the Rams and Sean McBay's on that sideline and they're in close games, do you get a little extra?

Sometimes I think you do. I really do. Listen, I know Jets fans aren't happy. I want what's best for the team. I like Sauce Gardner. Colin, how about from our crack investigative staff here? Sauce is the highest paid quarterback or defensive back in the NFL. He has one interstate.

in the last 43 games. I know it's not all about picks, but one in 43 games? And don't tell me they're not throwing at them. Come on. No, let me ask you this. When you lead the Jets in the fourth quarter, why throw? I mean, seriously, if you go look at the interception leaders in the NFL right now, I bet you some of them are on teams that leave games in the fourth quarter forcing teams to throw.

Even if they have a second-tier quarterback and a patchwork offensive line, the Jets trail late. Why would I have to throw dangerously towards Soss Gardner? So you see on the screen there, Jets Cowboys Fox Game, so we will talk about it. Cowboys, favored by two and a half. Why are they not three, Colin? I have not bet the Jets since the opener when they cover. Upset alert. Upset alert.

Thank you. Jets are winning outright. Final story. I like the Jets there. Jaden Daniels has missed two weeks due to knee injury. However, Dan Quinn says Daniels has been medically cleared and he is practicing in full today. Marcus Marriota started the last two games They beat the Raiders and then look kind of hapless against the

I forget it oh the Falcons So Daniels against the commanders, big one I think there's a great game Do you have a lean here with Daniel's back? Running quarterbacks have given the Chargers problems Jackson Dart last week had like 54 yards on the ground Chargers have an offensive line issue So it's really really hard for me

I think they have a better roster than Washington. I think the Chargers probably bounce back. But when you don't have your tackles, it disrupts everything. Kevin O'Connell last week all banged up on the offensive line. Kevin O'Connell was getting crushed on social media for not adapting and adjusting. How do you do it when you're on third-string offensive linemen? You don't want to get people hurt. So it's hard for me to embrace a team with two elite left tackles.

I mean, Justin Herbert's getting whacked like 14, 15 times. times a game. Yeah. Real quick, we know, let's say Joe Al comes back. Chargers, you add them in their Super Bowl bubble. Do you make a splash and go after maybe a right tackle on a team that's not contending and say, hey, can we get this guy? Do you trade for one of those thinking you could compete this year?

Or do you say, no, we're going to stay the course? No, because you got two great tackles. They're both hurt. I wouldn't do that. I think the Chargers are fine. They just, I may, you know what I may do? I may pick up a running back at the trade deadline because Harris is out. don't want to give Hampton 23 carries.

I think they have to, you know, Denver went and got Harvey in the draft, and then they went and got J.K. Dobbins, and it ended up being a really good pick. I think that the Chargers should look for another back. Interesting. Okay. J. Mack with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Hurd Line News.

What's a bad team with a good running back? Ask yourself that, Jim. Let me look at the Panthers. Chuba Hubbard. Did they pay him too much? All right. I don't know. I mean, if you're the Panthers, you're selling, again, if I'm not giving up Breece Hall. I know a lot of people are going to call.

Breece Hall looks like he's got some pop with the Jets. He's had a good season. Tennessee Titans have Tony Pollard. How about the Wisconsin running back to backup? He's about to go on IR, so, you know, he got banged up Monday night. Alvin Kamara. That's interesting. Does he have, are you seeing, like, it feels like he got old quick. I don't know. He's, the young guy. Kendry Miller or something like that.

He looked better than Alvin Kamara. But that's not a bad. I like where your head is at. I love this NFL trade stuff. No, I think the Rams need a corner. The chargers need a running back. And I like the Jets to upset the Cowboys this week. Boy, we're synergistic once again with some of our picks.

Colts, Colts Raiders. That was one of your favorites, right? My favorite pick of the week is the Colts over the Raiders. That's my favorite pick of the week. I just have some PTSD from Daniel Jones with the Giants. I don't know that I can trust that guy. I want to take Colton Survivor. I'm not going to lie.

Another one is New England's getting a lot of points in a division rivalry game and a team New England can run the ball. Yeah, I don't think that's bad. All right, we're done for today. First, things first. Up next. The show with no budget. Hey, guys, it's us.

The Jonas Brothers. I'm Joe. I'm Kevin. And I'm Nick. And guess what? We created our own podcast called Hey Jonas. We invented a podcast? Well, we didn't invent it.

We just contributed to it. We're the first people to do podcasts. We get to ask other people questions because we're sick and tired of being asked questions. Well, sick and tired is a strong way to put it. But, you know, tired and sick. Tired and sick. Listen to Hey Jonas on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Just listen.

We don't care where you hear it. Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. on Humor Me with Robert Smygel and Friends, me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, S&L's Mikey Day and head writer, Streeter Seidel, help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform?

We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter. Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam? It's Isaiah Thomas. And I'm C.J. Tolodano. It's our favorite time of the year on our podcast point game, the playoffs.

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

This was just playoffs. This was just basketball. So listen to Point Game on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This week on Crimeless, Rory and I welcome. a very special guest. When I did podcasts, I wear my sleep masks. I like where this is going. So, if you guys will indulge me.

That's right, the incredibly talented and hilarious Will Ferrell on an episode dedicated to crimes committed by people named Will Ferrell. You're good for 300 crimes? Yeah. We got two. I'm ready to go right up to present day. Listen to Crimless on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human.