January 12, 2026 • 37 mins
Colin Cowherd is here breaking down an absolutely INSANE Wild Card Weekend in the NFL. He starts with the 49ers win over the Eagles: Kyle Shanahan with a masterclass gameplan and Nick Sirianni once again leaving a lot to be desired. He shares this week’s Where Colin was Right, Where Colin was Wrong – he was correct on Indiana football and wrong about the Bills
He talks to 3-time Pro Bowl QB Matt Hasselbeck about the Bears thrilling 4th quarterback comeback against the Packers and Josh Allen lifting the Bills over the Jaguars
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to the Best of the Herd podcast.
Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox
Sports Radio in noon to three eastern nine am to
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Speaker 2 (00:19):
This is the Best of the Herd with Colin cowher
on Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Oh man, do we have a Monday show? Baby? Here
we go. We're live. We're in Chicago. They win football
playoff games in this city. Baby, It's the Herd. Wherever
you may be, however you may be listening. Thanks for
making us part of your day. The city is buzzy,
should be. I got to be honest, I'm so glad
(00:53):
Philly lost that their tushes got pushed out of the playoffs.
Because the NFL playoff for about the best coaches and
the best quarterbacks, and Philly has neither. They don't have either.
Bottom line is, let's talk Niners from the opening drive
(01:14):
to the perfectly time trick play, to their ingenuity to
their efficiency on third down. Kyle Shanahan is using c
pons and buying a month full of groceries for forty
eight bucks, and I feel like Sirianni hit the lottery
and he's broke two years later. San Francisco is totally resourceful.
(01:34):
I mean, think about this, Nick Sirianni gets two picks,
a twenty seven yard punt by the Niners. George Kittle
gets hurt, You're at home, and this year in the
second half, all year, Philadelphia averages nine points in the
second half, including the playoffs, twenty six in the league,
twenty six and second half yards. There's no creativity, and
(01:57):
I think Philadelphia, like a poorly coach team, is getting
worse over time. I mean, I'm the one thing I'll
say about Philly is that their run defense was great,
But that's Vic Fangio. Everything I liked about the Eagles
was Vic Fangio. Think about this. San Francisco's six highest
paid players missed sixty percent of the snaps. How in
(02:22):
the hell are they thirteen and five? How are they
winning these games? And I've been critical of Brock pretty
but you know what, short memory, couple of bad picks,
one really bad, did not matter, great final drive, big throws,
didn't have George Kittle second quarter on didn't always have
the greatest protection. There was pressure, And let's be honest
(02:44):
about Jalen Hurts. He's pretty consistently ineffective in the pocket.
Greg Coseal's been telling us us for years. Tom Brady
on the broadcast sedit, why are you rolling out? He's
rolling out because he can't see because he's too small.
And so again that playoffs to me are about Shanahan
and Robert Salah. I mean, Shanahan's a wizard. That opening drive,
(03:05):
I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa was that? And
that trick play wasn't like a hooking lateral in the
red zone. That's a big boy trick play reverses receiver
throwing deep. For three and a half hours, you saw coaching.
Whenever a coach makes like fifteen million a year, people
are like, WHOA, coaching's overrated. Exhibit A of why it's not.
(03:27):
That was a coaching mismatch. One coach was chat GPT
and the other was Crayons. That wasn't even close. So
the Eagles are boring, They're not creative. They've got an
unbelievable roster, but forty percent of their drives yesterday, we're
three and out. They Philadelphia led the NFL in percentage
(03:51):
of three and outs. How A J. Brown, Devon day Smith,
Dallas Goddard, sa Quon Barkley, Get out of here, Get
that tush pushed out of here. And by the way,
I don't want to hear about Sirianni.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Boy.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
He's great in the locker room. He is great putting
a fence around this team, he barketed A. J.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Brown.
Speaker 1 (04:12):
Great again on the sidelines. Come on, you got to
grow up at some point. So I just to me,
the NFL playoffs are about quarterback play, efficiency, ingenuity, overcoming, resourcefulness,
and that all came outside of Vic Fangio from one side.
So and I don't want to hear about what a
great manager he is. I don't buy it part of managing.
(04:35):
I mean, you staying what you want about certain coaches
in this league. But a lot of the top offensive coaches,
Ben Johnson, Sean Payton, Andy Reid, their teams are great
in the fourth quarter. That's what they are. All I
know is the better quarterback play, the better coaching, the
better coordinating, the more creativity. Was all on San Francisco.
Forty four year old Philip Rivers five years out of
(04:59):
retirement face this same San Francisco defense. You saw it
this year.
Speaker 4 (05:05):
And forty four year old Philip Rivers had more points,
passing yards and was better on third down than Jalen
Hurts Nick Serian, he was against this Niner defense.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
How is that possible? It's possible because the best coaches
change outcomes, not just field position. That was Wizardry Shanahan
put on a clinic. Sala put on a clinic with
half the roster. The minute Kittle went down, I'm like, oh,
(05:40):
and they were playing so well, and they did it late.
They want to hear Shanny after.
Speaker 5 (05:47):
Proud of the guys, how hard they battled, And let's
just kind of staying in there. Having two linebackers weren't
on our team a month ago, and those guys playing
that whole game and playing at a high level was
so impressive. To find a way to win that game.
We thought it would be a grimy game, is how
we say it. There was our defense allowed it to
be that way. And then you know that last drive.
You know some of the places Juice made on it
(06:09):
I thought were so big on Brock had a couple
of mistakes, obviously with his two picks and stuff. But
to come back on that last drive, get us an
end zone, lead us all the way down there. It
gets like a third guy in his progression on the touchdown.
Real proud of the guys.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Yeah, I mean I've defended Darnold's bad pick, Stafford's bad picks.
I've got to be fair. What do you do after
the pick? You go into a shell to body language,
get bad brock party on the road, no kiddle, lot
of pressure and they weren't getting a lot of yards
on the ground. Fangio did a great job, great run defense. Iny,
(06:44):
I know Jennings may have had the best throw of
anybody on the field, but that is what coaching looks like. Okay,
I want to talk about the Bears, So I'm not
saying the pope being from Chicago is why the Bears
are winning. But there's a there's a correlation causation thing
(07:07):
we need to discuss because I don't seventh win after
trailing in the fourth quarter. And when it comes to
Caleb Williams, I've gotten to the point where I just
I not that I want to be like a ice
cream for breakfast parent, but it's hard scolding him, Well,
you know it's completion percentage is.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
A little low.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Yeah whatever, Well, you know he does miss some layups. Yeah,
but just see the ones in the end. It's got
a Steph Curry vibe. I don't want anybody in the
NBA shooting thirty four footers accept Steph Curry when he's
on a heater. And then it's like, well, he's different
rules for him. I feel like with Caleb, look at
(07:47):
this throw, it's just different rules. I mean, the guy
at the lowest completion percentage of any playoff quarterback, yet
the most passing yards. What do you want me to do?
I'm gonna bend some rules. You know. You hear about
all the time these gifted kids, you know, and sometimes
they can be really unique personalities. And it's like watching
(08:08):
the Gifted Child where Okay, he puts his pants on
backwards at twelve, but he's taking advanced calculus at thirteen.
Speaker 3 (08:14):
What do you want me to do?
Speaker 1 (08:16):
He's different. Caleb's special I heard all the scouts. Well,
you know he's moody a little bit. Well, he can
beat erratic, yeah regularly. Well, the fingernails painting. He's a
little emotional. Not the end of the world. All I
know is I'm watching these fourth quarters and I'm like,
it's Steph Curry. I don't want anybody else shooting it.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
I don't want.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
Anybody else with a fifty seven percent completion percentage over
the course of a season. But I'm gonna live with it.
I don't know what I'm supposed to do that second half.
I mean, he made he made Jordan Love, really talented guy,
look incredibly pedestrian. I said it last night in my podcast.
Is a little John Elway, there's a little Josh Allen,
(08:57):
There's a lot of Caleb Williams. And here's the thing
all great quarterbacks. When people say, well he's got Ben Johnson,
Ben Johnson did not have his best performance. I thought
Matt Lafleu out coached him, especially in the first half,
which is the coach's half. Second half is the baller half.
First half, the coaching half, half, the scripted half. I
didn't think Ben Johnson had a very good game. By
(09:20):
Ben Johnson Sandard, I think a little desperate, a little
too cute too often. But every so when people say
well Ben Johnson's been special, I'm not denying that. Akee
benet Jimmy Johnson fouts had Airic Coriel, Brady, Belichick, you know, Montano, Walsh,
everybody's got Marino, Shula, lay Shandy. I don't want to
(09:45):
hear about that because I didn't think Ben Johnson had
one of his better games. But I will say this,
every quarterback also has flaws. Manning didn't have a huge arm,
Mahomes and his mechanics. Tom Brady not a great athlete. Yeah,
I'll be honest with you. Caleb miss too many layups.
Man That ball sales on him. Yeah, but it's what
you do. What do you produce to mitigate or overcome
(10:08):
your flaw. I mean, Jimmy Hendrix had to occasionally miss
a note, right, It's not just about the floor, It's
got to be about the ceiling. And I'm sitting there
watching him in the fourth quarter. And you know what's
great if you're from Chicago, the Bears finally have real leadership.
Monday through Friday it's Ben Johnson, and Sunday it's Caleb
(10:32):
and Popelio. Because I don't really know exactly how to
explain it that Caleb can really be out of sync,
missus notes in the first half and then be a
combination of the greatest stuff I've ever seen. In the
fourth here's Caleb after.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
We got right here.
Speaker 6 (10:54):
Hartwayolon, where everything he's done for us as a coach,
everything the other coaches I've done for for us, you know,
and it started with him with bringing in everybody and
the emotion of that right.
Speaker 7 (11:08):
And for me personally, for me.
Speaker 6 (11:11):
Personally, he's been uh sake, geting emotional for me personally,
he's been monumental in my life so far to his
first playoff win level.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Oh, there's that Caleb guy. He's getting very emotional. How
do you not get emotional? I'm watching it on television.
I'm emotional. I just moved to Chicago.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
I'm emotional.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
How do you not get emotional this stuff? I mean
it's video game stuff. That throw he made with five
minutes left up the sideline, three packers around him. I'm
never say anything like that. I mean that that is
a top four or five throw of my life, Like
this one.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
I mean, look at this throw.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
It doesn't make any sense, rolling right, throwing left.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
Huh, I don't bull get in there.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
We got it from this few that doesn't even make sense.
That again, that's one of those videos of Steph Curry
before the game, when he's going into the tunnel and
makes a seventy five footer, You're like, oh, that's gotta
be AI. That throw looks like AI. I don't even
know what to make of it. All right, we got
everybody watched to get rid of Matt Lafleur. I think
you're out of your mind, Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, top
(12:28):
of next hour. Jmac, don't worry. You did not You
did not have a great weekend. Oh great I had.
It was a bloodbath. Couldn't pick a game to save
my life.
Speaker 8 (12:38):
Got screwed by coaches, kickers, you name it. I mean, listen,
I thought. I still can't get over this. Packers lost, Colin.
I mean total domination. Twenty one touchdown, touchdown, touchdown to start.
Speaker 7 (12:50):
The game, and then just fold late.
Speaker 8 (12:52):
I don't want to fire la floor, but man, I
got some Packers buddies who are living.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
They just they can't put you.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
They're beyond themselves right now. How do you?
Speaker 1 (12:59):
I'm Jordan Love was incredible in that game.
Speaker 8 (13:01):
Four touchdowns, three hundred yards, the Matthew Golden touchdown, not thirteen.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Let me tell you, Matthew Golden has been banged up
all year. Matthew Golden was worth a first round pick.
That guy is a spectacular talent. He is really good.
He's just been hurt on and off all year. But
they you know, the Packers draft and developed very well.
Matthew Golden by next year is he's gonna be a star?
I mean like Colston Lovelin took him a couple of
(13:26):
weeks and you're like, whoa stud O think he is
a top two tight end talent in the league. That
that Golden kid by next year? Watch out?
Speaker 8 (13:36):
He just regarding tonight Colin. Fortunately one of us will
get a win because you have the Steelers, I have
the Texas. One of us will get off the schneid.
I have no Maybe it ends in a tie. That possible.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
So we got great another with four for four until
the Patriots sleeper last night, but it was a win
for New England.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
Nonetheless, be sure to catch live editions of The Herd
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Speaker 1 (14:30):
Subscribe, hit that thumbs up icon and coming away Where
Colin was right, Well, I said it in October. Kyle
Shanahan was my coach of the Year and he and
Solo were my staff of the Year. Mac Jones started
eight games, no Kittle for a while, Trent Williams, Bosa,
Fred Warner all sorts of injuries. They still end up
with a top ten offense thirteen and five. He and
(14:53):
Sala put on a clinic Philadelphia forced into multiple three
and outs. I mean they held the Eagles with that
Bondo duct tape defense in San Francisco to four point
three yards per play.
Speaker 3 (15:06):
That is coaching where Colin was wrong.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Well, the Bills, despite being completely riot reliant on one player,
beat the Jags and keep winning. I don't love their
wide receiver group special teams now due to injuries, are shaky,
the defense has kind of mid. I don't even always
loved their head coach. But fourth team ever to win
at least one playoff game six years in a row,
(15:32):
and there's just nothing on the market like Josh Allen.
Ninety percent of that was Josh Allen. I kept asking
all week, how are the Jags underdogs? And then I
watched the game and went, oh, yeah, yeah, Josh Allen.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
That's why where Colin was right.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Nick Seriani, I've always thought his winning is a reflection
of the roster and the GM, not coaching acumen. There's
a lot of different ways to win in some of
its roster construction. He's arguing with aj Brown. Don't love that.
I mean, I just I look at this team and
he doesn't call plays. I'm told he's great at managing egos,
but that's not what I keep seeing. And I mean,
(16:12):
I understand that Jalen Hurts can struggle to see over
the line, like I get it, But there's just too
much talent here to score nine points a game this
year in the second half. There's too much talent at
some point. I mean, he feels Sirianni to me, feels
completely offensive coordinator reliant.
Speaker 3 (16:30):
Where Colin was wrong.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
I'm a Justin Herbert defender. But two fumbles, three points,
seventy four passer rating. Listen, He's played twelve playoff quarters.
Ten have been suboptimal. Now he's had a couple of
bad coaches, and now he's got an atrocious offensive line,
and Peyton Manning went oh for his first three. I
didn't like the Chargers in this game with points or winning.
(16:56):
I just don't think you can win with that kind
of offensive line. But his career passer rating is sixty four,
And as much as I defend him, some of it's
on him. Where Colin was right, Kevin Stefanski I said,
go ahead and Cleveland fire him. He's going to be
a top candidate. He's already interviewed with the Giants and
the Ravens and the Falcons and the Titans. I'm sorry.
(17:17):
He's an IVY League guy, two time coach of the Year,
which is not exactly easy to do in Cleveland. I've
always thought he gets the most out of his players.
I think Shadoor Sanders has improved. I don't know. Somebody
told me this years ago. If you fire somebody how
many good jobs did they interview for after? And if
the answer is a lot, you probably shouldn't have fired him.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
Where Colin was wrong.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
I didn't see John Harbaugh getting fired coming at all.
I mean, he's thirteen and eleven in the playoffs. I
always heard he was flexible, player friendly. I mean, clearly,
what Baltimore is saying is this is a Lamar Jackson franchise.
I get it, star quarterback, totally get it, and he's
number one candidate for a lot of jobs. But Steve Bushatti,
(18:03):
one of the better owners, fired him on the phone.
I don't love that. I guess it happens, but that
one caught me off guard. I think I caught a
lot of people off guard. They sat down for a
while and driving away he got the phone call.
Speaker 3 (18:16):
So I was wrong on that one. Where Colin was right, well.
Speaker 1 (18:19):
I predicted Miami in Indiana would end up in the
National Championship. I said, Oregon makes too many mistakes to
beat Indiana, which is a pretty flawless team, and Miami
is going to push Old Miss all over the field.
And that's exactly what happened. So I think Miami matches
up pretty well with Indiana. I mean, they've got playmakers
(18:40):
on the outside, so you can't cheat. Carson Beck's been
in a third national championship, but boy, Miami makes mistakes
and Indiana will make you pay for all of them.
But Miami, Indiana is what I thought would happen where
Colin was right. Finally, I've been saying this for two years.
If a car dealer or a bourbon distributor is your
(19:02):
number one booster and anil, you are not beating the
big ten. Notre Dame in Miami ole miss against Miami,
who had better players. I don't think it was particularly close,
so thank god for Texas Oil money or I don't
know what the SEC would be, but our third straight
(19:23):
national championship without an SEC team, and I think it's
even worse than that. If you start looking at the
last couple of years in the playoff, who the SE
team's SEC teams are beating. It's other SEC teams and
two lane. That's it. Colin Wright Colin wrong on a Monday,
and with that, Matt Hasselbeck stops buy and joins us.
(19:44):
Eighteen years in the NFL, so a lot of times
I'll ask you a question, and I think I kind
of know an answer, but I don't necessarily with this one.
So it is weird how uneven the Bears offense can beat.
Is there a secret sauce beyond just Caleb kind of
being really talented? Why are they so good at playing
(20:07):
from behind? It's almost as if Buffalo and Chicago are
better playing from behind. Explain that to me with the Bears.
Speaker 10 (20:17):
Yeah, well, I heard you today say that the popes
from Chicago, so you know, that might be the closest
thing that I've heard that makes sense.
Speaker 7 (20:25):
No, but yeah, I think some of its playground ball.
Speaker 10 (20:27):
Both these quarterbacks are really good at playground ball. That's
what I always felt like, two minutes it was time
to take chances, you know, stuff I wouldn't normally do
in a zero zero game in the first quarter. I'm
going to do that in the fourth quarter. I'm going
to do that on fourth down, third down, two minutes
Like That's you know, it's some of its personality that way.
Speaker 7 (20:44):
As a quarterback.
Speaker 10 (20:45):
Some of it's that, But I also think it's a mindset.
And you know, I talked to you earlier about Ben Johnson.
He's a great play caller, cool trick plays. That doesn't
mean you're going to be a great head coach, vision setter,
culture setter. You know the DNA of our team. And
then you go back to basically August training camp. He
calls the team together and has a team meeting and
(21:06):
he shows the video of twenty eight to three Patriots
versus the Falcons. Hey, I recognize we've got a guy
on our team on offense and a guy on our
team on defense. That one was on the Patriots and
one was on the Falcons. Let me hear from you.
Let's talk about this moment. Let's be a teachable moment
in August that I think is paying dividends all.
Speaker 7 (21:25):
Season long, but also in January.
Speaker 10 (21:27):
This mindset that doesn't matter what the scoreboard says. It's
all you got for sixty minutes. Don't judge what the
score is, and we'll see what happens at the end
of the game. And that's how this team plays. They
play like they're unfazed. They don't flinch. Ben Johnson when
you look at him on the sidelines, he's not a
roller coaster of emotions.
Speaker 7 (21:45):
He's a steady hand.
Speaker 10 (21:47):
So I just think the Bears hit a home run,
maybe a Grand Slam with this higher, Ryan pulls Ben Johnson.
Speaker 7 (21:54):
It works.
Speaker 10 (21:55):
This young quarterback has improved every single week, and I
think that's the mental toughness that it takes to come
from behind and that they've done it each and every week.
Speaker 7 (22:03):
It feels like.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
So everybody's down on Matt Lafleur, and my take is, folks,
they had fav and Aaron Rodgers for thirty one years
and got to three Super Bowls. A. It's hard. It's
hard to win this time of the year. Secondly, they
don't have an owner, so sometimes you can't make that
Goff Stafford move unless the owner goes, okay, I'll pay
for both salaries. They don't get free agents third year
(22:25):
in a row, Matt. They're the youngest team in the league.
They don't go get older players. Players given a choice
don't always choose Green Bay. I think he's a good coach.
I also think the NFC the last couple of years
has gotten better than the AFC. I think it's really good.
I think Matt's a good coach. When you look at
the meltdown, what do you see?
Speaker 7 (22:46):
Yeah, I think he's a great coach.
Speaker 10 (22:48):
I think fundamentals probably slipped a little bit this year.
Speaker 7 (22:51):
You know, I think that's.
Speaker 10 (22:52):
Probably something that's true, but you know, they're a field
goal or an extra point away from continuing.
Speaker 7 (22:59):
On, you know, playing right now.
Speaker 10 (23:01):
I think if you're that team, you look in the mirror,
you lock la floor up, which I think they've done,
and then I think you do everything in your power
to keep Jeff Hafley. Jeff Haffley was the head coach
of Boston College and just kind of like late in
the like late in this in the spring schedule, decided
to walk away because he basically said, Hey, when I'm
a head coach, I don't really get to do what
I love, and that's coach. I'm kind of like just
(23:23):
a you know, CEO. I want to be in there
with the guys coaching. And that's why he jumps ship
late to go to Green Bay and you know, coach again,
you see what he's done. So give him a healthy
Micael Parsons with an offseason, and I think this team
can be right.
Speaker 7 (23:38):
Back in it.
Speaker 10 (23:39):
But halflee, you know, he might say, I'll be head
coach of a pro team. There's no nineil and all
that craziness transfer portal. But if they can keep him
in the building, plus Lafloor. I think they got a
great thing going.
Speaker 1 (23:49):
Yeah, so do I.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
and noon Easter not a Empacific.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
Listen. I think what San Francisco has been doing unbelievable.
I mean I really do. Once Kittle got hurt, I'm like, Oh,
they were playing so well, the trick play, the opening drive,
third down. I mean, I'm sure this happened to you
sometime in your career, Matt, where you lost a left tackle.
You know, you're banged up. You go on the road
(24:17):
and you know, maybe it's home Grin, whoever it is,
and you just are resourceful and in a weird way,
everybody plays over who they are because everybody knows they
have to play over who That's what I felt like.
San Francisco is like, guys, we all have to play.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Our a game.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
We don't nobody can just you know, you can't drop
a pass. What did you make of the Niners performance?
Speaker 10 (24:40):
Yeah, they've been incredible all year given the adversity that
they've faced.
Speaker 7 (24:43):
And you know, you mentioned George Kittle, and.
Speaker 10 (24:46):
Like, I think the easy thing to do would be
to quit on this team once again. Everybody's already like
left them for dead numerous times this year. But I
think the easiest easy thing to do and say, oh,
they're going back to Seattle offensively. They struggled against Seattle
with you know, Kittle or sorry with you know, without
this kind of like bad.
Speaker 7 (25:02):
Breaking news or whatever.
Speaker 10 (25:04):
But I think this is a team that's going to play.
Speaker 7 (25:06):
For their guy.
Speaker 10 (25:07):
If there's a there's one player on that team that
I feel is like the heartbeat of that team, and
there are many to choose from.
Speaker 7 (25:14):
I think Kittle's that guy.
Speaker 10 (25:15):
He plays the game the way that it's supposed to
be played, kind of gronk esque, if you will. And
so like again, I think rock Birdy's super underrated. I
think he's great.
Speaker 7 (25:24):
Kyle Shanahan, when Kittle went out, he.
Speaker 10 (25:26):
Basically said, this is going to be a running back
game plan the rest of the night. It's going to
be Kyle Huschek and Christian McCaffrey, and.
Speaker 7 (25:33):
We're going to do it that way.
Speaker 10 (25:34):
And oh, by the way, Juwan Jennings, who was a
great high school quarterback, We're going to use a trick
play with you and you know Jennings just fun fact
he was rated ahead of Lamar over Burrow, over Sam
Darnold coming out of high school, and so Kyle Shanahan.
It's not so much what you what we can't do,
but it's what we can do. And I think that's
what he's done with his with his guys offensively, defensively,
(25:56):
guys like Kendricks, you know, just it's been impressive.
Speaker 7 (25:59):
And I don't think they're done yet, not necessarily.
Speaker 1 (26:02):
So. I think one of the things I watch when
I watch football, you can see coaching, Like the opening
drive for the Niners. You're like, oh, that was that
was magical. That was beautiful. They obviously saw weaknesses and
attack them. When I watched Philadelphia, I don't see like
halftime adjustments. Offensively, they average nine points in the second half.
(26:24):
I don't know what they are offensively. You know, there's
the old there's the old saying it's not about who
has the best players, it's the best team, right, And
there's also a saying it like, it's not just calling plays,
you know plays, it's got to be complimentary football. I
don't know what Philadelphia's offense is. Do you watching that?
What is their offense?
Speaker 10 (26:45):
Well, they're probably going to get a lot of shade
from people like you know, on social media because they
like to repeat plays. And I can just tell you,
as a quarterback, I never had a problem repeating a
play like Mike Hongrin's probably one of the greatest called
play callers of all time, and he would the same
play often and the ball would just go somewhere else.
So I don't have a problem with that personally at all.
(27:05):
But I do have a problem with identity. And you know,
to me, the identity of this team has to go
through Saquon. You know, the last five games, Saquon was
pretty darn good. But it just this team, for some reason,
feels to me a little bit like when Seattle there
was this push inside the building, like the let Russ
Cook movement, if you will, and like, hey, this quarterback,
(27:27):
he can be like Dan Marino. Dude, you don't need
to be like Dan Marino. Just be you you You
are really really good. And I'm not saying Jalen is
pushing that at all, but I think what what the
Eagles had been doing in the past was so so good,
and what they've been doing I would say for the
last like year and a half, it just feels like
they're trying to be something that they're not, and.
Speaker 7 (27:49):
So, you know, whatever they wanted to be, like, go
be that.
Speaker 10 (27:52):
But to me, Saquon's got to be a part of it,
and that physicality upfront that needs to be a part
of it as well.
Speaker 1 (27:59):
So, yeah, Buffalo is it's just crazy. I asked all week,
how's Jacksonville. I've watched the whole season. Jacksonville's better than Buffalo.
Then all of a sudden, about an hour in, I'm like, Okay,
this is just this is what it is. Maybe jackson
got a little bit tight, but I mean, I don't
know if there is We said this with Caleb. I
(28:22):
feel that with Josh Allen he feels free. He feels
a little freer in the second half. It's a looser offense.
And I do think that's the hard part about coaching.
When you get this like Lamar's first three or four
years in the league, it's like, Okay, there's some things
all coach and some things I'm like, bro, go do
you how much do you think when you watch Josh
(28:43):
in these moments in the second half his scheme is
design is a little bit of hey man, we're going
to give you a couple options.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
You do you.
Speaker 7 (28:54):
Well, for sure.
Speaker 10 (28:55):
I mean, and people played Josh Allen differently, So like
you know, when I would study film, I would kind
of have a good set of how people were probably
going to play us. You know, maybe not always because
we you know, Homegren was a little bit old school
how we did things. But there's certain players that people
just play you differently because of who you are, not
the scheme. And that's Josh Allen, Like he literally is superman,
Like if the MVP was really just the MVP, not
(29:17):
like whose team was the best and you had the
best stat Like.
Speaker 7 (29:20):
Josh Allen's the MVP. He is that guy.
Speaker 10 (29:22):
He can put a cape on and carry his team.
He's done it year after year. So yeah, does he
play better in those moments.
Speaker 5 (29:29):
I do.
Speaker 7 (29:29):
I do think that's true.
Speaker 10 (29:30):
But it's also because he's sparring for a little bit,
trying to figure out, Okay, what's your plan for me today?
Speaker 4 (29:36):
You know.
Speaker 10 (29:37):
And I think you saw that on the Brandon Cooks
play that he hit him down when the corner's trying
to trap the out route. I think you see it
in some of the quarterback run game. But this is
a huge opportunity for Buffalo with.
Speaker 7 (29:48):
You know, no Lamar, no Burrow, no Mahomes.
Speaker 10 (29:52):
In the playoffs, like, this is your opportunity to throw
the cape on. It doesn't matter if your defense can't
stop the run. They do other things well, creating interceptions.
They're playing well enough. This is your opportunity.
Speaker 1 (30:05):
Okay, I'm gonna throw. I have a theory on this.
I want to put up the playoff picture so the
Seahawks know the Niners are beat up. The Seahawks are
a young team. I don't like young teams getting buys.
I think young teams should play old guys can take
a buye. So Seattle comes in at home off of
(30:26):
by probably not totally in sync first driver too, and
I would guess their takeaway is, guys, we have the
better healthier roster. We're gonna wear these guys out over
three and a half hours. Let's not let's not make
let's not beat ourselves early. The Niners come into that
game thinking, guys, we gotta we gotta seize control. We're
(30:47):
not going on the road and being passive. We're taking swings.
I think Seattle Niners. The world loves Seattle, and I
think Seattle could come in cautious, Rusty. I think Seattle
nine is a real game, and I would be concerned
if I was the Seahawks. How do you view it?
Speaker 10 (31:05):
I think it's a real game, but I'm not I'm
not worried about that. I've seen the way Seattle practices.
This is not like a fat cat a bunch of
old vets, like they get after it even the Saturday
before a game. I've seen them like they're they're breaking
a sweat. The balls flying around, guys, are you know
they're they're competitive. I would imagine that this week, like
I mentioned to you last week, is a lot of
(31:25):
ones versus ones, best versus best.
Speaker 7 (31:28):
You know, we're not taking our star players to the ground.
Speaker 10 (31:30):
We're staying away from uh Sam Darnold's fingers as he
throws the ball in the pocket. We're not squeezing the
pocket that way. But we're not taking hits on JSN.
We're not tugging at jerseys, hurting hamstrings like all that
kind of stuff.
Speaker 7 (31:42):
So no, I think Seattle comes out firing.
Speaker 10 (31:44):
And I just think you got to be an alert
for a Kyle Shanahan uh non traditional game plan, non
traditional matchups and trick plays like.
Speaker 7 (31:53):
What do they got to lose?
Speaker 10 (31:54):
Short week? You know, I had to go across the country.
I think, like a third time match. They're pulling out
all this stuff. You know, he's got trick plays in
the playbook. What are you saving them for? This is
the week to do it. We'll Seattle be ready. That'll
be the question.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
Okay, Rams are at the Bears. Rams are healthy, Bears,
Loft their left tackle and the top Edward's the top
defensive player. I do worry they come off a wildly
emotional game against Green Bay, whereas the Rams are kind
of sitting there like can we get through Carolina? But
here's what worries me about the Rams. They give up
(32:30):
thirty plus points to Carolina twice, and I keep hearing
how great their defensive front seven is and Carolina was
four for four in the red zone. I could see
Caleb Williams having another second half. I mean Colston Lovelin,
Roma Dunze, Luther Burden, DJ Moore. Bears have a lot
of size and a lot of skill. I think Chicago
(32:50):
has a chance to win. How do you view it?
Speaker 7 (32:53):
Yeah?
Speaker 10 (32:54):
I don't disagree at all, but I do think people
overlook how physical the Rams are upfront offensively and defensively,
and so you know you mentioned the Bears lose their
left tackle, Lassi Trapillo. I think that's a bigger loss
than people realize, you know, because you can have all
the creative plays in the world, but if you can't protect,
it makes it tough. But you know, when Matthew Stafford's
on a heater at the end of the game, that's
(33:14):
what the difference is. Like he didn't have his greatest game,
I didn't think, but he had a you know, a
long drive at the end, and.
Speaker 7 (33:21):
Yeah, a perfect throat to Kolbe Parkinson.
Speaker 10 (33:23):
And so you know, these are two quarterbacks that can
do it at the end of the game. And the
way the rules are and the k balls are right now,
I think this could be a fascinating matchup again, even
if it's twenty one nothing at halftime, I wouldn't count
either one of these teams out.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
Okay, Buffalo now is going to go to Denver High altitude.
I feel the same way bo Nick's young quarterback. I
don't want him to have rest. I'd rather bow keep playing.
I think, you know, I mean, the dog is going
to be uh, I don't even know who's favored in
that game. My takeaway is though Buffalo playing flying home,
flying out, I'm like, I think it's an advantage for Buffalo.
(34:00):
Like I don't think Buffalo needed rest. I think that
was a great, great win and gives them some jet
fuel into Denver. Would you worry about the Broncos having
a week off?
Speaker 10 (34:11):
No, I don't think I worry about the Broncos having
a week off. And you know, the Broncos lost to
the Bills last year in a.
Speaker 7 (34:18):
Similar situation like.
Speaker 10 (34:19):
This, so you know, I think there's you know, you
don't have to worry again, like about these guys like
not taking it seriously, not making it there all like
this is their super Bowl in a sense, like they've
got this mindset of like want to know this week,
play every play like at your last.
Speaker 7 (34:34):
This game could be our last. I think Sean Payton
will have them ready.
Speaker 10 (34:37):
This you know that way for me, if I was
the quarterback, if I was Josh Allen, I know I
got to go up against Vance Joseph, and of all
the guys that I've ever gone up against, like Dance
Joseph's got to be somewhere on the podium. I don't
know if he's a bronze silver, gold medalist, but the
study time that it takes to go through his defenses
and his disguise schemes and all that kind of stuff,
(35:00):
it's something. And now he's got guys that can just
rush the passer without any help of a blitz.
Speaker 7 (35:04):
That's a challenge. That's a challenge. I think.
Speaker 10 (35:07):
I think Denver's got a better team than people realize.
But again, this is one of those things where Josh
Allen is that quarterback that can go above the x's
and o's without the other superstars mahomes, Lamar Burrow. They're
not in the AFC this year. This might be your
best chance, Buffalo, like, go do it.
Speaker 1 (35:24):
Yeah, who do you like tonight? Steelers Texans.
Speaker 7 (35:28):
It's a really tough one.
Speaker 10 (35:29):
I think if the Steelers don't try to play the
game an empty back like they love to be an
empty Aaron Rodgers in Shotgun like it's ten years ago
in Green Bay. If they don't do that, then then
I like the Steelers. But if they want to just
kind of play like they've always played, like oh Aaron
and DK and this and that, I think the Houston
Texans defense is really spectacular and they got to do
(35:52):
it a different way.
Speaker 1 (35:53):
Yeah, Pittsburgh has a weird way of in these games
where you're like, I'm not sure they can generate enough offense,
they find out a way to get turnovers short field.
Tomlins teams always do this when you're really he's always
been a great underdog coach, and all of a sudden
the ball is tipped and TJ. Watts running down the field.
(36:15):
You're like, I mean, cause my old takeaway is can
they generate fourteen points? But they always figure out a
way to do it. That's kind of that's kind of
the Pittsburgh way, is it not.
Speaker 7 (36:25):
Yeah, And it's worked for them for a long time.
Speaker 9 (36:28):
You know.
Speaker 10 (36:28):
I just think that at some point Aaron Rodgers has
to kind of and maybe he's already done that.
Speaker 7 (36:34):
He's got to change the way.
Speaker 10 (36:35):
He's played in terms of again just going more point guard,
and that can be using the running backs more okay,
but less shooting forward. We don't need the you know,
I would I would just say it sort of that way,
like make the people around you better, And I think
he's got the ability to do that. But the speed
and the physicality and the pass rush of this Houston
(36:56):
Texans team with Hunter and Anderson, Like, I don't care
how good of a thrower you are, it won't matter
if you don't have time to throw.
Speaker 1 (37:05):
Uh yeah, Mike Tomlin twenty three and five on Monday Night.
So there is a magic to it, no question. Matt
Hasselbeck has always buddy great senior
Thanks for listening to the Best of the Herd podcast.
Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox
Sports Radio in noon to three eastern nine am to
noon Pacific. Find your local station for The Herd at
Fox Sports Radio dot com, or stream us live every
day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio
or FSR.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
This is the Best of the Herd with Colin cowher
on Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Oh man, do we have a Monday show? Baby? Here
we go. We're live. We're in Chicago. They win football
playoff games in this city. Baby, It's the Herd. Wherever
you may be, however you may be listening. Thanks for
making us part of your day. The city is buzzy,
should be. I got to be honest, I'm so glad
(00:53):
Philly lost that their tushes got pushed out of the playoffs.
Because the NFL playoff for about the best coaches and
the best quarterbacks, and Philly has neither. They don't have either.
Bottom line is, let's talk Niners from the opening drive
(01:14):
to the perfectly time trick play, to their ingenuity to
their efficiency on third down. Kyle Shanahan is using c
pons and buying a month full of groceries for forty
eight bucks, and I feel like Sirianni hit the lottery
and he's broke two years later. San Francisco is totally resourceful.
(01:34):
I mean, think about this, Nick Sirianni gets two picks,
a twenty seven yard punt by the Niners. George Kittle
gets hurt, You're at home, and this year in the
second half, all year, Philadelphia averages nine points in the
second half, including the playoffs, twenty six in the league,
twenty six and second half yards. There's no creativity, and
(01:57):
I think Philadelphia, like a poorly coach team, is getting
worse over time. I mean, I'm the one thing I'll
say about Philly is that their run defense was great,
But that's Vic Fangio. Everything I liked about the Eagles
was Vic Fangio. Think about this. San Francisco's six highest
paid players missed sixty percent of the snaps. How in
(02:22):
the hell are they thirteen and five? How are they
winning these games? And I've been critical of Brock pretty
but you know what, short memory, couple of bad picks,
one really bad, did not matter, great final drive, big throws,
didn't have George Kittle second quarter on didn't always have
the greatest protection. There was pressure, And let's be honest
(02:44):
about Jalen Hurts. He's pretty consistently ineffective in the pocket.
Greg Coseal's been telling us us for years. Tom Brady
on the broadcast sedit, why are you rolling out? He's
rolling out because he can't see because he's too small.
And so again that playoffs to me are about Shanahan
and Robert Salah. I mean, Shanahan's a wizard. That opening drive,
(03:05):
I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa was that? And
that trick play wasn't like a hooking lateral in the
red zone. That's a big boy trick play reverses receiver
throwing deep. For three and a half hours, you saw coaching.
Whenever a coach makes like fifteen million a year, people
are like, WHOA, coaching's overrated. Exhibit A of why it's not.
(03:27):
That was a coaching mismatch. One coach was chat GPT
and the other was Crayons. That wasn't even close. So
the Eagles are boring, They're not creative. They've got an
unbelievable roster, but forty percent of their drives yesterday, we're
three and out. They Philadelphia led the NFL in percentage
(03:51):
of three and outs. How A J. Brown, Devon day Smith,
Dallas Goddard, sa Quon Barkley, Get out of here, Get
that tush pushed out of here. And by the way,
I don't want to hear about Sirianni.
Speaker 3 (04:05):
Boy.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
He's great in the locker room. He is great putting
a fence around this team, he barketed A. J.
Speaker 3 (04:12):
Brown.
Speaker 1 (04:12):
Great again on the sidelines. Come on, you got to
grow up at some point. So I just to me,
the NFL playoffs are about quarterback play, efficiency, ingenuity, overcoming, resourcefulness,
and that all came outside of Vic Fangio from one side.
So and I don't want to hear about what a
great manager he is. I don't buy it part of managing.
(04:35):
I mean, you staying what you want about certain coaches
in this league. But a lot of the top offensive coaches,
Ben Johnson, Sean Payton, Andy Reid, their teams are great
in the fourth quarter. That's what they are. All I
know is the better quarterback play, the better coaching, the
better coordinating, the more creativity. Was all on San Francisco.
Forty four year old Philip Rivers five years out of
(04:59):
retirement face this same San Francisco defense. You saw it
this year.
Speaker 4 (05:05):
And forty four year old Philip Rivers had more points,
passing yards and was better on third down than Jalen
Hurts Nick Serian, he was against this Niner defense.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
How is that possible? It's possible because the best coaches
change outcomes, not just field position. That was Wizardry Shanahan
put on a clinic. Sala put on a clinic with
half the roster. The minute Kittle went down, I'm like, oh,
(05:40):
and they were playing so well, and they did it late.
They want to hear Shanny after.
Speaker 5 (05:47):
Proud of the guys, how hard they battled, And let's
just kind of staying in there. Having two linebackers weren't
on our team a month ago, and those guys playing
that whole game and playing at a high level was
so impressive. To find a way to win that game.
We thought it would be a grimy game, is how
we say it. There was our defense allowed it to
be that way. And then you know that last drive.
You know some of the places Juice made on it
(06:09):
I thought were so big on Brock had a couple
of mistakes, obviously with his two picks and stuff. But
to come back on that last drive, get us an
end zone, lead us all the way down there. It
gets like a third guy in his progression on the touchdown.
Real proud of the guys.
Speaker 1 (06:22):
Yeah, I mean I've defended Darnold's bad pick, Stafford's bad picks.
I've got to be fair. What do you do after
the pick? You go into a shell to body language,
get bad brock party on the road, no kiddle, lot
of pressure and they weren't getting a lot of yards
on the ground. Fangio did a great job, great run defense. Iny,
(06:44):
I know Jennings may have had the best throw of
anybody on the field, but that is what coaching looks like. Okay,
I want to talk about the Bears, So I'm not
saying the pope being from Chicago is why the Bears
are winning. But there's a there's a correlation causation thing
(07:07):
we need to discuss because I don't seventh win after
trailing in the fourth quarter. And when it comes to
Caleb Williams, I've gotten to the point where I just
I not that I want to be like a ice
cream for breakfast parent, but it's hard scolding him, Well,
you know it's completion percentage is.
Speaker 3 (07:25):
A little low.
Speaker 1 (07:26):
Yeah whatever, Well, you know he does miss some layups. Yeah,
but just see the ones in the end. It's got
a Steph Curry vibe. I don't want anybody in the
NBA shooting thirty four footers accept Steph Curry when he's
on a heater. And then it's like, well, he's different
rules for him. I feel like with Caleb, look at
(07:47):
this throw, it's just different rules. I mean, the guy
at the lowest completion percentage of any playoff quarterback, yet
the most passing yards. What do you want me to do?
I'm gonna bend some rules. You know. You hear about
all the time these gifted kids, you know, and sometimes
they can be really unique personalities. And it's like watching
(08:08):
the Gifted Child where Okay, he puts his pants on
backwards at twelve, but he's taking advanced calculus at thirteen.
Speaker 3 (08:14):
What do you want me to do?
Speaker 1 (08:16):
He's different. Caleb's special I heard all the scouts. Well,
you know he's moody a little bit. Well, he can
beat erratic, yeah regularly. Well, the fingernails painting. He's a
little emotional. Not the end of the world. All I
know is I'm watching these fourth quarters and I'm like,
it's Steph Curry. I don't want anybody else shooting it.
Speaker 3 (08:36):
I don't want.
Speaker 1 (08:36):
Anybody else with a fifty seven percent completion percentage over
the course of a season. But I'm gonna live with it.
I don't know what I'm supposed to do that second half.
I mean, he made he made Jordan Love, really talented guy,
look incredibly pedestrian. I said it last night in my podcast.
Is a little John Elway, there's a little Josh Allen,
(08:57):
There's a lot of Caleb Williams. And here's the thing
all great quarterbacks. When people say, well he's got Ben Johnson,
Ben Johnson did not have his best performance. I thought
Matt Lafleu out coached him, especially in the first half,
which is the coach's half. Second half is the baller half.
First half, the coaching half, half, the scripted half. I
didn't think Ben Johnson had a very good game. By
(09:20):
Ben Johnson Sandard, I think a little desperate, a little
too cute too often. But every so when people say
well Ben Johnson's been special, I'm not denying that. Akee
benet Jimmy Johnson fouts had Airic Coriel, Brady, Belichick, you know, Montano, Walsh,
everybody's got Marino, Shula, lay Shandy. I don't want to
(09:45):
hear about that because I didn't think Ben Johnson had
one of his better games. But I will say this,
every quarterback also has flaws. Manning didn't have a huge arm,
Mahomes and his mechanics. Tom Brady not a great athlete. Yeah,
I'll be honest with you. Caleb miss too many layups.
Man That ball sales on him. Yeah, but it's what
you do. What do you produce to mitigate or overcome
(10:08):
your flaw. I mean, Jimmy Hendrix had to occasionally miss
a note, right, It's not just about the floor, It's
got to be about the ceiling. And I'm sitting there
watching him in the fourth quarter. And you know what's
great if you're from Chicago, the Bears finally have real leadership.
Monday through Friday it's Ben Johnson, and Sunday it's Caleb
(10:32):
and Popelio. Because I don't really know exactly how to
explain it that Caleb can really be out of sync,
missus notes in the first half and then be a
combination of the greatest stuff I've ever seen. In the
fourth here's Caleb after.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
We got right here.
Speaker 6 (10:54):
Hartwayolon, where everything he's done for us as a coach,
everything the other coaches I've done for for us, you know,
and it started with him with bringing in everybody and
the emotion of that right.
Speaker 7 (11:08):
And for me personally, for me.
Speaker 6 (11:11):
Personally, he's been uh sake, geting emotional for me personally,
he's been monumental in my life so far to his
first playoff win level.
Speaker 1 (11:29):
Oh, there's that Caleb guy. He's getting very emotional. How
do you not get emotional? I'm watching it on television.
I'm emotional. I just moved to Chicago.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
I'm emotional.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
How do you not get emotional this stuff? I mean
it's video game stuff. That throw he made with five
minutes left up the sideline, three packers around him. I'm
never say anything like that. I mean that that is
a top four or five throw of my life, Like
this one.
Speaker 3 (11:59):
I mean, look at this throw.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
It doesn't make any sense, rolling right, throwing left.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
Huh, I don't bull get in there.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
We got it from this few that doesn't even make sense.
That again, that's one of those videos of Steph Curry
before the game, when he's going into the tunnel and
makes a seventy five footer, You're like, oh, that's gotta
be AI. That throw looks like AI. I don't even
know what to make of it. All right, we got
everybody watched to get rid of Matt Lafleur. I think
you're out of your mind, Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, top
(12:28):
of next hour. Jmac, don't worry. You did not You
did not have a great weekend. Oh great I had.
It was a bloodbath. Couldn't pick a game to save
my life.
Speaker 8 (12:38):
Got screwed by coaches, kickers, you name it. I mean, listen,
I thought. I still can't get over this. Packers lost, Colin.
I mean total domination. Twenty one touchdown, touchdown, touchdown to start.
Speaker 7 (12:50):
The game, and then just fold late.
Speaker 8 (12:52):
I don't want to fire la floor, but man, I
got some Packers buddies who are living.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
They just they can't put you.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
They're beyond themselves right now. How do you?
Speaker 1 (12:59):
I'm Jordan Love was incredible in that game.
Speaker 8 (13:01):
Four touchdowns, three hundred yards, the Matthew Golden touchdown, not thirteen.
Speaker 1 (13:06):
Let me tell you, Matthew Golden has been banged up
all year. Matthew Golden was worth a first round pick.
That guy is a spectacular talent. He is really good.
He's just been hurt on and off all year. But
they you know, the Packers draft and developed very well.
Matthew Golden by next year is he's gonna be a star?
I mean like Colston Lovelin took him a couple of
(13:26):
weeks and you're like, whoa stud O think he is
a top two tight end talent in the league. That
that Golden kid by next year? Watch out?
Speaker 8 (13:36):
He just regarding tonight Colin. Fortunately one of us will
get a win because you have the Steelers, I have
the Texas. One of us will get off the schneid.
I have no Maybe it ends in a tie. That possible.
Speaker 3 (13:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
So we got great another with four for four until
the Patriots sleeper last night, but it was a win
for New England.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
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Speaker 1 (14:30):
Subscribe, hit that thumbs up icon and coming away Where
Colin was right, Well, I said it in October. Kyle
Shanahan was my coach of the Year and he and
Solo were my staff of the Year. Mac Jones started
eight games, no Kittle for a while, Trent Williams, Bosa,
Fred Warner all sorts of injuries. They still end up
with a top ten offense thirteen and five. He and
(14:53):
Sala put on a clinic Philadelphia forced into multiple three
and outs. I mean they held the Eagles with that
Bondo duct tape defense in San Francisco to four point
three yards per play.
Speaker 3 (15:06):
That is coaching where Colin was wrong.
Speaker 1 (15:10):
Well, the Bills, despite being completely riot reliant on one player,
beat the Jags and keep winning. I don't love their
wide receiver group special teams now due to injuries, are shaky,
the defense has kind of mid. I don't even always
loved their head coach. But fourth team ever to win
at least one playoff game six years in a row,
(15:32):
and there's just nothing on the market like Josh Allen.
Ninety percent of that was Josh Allen. I kept asking
all week, how are the Jags underdogs? And then I
watched the game and went, oh, yeah, yeah, Josh Allen.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
That's why where Colin was right.
Speaker 1 (15:49):
Nick Seriani, I've always thought his winning is a reflection
of the roster and the GM, not coaching acumen. There's
a lot of different ways to win in some of
its roster construction. He's arguing with aj Brown. Don't love that.
I mean, I just I look at this team and
he doesn't call plays. I'm told he's great at managing egos,
but that's not what I keep seeing. And I mean,
(16:12):
I understand that Jalen Hurts can struggle to see over
the line, like I get it, But there's just too
much talent here to score nine points a game this
year in the second half. There's too much talent at
some point. I mean, he feels Sirianni to me, feels
completely offensive coordinator reliant.
Speaker 3 (16:30):
Where Colin was wrong.
Speaker 1 (16:33):
I'm a Justin Herbert defender. But two fumbles, three points,
seventy four passer rating. Listen, He's played twelve playoff quarters.
Ten have been suboptimal. Now he's had a couple of
bad coaches, and now he's got an atrocious offensive line,
and Peyton Manning went oh for his first three. I
didn't like the Chargers in this game with points or winning.
(16:56):
I just don't think you can win with that kind
of offensive line. But his career passer rating is sixty four,
And as much as I defend him, some of it's
on him. Where Colin was right, Kevin Stefanski I said,
go ahead and Cleveland fire him. He's going to be
a top candidate. He's already interviewed with the Giants and
the Ravens and the Falcons and the Titans. I'm sorry.
(17:17):
He's an IVY League guy, two time coach of the Year,
which is not exactly easy to do in Cleveland. I've
always thought he gets the most out of his players.
I think Shadoor Sanders has improved. I don't know. Somebody
told me this years ago. If you fire somebody how
many good jobs did they interview for after? And if
the answer is a lot, you probably shouldn't have fired him.
Speaker 3 (17:40):
Where Colin was wrong.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
I didn't see John Harbaugh getting fired coming at all.
I mean, he's thirteen and eleven in the playoffs. I
always heard he was flexible, player friendly. I mean, clearly,
what Baltimore is saying is this is a Lamar Jackson franchise.
I get it, star quarterback, totally get it, and he's
number one candidate for a lot of jobs. But Steve Bushatti,
(18:03):
one of the better owners, fired him on the phone.
I don't love that. I guess it happens, but that
one caught me off guard. I think I caught a
lot of people off guard. They sat down for a
while and driving away he got the phone call.
Speaker 3 (18:16):
So I was wrong on that one. Where Colin was right, well.
Speaker 1 (18:19):
I predicted Miami in Indiana would end up in the
National Championship. I said, Oregon makes too many mistakes to
beat Indiana, which is a pretty flawless team, and Miami
is going to push Old Miss all over the field.
And that's exactly what happened. So I think Miami matches
up pretty well with Indiana. I mean, they've got playmakers
(18:40):
on the outside, so you can't cheat. Carson Beck's been
in a third national championship, but boy, Miami makes mistakes
and Indiana will make you pay for all of them.
But Miami, Indiana is what I thought would happen where
Colin was right. Finally, I've been saying this for two years.
If a car dealer or a bourbon distributor is your
(19:02):
number one booster and anil, you are not beating the
big ten. Notre Dame in Miami ole miss against Miami,
who had better players. I don't think it was particularly close,
so thank god for Texas Oil money or I don't
know what the SEC would be, but our third straight
(19:23):
national championship without an SEC team, and I think it's
even worse than that. If you start looking at the
last couple of years in the playoff, who the SE
team's SEC teams are beating. It's other SEC teams and
two lane. That's it. Colin Wright Colin wrong on a Monday,
and with that, Matt Hasselbeck stops buy and joins us.
(19:44):
Eighteen years in the NFL, so a lot of times
I'll ask you a question, and I think I kind
of know an answer, but I don't necessarily with this one.
So it is weird how uneven the Bears offense can beat.
Is there a secret sauce beyond just Caleb kind of
being really talented? Why are they so good at playing
(20:07):
from behind? It's almost as if Buffalo and Chicago are
better playing from behind. Explain that to me with the Bears.
Speaker 10 (20:17):
Yeah, well, I heard you today say that the popes
from Chicago, so you know, that might be the closest
thing that I've heard that makes sense.
Speaker 7 (20:25):
No, but yeah, I think some of its playground ball.
Speaker 10 (20:27):
Both these quarterbacks are really good at playground ball. That's
what I always felt like, two minutes it was time
to take chances, you know, stuff I wouldn't normally do
in a zero zero game in the first quarter. I'm
going to do that in the fourth quarter. I'm going
to do that on fourth down, third down, two minutes
Like That's you know, it's some of its personality that way.
Speaker 7 (20:44):
As a quarterback.
Speaker 10 (20:45):
Some of it's that, But I also think it's a mindset.
And you know, I talked to you earlier about Ben Johnson.
He's a great play caller, cool trick plays. That doesn't
mean you're going to be a great head coach, vision setter,
culture setter. You know the DNA of our team. And
then you go back to basically August training camp. He
calls the team together and has a team meeting and
(21:06):
he shows the video of twenty eight to three Patriots
versus the Falcons. Hey, I recognize we've got a guy
on our team on offense and a guy on our
team on defense. That one was on the Patriots and
one was on the Falcons. Let me hear from you.
Let's talk about this moment. Let's be a teachable moment
in August that I think is paying dividends all.
Speaker 7 (21:25):
Season long, but also in January.
Speaker 10 (21:27):
This mindset that doesn't matter what the scoreboard says. It's
all you got for sixty minutes. Don't judge what the
score is, and we'll see what happens at the end
of the game. And that's how this team plays. They
play like they're unfazed. They don't flinch. Ben Johnson when
you look at him on the sidelines, he's not a
roller coaster of emotions.
Speaker 7 (21:45):
He's a steady hand.
Speaker 10 (21:47):
So I just think the Bears hit a home run,
maybe a Grand Slam with this higher, Ryan pulls Ben Johnson.
Speaker 7 (21:54):
It works.
Speaker 10 (21:55):
This young quarterback has improved every single week, and I
think that's the mental toughness that it takes to come
from behind and that they've done it each and every week.
Speaker 7 (22:03):
It feels like.
Speaker 1 (22:04):
So everybody's down on Matt Lafleur, and my take is, folks,
they had fav and Aaron Rodgers for thirty one years
and got to three Super Bowls. A. It's hard. It's
hard to win this time of the year. Secondly, they
don't have an owner, so sometimes you can't make that
Goff Stafford move unless the owner goes, okay, I'll pay
for both salaries. They don't get free agents third year
(22:25):
in a row, Matt. They're the youngest team in the league.
They don't go get older players. Players given a choice
don't always choose Green Bay. I think he's a good coach.
I also think the NFC the last couple of years
has gotten better than the AFC. I think it's really good.
I think Matt's a good coach. When you look at
the meltdown, what do you see?
Speaker 7 (22:46):
Yeah, I think he's a great coach.
Speaker 10 (22:48):
I think fundamentals probably slipped a little bit this year.
Speaker 7 (22:51):
You know, I think that's.
Speaker 10 (22:52):
Probably something that's true, but you know, they're a field
goal or an extra point away from continuing.
Speaker 7 (22:59):
On, you know, playing right now.
Speaker 10 (23:01):
I think if you're that team, you look in the mirror,
you lock la floor up, which I think they've done,
and then I think you do everything in your power
to keep Jeff Hafley. Jeff Haffley was the head coach
of Boston College and just kind of like late in
the like late in this in the spring schedule, decided
to walk away because he basically said, Hey, when I'm
a head coach, I don't really get to do what
I love, and that's coach. I'm kind of like just
(23:23):
a you know, CEO. I want to be in there
with the guys coaching. And that's why he jumps ship
late to go to Green Bay and you know, coach again,
you see what he's done. So give him a healthy
Micael Parsons with an offseason, and I think this team
can be right.
Speaker 7 (23:38):
Back in it.
Speaker 10 (23:39):
But halflee, you know, he might say, I'll be head
coach of a pro team. There's no nineil and all
that craziness transfer portal. But if they can keep him
in the building, plus Lafloor. I think they got a
great thing going.
Speaker 1 (23:49):
Yeah, so do I.
Speaker 2 (23:50):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
and noon Easter not a Empacific.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
Listen. I think what San Francisco has been doing unbelievable.
I mean I really do. Once Kittle got hurt, I'm like, Oh,
they were playing so well, the trick play, the opening drive,
third down. I mean, I'm sure this happened to you
sometime in your career, Matt, where you lost a left tackle.
You know, you're banged up. You go on the road
(24:17):
and you know, maybe it's home Grin, whoever it is,
and you just are resourceful and in a weird way,
everybody plays over who they are because everybody knows they
have to play over who That's what I felt like.
San Francisco is like, guys, we all have to play.
Speaker 3 (24:32):
Our a game.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
We don't nobody can just you know, you can't drop
a pass. What did you make of the Niners performance?
Speaker 10 (24:40):
Yeah, they've been incredible all year given the adversity that
they've faced.
Speaker 7 (24:43):
And you know, you mentioned George Kittle, and.
Speaker 10 (24:46):
Like, I think the easy thing to do would be
to quit on this team once again. Everybody's already like
left them for dead numerous times this year. But I
think the easiest easy thing to do and say, oh,
they're going back to Seattle offensively. They struggled against Seattle
with you know, Kittle or sorry with you know, without
this kind of like bad.
Speaker 7 (25:02):
Breaking news or whatever.
Speaker 10 (25:04):
But I think this is a team that's going to play.
Speaker 7 (25:06):
For their guy.
Speaker 10 (25:07):
If there's a there's one player on that team that
I feel is like the heartbeat of that team, and
there are many to choose from.
Speaker 7 (25:14):
I think Kittle's that guy.
Speaker 10 (25:15):
He plays the game the way that it's supposed to
be played, kind of gronk esque, if you will. And
so like again, I think rock Birdy's super underrated. I
think he's great.
Speaker 7 (25:24):
Kyle Shanahan, when Kittle went out, he.
Speaker 10 (25:26):
Basically said, this is going to be a running back
game plan the rest of the night. It's going to
be Kyle Huschek and Christian McCaffrey, and.
Speaker 7 (25:33):
We're going to do it that way.
Speaker 10 (25:34):
And oh, by the way, Juwan Jennings, who was a
great high school quarterback, We're going to use a trick
play with you and you know Jennings just fun fact
he was rated ahead of Lamar over Burrow, over Sam
Darnold coming out of high school, and so Kyle Shanahan.
It's not so much what you what we can't do,
but it's what we can do. And I think that's
what he's done with his with his guys offensively, defensively,
(25:56):
guys like Kendricks, you know, just it's been impressive.
Speaker 7 (25:59):
And I don't think they're done yet, not necessarily.
Speaker 1 (26:02):
So. I think one of the things I watch when
I watch football, you can see coaching, Like the opening
drive for the Niners. You're like, oh, that was that
was magical. That was beautiful. They obviously saw weaknesses and
attack them. When I watched Philadelphia, I don't see like
halftime adjustments. Offensively, they average nine points in the second half.
(26:24):
I don't know what they are offensively. You know, there's
the old there's the old saying it's not about who
has the best players, it's the best team, right, And
there's also a saying it like, it's not just calling plays,
you know plays, it's got to be complimentary football. I
don't know what Philadelphia's offense is. Do you watching that?
What is their offense?
Speaker 10 (26:45):
Well, they're probably going to get a lot of shade
from people like you know, on social media because they
like to repeat plays. And I can just tell you,
as a quarterback, I never had a problem repeating a
play like Mike Hongrin's probably one of the greatest called
play callers of all time, and he would the same
play often and the ball would just go somewhere else.
So I don't have a problem with that personally at all.
(27:05):
But I do have a problem with identity. And you know,
to me, the identity of this team has to go
through Saquon. You know, the last five games, Saquon was
pretty darn good. But it just this team, for some reason,
feels to me a little bit like when Seattle there
was this push inside the building, like the let Russ
Cook movement, if you will, and like, hey, this quarterback,
(27:27):
he can be like Dan Marino. Dude, you don't need
to be like Dan Marino. Just be you you You
are really really good. And I'm not saying Jalen is
pushing that at all, but I think what what the
Eagles had been doing in the past was so so good,
and what they've been doing I would say for the
last like year and a half, it just feels like
they're trying to be something that they're not, and.
Speaker 7 (27:49):
So, you know, whatever they wanted to be, like, go
be that.
Speaker 10 (27:52):
But to me, Saquon's got to be a part of it,
and that physicality upfront that needs to be a part
of it as well.
Speaker 1 (27:59):
So, yeah, Buffalo is it's just crazy. I asked all week,
how's Jacksonville. I've watched the whole season. Jacksonville's better than Buffalo.
Then all of a sudden, about an hour in, I'm like, Okay,
this is just this is what it is. Maybe jackson
got a little bit tight, but I mean, I don't
know if there is We said this with Caleb. I
(28:22):
feel that with Josh Allen he feels free. He feels
a little freer in the second half. It's a looser offense.
And I do think that's the hard part about coaching.
When you get this like Lamar's first three or four
years in the league, it's like, Okay, there's some things
all coach and some things I'm like, bro, go do
you how much do you think when you watch Josh
(28:43):
in these moments in the second half his scheme is
design is a little bit of hey man, we're going
to give you a couple options.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
You do you.
Speaker 7 (28:54):
Well, for sure.
Speaker 10 (28:55):
I mean, and people played Josh Allen differently, So like
you know, when I would study film, I would kind
of have a good set of how people were probably
going to play us. You know, maybe not always because
we you know, Homegren was a little bit old school
how we did things. But there's certain players that people
just play you differently because of who you are, not
the scheme. And that's Josh Allen, Like he literally is superman,
Like if the MVP was really just the MVP, not
(29:17):
like whose team was the best and you had the
best stat Like.
Speaker 7 (29:20):
Josh Allen's the MVP. He is that guy.
Speaker 10 (29:22):
He can put a cape on and carry his team.
He's done it year after year. So yeah, does he
play better in those moments.
Speaker 5 (29:29):
I do.
Speaker 7 (29:29):
I do think that's true.
Speaker 10 (29:30):
But it's also because he's sparring for a little bit,
trying to figure out, Okay, what's your plan for me today?
Speaker 4 (29:36):
You know.
Speaker 10 (29:37):
And I think you saw that on the Brandon Cooks
play that he hit him down when the corner's trying
to trap the out route. I think you see it
in some of the quarterback run game. But this is
a huge opportunity for Buffalo with.
Speaker 7 (29:48):
You know, no Lamar, no Burrow, no Mahomes.
Speaker 10 (29:52):
In the playoffs, like, this is your opportunity to throw
the cape on. It doesn't matter if your defense can't
stop the run. They do other things well, creating interceptions.
They're playing well enough. This is your opportunity.
Speaker 1 (30:05):
Okay, I'm gonna throw. I have a theory on this.
I want to put up the playoff picture so the
Seahawks know the Niners are beat up. The Seahawks are
a young team. I don't like young teams getting buys.
I think young teams should play old guys can take
a buye. So Seattle comes in at home off of
(30:26):
by probably not totally in sync first driver too, and
I would guess their takeaway is, guys, we have the
better healthier roster. We're gonna wear these guys out over
three and a half hours. Let's not let's not make
let's not beat ourselves early. The Niners come into that
game thinking, guys, we gotta we gotta seize control. We're
(30:47):
not going on the road and being passive. We're taking swings.
I think Seattle Niners. The world loves Seattle, and I
think Seattle could come in cautious, Rusty. I think Seattle
nine is a real game, and I would be concerned
if I was the Seahawks. How do you view it?
Speaker 10 (31:05):
I think it's a real game, but I'm not I'm
not worried about that. I've seen the way Seattle practices.
This is not like a fat cat a bunch of
old vets, like they get after it even the Saturday
before a game. I've seen them like they're they're breaking
a sweat. The balls flying around, guys, are you know
they're they're competitive. I would imagine that this week, like
I mentioned to you last week, is a lot of
(31:25):
ones versus ones, best versus best.
Speaker 7 (31:28):
You know, we're not taking our star players to the ground.
Speaker 10 (31:30):
We're staying away from uh Sam Darnold's fingers as he
throws the ball in the pocket. We're not squeezing the
pocket that way. But we're not taking hits on JSN.
We're not tugging at jerseys, hurting hamstrings like all that
kind of stuff.
Speaker 7 (31:42):
So no, I think Seattle comes out firing.
Speaker 10 (31:44):
And I just think you got to be an alert
for a Kyle Shanahan uh non traditional game plan, non
traditional matchups and trick plays like.
Speaker 7 (31:53):
What do they got to lose?
Speaker 10 (31:54):
Short week? You know, I had to go across the country.
I think, like a third time match. They're pulling out
all this stuff. You know, he's got trick plays in
the playbook. What are you saving them for? This is
the week to do it. We'll Seattle be ready. That'll
be the question.
Speaker 1 (32:10):
Okay, Rams are at the Bears. Rams are healthy, Bears,
Loft their left tackle and the top Edward's the top
defensive player. I do worry they come off a wildly
emotional game against Green Bay, whereas the Rams are kind
of sitting there like can we get through Carolina? But
here's what worries me about the Rams. They give up
(32:30):
thirty plus points to Carolina twice, and I keep hearing
how great their defensive front seven is and Carolina was
four for four in the red zone. I could see
Caleb Williams having another second half. I mean Colston Lovelin,
Roma Dunze, Luther Burden, DJ Moore. Bears have a lot
of size and a lot of skill. I think Chicago
(32:50):
has a chance to win. How do you view it?
Speaker 7 (32:53):
Yeah?
Speaker 10 (32:54):
I don't disagree at all, but I do think people
overlook how physical the Rams are upfront offensively and defensively,
and so you know you mentioned the Bears lose their
left tackle, Lassi Trapillo. I think that's a bigger loss
than people realize, you know, because you can have all
the creative plays in the world, but if you can't protect,
it makes it tough. But you know, when Matthew Stafford's
on a heater at the end of the game, that's
(33:14):
what the difference is. Like he didn't have his greatest game,
I didn't think, but he had a you know, a
long drive at the end, and.
Speaker 7 (33:21):
Yeah, a perfect throat to Kolbe Parkinson.
Speaker 10 (33:23):
And so you know, these are two quarterbacks that can
do it at the end of the game. And the
way the rules are and the k balls are right now,
I think this could be a fascinating matchup again, even
if it's twenty one nothing at halftime, I wouldn't count
either one of these teams out.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
Okay, Buffalo now is going to go to Denver High altitude.
I feel the same way bo Nick's young quarterback. I
don't want him to have rest. I'd rather bow keep playing.
I think, you know, I mean, the dog is going
to be uh, I don't even know who's favored in
that game. My takeaway is though Buffalo playing flying home,
flying out, I'm like, I think it's an advantage for Buffalo.
(34:00):
Like I don't think Buffalo needed rest. I think that
was a great, great win and gives them some jet
fuel into Denver. Would you worry about the Broncos having
a week off?
Speaker 10 (34:11):
No, I don't think I worry about the Broncos having
a week off. And you know, the Broncos lost to
the Bills last year in a.
Speaker 7 (34:18):
Similar situation like.
Speaker 10 (34:19):
This, so you know, I think there's you know, you
don't have to worry again, like about these guys like
not taking it seriously, not making it there all like
this is their super Bowl in a sense, like they've
got this mindset of like want to know this week,
play every play like at your last.
Speaker 7 (34:34):
This game could be our last. I think Sean Payton
will have them ready.
Speaker 10 (34:37):
This you know that way for me, if I was
the quarterback, if I was Josh Allen, I know I
got to go up against Vance Joseph, and of all
the guys that I've ever gone up against, like Dance
Joseph's got to be somewhere on the podium. I don't
know if he's a bronze silver, gold medalist, but the
study time that it takes to go through his defenses
and his disguise schemes and all that kind of stuff,
(35:00):
it's something. And now he's got guys that can just
rush the passer without any help of a blitz.
Speaker 7 (35:04):
That's a challenge. That's a challenge. I think.
Speaker 10 (35:07):
I think Denver's got a better team than people realize.
But again, this is one of those things where Josh
Allen is that quarterback that can go above the x's
and o's without the other superstars mahomes, Lamar Burrow. They're
not in the AFC this year. This might be your
best chance, Buffalo, like, go do it.
Speaker 1 (35:24):
Yeah, who do you like tonight? Steelers Texans.
Speaker 7 (35:28):
It's a really tough one.
Speaker 10 (35:29):
I think if the Steelers don't try to play the
game an empty back like they love to be an
empty Aaron Rodgers in Shotgun like it's ten years ago
in Green Bay. If they don't do that, then then
I like the Steelers. But if they want to just
kind of play like they've always played, like oh Aaron
and DK and this and that, I think the Houston
Texans defense is really spectacular and they got to do
(35:52):
it a different way.
Speaker 1 (35:53):
Yeah, Pittsburgh has a weird way of in these games
where you're like, I'm not sure they can generate enough offense,
they find out a way to get turnovers short field.
Tomlins teams always do this when you're really he's always
been a great underdog coach, and all of a sudden
the ball is tipped and TJ. Watts running down the field.
(36:15):
You're like, I mean, cause my old takeaway is can
they generate fourteen points? But they always figure out a
way to do it. That's kind of that's kind of
the Pittsburgh way, is it not.
Speaker 7 (36:25):
Yeah, And it's worked for them for a long time.
Speaker 9 (36:28):
You know.
Speaker 10 (36:28):
I just think that at some point Aaron Rodgers has
to kind of and maybe he's already done that.
Speaker 7 (36:34):
He's got to change the way.
Speaker 10 (36:35):
He's played in terms of again just going more point guard,
and that can be using the running backs more okay,
but less shooting forward. We don't need the you know,
I would I would just say it sort of that way,
like make the people around you better, And I think
he's got the ability to do that. But the speed
and the physicality and the pass rush of this Houston
(36:56):
Texans team with Hunter and Anderson, Like, I don't care
how good of a thrower you are, it won't matter
if you don't have time to throw.
Speaker 1 (37:05):
Uh yeah, Mike Tomlin twenty three and five on Monday Night.
So there is a magic to it, no question. Matt
Hasselbeck has always buddy great senior
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Two Guys (Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers). Five Rings (you know, from the Olympics logo). One essential podcast for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. Bowen Yang (SNL, Wicked) and Matt Rogers (Palm Royale, No Good Deed) of Las Culturistas are back for a second season of Two Guys, Five Rings, a collaboration with NBC Sports and iHeartRadio. In this 15-episode event, Bowen and Matt discuss the top storylines, obsess over Italian culture, and find out what really goes on in the Olympic Village.
iHeartOlympics: The Latest
Listen to the latest news from the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Milan Cortina Winter Olympics
The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina are here and have everyone talking. iHeartPodcasts is buzzing with content in honor of the XXV Winter Olympics We’re bringing you episodes from a variety of iHeartPodcast shows to help you keep up with the action. Follow Milan Cortina Winter Olympics so you don’t miss any coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics, and if you like what you hear, be sure to follow each Podcast in the feed for more great content from iHeartPodcasts.