The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Herd - Hour 3 - Week 12 of the NFL

Episode Date: November 28, 2023

Thoughts on the NFL after week 12 The Texans are handling CJ Stroud the right way and it shows The Nuggets should still be favored to win the NBA title this season   Guest: Albert Breer, Ric BucherSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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

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or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule. of two. Listen to Stuff to Bole Your Mind on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to The Heard podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio in noon to 3 Eastern 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the IHeart Radio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Mercedes-Benz holiday love celebrations here until January 2nd, incredible offers on exceptional vehicles like their C-Class, their sedan, the EQB, go to MBUSA.com slash special offers. Albert Breer is joining us.

Lead content dude for MMGB. Okay, so, I mean, it's pretty clear, and I think inside the building, you got to win games in this league. You'll watch a C.J. Stroud come in. in kind of a mess of a franchise immediately succeed. I don't think that's done Justin Fields any favors. Jordan Love now looks like he's tracking. He's better. It's done now for Justin Fields in Chicago, right?

They're going to move him? It doesn't look great. And part of the problem he has, like, if you look at like Kyler Murray in Arizona, for example, like he's going to have a chance to play the Cardinals out of the top five of the draft, right? So if he plays well enough in other words, words, he can make it so they won't have great quarterback options outside of just keeping him for 2024. That's not the case with Fields. The Bears can play well down the stretch. They still have

the Panthers first pick, which will likely be the first overall pick. And so, you know, in all likelihood, we're going to get to the end of the year. And it's not going to be as Justin Fields played well enough to legitimately warrant a fourth year. I think we've seen some promise and some steps where you would want to take another look at him in 2024. The problem that he has now, is that he's going to be held up against Caleb Williams and Drake May. And not just Caleb Williams or Drake May, but one of those guys on a rookie contract where you can reset that law. So it certainly looks right now.

Like this is trending that way where it's going to be tough for Justin Fields to beat the other option out there out, that should be out there for the Bears, which will be a highly drafted quarterback on a controlled contract. Okay, Raiders have already moved off their coach. They fired Josh McDaniels. The Carolina Panthers just got rid of Frank Reich. I wouldn't have done it too quick.

It's chaotic there. Is there a third or a fourth coach on the hot seat? Is, in your opinion? I mean, Washington is the one that I think we all have to keep an eye on. You know, I think we all assume that's going to be done at the end of the year. And in fact, I would say, like, the in-season firing of Jack Del Rio probably makes it more difficult to fire Ron Rivera while you're in season, right? and the reason why is obvious because now he's running your defense. And if you've already lost your coordinator,

it's going to be hard to function the rest of the year with those players if you don't have Rivera or Del Rio on the staff. But Washington would be the one that I would really keep an eye on over the next five or six weeks where if things really go the wrong way, there could be a change there. I'm just trying to think of someone else, Colin, and there are so many teams that are bunched up in the middle of the league right now. I mean, I guess the one obvious one might be the charge.

Chargers where you would look at that one and say, okay, maybe they want to take Kellan Moore out for a test drive if it gets to the point where they've decided they're going to move on from Brandon Staley and they are going to eventually bring in somebody to work with Justin Herbert. Maybe you want to look at Kellan Moore within the context of, you know, what he would look like as your head coach over the end of the year, like the Cowboys once did with Jason Garrett, like the Vikings once did with Leslie Frazier. Those two would be the other two that I would look at and saying, you know, it looks like those are going to be. to be over by the end of the year, so maybe teams will pull the plug. Okay, Sean McDermott's been very successful, but you can see, even his press conference after the Philly loss, it was much more humble. You know, it's not good. Josh Allen's 0 for six in overtime games.

Ten penalties first half. I doubt they fire him, but do you think he has any heat there in Buffalo? Yeah, I mean, I think there's certainly questions about the window, and it's not the window for the franchise. Let's be clear about that. As long as Josh Allen, you're a quarterback, the championship window is open. We saw that on Sunday. Like, he was the best player on the field, and it wasn't his fault that they lost that game.

But, you know, for this group of players, and I'm talking about, like, Matt Milano and Tradavius White coming back off of injury, Ed Oliver, Dion Doc and Stefan Diggs. A lot of those guys are either in their late 20s or already on the wrong side of 30. Von Miller, obviously, another one. And so do you kind of get to that? point where it's like we need to do something to create a spark so we can get one last great run out of this group of players. That's the question that the ownership there, that Terry Pagula and his family are going to have to answer because, you know, I think you look at where they are. And again, like for this particular group of players, that window maybe has a year or two left

in it. And oh, by the way, if you do make a change, now we're talking about who's going to shepherd the reset. And do you feel comfortable with Sean McDermott, captain? the reset for you. So Big Jarman's obviously done a lot of great things here over the last seven years in resurrecting the Buffalo franchise. Now the question becomes for Pagul and his group, is he the man to put them over the top with the group that you have right now? And then is he the man to lead the reset whenever the time comes for that? So early in this season, we've seen three stages of Jordan Love this year. The coddling in the preseason. Remember, they tempered it, don't expect too much. Then the heavy criticism in the first seven, eight weeks.

Matt LaFleur, highly critical. And now we see growth. Now it's the Chargers and Lyon secondary. But in the building, is there a feeling, those young receivers are really, really talented? Is there a feeling like, okay, this year and next year, we're going with Jordan. And in this wobbly division, he's the guy. You know what's interesting about this, Colin? I think if you got Matt LaFleur in an honest moment, he would tell you that every quarterback should be developed this way.

that every quarterback should sit for a few years, that every quarterback should be developed with patience, that every team should exhibit this. Now, that's unrealistic, right? Like, there are very few teams that have to set up the Packers did that Jordan Love walked into, that have coaches and GMs with the job security to pull something like this off.

But they really do feel like they're doing things the right way. And a big part of it for Jordan Love was just being able to see more things, being able to go out there and make his mistakes and fall in his face and pick himself back up. And, you know, having talked to a little floor about it last week, you know, one of the most encouraging things is how he's handled all of it. Yeah. And how steady he's been and how he's been able to absorb failures along the way. That's a big part of quarterbacking.

So they're encouraged by what they've seen. And they're a little subtle hints of growth there, too. Like there was a touchdown pass to Tucker Kraft in that Detroit game where, and it was just a little swing pass into the flat, but heavy pressure coming at him. And Jordan Love not only handled the pressure and was able to get away from the pressure, he also put the, the ball where it needed to be, there was the right number, there was the right amount of air under the ball and it put Tucker Kraft in position to walk into the end zone. So they're seeing little signs of that they think he's got the right temperament, he's loved within the building, and they're giving him a chance to grow up with a bunch of guys who are right around his age. And again, like Tucker

Kraft and and Luke Musgrave and the receivers, Christian Watson and Romeo Dobbs and Jaden Reed, there's so many guys that have come into the league the last couple of years that are in that skill position group. It really is Jordan's group. And, you know, again, I think that the Packers feel like the right thing to do to get a full evaluation on Jordan Love is to let him grow with all of those players over the next couple of years. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the IHeard Radio app. Imagine an Olympics where doping is not only legal but encouraged.

It's the enhanced games. Some call it grotesque. Others say it's unleashing human potential. Either way, the podcast's Superhuman documented it all. Embedded in the games and with the athletes for a full year. Within probably 10 days, I'd put on 10 pounds. I was having trouble stopping the muscle growth. Listen to Superhuman on the I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care which I'm saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators,

and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated. One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast. It's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to The Clifford Show on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your

podcast. And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to? do a little kill. Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick it here,

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

I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have age. on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah.

For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. The good news for the Texans, they found their guy in C.J. Stroud. The bad news for all the young struggling quarterbacks is it creates clarity. Yeah. And everybody goes, this kid walks into a discussion. Why can't my guy be like this? Right.

And so, CJ, clearly processes a million miles an hour and sees the field. I said out of Ohio State, I'm like, I don't see the juice, but his comp was Jared Gough. And I've always thought Jared Gough's really good. Do you think people at Ohio State what you're connected to? People with the Texans, all your sources, are all of them a little surprised how good he is as a rookie? Yeah, you know, I know one thing having talked to the Ohio State coaches over the years about him, they always felt like his superpower was his vision and his feel, right? Like that he's great at ball placement, not only because he's an accurate thrower,

but because he sees things and he's able to throw with anticipation, and he has great feel for the game. So, like, that he would have highlight throws. I don't think that surprises anybody. I think how quickly he's grown and how consistent he's gotten, And I think that's where the surprise is, right? Like that he's been able to handle all the knocks as well as he has and continue to pick himself back up.

I think, you know, the maturity and how quickly it's come. Like that's where it's like, wow, like that happened maybe a little faster than we thought it would. Yeah. And, you know, it's interesting, Colin, because, you know, I know you obviously watched the Georgia game last year. Yeah. They felt like something really clicked for him in that Georgia game. And it's almost like he took that and he never turned back. Right.

And that's really rare. that you see a hard turning point like that, but I know that they felt like they saw a different version of C.J. Stroud after the way the Michigan game went for him and coming out of that Michigan game, and then the way he wound up playing against Georgia, like that's continued into the pros. And here's the great thing about it, right?

The Texans, and I think the Texans deserve a lot of credit for this, they got after him when they had their meeting with him pre-draft, when they brought him down to Houston, and they were tough on him. And, you know, it was a little on. uncomfortable. And one of the things they did in the aftermath of that is they continue to research him and they continue to talk to the coaches at Ohio State. And they figured out, like, there's a way to get through to the kid and there's a way to work with the kid and there's the

right way to do this. And I think DiMiko Rines and his staff deserve a lot of credit for that because it wasn't just like our way or the highway thing. It was, okay, if we draft this kid, how do we develop him? How do we coach him? How do we work with him? And then they apply to all of that when he got in the building. And I think that's part of the reason why it's come together so quickly for him there. Great stuff. Albert Brewer is always good seeing you, bud. All right. Thanks, Colin. It is really remarkable in the NFL, and C.J. Stroud and Russell Wilson are examples of this. You thought, I thought, coming into the season, Foo! Denver needs a lot of players. And you watch in the last five weeks, once the quarterback

plays well, they got a great safety, a great corner, could probably use a pass rusher, but good interior defensive linemen. Mims. Judy, Cortland Sutton, two backs I like. O'Line's pretty good. It's amazing. Houston, a year ago, laughing stock. Now you're like, oh, Tank Dell.

These running backs aren't bad. O'Line's underrated. It's amazing when the quarterback is right. Like everybody in New York now with the Giants, we're terrible. What if you had C.J. Stroud? Like you have great left tackle, great running back. CJ Stroud, you'd need a receiver.

Tight end, make some plays. It's amazing. Thibodeau, interior line, you have a corner you like. It's amazing. You get the quarterback right, and it just cinches it all together. Coming into this seat, September, you looked at Denver and thought, Rebuild! Rebuild?

They pushed Cleveland all over the field this week, and Cleveland is one of the more physical teams in the league. you look at Houston right now I'm like I mean what do they really need they got an edge rusher they got a star quarterback they got receivers I like they got a coach I like probably could use a great corner the whole world outside of the Jets could

but to get the quarterback right man overnight Caleb Williams with a Ben Johnson it'd be amazing you'd be like you know Cole Commet is DJ Moore is I really like our left tackle Montez sweat I love that deal the young corner

Everybody loves what Jalen Johnson? Is that it? Free agent, but Chicago's got pieces. They just don't have anybody that brings it together, tightens it up. I don't think they're that far off. J-Mack with the news.

No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the Herd Line News. I'm sorry, I watched Denver this weekend, and they're not a great team, and they may lose this weekend. But they got dudes on both sides. Everybody's got dudes. No, but I mean, they were, that game was physical, and it was

physical players, their backs, their safeties. Everything for Denver, you watch them and you're like, they've got a, they need an edge rusher. Outside of that, Denver's got all the pieces. He knows. He doesn't know what's easy to look good against a backup quarterback and a third stringer. Oh, boy. Very negative.

Let's start with 49ers Eagles. Cowherd, listen, I confess, I've already cleared off the schedule. I've told the family, leave me alone during, like, lose my number for a couple hours. Yeah. I'm so locked in on this game. Rematch of last year's the NFC title game. I don't know. I was doing the show at that point. Was I? It was January. Yeah, I was.

I had the 49ers in that game, and then Purdy goes down. I just looked it up. Do you know who the backup quarterback was? It was Johnson, Josh Johnson. Yes. You know where he is now? No. I thought I saw him working at Chili's near me. Oh, come on now.

He is the emergency slash practice squad quarterback for the Ravens. So let's put that game in some context, okay? That's who the quarterback was. Here's the thing. Are you willing? Because I think the Niners were the size. when they were getting points. Now it's like San Francisco, you know, minus two and a half. I don't love it.

If it gets to three, I'll take Philly. It's starting to hit three market Y. Yvette. You missed the best number. We told you yesterday. It's Niners. Minus three, I'll take Philly. But the early number, the early number was, like I got the Niners in points.

That was the best bet of the week, I thought. So here's the interesting. There's some online trash talk, AJ Brown, Debo, Samuel, or friendly. However, Eagles edge rusher, Hassan Redick says he's, tired about hearing excuses from the Brock Purdy injury. Talk is cheap. You know, they get to come back in the link. There was a lot of boo-hooos last year, a lot of crying, a lot of what-if, a lot of this,

a lot of that. They get a chance to come back in here, line that shit up and prove it again. I can't wait. Like, I want the cameras for Fox to let our guys know. I want the video of the 49ers coming out of the tunnel. They've started to do this thing where Trent Williams just comes out. He looks like a mountain, like a boulder, and they're all like dancing, and they just look intimidating, man. This team, Debo, Samuel, I really like the, they're my pick down for the Super Bowl.

Like, I don't know how you can't pick that. Well, they're 8 in 1 with Trent Williams. So San Francisco, when they get the protection for Purdy, they're really, really good. They've got really good dudes. The front seven on the defense looks awesome. I just think this is going to be the game of the year. It's on Fox. At Fox, we only broadcast the biggest games.

Couple notes, couple things. So we know the Niners have had this circled on the calendar for, close to 10 months now. Okay? Number two, last four games. Not only have the Eagles been out gained by their opponents, by over 100 yards in each game. I know. They had fewer than 100 yards of offense

at halftime against Buffalo. Lane Johnson, we shall see if he plays or not. I'm just telling you, would not surprise me. Well, the Eagles beat the Chiefs in the Super Bowl rematch. I think it's realistic to think the Niners beat the Eagles and the NFC rematch. That stuff matters.

I mean, I'm not calling it, but I would not surprised me if this was like 30 to 13 San Frant. And they put it on Philly. Philly's exhausted, man. 92 plays. I know. After the Monday night game. Like, it's a tough spot. Next up, Miami Dolphins. Tough loss for them.

Jalen Phillips, the great edge rusher, and he is great. That really hurts that. Goes down with an Achilles against the Jets. That injury. That's big. He's very good. Oh, he's a terrific player. So they're making a move on veteran pass rusher,

Jason Pierre Paul, AKK. Okay. Sorry, aka JPP, as you said. Listen, I just don't know how much, how does he have left in the tank? Well, probably not a bond. I mean, listen, if you lose Phillips, that's punitive. That's not the same defense. Yeah, Vic Fonjo's unit, however, we have numbers since week five.

They have been showing out, like, listen, Jalen Ramsey has returned, but look, Fongio's unit, they needed some time to gel and get together now. Because I am the kind of guy who's going to spend the time on this, I looked at the quarterbacks they faced. Are you ready? Okay, so the numbers. You see, the numbers are stacked. Yards per game allowed, per play allowed, blah, blah, blah.

But Daniel Jones, they faced. Bryce Young, Jalen Hertz, lost. Eagles moved up and down the field against him. Mack Jones. The side here, if you're asking, is the commanders. When you get humiliated on national TV and have a capable quarterback, take the team. Commanders plus nine and a half is the side. Well, I don't know.

Where does Sam Howell fall? Is he closer to Daniel Jones, Bryce Young, Mac Jones, A-O-C-O-C-C-E. Tim Boyle. No, no, no, no, no, no. Sam, Hal's better than all those guys. Absolutely better. Sam Hal is better than all those guys. Better than Tim Boyle? Come on. We'll see, Dolphins. Final story, Bill Belichick, again. I know he hit him in the first hour, Colin. His future has been a hot topic. A recent report said that Belichick already has a deal in place to coach a new team next year. I don't know about that. Here he is addressing those rumors. Yeah, that's ridiculous. It's done to do the best job I can right now.

obviously need to do better. I don't worry about what everybody else is saying. I've heard good, ever bad. I don't really care. Tough year for Bill off the field. You know, he went through a personal thing, and now on the field, they are just, I mean, they're garbage, we can say it.

I don't know, do you think he, you think he's the kind of guy who would just walk away and just be content, or do you not want to walk away when you're down at the bottom like this? I think if they can draft a quarterback and he can get another run with a potentially good talented kid,

that he'd go for it. I think he'd give it a shot. I mean, he likes to coach. He's a coach. This is what he does for a living. He's not going to sit and play golf all day. Is a 70, whatever he is? Your old guy going to do a rebuild with a rookie quarterback? Well, Nick Saban has to rebuild every year in recruiting. He's got 74 assistant coaches to handle all the heavy football. Well, he's got some assistants too. These guys are coaches.

What do you want? His kid? Well, what's Pete Carroll going to do? Surf in Hawaii? Pete Carroll wants to coach. Belichick wants to coach. Yeah, Pete's got Gino Smith, a veteran. Coaching a young guy's hard, man. You've got to start practically over. Not if the young guy is committed and good.

It's not that hard to coach CJ Sprout. This is so tough for Kraft. How do you move on from a legend like this delicately? It's really difficult. You know what? You build a statue. You've been compensated well. We love you.

Build a statue. So talk me through that. I'm Belichick, your craft. Go. Bill, all good things end. You're leading with that? Well, I'm not a beat around the Bush guy. You know, I'm not a beat around the bush guy.

You know, I love you. You know, I respect you. but I think we need a new energy. I think offensively we're a mile away. I don't think we're close, and I want to go in a different direction. Wow. I don't think that's... Probably storms out of that room and picks up his phone and is like, where do I want to go? And he starts calling around.

You could say this. Your work needs a bedside manner there, you know. Well, I would say, Bill, I'm going to make a move. I'm going to give you 72 hours. Get on the phone. If you get a job first, it looks better for you. I'm for them. I'm not here to fire you.

I would prefer you move on from me. Now that, this is why you're the pro. Listen, that was excellent right there. You should have opened with that. I like that, though. That would be good. Like, I don't know where Belichick would go, though. He would probably explore options, be like, I don't want to go there.

Do I want to move there? I've said, if he doesn't have personnel power, I think he's an excellent, excellent defensive coach. And he's very good leader of young men. So that Billalichick, the most winning coach in the history of the sport, now has to answer to a GM? Yeah, that's a tough sell for Belichick Okay, well, that or you're fired publicly in 10 minutes

What are your options? And let me tell you something, talk show hosts and coaches It doesn't end well So you've got to come to terms when you walk into the owner's office It ain't going to go well And you have to, you know, you have to own your ego And suppress it It doesn't end well

Statue, fired, or you find a place to go And right now I think you'd You know, Washington would give him personnel power. They might. They're desperate. But I wouldn't. And I think he's a great coach. I think he's the best defensive coach ever and a great head coach.

He is not a personnel guy. And he's completely toned deaf and out of sync with offense. You think he could do in Denver? You think he could get Russell Wilson this good, this fast in Denver? Elno. No way that he could turn around Russell Wilson like Sean Payton. Did somebody have dinner with Sean Payton last night? You say really nice things about the guy.

Yeah, it's up for coach of the year if he wins two more in a row. I'm aware. J-MAC with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The Herd Lie News. The show's sponsored by BetterHelp, online therapy. 10% off if you start today can bring out a whole new you.

Go to B-E-T-T-E-R-H-E-L-P. Online Therapy, BetterHelp.com slash herd. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. What's good, y'all? It's your main man, Michael Smith, esteemed NFL analyst and certified fantasy football legend. Allow me to present to you your new favorite fantasy football podcast, The Dynasty Exchange, hosted by my first round rookie picks, Davis, Dylan, and Josh, three guys who most definitely know their stuff.

They're the co-commissioners of the coolest and most cutthroat dinners. Dynasty League you'll ever come across, the Yacht Club. And now they're the co-host of the most elite. Now make that the definitive Dynasty program in the game. It's dedicated to only the most devoted of diehards, the guys like me who can't stay off sleeper in KTC. And trust me, you won't regret making the choice to follow their dynasty advice.

Listen to Michael Smith presents the Dynasty Exchange on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, 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 I-Hard Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A win is a win. A win is a win.

I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me, Cliver Taylor the 4th. You might have seen the skits, the reactions, my journey from basketball to college football, or my career in sports media. Well, somewhere along the way, this platform became bigger than I ever imagined. And now I'm bringing all of that excitement to my brand new podcast, The Clifford Show. This is a place for raw, unfiltered conversations with some of your favorite athletes, creators, and voices that not only deserve to be heard, but celebrated.

One week, I'll take you behind the scenes of the biggest moments in sports and entertainment, and the next we'll talk about life, mental health, purpose, and even music. The Clifford Show isn't just a podcast, it's a space for honest conversations, stories that don't always get told, and for people who are chasing something bigger. So, if you've ever supported me or you're just chasing down a dream, this is right where you need to be. Listen to the Clifford Show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you're you get your podcast.

And for more behind the scenes, follow at Clifford and at TikTok Podcast Network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said

that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do a little 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 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 you all know.

I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you 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. You know, they always say NBA season starts at Christmas, but there are some early trends that you can look. Teams that are a little overvalued, teams that get old fast, young players getting better, quicker than we predicted. Rick Buecker, Fox Sports NBA analysts. So I got to start. I always start with you. I like to start with the Warriors because you know them.

they are the reigning dynasty, that Celtic championship. That may have been the end of it. They look very stiff-reliant. They've got depth. Sarich gives them size. Draymond's coming back. To me, it looks very stiff-dependent. Wiggins looks like he's done.

Your take, are they a viable, even Western Conference Finals team? Because they don't look like it right now. I would say that they are, but they're one of maybe five or six teams that are in that. mix and they need every piece working at maximum level in order to get there. They're a lot like the Lakers. I could make a case where the Lakers are making it to the Western Conference finals but I don't see anybody getting past the Nuggets and I could I could make a case for the Warriors but they do have some issues and it is a matter of the old guard getting old and the new pieces just not being

good enough to carry them and her Wiggins being at the head of that list. Yeah. He was supposed to be, and when they won the championship, their last championship, he was arguably their second best player, maybe their best defensive player. He hasn't been anywhere close to that, and I gave him the out last year because of issues, health issues with his dad that were a distraction, but we're past that now. And there hasn't been an appreciable change, and he's one of those guys, one of those young pieces that they were counting on to be able to carry a greater level. going forward as Clay, Dre, and Steph age out.

The dirty secret with this team, and I probably said it before, is we've always thought of them as this offensive juggernaut and this amazing shooting team. They're not that anymore. That's where they are definitely Steph dependent. Whether it's Wiggins, it's Clay Thompson, it's Draymond Green, it's Kvon Looney, it's Chris Paul, you go down the list. I can't count on any of those guys to knock down an open three.

And so there's a... There's been a real sea change and I think that they've lost their identity. And Steve Kerr has kind of hinted at it. They're trying to develop a new one on the fly. So Jason Tatum was critical of the Celtics and they looked like the best or second best team to me. Right now Denver's beat up so I'd make Boston one, Denver two. I'll get to the Denver win over the Clippers last night without their top three players, which is just embarrassing for the Clippers.

But Jason Tatum, who's having a great year has been very critical of the in-season tournament. For casual fans, you don't know much. about it except for the courts look different. How is it being played out? Payton doesn't like it. What a players think of it? So one of the big, one of the tiebreakers is scoring differential and as a result the Celtics lost to the magic in an in-season tournament game and the magic I think was Franz Wagner at the end of the game with about nine seconds left scored on a layup. Now I was really curious about why Jason was so worked up about this

because one, yes, the Celtics subbed out all of their starters like a couple seconds before that, but they played, Tatum played 11 and a half minutes of that fourth quarter, and the subs came in and were playing the same way. It wasn't like they allayed Franz Wagner and he went in and scored a layup. The other part of it is that the Boston Celtics came into this game with a sizable scoring differential advantage. and where the magic are right now, they needed to flip that. So Jason just looks like he doesn't understand how this works

or doesn't realize that for the Orlando Magic, as young as they are, this is where the in-season tournament is really valuable. Because, yes, they're 12 and 5, yes, they've won 7 games in a row for the first time since 2010, 2011. I'm still not 100% sure that Orlando Magic are going to be in the playoffs this year. but they get the opportunity to see all of these young players in a one-and-done type situation in the in-season tournament. So it's really important to them that they advance.

If the magic lose to the, they've lost to the Brooklyn Nets. So if Brooklyn beats Toronto tonight, then they win their pool. And Orlando is fighting for one of two wild card spots, which could very well come down to scoring differential. So, while this might not mean a whole lot to Jason Tatum and the Boston Celtics, it means a whole lot to the Orlando Magic. And in the big picture, I just have an issue with anybody at this point that is complaining about teams playing to the final buzzer.

That's why we have the in-season tournament, because we're trying to make these games meaningful and important at this time of year. So I'm just, I'm not. feeling Jason Tatum's complaints at all. Yokich, Murray, Gordon, all out. They still dominate the Clippers in the fourth quarter. I can't believe. Yeah.

I mean, somebody in the building with the Clippers had to say, Hardin with Westbrook, Kauai, this doesn't work. I don't believe it was a universal belief that this thing was going to work. It hasn't. Was there any pushback in the Clippers executive space on the Hardin move? Because it doesn't look like it works. I have not heard that there was a, you know a debate in the front office when it came to making this move it's

but I would say it's not as if everybody was convinced that it was going to work it was one of those let's throw it against the wall and see if it sticks situation because as is we don't think we're good enough to get there let's take a one-year stab at it and see if potentially it can work but James Hardin as we heard is not a system player he is the system and now that the Clippers have said, well, you're not going to be our system. It is clear that he's become Pouty McPowderson. He just, they might as well either bench him or, or just let him go. Because I think there would be addition by subtraction. They've got four guys who are, I believe,

all time 75, all time top 75 great players. And yet they don't have a leader among them. The closest thing they have is Russell Westbrook, who agreed to go to the bench in hopes that that would make things better. I just don't see how this is going to work. And I hope that the Clippers, that Siebohmer has the gravitas to say, you know what, we're not going to keep kicking this can down the road. We're going to blow it up. I know I'm going into a new building. But it is really, that was as embarrassing a loss as I can imagine. They lost to Reggie Jackson and D'Andre Jordan.

That's who they lost to. down the stretch. Game on the line. You got Paul George, Kauai Leonard, Russell Westbrook, and James Hardin, and you are getting beat in a possession-by-possession game in the last four minutes. It's unconscionable. Yeah, and they were at home as well. Yeah.

And at home. Bad. All right, we got to run. Thanks for pointing that out. You know what? Your questions were almost better than J-MACs during the break off-air. I don't know if you knew that that's what you were up against, but you were. J-Mack brought it.

Yeah, he did. And I brought it a little better, as usual. Rick Buecker, good to see you, buddy. All right, so today on the show established, the Clippers' loss was worse than the Lakers. It was. And that Justin Fields has a massive market. You've got 10 teams keenly interested. I have two. I think the Giants, the New York Giants is very, very interesting in Atlanta. Two offensive coaches who see the talent and could refine kind of say. sandpaper, the edges on Justin Fields,

bring down the turnovers. I think the Giants in Atlanta, very interesting. I mean, again, Pittsburgh, Tennessee. You know, Pittsburgh, what do you mean? They're going to, Kenny Pickett's going to be playing there. 2038. Oh, stop it. They're not, Tomlins will not stand for that. Tennessee is going

to be in the mix. I mean, we didn't barely mention Tampa Bay. Baker Mayfield's a free agent. What if he leaves? Justin Fields or Kyle Trask? Come on. There's so many quarterback situations unsettled around the league. And I'll be honest. Cincinnati 90 Bengals say, hey, Joe Burroughs our guy, but I'm, J-Max calling him Glass Joe, because he's always hurt. We can't try it out Jake Browning.

We need a backup. Let's just give up a third round pick. Well, I think Justin Fields our backup. I think Justin wants to be a starter. Okay, good. Go to Vegas. Enjoy being a starter. Win five games.

Enjoy the seller. And you'll be back on the market in a year or two. He'd be interesting with the Raiders. It's an interesting team. That's what I do, man. Interesting. Yeah. You sure do.

What'd you say under your breath there? I got to go. Nick Ride, Albert, Brewer, Rick Buecker. Good stuff today. Joel Klatz stops by tomorrow. We'll talk about America's team, the Michigan Wolverines. It's the herd.

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 I-Heart 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. Hey, this is Robert from the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. Joe and I are both lifelong Star Wars fan,

so we're celebrating May the 4th with a brand new week of fun, thought-provoking Star Wars-related episodes. Join us as we tackle science and culture topics from a galaxy far far away, such as the biology of tons and wampas on the ice planet hot, or the practicality and corporate business sense of the Sith rule of two. Listen to stuff to blow your mind on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.