The Herd with Colin Cowherd - The Richard Sherman Podcast - Cowboys pay CeeDee & the confusing NFL WR market

Episode Date: August 30, 2024

**This episode was recorded before Brandon Aiyuk's contract extension with the 49ers.** Richard Sherman reacts to CeeDee Lamb's new MASSIVE contract extension with the Dallas Cowboys and breaks down what his deal could mean for the futures of Dak Prescott and Micah Parsons, as well as other top wideouts looking for new contracts like San Francisco 49ers star Brandon Aiyuk and the Cincinnati Bengals' Ja'Marr Chase. Richard also explains how worried he is for the 49ers with Aiyuk and Trent Williams holding out in training camp, how he's feeling about the Seattle Seahawks going into the NFL season, why he wasn't surprised that Russell Wilson was named QB1 for the Pittsburgh Steelers over Justin Fields, why NFL players were being haters when they ranked Josh Allen as the most overrated QB in the NFL, and whether he thinks Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets could be true NFL contenders this season. #volume #herdSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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You know, sir. You're supposed to be the top. Super Bowl. Championship. That should always be the expectation. All right. I'm mad. That's going here.

Welcome back to yet another Richard Sherman podcast. And first off, ladies and gentlemen, I just want to say thank you guys for all the subscriptions, for following, for watching our videos. We'd like to have a good time on here, and we're going to have an outstanding season. But Mitchell, CD Lamb, $34 million a year, Mitchell, and as the person who said he wasn't a receiver, number one, he deserved every penny based off his performance last year in the year before. He's their go-to guy, the most targets in the league, I believe, are right up there, right one or two. had a great season, been phenomenally consistent for the Dallas Cowboys. But people wonder why it's taking so long to pay these receivers? And why is this such an odd year?

And so many receivers holding out and so many receivers holding in. And what's the deal, Mitchell? And the same is true with your boy, Jamar Chase. Jamar Chase, one of the top receivers in the National Football League. He wants to get paid like his LSU brethren, Justin Jefferson. I mean, that was a lot of money in that room at LSU, Mitchell. There was a lot of money in that room at LSU. And O'Dell was throwing around a lot of money before they got paid too.

So, Richard, let's start with C.D. Lamb, though, because as you mentioned, last year, this time, you weren't his fan. You know, you didn't like him. You said it is. I don't dislike him. I know you didn't dislike him as a human being, but you said this guy's not a wide receiver one. I think he proved a lot of people wrong last year. He's become one of the faces of the franchise in Dallas, and they paid him as such.

Jerry Jones finally has to bite the bullet and pay this man. Richard, you got to talk a little bit more in depth about this wide receiving market, because to me, these numbers have become so extrapolated. I mean, you got guys getting paid mid-30s now. When it seemed like a couple years ago, 20 million was top in, and we thought that was a ton of money. This is blowing that out of the water. Yeah, and true.

Usually the markets grow with the cap pretty consistently, and it's usually percentages of the cap. And the league will never outright say it. The owners will never outright say it, but that's how they always systematically did it. It'd be, you know, corners and receivers are right around 10 to 12 percent of the cap, depending on which one it is, what year it is, sometimes a little higher, sometimes a little lower. Quarterbacks are right between 17 and 20 percent of the cap, higher or lower, whatever. I mean, those numbers probably still just about, they're still just about even. But the receiver market and the corner market are usually married right around one or two million dollars difference. Top receivers getting 20.

The top corners probably getting 18. And then one day, I don't know when it was. I don't think maybe Devante or Tyreek, they broke it. They broke the system. You know, one of those teams broke it. And the corner receiver market, the gap between them. just became tremendous. I think the top corner may be right around 21 million right now. The top receivers at 35. It's never been a $14 million gap. And that's the problem with the league

right now, Mitchell, because if you ask any GM, you ask any team, you ask probably a casual fan the importance of each position when it comes to a football team. If you're building a roster and you said, who are you picking first? You go with your quarterback first. So that's why they get paid the most. Then it's a debate. If you're an offensive guy, you say left tackle. If you're defensive guy, you say D-end or corner, you know, get to the quarterback, things like that.

But you never say receiver. I don't think anybody's building their team receiver first. And no offense to the receivers, they're doing a great job. And, hey, it's their world. We just living in it. They should be taking advantage as they are. But that's what's wrong with the market right now when receivers are. getting paid more than left tackles, then the algorithm is off.

Mitchell, the team building algorithm is off and there needs to be a correction. And I don't know when it's going to happen because for all intents and purposes, the receivers are going to continue to push the market as they should. And just like Trent Williams is looking at that, he's looking at these receivers. Like, what do you mean? 35 million for a receiver? I'm a left tackle. And you're telling me, 28, 29 million?

Like, no, I want 35. Rightfully so, because the most valuable position, it's a changer. Like, receivers can get hurt and you can find a guy comparable. You know, maybe not top guys like Justin Jefferson and Tyreek, you know what I mean? But you can usually find a guy that can be productive and keep your offense going. You know, I mean, you look at the Kansas City Chiefs last year. What $30 million receiver did they have when they wanted? And that's back to back.

They don't got, I don't think they've had a $30 million receiver when they've won it. And not to say you can't do it that way, but it's just rare. It's rare to see a team do it with a receiver as one of your highest paid guys in this new day and age. Because it's such a disproportionate number right now that it's getting ridiculous. And that's why it's harder. I called this three years ago that Jamar Chase was going to have a hard time getting paid. Mitchell, I said it. I remember.

It's still true because Mike Brown is not. pain guy. He had to bite the bullet, and I'm sure he begrudgingly paid Joe Burrow. Not because Joe Burrell isn't talented and isn't a franchise quarterback or hasn't performed to deserve the money he has. Because Mike Brown doesn't want to pay anybody, Mitchell. He literally wants to have 35 men roster if he could and have a couple guys playing both sides of the football. I'm not saying I heard it out of his own mouth. I'm not saying I've sat in meetings and heard him say things like that. But that's the mindset they're dealing with.

So when it comes to paying a receiver, $35 million, because Jamar Chase has a great case to say, hey, Justin Jefferson got it, my LSU brethren got it. I need the same thing. He has a great case to say that. He's been very consistent, been dynamic, arguably one of the top receivers, if not the top receiver in National Football League.

But it's changing the way teams. are building. You used to pay corners top money. Now corners are looking at receivers like, how are receivers getting 14 million more than us? That doesn't, that doesn't sound right. And I don't know what's going to correct it, but a correction has to come and it has to come soon. So with the Brandon Iyuk situation, it's only making matters worse in San Francisco because you really don't have to do anything. But it's going to challenge a lot of things because as he sits on the It's much easier when a guy's removed. If guys removed and you're at home and you're chilling and a team doesn't see you,

it's cool. You know what I mean? You can kind of get away with it. The team's not seeing you. You're like, man, I hope he gets his money, but it is what it is. But when you're inside the building and you're doing what you're supposed to be doing, working out, treatment, staying in shape, guys are seeing you. Just human nature kind of kicks in and you're like, well, if they start losing,

it becomes an issue. If they're winning, Mitchell, it doesn't become an issue at all for anything. anybody but B.A. But if they start losing, I would, I would guess some conversations start to happen. And I, you know, VA starts to get leverage at that point. But this is still a league where guys care about winning, especially a team like that where the championship window is potentially closing because of these deals and because of the deals coming up and money. You got to pay Trent more. Maybe you can manipulate that and move the third year to the second to the first, guarantee two years or something to get him to appease him and get him back in the building, but they don't get

Trent Williams paid. The wheels are, they're not off the car Mitchell, but they're rattling. They're rattling. Football season is here and Game Time has you covered. Game Time has a new feature called Game Time Picks that makes getting tickets to see your team play live even easier. Game Time Picks filters out all the fluff to show you only incredible deals on great seats. So you don't have to waste time searching through thousands of tickets. Download the GameTime app, create an account, and use the code Sherman for $20 off. Terms apply.

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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 what you need to be. Listen to The Clifford show on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

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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's 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.

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That's loveyourmindtay.org. Brought to you by the Huntsman Mental Health Institute and the Ad Council. Richard, I want to talk more about the Niners, but I want to close the book here a little bit on this wide receiver market. I got a little conspiracy theory. You talked a little bit about the new era of conspiracies, Rich, this new era of the NFL, one that when you played, it was kind of trending that way, but it seems that the NFL has given so much leeway to offensive players. We've seen it with all the rule changes, with the past interference calls.

We've seen it with the new hip-drop rule. We saw it firsthand, Richard, in Detroit, in the NFL draft, when I thought, think 80% of the first round picks were offensive players. I mean, you saw guys, cornerbacks, top flight corner cornerbacks slipping and sliding all the way down. My team, the Detroit Lions, one of the beneficiaries of that. Terriane Ardle widely considered a top 12, top 15 talent slides all the way to 24. Richard, is this more that the wide receivers are that much more valuable?

Or is it just that the league has changed the way the game has played so much to make offensive players that much more valuable. They are not Mitchell because the game has not changed very much. I mean, other than those rules and they're getting worse every year, but they haven't changed the value of the receiver position. But, you know, what has, these guys, these receivers are showcasing when they get the spotlight. And you got to give a lot of credit for Odell Beckham Jr. Not that he was the first one, you know, there were many great Hall of Fame showmen before

O'Dell Beckham Jr. but he brought another microscope to the position. And then you got to give guys like Justin Jefferson, Jamar Chase, Debo Samuels, Brandon Ayup, you know, they're out there. I'm on Ross St. Brown. When they get the spotlight, they're doing all the TikTok dances. They're doing all the hip trends and influencing these kids in a big way. And that's the NFL's market.

That's a big part of the market. And they're having a good, well, they're having a huge impact nationally. and potentially globally, especially for this game. So they're at the forefront of these Madden covers, of the billboards of the NFL, of the highlight tape. Whenever the NFL makes a video, you see Justin Jefferson doing the gritty. You see these receivers scoring touchdown, celebrating.

You know, they're doing the slime when it gets a first down. Things like that, Mitchell, that showcases these guys. So outside marketing-wise, it's phenomenal for those guys. But it hasn't, the game hasn't changed enough for one single receiver to be this much more valuable than, I mean, they're putting the same value on it as a D.N or a guy who can wreck a game. You know, there aren't very many receivers that could just wreck a game out there right now. They can be, they can have great games. I mean, you've seen receivers go for 200. Tyreek goes off, you know, and have, but we also saw those receivers get stopped.

We saw Legerius Sneed have his way with Tyree Kiel in Kansas City. in playoffs when it needs to happen when you got to have it. So it's not like these guys are like, hey, you get a great receiver, Super Bowl. No, that's still the quarterback position and still only one quarterback that's consistently getting there. So I don't know what's going to correct it. And it's not going to happen right now. So guys are going to continue.

But Trent Williams is trying to do for the tackle market, what Devante Adams and Tyree Keel did for the receiver market. He's trying to jumpstart it above that 30. million dollar barrier. And I think he's going to be able to do it. And rightfully so. Absolutely rightfully so. Well, when you overpay, I don't want to say overpay. When you pay a wide receiver this amount of money, there are sacrifices that have got to be made on the other side of the roster. And the quarterback market, this kind of leads us into the quarterback market, which has become more and more inflated as the years go on as the cap space continues to grow.

To think that these guys would be getting 50 million plus, when we saw Daniel Jones signed for 40 million the other year. You're like, wait, that Daniel Jones? Is this somebody else? Is this someone I'm unaware of? That Daniel Jones got 40 million bucks? But now the Cowboys have paid 136 million dollars of C.D. Lamb. They're trying to figure out Michael Parsons. And they got this lingering huge issue with Dak Prescott becoming a free agency next year, Richard, after seeing all these guys, Trevor Lawrence, Jordan Love, Tua, everyone getting paid, Jared Gough. Like, if you're Jerry Jones, Richard, how the hell do you handle this situation? Well, you don't have much of a choice if you're Jerry Jones.

This is the good and bad thing about homegrown talent that play out on an all pro level. You don't really got a choice. Just like he didn't have a choice with CD and CD knew that and his agency knew that. It's pretty obvious. What you're going to do without me? You've backed yourself in the corner and I'm happy to push you even further into that corner, you have to pay me. And so with that Prescott seeing Trevor Lawrence get 55, Trevor Lawrence, what is Trevor Lawrence one? Trevor Lawrence has a one and 18 record,

Mitchell, when his defense doesn't cause a turnover. I'm not going here nor there. I'm just being totally objective about it. That's tough. That's a tough stat. Now, when you start to hear whispers about, hey, it's the coach's fault. At first it was, hey, Urban Meyer solved the problem. Urban Meyer was the problem. And Trevor Lawrence just needed a coach like Doug Peterson to get him back on, to put him on the right track. Now they're kind of starting to whisper Doug Peterson's the problem. And that's when you start to scratch your head, Mitchell. You start to look at common denominators. And I'm not a math major. But it's starting to look like That's a bit of an overpay.

But now he's up there with the top paid quarterback. So now you're putting him in conversations with Josh Allen, Joe Burrow. And then you have to ask yourself, are these the same kind of guys? And I don't think you're answering that. And so when Dak Prescott comes to the table, he's going to say, Trevor Lawrence got 55 million a year. I was the second team all pro last year. Trevor Lawrence is debatably a top 10 quarterback, and he's getting top one, top two money. And so when you start to have those conversations, you're going to say, hey, I'm not arguing Jared Gough's money because Jared Gough took his team to the NFC championship.

He's playing at a really high level. I'm not arguing Kirk Cousins money. He deserves the money. He's been productive for a really long time. You can't argue burrow money, Josh Allen, et cetera, even Tuotunga Vailoa. but you can't argue with them because there are at least probably 10, 12 teams that would take him and he'd start day one and they'd pay him $60 million and not bat an eyelash because the quarterback position is so important to this game right now. And so I don't know, Mitchell, Jordan Love just got a lot of money. He got 55 a year with a very short resume.

And you got to give him all the credit in the world because, again, I didn't think the green. May Packers can strike gold three times in a row, and it looks like for all intents and purposes they have, and they paid for it. And so if he, but it's a very, very short window that, that you've had to really diagnose and observe Jordan Love and say, hmm, we're going to make a decision to give him $55 million a year. And now we'll see. We'll see how that affects the rest of the team because the reason in San Francisco 49ers are able to do what they're able to do, because they got a seventh round pick on a rookie contract, that will change. dramatically soon. And again, that's when the unfortunate cuts and trades and renegotiations

and it's starting to be magic. And that's where Prague is going to have to earn his money. And John Lynch is, they're going to have to earn their money trying to figure out those puzzle pieces. That's why they're in a win now, must win situation. But we'll see. I just, I don't know if he has a choice because Michael Parsons is going to get that money. He's got three first team all pros in his first, what, four years? Mitchell, that agent is walking up to that negotiation table saying, hey, a couple million more than both are. We don't even have a conversation. Right.

Then how do you pay the three of them? I don't know if it's doable. I mean, one of these guys might be on the trading block and it's certainly not going to be Dak Prescott. So decisions are going to be had to be made. And we talked about the last podcast. This is what happens when you wait. You pay a guy a year earlier, you know, you don't have to worry about this stuff as much. That's why I love my guy, Brad Holmes.

he saw Penny Sewell, he's still got another year on his rookie deal after this one. Hey, we're going to pay him now. We're going to take care of him now. And guess what? What he was was the number one paid tackle in football. Not any longer anymore. Tristan Worf's now is. And then like you just said, you wait till Trent Williams gets paid because that number is going to probably go up three, four million.

Brad Holmes going to look like a flat out genius. A hundred percent. 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. A win is a win. A win is a win. I don't care what you're saying. Yep, that's me. Clipper Taylor, the podcast.

forth. 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 Little Kim? 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 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 y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you 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 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, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free, our heart radio app. Search learn the hard way and listen now. Real talent is defined by what people can do, not where they learn to do it. So by stopping at the education section of a resume, you might throw away the perfect hire.

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The Pittsburgh Steelers, Russell Wilson. There was a camp battle going on between him and Justin Fields. You talked about it. Do you think this is the right move for the Steelers, Mike Tomlin, a Super Bowl winning coach, going with the Super Bowl winning quarterback? I don't think there was ever a battle. Because in a situation where there's a battle, I don't think it happens this way because Russell only played sparingly in the preseason.

I want to say he missed a whole week of training camp. And the QB battle, the person that misses a week of training camp usually is against a eight ball and he's going to have a hard time winning that battle. But when it's not a quarterback battle, that person's not worried about that. I always thought Tomlin's a fantastic coach, never had a losing season, one of the greatest coaches. National Football History, National Football League history, and you can argue with your grandma or somebody. But I don't think he was going to go into the season with an unknown. You know, whatever people may say good or bad about Russell Wilson, I think he had a solid season last year. Only played 15 games.

I think he had 23 touchdowns, only 8 interceptions. I think he had a really solid season. The yards probably weren't there. The yards per attempt weren't there. but in the chaotic situation that he was in in Denver, I think he made the best of it and he was able to put a solid product out there. So I don't think you're going to, if you're Tomlin, you're going to go with the unknown.

You've got to at least give him a chance. Now, if things are shaky for the first four games, you know, they start off, you know, one in three or one and four or something like that, then I think, you know, the noise to make a change. Obviously, Tomlin has never had a losing season. So you start hearing that, that noise gets. loud, get louder and louder, but I don't think that's going to be the case. I think he's the reason he's never had a losing season because he knows the formula that it takes to win

football games. And that formula is good defense, run the football, limit the mistakes from the quarterback. And I think that's why they went and got Russell Wilson, because he's not going to make a ton of mistakes. He's not going to turn the ball over. They don't need to pass it 25, 35 times a game. And so they'll probably throw it 20 times, 22 times a game. They'll run it 35, 40 times, and they'll get out of these games. They'll cause some chaos defensively with the old school superstars, Cam Hayward, T.J. Watt and the boys. And they'll continue to be a really good ball club and have a winning season.

So I don't know what will happen throughout the season, but I know that Tomlin doesn't lose, have losing seasons, and I'm not going to bank on him doing it now. I don't see it either. I mean, Richard, he took this team to the playoffs with, I'm going to rattle off these quarterbacks here and probably create a state of shock for you. But can he pick it? And my namesake, Mitchell Tribisky took this guys, these guys to the playoffs last year.

I mean, you look at the Steelers schedule opening up with Russell starting. They play at the Falcons, look like a tough team. The Broncos will see. The Chargers, the Colts. I mean, those four games are all winnable. I mean, what is it going to take in your eyes for this team to move over to Justin Fields? Because I would think they want to at least take a look at him as their starter, seeing that, you know, hey, they might be able to get somebody at a discount that they can keep long term, unlike Russell.

Richard, when does this change? When do you see them giving him that shot? Well, I only see it if they lose, you know, two, three games in a row early on. And I don't know if I see that just because of Tomlin's history more than I think it's something to do with Russell Wilson. And those games are winnable. Atlanta looks really good. Obviously, they just signed Justin Simmons. They made a trade.

Kirk Cousins is going to make Drake London and Kyle Pitts look better than they ever have. I think that's going to be really cool. But John Robinson looked really good in his first year. He'll continue that growth, I believe, as a playmaker. And so that'll be tough. You know, Denver, you know, Sean Payton will be on his prove-it tour. And I'm sure Russell will be on his prove-it tour. Like who was right?

Who was wrong in this situation? And I think that's going to be these games, I wouldn't put anything past the Colts because they always seem to be a hard out for people and they'll do things the right way. So, but I don't think, I don't think Justin Fields showed enough in the preseason for them to go out and say, all right, man, we're going to start him over Russell. Obviously, it was clear and obvious what we're doing, what he was able to do. He's clear and obviously the better quarterback. He's a great athlete, and I'm sure they'll put packages in for him to get him out on the field,

put the ball in his hands, let him make some plays. But I can't see them pulling Russell unless the wheels just absolutely fall off. And Tomlin's not going to let that happen. Yeah, well, we shall see another quarterback. I want to talk a little bit about Josh Allen with the bills. He was just named the most overrated QB by the NFL players. I personally find that hard to believe. I mean, he won me my fantasy league last year, Rich.

What do you think of Josh Allen? Would you term him overrated? No, no, I wouldn't term him overrated. He hasn't won the playoffs at a ton. He has the same stigma everybody else does. But I don't think it's any fault of his own. I think he's averaging 70% completion percentage 300 yards and not a great number of turnovers in the playoffs.

So I wouldn't say I would call him overrated by any stretch. I think he's one of the best quarterbacks in the National Football League, and he's played that way. So to call him overrated just seems uneducated, uninformed or haterish because he led the league and touchdown, total touchdowns last year with, I think, 41 or 42. And he's just really played at a high level, even in the playoffs. He's just running to people that are better. He's running into better teams, better quarterbacks.

Joe Burroughs got him a couple times. My homes gets him just about every time. And you thought, maybe it'll be this different this year. It's January. They're in Buffalo. But he's just, you know, just can't get past him. All right. Let's talk about your Niners, Rich.

We kind of touched down it a little bit. But I want to take a deeper dive here. Like, what level of worry do you have right now over this Brandon Iuke situation? because as an outsider's perspective, it seems like it's a tremendously huge deal. The fact that this could linger into week one, you got to worry about paying him, big bucks. And then the back end of that, you got to worry about Trent Williams and Brock Purdy. Where does this dust all settle in San Francisco? My worry level was at the beginning of training campus, probably at like a four,

just trust John Lynch. I trust Kyle. I trust they had a great organization. But it goes back to your point. the front office gamble and they gamble. And this is the gamble that front offices take sometimes that sometimes it pays off, sometimes it doesn't.

And you don't ever, ever, ever want to wish injury or think injury on a player. But these front offices, they got to let it play out just in case. You know, just in case, hey, something happens. You get a knee injury. You get an ankle injury. Then that price goes down substantially.

And then we're negotiating from a whole different space. but that's the risk you take when you wait. You could go earlier and maybe you get him for 25 and everybody's happy. Hey, we got him in year three for 25. You're not thinking, hey, he's going to cost 33 in year five. You know what I mean? But I think they should have went early on him. I think they should have went early on Bosa.

I think they should have went early on a number of guys and got those prices down. But, I mean, we are here now. So I'm concerned more about Trent Williams and I am Brandon Hyuk because I think at least they're having conversations, you know, just a human nature element of it. I think they'll be able to come to some sort of deal. But Trent Williams is much more important to this offense. Not that BA isn't a tremendous asset and tremendously important in a foundational piece,

but that left tackle, you could see it in the preseason. I mean, you don't want your starting quarterback getting hit. I think I saw a drive. I mean, I saw one game where Brock dropped back 14 times and he got hit nine of them. This is the preseason. Guys aren't running anything exotic. They're not running any crazy pressures.

Nothing that should confuse the offensive line. But when you're missing such a huge, the best left tackle in football, it's going to show. And their whole line is designed to slide away from him, let him take the hard job, and everybody else, hey, we're blocking them by committee. Cool, got that. When you can't do that, it exposes Colton McKivitz a little bit.

It exposed, you know, it exposed a lot of things. It exposed some deficiencies within their offensive line. And I think, again, it helps Trent's case because he's like, look, I'll see what it could be without me. Do you really want to sign up for that? Because I'm not showing up until you give me what I'm asking for. And I have no idea. I have no idea what he's asking for. I would guess it's 30 plus million.

and I would guess they find a way to get that done because if they start the season without him and even then once he comes, Mitchell, he's a vet vet. So I'm not worried about Trent, if I'm being honest. I'm not worried about him coming in out of shape or having to adjust or anything like that. But there's that aspect. Well, if memory serves me right,

wasn't Trent Williams out for that three-game losing streak last year that the Niners won on? I mean, Richard, this guy's vast. to this team. I mean, he might be the most valuable player for the San Francisco 49ers. And to say that about a left tackle might shock some people, but he is that good. And when he's not on the field, it's noticeable. So the Niners, I think John Lynch has made one mistake over the last couple years, maybe a couple, maybe not paying these guys early. But the biggest mistake I think he made was a contract for Javon Hargrave. Because that contract right

there caused them to lose to Forrest Buckner. You know, and now they got this Brandon Ayuk situation going on. If you don't pay that guy and roll with who you got, things might be a little bit different in San Francisco, but mindset is always 2020, Rich. And we'll see what happens from here. But let's go a little bit further north, Richard, to your homeland, Seattle. I know you stopped by training camp for a little bit. The Seahawks was pretty darn good in that last game.

They let the big dogs eat a little bit. You saw DK get in the end zone. You saw JSN do his thing. Like, Richard, what are your thoughts about Seattle? Because they've kind of been a dark horse. You know, I don't know what teams expect out of them this year. Is Seattle legitimate contender in the NFC West? No question.

No question about it. They're legitimate. And I think they're poised to have a really great season. And obviously, I think they make the playoffs because they were built well to begin with. You know, they have the receiving core that's explosive. They have the explosive back. in K-9. They got us really solid offensive line that was really beat up last year. Both tackles were injured. I think Lucas is still on the shelf for a couple weeks. But they bought

in George Fant to help with that transition. Charles Cross is healthy again and he looks really good, a big monster of a man. I think that's going to be good. Gino looks as good as he's ever been. If you keep him upright and protected, he's as good as anybody right now. You can talk about his history and whatever. I don't really care about that. Since he's been in Seattle and he's been the starter, he's been really good most of the time. Now, he's had moments where he struggled because they can't keep him upright. Nobody does well. You get hitting in the face every day. You lose both tackles. That's going to be tough on anybody. On the other side of the ball, I think is where they're going to take their greatest leap is because they built this defensive line and it had me

scratching my head for a while, Mitchell, because I was sitting there like, okay, y'all are stockpiling a lot of defensive linemen right now. You got Jaron Reed, you got Leonard Williams, you got Byron Murphy, who you just took in the first round, and you're like, all right, that's a lot. You still got, you still got Boye-Mafé on the edge. You just traded for a linebacker to play edge for you. Who am I missing? I'm missing. Cheni Nowsu, who is out, unfortunately. Nahuosu was out for the first four games, but he was probably their best pass rusher. was probably going to benefit the most. I think Jaron Reed is probably going to benefit the most,

but he's up there, and I think Byron Murphy is perfect for this system. And if you just talk about Justin Matabike from last year in Baltimore, we had a career year. I don't think he had more than three sacks before Mike McDonald came in and changed that system, and then he comes in and has, I think, 12 or 13 career year. And that's crazy. That's Aaron Donald numbers for defensive tackle. And so that was really impressive.

But that just goes to show what Mike McDonald likes and a D-Lyman and his D-Lyman. And they have such tremendous depth. That's what's going to help them. You got a lot more than the D-Line, too, Rich. You got a Witherspoon. The kid was a stud last year. I mean, he's got that aggression. I know you can speak a heck of a lot better than I can towards cornerback play.

But goodness, he's aggressive. And then you got Tyreek Woolen. Fast as can be. I mean, Richard, to me, the Seahawks are a dark horse. contender. There's always that team that rises out of nowhere, and I think the Seahawks could be that this year. No question. I think the secondary is as good as anybody. I think Tariq Wulin is set for a career year at the corner. I think Devin Wetherspoon has been everything they could have imagined and more. You just listen to Mike McDonald. He glows when talking

about him. They're really dynamic. They're playing fast. They're playing confident. My concern is that the linebacker, not the down linebackers that they have, but the guy, the stand-up linebackers, it's just a lot of unknowns there. But in terms of the secondary and the corner play, it's been as good as ever. Feel terrible for Artie Burns. Had an ACL injury in a preseason, non-contact, you know, it just didn't look like anything really happened on the play. And, you know, he was having a really good training camp, really, really poised to make a big

difference for this team. And so he's out. And that's a huge blow to that defense. And I don't think enough people are talking about that. And then you got Jordan Love out there. He's going to be really great. Kobe Bryant moved to safety. That transition is going really well.

And so it's going to be fun to watch. It's going to be fun. And you just can see the amount of pride. When I spoke to the team, that's what I impressed upon them that I really like when watching them. It's just the amount of pride every level. Even when the twos and threes come in, they take pride and getting stops, getting the ball, getting off the field, getting three and outs, making a different. making tackles. And I just, I just think that had slowly been sliding away over the last couple

years, but Mike's brought it back. And, uh, and I'm excited. And that was them running at all vanilla stuff. They weren't running anything crazy, nothing exotic. So when they really, they got your boy, Bone Knicks and Denver coming into town first week, I think it's going to be a lot for a rookie quarterback to deal with the noise in Seattle. The fans are passionate. They're excited about a new change and a new team and the energy. It's going to be tough for a rookie to come in here and get a win. I want to discuss one last topic before we wrap here, Rich. The New York Jets, right?

This is Aaron Rogers finally gets his moment after whatever it was. Five plays last year going down with the Achilles injury. There's so much hype around this team. I mean, you see so many reports coming out that, you know, they're one of the top five rosters in football. A lot of people are picking them to go to the NFC, their AFC championship game. Like, what are you, true expectations of Aaron Rogers and the Jets? Is it just hype or is this, is this more realistic?

It's definitely realistic. I mean, if you just look at the defense last year and the last couple of years, they've been really good. That's why you hate that they're getting wasted. You know, I hate when great defense just gets wasted because of bad quarterback play or bad offensive play or injuries on the offensive side because they deserve to go into playoffs with how hard and how well they were playing against some of the top offenses because they got to deal with Miami and all their speed and Mike McDaniel's dynamic play calling and Buffalo with Josh Allen and everything Stefan Diggs was bringing before they got rid of him. And so I'm really excited for him.

I hope it pans out exactly like they, just because Saul is a great dude, a great coach, they deserve it. Their fans deserve it. They've been in a drought for a long time. And I hope he goes out there. And, you know, for everything Aaron Rogers is off the field and all the controversy and, you know, all the, on that field, he's still a savant. He's still a problem. And he's still an issue.

And he's still one of the greatest players to ever strap up cleats in the National Football League or any other football league. And so you give him all the respect in the world. His teammates love him. And I'm excited for Gary Wilson to have his breakout gear after what he's had to deal with. Even Lazard. I'm sure he's excited for for Arrod to be back. They're going to have a tough,

tough first game going to San Francisco to Santa Clara. Aaron has just not historically played well against the San Francisco 49ers. You don't say, Rich. But maybe that changes, but... I think you got an interception ball in your house that speaks to that a little bit. That speaks to that. Yeah, it was a couple games where the score was double digits. But yeah, it's really a great roster, but they just got to put it all together on this season.

You know, this is the all-in season. They've had good season. They've been a feel-good story. Everybody's felt bad for the tackle situation. I think they lost four or five tackles last year, both on the right and left side. So I hope everything comes together and they can just get in the playoffs and make noise and just play to the standard and play to their potential. You know, that'd be fun to see. No question.

Well, Richard, next week, I could not be more pumped up, man. This is going to be the return of the NFL season. But more importantly, it's the return of the Richard Sherman Power Ranks, man. I mean, that is what I'm personally most excited for. Next week, we will have our season preview. We'll do all your picks for MVP, defensive player of the year, who you see winning it. I can't wait. Richard, I will let you wrap this thing up.

Mitchell, I will have a hard time not putting And it's not going to, your Detroit Lions may make an appearance, Mitchell, there. They've earned a lot of respect. They built a team, culture. It's hard to bet against them right now, Mitchell. Sorry, Richard, they're going to be in your top five, but I don't think they're going to be two, three, four, or five, my friend. Right, right, right, right. I don't know, Mitchell.

I'm still, you know, still got calculations. My algorithm, still putting information. But, well, we appreciate you guys. joining us as always. Thanks for listening. Wherever you are in the world, you could be listening to anything and you're listening to us. Hit that sub button if you knew to get a clue, who's who, and all that nonsense. Appreciate you. See you soon. The volume.

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