May 30, 2024 • 40 mins
Colin explains how most things we fear never actually come to life and college football is only going to get better
It's looking like JJ Redick will be the Lakers next head coach
Colin lists his most likely new playoff teams in the NFL
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to 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
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dot com, or stream us live every day on the
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Speaker 2 (00:21):
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Ah, here we go on a Thursday, live in Los Angeles.
It's the Hurt wherever you may be and however you
may be listening. Thanks for making us on the Thursday
part of your day. One hour from now, the great
Greg Olsen joining us Fox Sports jmac.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Is.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
For years and years, I have defended dream On Green
for on court behavior. In my defense is these are
emotional games. Contracts don't last forever, families defeat, and athletes
have a right to emotion. I defended Tom bradi Er,
(01:08):
Peyton Manning Barking and a teammate. I have defended Draymond
Green Patrick Beverley. I did not defend because I don't
think you can go after fans, and he threw a
ball twice at fans. But I wouldn't kick him out
of the league. I wouldn't necessarily cut him from the team.
I just didn't like what Pat Beverley. By the way,
a week later I saw him at the gym, said Hi.
But the point being is I like to defend athletes
(01:29):
because they're vulnerable when we go to work. I mean,
even though people are watching, I don't have them hovering around.
Most people go to work. They're a landscaper construction site,
have people staring at him judging their performance. So I
want to defend Jorge Lopez, a pitcher for the New
York Mets. So the Dodgers just swept the Mets, and
the Mets aren't very good once again cruddy, and a
(01:51):
game's close later innings, and the Lopez gives up a
bomb to Shoho Tani. Frustrated, then he starts squawking with
a check swing third base umpire and he starts arguing
with the third base umpire and he not very happy,
and the Mets having a terrible season in the third
base umpire umpires, as you know it, they just don't
like to be shown up. So he throws him out
(02:12):
of the game, and Lopez goes off, untuck's his shirt,
throws his glove into the stands. Yeah, you would hope
he wouldn't do that, but he showed emotion. That's okay.
Steph Curry threw a mouthpiece across the court. Pat Bev
threw a ball at fans twice. Jamal Murray threw a
heating pad on the floor. International soccer stars unravel regularly.
(02:35):
They've punched players, bumped officials. You don't bail on him,
put your arm around him. Do better, Maybe throw a fine.
The Mets cut him. I know, it's baseball. There's a
way to play the game. You've got to respect the game. Yeah,
that fifteen year care steroid cattle steroid issue was Is
(03:00):
that respecting the game? Guy shooting in the butt before
the game? Fifteen years? Pitchers hitters, Hey, you're making money.
Nobody said no without respecting the game. Being a reliever
is incredibly intense. You're asked to come into a game
in a high leverage situation, pretty cold, few warm up pitches,
(03:21):
and then meet that intensity head on. It's like merging
into traffic going eighty five miles an hour. It's like
joining a roller coaster mid ride, and it's pretty thankless
and very difficult. The only thing more difficult in baseball
than getting a save is getting a hit. And we've
seen baseball players break a bat over their knee, scream
(03:44):
at umpires throw bats. It's hard. Baseball is hard. There
have been four hundred plus saves this year in two
hundred and fifty blown saves this year. It was a
high leverage situation. So Tawny hit a bomb. Here comes
another All Star, Freddie Freeman. It's a check swing. Seasons
(04:06):
melting down. Met's about to get swept. Here's another two
tight umpire tossing him out of a game, and the
kid unravels. He later said, I'm the worst teammate in
the world. He felt terrible. He said all be available
if they need me tomorrow and major League Baseball in
(04:26):
the Mets, a cruddy franchise that he didn't overpay for.
Those teammates cut him. Here was Lopez after.
Speaker 3 (04:35):
I don't regret it. I think I've been looking the
worst team in brought in the old that will be so,
you know, whatever happened happened. So whatever they want to do, it,
I'll be tomorrow. Here is they want me, you know,
whatever they want to do, so I'm gonna keep doing
this thing, you know, so I'm healthy on whatever you know, Nace,
(05:00):
whatever to do. You know, I'm ready to come back
tomorrow if the one may be here, so I'll be here.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
No you won't. They cut you again. I have defended
Draymond from the beginning, called a hypocrite because he works
for my podcast digital company, and I say, no, he's
an athlete. He's a professional. When you go to work,
you don't have a stadium full of people heckling you,
judging you, cheering you, booing you. It's hard and being
(05:34):
a reliever two hundred and fifty blown saves this year,
it's really hard. Spare me on the there's a way
to play the game. The unwritten rules in baseball often
take precedence over the written rules. Don't get me started
on exit velocity. I mean it's baseball wants wants more emotion.
(06:00):
He needs more emotion. I grew up with Reggie Jackson,
Billy Martin, Pete Rose, Charlie Hussel, Mark Fedrich. They were
the great characters of the game. You're going to cut
a guy for that for a bad twelve seconds, he cares,
I'm a major league GM. I'd get him on my
(06:20):
roster tomorrow. So yesterday we talked about something I said.
And this is something that has been proven true in studies.
People fear things that never materialize. So there was a
recent psychological study that eighty to eighty five percent of
(06:42):
things that people fear will happen never happen. For the
longest time, we had elevator operators. A man just stood
outside of an elevator because people were afraid to get
on them. There's not many moments in recorded history of
people suffocating to death on an elevator, or being trapped
(07:05):
and dehydrating, unable to eat and dying, but we had
elevator operators because people were afraid to get onto elevators.
Eighty to eighty five percent of what we fear never materializes.
People get in their head, talk themselves into anxiety and trouble.
Take a deep breath, it's going to be okay. And
(07:26):
you see this in sports. People freaked out the old timers.
The baseball pitch clock. It'll never work. Oh, it's actually
worked perfectly. Thirty minutes has been cut off. Games, attendance
up over ten percent, same with ratings. I remember working
at the other place about ten twelve years ago when
the NFL severely reduced hitting especially quarterbacks in the league.
(07:51):
You heard a chorus of what do they just wear
a dress? Because they're football players and the league is
trying to keep them upright, safe, healthy for more contracts.
The ratings have grown stupendously in the last twelve years.
In the NBA, there was that in season tournament that
people just bitched about. People have to grumble. It actually
(08:14):
was a huge success. The courts were different, it was fun.
It got me to a television set in games at October, November, December.
I would not normally watch the championship game, and the
n season tournament got four point six million viewers. It
was the highest rated non Christmas regular season game in
(08:35):
six years. Don't fear things, They're not gonna happen. College
football's only getting better. When the Pac twelve, the conference
I grew up with, when it was disbanded, the only
Power five conference west of the Rockies, all I heard
(08:55):
from friends defended this is outrageous, and I said, I
watched the game James. Outside of Washington and Oregon, it's
nothing but empty, empty seats. The games don't rate very well. Okay,
I think it's kind of cool that USC and UCLA
and Washington, and Oregon, the four biggest brands. I wish
they would have taken Utah go to the Big ten, Michigan,
(09:19):
Ohio State, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Penn State. You kidding me?
I mean Penn State was independent for years. They joined
the Big Ten. It worked out. So I said yesterday,
why is USC staying with playing Notre Dame. Really, I
gotta have Michigan, Oregon, Washington, Penn State, Wisconsin. Then in November,
I got to go to South Bend and play nine
(09:42):
degrees as I've got Ohio State potentially in two weeks.
I just beat Michigan. Got the season right. I was
six and one, now I'm seven and one. No bye,
no Purdue, it's Notre Dame National TV off a bye. Yes,
Notre Dame. That game they're an independent. USC doesn't and
(10:03):
they're going to regret that game in about three and
four years when they keep elevating their program in personnel
and have an opportunity late in the season to really
get so momentum. Here it comes Michigan and Notre Dame
in South Bend eleven degrees first, the sport would be
fine without USC and Notre Dame. There's a lot of
(10:24):
things I like but don't need, like a Maserati or
a mansion. I like USC Notre Dame, although it's clearly
become a Notre Dame owned series. The Irish need it.
USC doesn't. The sport would be fine. It went from
the BCS to a four team playoff. People grumbled. Now
it's going to a twelve team playoff. People are grumbling more.
(10:47):
They disband in the PAC twelve. We're fine. The pitch clock,
the n season tournament. Take a deep breath. I understand
forty percent of Americans never leave the zip code they
were born in. I get it. People don't like change,
but it's inevitable, and most of the time it's better
(11:07):
USC Notre Dame. If I was an ad at either school,
especially USC, I'd start looking at calendars and make it
a buye. They'd survive. The sport would survive. By the way,
Fox executives are projecting Big ten TV ratings with the
addition of new teams from the West, will be up
(11:28):
fifteen to eighteen percent this year. We're all going to
be okay. Jmak. Last night I did something that I
had never done before, and I felt terrible for it.
Speaker 4 (11:41):
Was it recruiting your buddy to my men'sly basketball team?
Speaker 1 (11:46):
Now it was not. I'll get to that later. An
embarrassing moment last night. I was very embarrassed, but I
was able to overcome it. I went to the nine
hundred and did some due diligence before we go. On
Saturday night, I went there to S's Saturday happening for
bolstered chairs. I just want to make sure we have
a place to hang out and.
Speaker 4 (12:02):
Okay, all right, hey, big Saturday night out on the
town from the big guy.
Speaker 5 (12:06):
All right, I'm excited. I got to get an outfit.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
Huh regular, Sure, you don't need to get an outfit.
Jeans and a T shirt are just good. Just keep
the hat on forward. Coming up next JJ Reddick and
the Lakers, it appears inevitable.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
and neone eastern non am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio
FS one and the iHeartRadio app Bull.
Speaker 1 (12:28):
Zone sponsored by Credible Great Rates. None of the Bowl
Lakers coaching search. All signs continue to point to J. J. Reddick,
who reportedly now is building a staff. Hard to keep
that secret. Of course, that's more proof that Lebron is
staying in Los Angeles, which I said yesterday. Fool's gold.
If you think you're gonna lure him to the Phoenix
(12:50):
Suns or Philadelphia, JJ Reddick will be fine. The NFL
and football in general, is a coaching league. You get
exposed very quickly if you're over your head. Nathaniel Hackett
was exposed in his first game in Seattle. Had Russell
Wilson couldn't figure out the clock, Jim tom Sula, David
(13:11):
Cully in Houston, Freddie Kitchens in Cleveland. You're exposed five
games in. Every play is dependent on schematic brilliance, efficiency
in details. Things get copied right. Basketball is a little loose.
The smartest NBA coach ever is arguably Phil Jackson. He
(13:32):
had an offense called the Triangle. Nobody copied it. Why
because the sense was the schematic brilliance created by text
winner was a tad overrated. It was more about Kobe MJ.
Shack getting theirs. An NBA coach is about managing personalities,
getting a rotation everybody agrees in or works, aligning yourself
(13:54):
with your top star very quickly, getting buy in. If
JJ Reddick, that's buying from Lebron in AD, and I'm
sure he will. Certainly with Lebron and AD will follow suit.
He will be fine. Steve Kerr Greg Popovich have always
let their stars dictate many things, team chemistry, when to practice,
(14:17):
when to take a day off, what time is shoot around.
A lot of that stuff is governed by the star players,
and sometimes in the same league in Oklahoma City, that
coach has to develop young players, JJ Reddick would have
to manage old stars. It's sort of like being a parent.
The title is parent, but it's different raising two seven
(14:39):
year olds than two kids out of college. That's sort
of where I'm at. I'm essentially a loan officer. My
kids know they've been preapproved. I'm just managing loans and rates.
The Lakers is actually not a great job, but it's
not a terribly difficult one as long as expectations are
in line. Braun Ad Austin Reeves aren't difficult to coach,
(15:04):
although Lebron can be difficult to get approval from. After
a year or two, I think JJ Reddick will be fine.
I think NBA coaching is different. It's more about buy
in than when Now the Lakers, JJ Reddick he's building
a staff is going to happen. J Mack with the news.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
No, no, turn on the news. This is the herd
Line news.
Speaker 5 (15:29):
Let's go to the NFL for some breaking news.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
Colin Jalen Wattle and the Dolphins have agreed to a
three year, eighty four million dollar extension. The deal includes
seventy six million guaranteed, makes Waddle one of the top
five highest paid receivers in the NFL. IS guaranteed money
is the third highest for a receiver in NFL history.
Speaker 5 (15:51):
Jalen Wattle with that sinking.
Speaker 4 (15:53):
AJ Brown got eighty four, Amara Saint Brown got seventy seven,
and now Jalen Wattle getting seventy.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
So Tyreek Hill and j are going to get sixty million.
If you made to the tenth highest paid quarterback, which
is about forty three million, that's where Josh Allen's at.
You'd have one hundred million on three players, none of
them defense, none of them defensive line, none of them
offensive line. You'd have one hundred million if he's just
(16:19):
the tenth highest paid quarterback, and he'll want more. And
that's why I said to me, teams tell you who
they're interested in long term. I mean, why would you
pay sixty million to two receivers? So you've got a
brilliant offensive coach, two speedy receivers. That is telling you
you can't give to a exactly what Tua wants. Or
(16:40):
it's telling you he didn't get hurt last year, but
we're gonna let him play again this year and see
how we feel about it.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
Yeah, that list you know. Listen, sometimes you get lucky.
We're early to market on this wide receiver Bubble Colin.
At no point last season or the season before, did
anybody think Jillan Waddle was a top ten receiver in them. Nope,
he's getting paid like a top five receiver. Yep, something's
going on. This is not sustainable.
Speaker 5 (17:03):
This cannot continue.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
This sound feels like it's a message to to his agent.
That's what it feels like. It's a message to to
his agent. I mean, Green Bay isn't paying any of
their receivers so they can pay Jordan Love a lot.
Miami's paying two of fortune. That has to affect what
I'm gonna pay.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
Too, assuming Tyreek Hill doesn't come back and say hey, hey, hey,
I'm the best receiver and I want a new deal,
Like who knows. I'll just say this, Miami strikes me
as a as like an NBA team that's built for
the regular season. They're gonna put up a lot of numbers.
It's gonna be flatty, and then come playoff time limitations,
they're not gonna make a run.
Speaker 5 (17:40):
They've decided we can't defend anybody.
Speaker 4 (17:43):
What's the point. Let's just build an offense that's a
track team and let's try to outscore people. We're gonna
win nine, ten, eleven games. I think we're gonna be
in the playoffs.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
I think. I think they will win nine, ten or
eleven games. I do, but I don't think it's a
sustainable model to pay three players one hundred to one
hundred and ten million dollars of your camp.
Speaker 5 (18:00):
Are you scared of this team come January?
Speaker 1 (18:03):
I would not want to play Miami down in Miami
in the first six weeks of the season, where it's
eighty eight degrees humid and they got their offense hummin.
I wouldn't want any part of that. I have no
problem playing Miami at home at my place December January February.
Speaker 4 (18:20):
Now, maybe they get home field advantage, maybe they sneak
to thirteen wins.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Now they get homefield advantage.
Speaker 4 (18:24):
That changes the equation because then they don't have to
go to Buffalo or Kansas City.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
Yeah, we knew you. A lot of the best AFC
teams or Baltimore's, your Buffalo's Kansas City are cold weather teams.
Speaker 4 (18:35):
And I'll remind people look at that end of the
season schedule. Packers, who Coward likes a lot, My Jets,
Texans who are a playoff team.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
Niners have the highest win total in.
Speaker 1 (18:45):
The league at Cleveland at the Jets, two cold weather games.
You know what, that could be easy. It's not easy,
not an easy sky easy.
Speaker 5 (18:53):
We like to coach a lot.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
I think he's brilliant, and I think the receivers are good,
but Jaylen Wattll's not.
Speaker 4 (18:58):
I like the running Backshan last year. Oh my god,
this team hung seventy on the Broncos. Remember, like, they
can score on anyone. Can I get a stop.
Speaker 5 (19:07):
To save their life?
Speaker 2 (19:08):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (19:08):
I don't think so.
Speaker 4 (19:09):
Next up, Oh, it's Aaron Rodgers time Colin Aaron Rodgers
cutting it up. Do you know he's entering his twentieth
season in the NFL and at forty years old, he's
the oldest player currently under contract for an NFL team.
Speaker 5 (19:22):
Yeah, well, Quinn Williams of the Jets was speaking to reporters.
Speaker 4 (19:25):
He didn't even know that Rogers was entering his twentieth
season in the NFL.
Speaker 1 (19:30):
This is gonna be appen his twentieth year.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
This twenty years. I ain't know.
Speaker 6 (19:36):
They're ending twenty years in the NFL. Man and running back.
The number zero is twenty years old. Yeah, he's been
so he's been in the NFL as long as he's
been alive. That's crazy. I got a joke with him
about that.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
Yeah, I didn't play for his first three years.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
But now there is some other videos circulating about Rogers
not looking one hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
What's that? I mean, it's like you don't want.
Speaker 5 (20:03):
To he's in his twentieth, twenty season.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
I don't know. Brady looked pretty good in his twenty fifth.
Did you bury that video? What didn't make the show?
Speaker 2 (20:10):
I didn't.
Speaker 5 (20:11):
Well, we'll discuss it. Perhaps it will make the show.
I thought mccarton this morning went off on it.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
So I guess we'll have to watch that show to
get the real news, not the fake.
Speaker 5 (20:21):
He's in his twentieth season. What do you expect it's June.
He's coming off an Achilles.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
He's not gonna look sharp and fast, is he. I
don't even know why he's out there nine months after Achilles.
Speaker 5 (20:31):
Just wait till July, dude, I don't know why he's
out there.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
And like a lot of fake news happening in New York.
Speaker 4 (20:37):
These days, yeah, a lot, starting with the New York
But the final story is Game five of the Western
Conference Finals tonight. Yeah, not the Maps three to one,
and it is starting to look like Derek Lively may play.
He's now upgraded to questionable after taking that knee to
the back of the head in uh.
Speaker 5 (20:57):
In Gay four.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
That that means he's gonna He's gonna play questionable beings.
He's gonna play.
Speaker 5 (21:01):
You should play.
Speaker 4 (21:03):
Lively, by the way, hasn't missed a shot in the
Western Conference Finals.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
He has been He has been something that college basketball
does not give teams immediate help. He's been terrific. He's
been a really, really nice get. I'm gonna tell you something,
Brad Stevens one executive of the year. But you can
look at Dallas I when they have transformed this franchise
in eighteen months drafting Kyrie trade deadline moves like that's
(21:29):
front off of stuff.
Speaker 5 (21:30):
Aggressive stuff.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Yeah, I mean, this kid's become a Even if a
rookie's pretty good in the regular season, they melt in
the playoffs. You don't get it. You don't get a
twenty year old guy in the playoffs who's asked to
be a like a role player and defend and rim protect.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
That doesn't work.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
Yeah, these kids couldn't drink at the hotel bar.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
He has the highest plus minus in the entire NBA
Playoffs at plus one north when he's on the court.
Speaker 1 (21:53):
The man and Nico Harrison came from Nike, and I
was one of the people. I'm like, that's weird. I
don't really get it, but I gotta be honest with you.
Go look at their last eighteen months. Remember I was
tough on Ryan Poles the Bears GM and I said,
we got to be fair. I didn't like some of
his early moves. Claypool was a miss. Blis Jones receiver
a miss. I'm like, I'm not a couple of old
lineman miss. But he's had a great eighteen months. Gotta
(22:16):
be fair, ye, Anco Harrison has I'm talking multiple levels
draft Kyrie trade deadline.
Speaker 5 (22:24):
You know, he's crushed.
Speaker 4 (22:25):
It was like when I first joined the show, I
had a couple of clunky shows. Are a couple couple
You did not go to management and say, hey, I
don't know about this one.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
I did, actually, but you didn't hear about it. Okay,
it's okay. J Mack with the news.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
Well that's the news, and thanks for stopping by the
herd Line News.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
You know it's this is interesting, speaking of I got
a good NFL topic I'm gonna get to. But Josh
Hart played for the Knicks and they were a great story.
So he was on a podcast called The Pivot Podcast
and he basically went out and he was asked about
(23:06):
kind of the most dangerous Boston Celtic and he didn't
say Jason Tatum and he didn't say Jalen Brown. He
came out and he said, no, it's actually Derek White
does more things well than anybody. And when I heard that,
I thought, oh boy, that's going to get a lot
(23:26):
of heat. But it goes back to something that we
talked about. I talked about on Monday, is that the
Celtics are much more collaborative. Dallas is much more singularly
Alpha with Luca is that Jason Tatum, as I pointed out,
he kind of floats off the ball a lot. So
(23:47):
his usage rate when you juxtapose it with the production level,
is not that high. The production he delivers, you'd think
he has a higher usage rate, and he doesn't. So
in the end, we are used to Batman and Robbins
with Scotty and Pippin and Shaq and Kobe and Duncan
and Parker Lebron and d Wade, Jokichen, Murray, MJ. Pippen,
(24:11):
Stephen Clay, and that's not what this team is. On
any given playoff night, Derek White, Porzingis or Drew Holliday
could score twenty five points. So this team really leans
into collaboration. And I mean, if this if the Celtics
were a movie, it'd be Ocean's eleven. You're like, yeah,
I know, Clooney's the lead, but Andy Garcia could be
(24:33):
and Julia Roberts and Matt Damon and all of a
sudden you look around Brad Pitts in the movie and
I'm not sure. Well he's a lead, but he's not.
And that's what the Celtics are great movie, by the way,
So whereas let's be honest, even the Denver Nuggets are
very dependent on Jamal Murray hitting shots late Dallas very
(24:56):
dependent on Luca. The t Wolves similar if Karl Anthony
towns off offensively, they become very ant dependent. That is
not the Celtics. In fact, Jason Tatum's playoff average is
twenty six points. The Celtics are seven to one when
he scores less than that. So it's interesting for Josh
(25:19):
Hart to pick up on that and saying it's actually
Derek White, who can defend at a top level, who
can hit a three, who can drive to the basket,
is a guy that doesn't get the credit. I've said this,
I think Derek White's a two on many NBA teams.
On this team, if everybody is healthy, he's a four.
Some Knights of porzingis as Hummon, he's a five. So
(25:40):
this team is not going to be and I've said
they don't feel like most championship teams. They just don't.
The Denver Nuggets. In Jamal Murray's career, if he doesn't
score like over twenty points, I think Denver's like nine
and sixteen in the playoffs. Like they need Jamal Murray.
There are nights the Celtics don't need Jason Tatum. Here's
(26:03):
Josh Hart talking about it. Impactful.
Speaker 7 (26:08):
I might putting Dereck White more impactful than jt Look
at every main play in the last six minutes of
the fourth to overtime, every big play he made. He's
probably one of the most impactful players because he does
this everything on the court and does everything at a
very high level.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
Yeah, they lean into it. They're good, all right. So
I saw a stat data, as we like to call it,
j mac. So there are some things that are they're true,
they're hard truth. They're uncomfortable, like bad things happen to
good people. Right, Your wife doesn't always tell you the truth.
(26:52):
I'm sorry she doesn't, and you don't tell her the
truth all the time. That the playoff teams last year,
half of them will not make the playoffs. Six point
eight new playoff teams per year since the playoffs expanded
(27:12):
to fourteen teams, half won't make it. I saw a
couple other stats. There were four new division winners this year.
There were six new playoff teams Browns, Lions, Packers, Texans, Rams, Steelers,
and the six that missed were Bengals, Jags, Chargers, Vikings,
Giant Seahawks. Some more predictable than others. So when we return,
(27:33):
I'll just tell you and actually, it may be the
easiest year ever. Of the seven new playoff teams. A
lot of times we can go back and forth. We
literally came up with seven, and you'd be I would
be surprised if all seven did not make the playoffs
this year, and they did not last year. That's coming up.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd Weekdays
and New Eastern not Am Pacific.
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Two NBA Insiders podcasting twice a week to plug you
right into the NBA grape.
Speaker 8 (28:05):
Fine all happening in only one place. This League Uncut,
the new NBA podcast with Me Chris.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Haynes and me Mark Stein join us as.
Speaker 8 (28:15):
We team up to expound on everything we're covering Hearing
and Chason.
Speaker 5 (28:20):
Listen to This League Uncut with Chris Haynes and Mark Stein.
Speaker 8 (28:23):
On the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get
your podcasts.
Speaker 4 (28:29):
Saturday, it's Baseball Night in America on Fox as the
Cardinals take on Bryce Harper and the n L East
leading Phillies or the Reds Battle of Cups or Angels
Mariners and all begains at seven eastern on Fox. Check
for the game in your area.
Speaker 1 (28:47):
World Series Phillies, get your tickets now. So we were saying,
since the league expanded the National Football Lea, you expanded
to fourteen playoff teams seven AFC cente at seven NFC
that on average there's seven playoff teams. And here's some
other things. The new ones last year with the Browns, Lions, Packers, Texans, Rams, Steelers.
(29:07):
Remember the Rams were supposed to be terrible. The Texans
were a laughingstock. Lions, give me a break. They all
made the playoffs. The six teams that missed the Bengals, Jags, Chargers, Vikings, Giants,
and Seahawks. Four new division winners last year Ravens, Texans, Cowboys,
and Lions. And at least one team since they expanded
(29:30):
the playoffs, at least one last place team has won
their division. Last to first Browns Texans in twenty twenty three. Yeah,
one team has made the playoffs. Excuse me, after finishing
last in the division the prior season. They don't necessarily
win the division, but they make the playoffs. And so
(29:51):
There's just certain things in sports that are true, Like
your number one pick in the NBA is not going
to elevate you immediately to greatness. It just doesn't work
that way. Wemby's remark, thank God for the Pistons, or
they would have been the worst team in the league.
So here's the seven teams that on the surface look
like the best bets to turn their season around. Number
(30:12):
one's an easy one. Cincinnati. They missed the playoffs by
one game without Joe Burrow. That's going to be a
different team again with Jake Browning in arguably the best
division in the league, certainly defensively really good. They missed
the playoffs by one game. Cincinnati will be a playoff
(30:35):
team if Joe Burrow is healthy. The second one, the
biggest coaching upgrade from Brandon Staley to Jim Harbaugh would
be the Chargers. They had actually made the team with
Brandon Staley made the playoffs. Last year, everything circled the
drain and they became a really bad football team by Thanksgiving.
(30:56):
In the end, though, Harbaugh is not only a great coach,
but he's a quick turnaround artist. This team doesn't have
super Bowl perimeter weapons, everywhere else they're very good. Number
three is actually the Jets. If Aaron Rodgers is just healthy,
with that defense, they should win a bunch of games. Eight, nine, ten.
(31:17):
I don't buy the eleven, twelve, thirteen. He is forty
will be off an achilles surgery. They really have one
big time back and one receiver who's a star that
doesn't have a history of injuries. But if people are healthy,
including Aaron Rodgers, they're gonna be in virtually every game.
I mean, just think of how bad they were offensively
(31:39):
last year. I would say four the biggest quarterback upgrades
the Atlanta Falcons Desmond Ritter A kirk Cousins. This is
a really good offense with an excellent O line. Only
Detroit's O line is better, unquestionably better. Outside of that,
Atlanta's in the top four or five. Again, this is
(32:01):
a really really weak division, feels like it is most years.
And kirk Cousins if he can't play early. They drafted
Michael Pennix. The knock on Atlanta. They don't have a
consistent pass rush and they have too many good quarterbacks.
I would say number five is Chicago. I mean, Chicago
felt like a bad team last year they won seven games.
(32:24):
They can't win nine with a transformational, transformative college quarterback.
They've upgraded the offensive line, They've actually drafted pretty good.
And if you go to look at Matt Eberfluss's defense
Week ten on last year when they got Montes sweat,
it was really really good. I think you have to
keep your eye on Indianapolis. We loved what we saw
(32:46):
with the quarterback Anthony Richardson, and we love Shane Steikn.
They went nine to eight with Gardner Minshew and Anthony
Richardson is like jump off the television explosive. I think
you got to keep your eye on the Colts and
number seven the Jaguars. They went nine to eight last year.
(33:08):
And how many different injuries did Trevor Lawrence suffer during
the season. Christian Kirk, their number two receiver, was out
for much of the season. They drafted that receiver out
of LSU Brian Thomas. So Kirk's back, Trevor's healthy. Brian
Thomas offensive coach weird division. We don't know if Tennessee's
(33:29):
any good. So it does feel like if you had
to make a bet, either there's a coaching upgrade, a
quarterback upgrade, A health upgrade, an acquisition upgrade. Bears, Bengals, Chargers, Colts, Falcons, Jags, Yes,
the New York Jets. I do not think the Jets
(33:49):
are going to be a great team, but could they
be good to very good if Aaron's healthy and Breecee
Hall doesn't get banged up. Absolutely, Miami now is paying
all their money to wide receivers. How's that gonna play
as two A wants a contract and probably doesn't get
one going into the season. I like Miami. Miami and
(34:10):
the Jets play. I believe last game of the year.
I think it could be a deciding game. It's in
cold weather, New York. That helps. But I do think
those are the seven teams. I look at Bears quarterback
up grade, Bengals quarterback up grade, Chargers coaching upgrade, Colts
quarterbackup grade, Falcons quarterbackup grade, Jaguars health upgrade, Jets quarterback
(34:31):
up grade.
Speaker 5 (34:32):
Okay, so you want to take it next level. I
love this. These are great teams.
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Now look at last year's playoff teams and tell me
who's not making it and who each of these are replacing.
Speaker 5 (34:41):
I'll give you Falcons over bucks that's an easy one.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
Well, let's go back. Let's go back to the beginning
of this segment, the first graphic when we named the
playoff teams last year. Yes, so let me throw one
at you off the top. Okay, So I would say
in the AFC, Pittsburgh is odd. I think Baltimore's not
going anywhere. Best run organization arguably Burrow was back. Deshaun
(35:07):
Watson's whole season was weird. Is he gonna play? Is
he not? We like their GM and we like their coach,
we like their O line, we like their weapons. I
would say Pittsburgh out the division's tougher. I think Miami,
do we really believe Tua is going to be healthy again?
I think that's arguable. Outside of that, I'm sorry, I
(35:29):
think the Bills are fine.
Speaker 4 (35:30):
The only problem is you have two teams, Jags and
Colts from that division. So will you now put three
in with the Texans? Or do Texans slide back with
a tough first play schedule but their roster's pretty sick.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
Well, let's go to the NFS.
Speaker 7 (35:44):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (35:45):
I don't like Dallas. I think they couldn't improve their team.
M I think Mike McCarthy's on the hot seat. If
they struggle in the first six weeks, I think they're
going to become very Dak dependent without having a solid
run game. A seed Lamb. Now, you hope he gets
signed early to get rid of that drama. But I
think Dallas there is a history when they're very Dac dependent,
(36:07):
throwing thirty eight times or more. They're a sub five
hundred team. I think Washington makes a big leap up.
So Washington was the eighth team. I would have said
made the playoffs, but I haven't seen Jane Daniels play.
But I think Washington's better. Philadelphia is better. They got
their coordinators in Saquon Barkley. Dallas could miss the playoffs.
I think the Bucks, Bucks. I mean it was.
Speaker 5 (36:30):
We got that, but there's one other you gotta pull.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Well, no, no, right now, I said the easy ones for
me are the easiest ones are Steelers, Dolphins, Cowboys, Bucks,
Browns two right, Browns two okay, okay, So Cleveland, Miami, Pittsburgh.
So I'm at five, and I would say Dallas and Tampa.
Now we also know this to be true. There will
(36:53):
be a team that will lose a star quarterback yeah,
So I'm not going to predict who that's going to be.
Sixty six quarterbacks played last year, so there's no question
that some great quarterback in this league. I mean, if
Matt Stafford, they made the playoffs. If Matt Stafford goes down,
rams aren't making the play Two years ago, he went
down right, and he tends to even if it's banging
his hand in a helmet. He gets banged up, he
(37:16):
sits in the pocket to the very end. He takes shots.
They're all lines better interior. I don't know if it's
great left tackle, but there will be a team more too.
Anthony Richardson last year, we love the Colts and then
he got hurt. We love the Bengals, then Burrow got hurt.
So I can look at five and say, circumstantially they
won't be as good. You know, there's going to be
two more that lose a quarterback.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
Yeah, ultimately, I kind of like it now. The other
one is you have Lions and Packers making it again
along with Bears, so that division becomes very, very challenging.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
Well, I think there's an argument it's the best offensive
division in football. The AFC North is the best defense division.
In football, So I yeah, I think Minnesota finishes probably fourth.
Yeah yeah, and that is an offense that's only missing
a star quarterback.
Speaker 5 (38:04):
I mean they're like, who's starting Week one as it,
Darnald Darna.
Speaker 1 (38:07):
We'll see you think darnld Yeah, I think he'll start.
You'll get some reps. So yeah, I mean I don't
think any of this, but six point eight new playoff
teams per year. That's crazy or is it? I think
you know it's funny. So the league has gone out
of its way, we know this with rule changes to
protect the quarterback. Yet sixty quarterbacks play the year before that,
(38:32):
it was like fifty four to fifty five somewhere around there.
So the league is doing everything they can so as simultaneously,
the league is doing its best job to protect quarterbacks.
There's an argument that because the players won in the
CBA and got fewer practices, that it's hurt the offensive
lines more than any unit. Because offensive lines in football
(38:55):
are very much a cohesion and chemistry play. They're practicing last.
So offensive line play has regressed badly over the last
three to four years, maybe longer. In the CBA, they
don't practice as much, and of all the units that
need time. Of all the individual units, it's probably a line.
(39:18):
So the league is doing it through safety measures protecting
the quarterbacks, but the players think they win. Right when
you go to the CBA, it's like, oh, we want
we don't have to practice as much. That's awful for
the league. You want your offensive lineman to practice. And
as the league is more mobile and younger, you're getting
I mean, how many times does an offensive line bring
(39:40):
everybody back? It's almost unheard of. Somebody's a free agent,
somebody gets moved. I mean, it's just almost unheard of.
Like offensive line now you have what they call swing tackles.
The left tackle can play right tackle. It used to
be you were a left, you were a right. Now
you have guards moving to center. So there's so much
mobility on the offensive line. We've he also had two
(40:00):
or three great offensive line coaches retire, like Dante Scarneki.
Jimmy Johnson's told me for years, the hardest good coach
to find on the staff as offensive line coach. So
you've got legends retiring, fewer practices, more mobility and flexibility,
swing tackles. So the offensive line now is just in flux.
All the time and quarterbacks go down line.
Speaker 4 (40:22):
I know you mentioned the Ravens as a team not
going anywhere. One of my buddies did a thing online
where he said the Ravens have lost more players who
played fifty percent of their snaps than any playoff team
in recent memory, and like they lost a lot of
guys and their defensive coordinator. Be careful with the Ravens
this year. My brother goes to Gaines, he's a fan.
Speaker 5 (40:41):
Just be careful with the Ravens.
Speaker 1 (40:43):
Collin greg Olsen around the corner hour or two
Thanks for listening to 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 (00:21):
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
Ah, here we go on a Thursday, live in Los Angeles.
It's the Hurt wherever you may be and however you
may be listening. Thanks for making us on the Thursday
part of your day. One hour from now, the great
Greg Olsen joining us Fox Sports jmac.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
Is.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
For years and years, I have defended dream On Green
for on court behavior. In my defense is these are
emotional games. Contracts don't last forever, families defeat, and athletes
have a right to emotion. I defended Tom bradi Er,
(01:08):
Peyton Manning Barking and a teammate. I have defended Draymond
Green Patrick Beverley. I did not defend because I don't
think you can go after fans, and he threw a
ball twice at fans. But I wouldn't kick him out
of the league. I wouldn't necessarily cut him from the team.
I just didn't like what Pat Beverley. By the way,
a week later I saw him at the gym, said Hi.
But the point being is I like to defend athletes
(01:29):
because they're vulnerable when we go to work. I mean,
even though people are watching, I don't have them hovering around.
Most people go to work. They're a landscaper construction site,
have people staring at him judging their performance. So I
want to defend Jorge Lopez, a pitcher for the New
York Mets. So the Dodgers just swept the Mets, and
the Mets aren't very good once again cruddy, and a
(01:51):
game's close later innings, and the Lopez gives up a
bomb to Shoho Tani. Frustrated, then he starts squawking with
a check swing third base umpire and he starts arguing
with the third base umpire and he not very happy,
and the Mets having a terrible season in the third
base umpire umpires, as you know it, they just don't
like to be shown up. So he throws him out
(02:12):
of the game, and Lopez goes off, untuck's his shirt,
throws his glove into the stands. Yeah, you would hope
he wouldn't do that, but he showed emotion. That's okay.
Steph Curry threw a mouthpiece across the court. Pat Bev
threw a ball at fans twice. Jamal Murray threw a
heating pad on the floor. International soccer stars unravel regularly.
(02:35):
They've punched players, bumped officials. You don't bail on him,
put your arm around him. Do better, Maybe throw a fine.
The Mets cut him. I know, it's baseball. There's a
way to play the game. You've got to respect the game. Yeah,
that fifteen year care steroid cattle steroid issue was Is
(03:00):
that respecting the game? Guy shooting in the butt before
the game? Fifteen years? Pitchers hitters, Hey, you're making money.
Nobody said no without respecting the game. Being a reliever
is incredibly intense. You're asked to come into a game
in a high leverage situation, pretty cold, few warm up pitches,
(03:21):
and then meet that intensity head on. It's like merging
into traffic going eighty five miles an hour. It's like
joining a roller coaster mid ride, and it's pretty thankless
and very difficult. The only thing more difficult in baseball
than getting a save is getting a hit. And we've
seen baseball players break a bat over their knee, scream
(03:44):
at umpires throw bats. It's hard. Baseball is hard. There
have been four hundred plus saves this year in two
hundred and fifty blown saves this year. It was a
high leverage situation. So Tawny hit a bomb. Here comes
another All Star, Freddie Freeman. It's a check swing. Seasons
(04:06):
melting down. Met's about to get swept. Here's another two
tight umpire tossing him out of a game, and the
kid unravels. He later said, I'm the worst teammate in
the world. He felt terrible. He said all be available
if they need me tomorrow and major League Baseball in
(04:26):
the Mets, a cruddy franchise that he didn't overpay for.
Those teammates cut him. Here was Lopez after.
Speaker 3 (04:35):
I don't regret it. I think I've been looking the
worst team in brought in the old that will be so,
you know, whatever happened happened. So whatever they want to do, it,
I'll be tomorrow. Here is they want me, you know,
whatever they want to do, so I'm gonna keep doing
this thing, you know, so I'm healthy on whatever you know, Nace,
(05:00):
whatever to do. You know, I'm ready to come back
tomorrow if the one may be here, so I'll be here.
Speaker 1 (05:08):
No you won't. They cut you again. I have defended
Draymond from the beginning, called a hypocrite because he works
for my podcast digital company, and I say, no, he's
an athlete. He's a professional. When you go to work,
you don't have a stadium full of people heckling you,
judging you, cheering you, booing you. It's hard and being
(05:34):
a reliever two hundred and fifty blown saves this year,
it's really hard. Spare me on the there's a way
to play the game. The unwritten rules in baseball often
take precedence over the written rules. Don't get me started
on exit velocity. I mean it's baseball wants wants more emotion.
(06:00):
He needs more emotion. I grew up with Reggie Jackson,
Billy Martin, Pete Rose, Charlie Hussel, Mark Fedrich. They were
the great characters of the game. You're going to cut
a guy for that for a bad twelve seconds, he cares,
I'm a major league GM. I'd get him on my
(06:20):
roster tomorrow. So yesterday we talked about something I said.
And this is something that has been proven true in studies.
People fear things that never materialize. So there was a
recent psychological study that eighty to eighty five percent of
(06:42):
things that people fear will happen never happen. For the
longest time, we had elevator operators. A man just stood
outside of an elevator because people were afraid to get
on them. There's not many moments in recorded history of
people suffocating to death on an elevator, or being trapped
(07:05):
and dehydrating, unable to eat and dying, but we had
elevator operators because people were afraid to get onto elevators.
Eighty to eighty five percent of what we fear never materializes.
People get in their head, talk themselves into anxiety and trouble.
Take a deep breath, it's going to be okay. And
(07:26):
you see this in sports. People freaked out the old timers.
The baseball pitch clock. It'll never work. Oh, it's actually
worked perfectly. Thirty minutes has been cut off. Games, attendance
up over ten percent, same with ratings. I remember working
at the other place about ten twelve years ago when
the NFL severely reduced hitting especially quarterbacks in the league.
(07:51):
You heard a chorus of what do they just wear
a dress? Because they're football players and the league is
trying to keep them upright, safe, healthy for more contracts.
The ratings have grown stupendously in the last twelve years.
In the NBA, there was that in season tournament that
people just bitched about. People have to grumble. It actually
(08:14):
was a huge success. The courts were different, it was fun.
It got me to a television set in games at October, November, December.
I would not normally watch the championship game, and the
n season tournament got four point six million viewers. It
was the highest rated non Christmas regular season game in
(08:35):
six years. Don't fear things, They're not gonna happen. College
football's only getting better. When the Pac twelve, the conference
I grew up with, when it was disbanded, the only
Power five conference west of the Rockies, all I heard
(08:55):
from friends defended this is outrageous, and I said, I
watched the game James. Outside of Washington and Oregon, it's
nothing but empty, empty seats. The games don't rate very well. Okay,
I think it's kind of cool that USC and UCLA
and Washington, and Oregon, the four biggest brands. I wish
they would have taken Utah go to the Big ten, Michigan,
(09:19):
Ohio State, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Penn State. You kidding me?
I mean Penn State was independent for years. They joined
the Big Ten. It worked out. So I said yesterday,
why is USC staying with playing Notre Dame. Really, I
gotta have Michigan, Oregon, Washington, Penn State, Wisconsin. Then in November,
I got to go to South Bend and play nine
(09:42):
degrees as I've got Ohio State potentially in two weeks.
I just beat Michigan. Got the season right. I was
six and one, now I'm seven and one. No bye,
no Purdue, it's Notre Dame National TV off a bye. Yes,
Notre Dame. That game they're an independent. USC doesn't and
(10:03):
they're going to regret that game in about three and
four years when they keep elevating their program in personnel
and have an opportunity late in the season to really
get so momentum. Here it comes Michigan and Notre Dame
in South Bend eleven degrees first, the sport would be
fine without USC and Notre Dame. There's a lot of
(10:24):
things I like but don't need, like a Maserati or
a mansion. I like USC Notre Dame, although it's clearly
become a Notre Dame owned series. The Irish need it.
USC doesn't. The sport would be fine. It went from
the BCS to a four team playoff. People grumbled. Now
it's going to a twelve team playoff. People are grumbling more.
(10:47):
They disband in the PAC twelve. We're fine. The pitch clock,
the n season tournament. Take a deep breath. I understand
forty percent of Americans never leave the zip code they
were born in. I get it. People don't like change,
but it's inevitable, and most of the time it's better
(11:07):
USC Notre Dame. If I was an ad at either school,
especially USC, I'd start looking at calendars and make it
a buye. They'd survive. The sport would survive. By the way,
Fox executives are projecting Big ten TV ratings with the
addition of new teams from the West, will be up
(11:28):
fifteen to eighteen percent this year. We're all going to
be okay. Jmak. Last night I did something that I
had never done before, and I felt terrible for it.
Speaker 4 (11:41):
Was it recruiting your buddy to my men'sly basketball team?
Speaker 1 (11:46):
Now it was not. I'll get to that later. An
embarrassing moment last night. I was very embarrassed, but I
was able to overcome it. I went to the nine
hundred and did some due diligence before we go. On
Saturday night, I went there to S's Saturday happening for
bolstered chairs. I just want to make sure we have
a place to hang out and.
Speaker 4 (12:02):
Okay, all right, hey, big Saturday night out on the
town from the big guy.
Speaker 5 (12:06):
All right, I'm excited. I got to get an outfit.
Speaker 1 (12:08):
Huh regular, Sure, you don't need to get an outfit.
Jeans and a T shirt are just good. Just keep
the hat on forward. Coming up next JJ Reddick and
the Lakers, it appears inevitable.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
and neone eastern non am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio
FS one and the iHeartRadio app Bull.
Speaker 1 (12:28):
Zone sponsored by Credible Great Rates. None of the Bowl
Lakers coaching search. All signs continue to point to J. J. Reddick,
who reportedly now is building a staff. Hard to keep
that secret. Of course, that's more proof that Lebron is
staying in Los Angeles, which I said yesterday. Fool's gold.
If you think you're gonna lure him to the Phoenix
(12:50):
Suns or Philadelphia, JJ Reddick will be fine. The NFL
and football in general, is a coaching league. You get
exposed very quickly if you're over your head. Nathaniel Hackett
was exposed in his first game in Seattle. Had Russell
Wilson couldn't figure out the clock, Jim tom Sula, David
(13:11):
Cully in Houston, Freddie Kitchens in Cleveland. You're exposed five
games in. Every play is dependent on schematic brilliance, efficiency
in details. Things get copied right. Basketball is a little loose.
The smartest NBA coach ever is arguably Phil Jackson. He
(13:32):
had an offense called the Triangle. Nobody copied it. Why
because the sense was the schematic brilliance created by text
winner was a tad overrated. It was more about Kobe MJ.
Shack getting theirs. An NBA coach is about managing personalities,
getting a rotation everybody agrees in or works, aligning yourself
(13:54):
with your top star very quickly, getting buy in. If
JJ Reddick, that's buying from Lebron in AD, and I'm
sure he will. Certainly with Lebron and AD will follow suit.
He will be fine. Steve Kerr Greg Popovich have always
let their stars dictate many things, team chemistry, when to practice,
(14:17):
when to take a day off, what time is shoot around.
A lot of that stuff is governed by the star players,
and sometimes in the same league in Oklahoma City, that
coach has to develop young players, JJ Reddick would have
to manage old stars. It's sort of like being a parent.
The title is parent, but it's different raising two seven
(14:39):
year olds than two kids out of college. That's sort
of where I'm at. I'm essentially a loan officer. My
kids know they've been preapproved. I'm just managing loans and rates.
The Lakers is actually not a great job, but it's
not a terribly difficult one as long as expectations are
in line. Braun Ad Austin Reeves aren't difficult to coach,
(15:04):
although Lebron can be difficult to get approval from. After
a year or two, I think JJ Reddick will be fine.
I think NBA coaching is different. It's more about buy
in than when Now the Lakers, JJ Reddick he's building
a staff is going to happen. J Mack with the news.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
No, no, turn on the news. This is the herd
Line news.
Speaker 5 (15:29):
Let's go to the NFL for some breaking news.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
Colin Jalen Wattle and the Dolphins have agreed to a
three year, eighty four million dollar extension. The deal includes
seventy six million guaranteed, makes Waddle one of the top
five highest paid receivers in the NFL. IS guaranteed money
is the third highest for a receiver in NFL history.
Speaker 5 (15:51):
Jalen Wattle with that sinking.
Speaker 4 (15:53):
AJ Brown got eighty four, Amara Saint Brown got seventy seven,
and now Jalen Wattle getting seventy.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
So Tyreek Hill and j are going to get sixty million.
If you made to the tenth highest paid quarterback, which
is about forty three million, that's where Josh Allen's at.
You'd have one hundred million on three players, none of
them defense, none of them defensive line, none of them
offensive line. You'd have one hundred million if he's just
(16:19):
the tenth highest paid quarterback, and he'll want more. And
that's why I said to me, teams tell you who
they're interested in long term. I mean, why would you
pay sixty million to two receivers? So you've got a
brilliant offensive coach, two speedy receivers. That is telling you
you can't give to a exactly what Tua wants. Or
(16:40):
it's telling you he didn't get hurt last year, but
we're gonna let him play again this year and see
how we feel about it.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
Yeah, that list you know. Listen, sometimes you get lucky.
We're early to market on this wide receiver Bubble Colin.
At no point last season or the season before, did
anybody think Jillan Waddle was a top ten receiver in them. Nope,
he's getting paid like a top five receiver. Yep, something's
going on. This is not sustainable.
Speaker 5 (17:03):
This cannot continue.
Speaker 1 (17:04):
This sound feels like it's a message to to his agent.
That's what it feels like. It's a message to to
his agent. I mean, Green Bay isn't paying any of
their receivers so they can pay Jordan Love a lot.
Miami's paying two of fortune. That has to affect what
I'm gonna pay.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
Too, assuming Tyreek Hill doesn't come back and say hey, hey, hey,
I'm the best receiver and I want a new deal,
Like who knows. I'll just say this, Miami strikes me
as a as like an NBA team that's built for
the regular season. They're gonna put up a lot of numbers.
It's gonna be flatty, and then come playoff time limitations,
they're not gonna make a run.
Speaker 5 (17:40):
They've decided we can't defend anybody.
Speaker 4 (17:43):
What's the point. Let's just build an offense that's a
track team and let's try to outscore people. We're gonna
win nine, ten, eleven games. I think we're gonna be
in the playoffs.
Speaker 1 (17:51):
I think. I think they will win nine, ten or
eleven games. I do, but I don't think it's a
sustainable model to pay three players one hundred to one
hundred and ten million dollars of your camp.
Speaker 5 (18:00):
Are you scared of this team come January?
Speaker 1 (18:03):
I would not want to play Miami down in Miami
in the first six weeks of the season, where it's
eighty eight degrees humid and they got their offense hummin.
I wouldn't want any part of that. I have no
problem playing Miami at home at my place December January February.
Speaker 4 (18:20):
Now, maybe they get home field advantage, maybe they sneak
to thirteen wins.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
Now they get homefield advantage.
Speaker 4 (18:24):
That changes the equation because then they don't have to
go to Buffalo or Kansas City.
Speaker 1 (18:29):
Yeah, we knew you. A lot of the best AFC
teams or Baltimore's, your Buffalo's Kansas City are cold weather teams.
Speaker 4 (18:35):
And I'll remind people look at that end of the
season schedule. Packers, who Coward likes a lot, My Jets,
Texans who are a playoff team.
Speaker 5 (18:44):
Niners have the highest win total in.
Speaker 1 (18:45):
The league at Cleveland at the Jets, two cold weather games.
You know what, that could be easy. It's not easy,
not an easy sky easy.
Speaker 5 (18:53):
We like to coach a lot.
Speaker 1 (18:55):
I think he's brilliant, and I think the receivers are good,
but Jaylen Wattll's not.
Speaker 4 (18:58):
I like the running Backshan last year. Oh my god,
this team hung seventy on the Broncos. Remember, like, they
can score on anyone. Can I get a stop.
Speaker 5 (19:07):
To save their life?
Speaker 2 (19:08):
Yeah?
Speaker 5 (19:08):
I don't think so.
Speaker 4 (19:09):
Next up, Oh, it's Aaron Rodgers time Colin Aaron Rodgers
cutting it up. Do you know he's entering his twentieth
season in the NFL and at forty years old, he's
the oldest player currently under contract for an NFL team.
Speaker 5 (19:22):
Yeah, well, Quinn Williams of the Jets was speaking to reporters.
Speaker 4 (19:25):
He didn't even know that Rogers was entering his twentieth
season in the NFL.
Speaker 1 (19:30):
This is gonna be appen his twentieth year.
Speaker 2 (19:33):
This twenty years. I ain't know.
Speaker 6 (19:36):
They're ending twenty years in the NFL. Man and running back.
The number zero is twenty years old. Yeah, he's been
so he's been in the NFL as long as he's
been alive. That's crazy. I got a joke with him
about that.
Speaker 1 (19:54):
Yeah, I didn't play for his first three years.
Speaker 4 (19:57):
But now there is some other videos circulating about Rogers
not looking one hundred percent.
Speaker 1 (20:02):
What's that? I mean, it's like you don't want.
Speaker 5 (20:03):
To he's in his twentieth, twenty season.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
I don't know. Brady looked pretty good in his twenty fifth.
Did you bury that video? What didn't make the show?
Speaker 2 (20:10):
I didn't.
Speaker 5 (20:11):
Well, we'll discuss it. Perhaps it will make the show.
I thought mccarton this morning went off on it.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
So I guess we'll have to watch that show to
get the real news, not the fake.
Speaker 5 (20:21):
He's in his twentieth season. What do you expect it's June.
He's coming off an Achilles.
Speaker 4 (20:25):
He's not gonna look sharp and fast, is he. I
don't even know why he's out there nine months after Achilles.
Speaker 5 (20:31):
Just wait till July, dude, I don't know why he's
out there.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
And like a lot of fake news happening in New York.
Speaker 4 (20:37):
These days, yeah, a lot, starting with the New York
But the final story is Game five of the Western
Conference Finals tonight. Yeah, not the Maps three to one,
and it is starting to look like Derek Lively may play.
He's now upgraded to questionable after taking that knee to
the back of the head in uh.
Speaker 5 (20:57):
In Gay four.
Speaker 1 (20:58):
That that means he's gonna He's gonna play questionable beings.
He's gonna play.
Speaker 5 (21:01):
You should play.
Speaker 4 (21:03):
Lively, by the way, hasn't missed a shot in the
Western Conference Finals.
Speaker 1 (21:06):
He has been He has been something that college basketball
does not give teams immediate help. He's been terrific. He's
been a really, really nice get. I'm gonna tell you something,
Brad Stevens one executive of the year. But you can
look at Dallas I when they have transformed this franchise
in eighteen months drafting Kyrie trade deadline moves like that's
(21:29):
front off of stuff.
Speaker 5 (21:30):
Aggressive stuff.
Speaker 1 (21:30):
Yeah, I mean, this kid's become a Even if a
rookie's pretty good in the regular season, they melt in
the playoffs. You don't get it. You don't get a
twenty year old guy in the playoffs who's asked to
be a like a role player and defend and rim protect.
Speaker 2 (21:44):
That doesn't work.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
Yeah, these kids couldn't drink at the hotel bar.
Speaker 4 (21:48):
He has the highest plus minus in the entire NBA
Playoffs at plus one north when he's on the court.
Speaker 1 (21:53):
The man and Nico Harrison came from Nike, and I
was one of the people. I'm like, that's weird. I
don't really get it, but I gotta be honest with you.
Go look at their last eighteen months. Remember I was
tough on Ryan Poles the Bears GM and I said,
we got to be fair. I didn't like some of
his early moves. Claypool was a miss. Blis Jones receiver
a miss. I'm like, I'm not a couple of old
lineman miss. But he's had a great eighteen months. Gotta
(22:16):
be fair, ye, Anco Harrison has I'm talking multiple levels
draft Kyrie trade deadline.
Speaker 5 (22:24):
You know, he's crushed.
Speaker 4 (22:25):
It was like when I first joined the show, I
had a couple of clunky shows. Are a couple couple
You did not go to management and say, hey, I
don't know about this one.
Speaker 1 (22:32):
I did, actually, but you didn't hear about it. Okay,
it's okay. J Mack with the news.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
Well that's the news, and thanks for stopping by the
herd Line News.
Speaker 1 (22:44):
You know it's this is interesting, speaking of I got
a good NFL topic I'm gonna get to. But Josh
Hart played for the Knicks and they were a great story.
So he was on a podcast called The Pivot Podcast
and he basically went out and he was asked about
(23:06):
kind of the most dangerous Boston Celtic and he didn't
say Jason Tatum and he didn't say Jalen Brown. He
came out and he said, no, it's actually Derek White
does more things well than anybody. And when I heard that,
I thought, oh boy, that's going to get a lot
(23:26):
of heat. But it goes back to something that we
talked about. I talked about on Monday, is that the
Celtics are much more collaborative. Dallas is much more singularly
Alpha with Luca is that Jason Tatum, as I pointed out,
he kind of floats off the ball a lot. So
(23:47):
his usage rate when you juxtapose it with the production level,
is not that high. The production he delivers, you'd think
he has a higher usage rate, and he doesn't. So
in the end, we are used to Batman and Robbins
with Scotty and Pippin and Shaq and Kobe and Duncan
and Parker Lebron and d Wade, Jokichen, Murray, MJ. Pippen,
(24:11):
Stephen Clay, and that's not what this team is. On
any given playoff night, Derek White, Porzingis or Drew Holliday
could score twenty five points. So this team really leans
into collaboration. And I mean, if this if the Celtics
were a movie, it'd be Ocean's eleven. You're like, yeah,
I know, Clooney's the lead, but Andy Garcia could be
(24:33):
and Julia Roberts and Matt Damon and all of a
sudden you look around Brad Pitts in the movie and
I'm not sure. Well he's a lead, but he's not.
And that's what the Celtics are great movie, by the way,
So whereas let's be honest, even the Denver Nuggets are
very dependent on Jamal Murray hitting shots late Dallas very
(24:56):
dependent on Luca. The t Wolves similar if Karl Anthony
towns off offensively, they become very ant dependent. That is
not the Celtics. In fact, Jason Tatum's playoff average is
twenty six points. The Celtics are seven to one when
he scores less than that. So it's interesting for Josh
(25:19):
Hart to pick up on that and saying it's actually
Derek White, who can defend at a top level, who
can hit a three, who can drive to the basket,
is a guy that doesn't get the credit. I've said this,
I think Derek White's a two on many NBA teams.
On this team, if everybody is healthy, he's a four.
Some Knights of porzingis as Hummon, he's a five. So
(25:40):
this team is not going to be and I've said
they don't feel like most championship teams. They just don't.
The Denver Nuggets. In Jamal Murray's career, if he doesn't
score like over twenty points, I think Denver's like nine
and sixteen in the playoffs. Like they need Jamal Murray.
There are nights the Celtics don't need Jason Tatum. Here's
(26:03):
Josh Hart talking about it. Impactful.
Speaker 7 (26:08):
I might putting Dereck White more impactful than jt Look
at every main play in the last six minutes of
the fourth to overtime, every big play he made. He's
probably one of the most impactful players because he does
this everything on the court and does everything at a
very high level.
Speaker 1 (26:28):
Yeah, they lean into it. They're good, all right. So
I saw a stat data, as we like to call it,
j mac. So there are some things that are they're true,
they're hard truth. They're uncomfortable, like bad things happen to
good people. Right, Your wife doesn't always tell you the truth.
(26:52):
I'm sorry she doesn't, and you don't tell her the
truth all the time. That the playoff teams last year,
half of them will not make the playoffs. Six point
eight new playoff teams per year since the playoffs expanded
(27:12):
to fourteen teams, half won't make it. I saw a
couple other stats. There were four new division winners this year.
There were six new playoff teams Browns, Lions, Packers, Texans, Rams, Steelers,
and the six that missed were Bengals, Jags, Chargers, Vikings,
Giant Seahawks. Some more predictable than others. So when we return,
(27:33):
I'll just tell you and actually, it may be the
easiest year ever. Of the seven new playoff teams. A
lot of times we can go back and forth. We
literally came up with seven, and you'd be I would
be surprised if all seven did not make the playoffs
this year, and they did not last year. That's coming up.
Speaker 2 (27:54):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd Weekdays
and New Eastern not Am Pacific.
Speaker 4 (27:59):
Two NBA Insiders podcasting twice a week to plug you
right into the NBA grape.
Speaker 8 (28:05):
Fine all happening in only one place. This League Uncut,
the new NBA podcast with Me Chris.
Speaker 1 (28:12):
Haynes and me Mark Stein join us as.
Speaker 8 (28:15):
We team up to expound on everything we're covering Hearing
and Chason.
Speaker 5 (28:20):
Listen to This League Uncut with Chris Haynes and Mark Stein.
Speaker 8 (28:23):
On the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get
your podcasts.
Speaker 4 (28:29):
Saturday, it's Baseball Night in America on Fox as the
Cardinals take on Bryce Harper and the n L East
leading Phillies or the Reds Battle of Cups or Angels
Mariners and all begains at seven eastern on Fox. Check
for the game in your area.
Speaker 1 (28:47):
World Series Phillies, get your tickets now. So we were saying,
since the league expanded the National Football Lea, you expanded
to fourteen playoff teams seven AFC cente at seven NFC
that on average there's seven playoff teams. And here's some
other things. The new ones last year with the Browns, Lions, Packers, Texans, Rams, Steelers.
(29:07):
Remember the Rams were supposed to be terrible. The Texans
were a laughingstock. Lions, give me a break. They all
made the playoffs. The six teams that missed the Bengals, Jags, Chargers, Vikings, Giants,
and Seahawks. Four new division winners last year Ravens, Texans, Cowboys,
and Lions. And at least one team since they expanded
(29:30):
the playoffs, at least one last place team has won
their division. Last to first Browns Texans in twenty twenty three. Yeah,
one team has made the playoffs. Excuse me, after finishing
last in the division the prior season. They don't necessarily
win the division, but they make the playoffs. And so
(29:51):
There's just certain things in sports that are true, Like
your number one pick in the NBA is not going
to elevate you immediately to greatness. It just doesn't work
that way. Wemby's remark, thank God for the Pistons, or
they would have been the worst team in the league.
So here's the seven teams that on the surface look
like the best bets to turn their season around. Number
(30:12):
one's an easy one. Cincinnati. They missed the playoffs by
one game without Joe Burrow. That's going to be a
different team again with Jake Browning in arguably the best
division in the league, certainly defensively really good. They missed
the playoffs by one game. Cincinnati will be a playoff
(30:35):
team if Joe Burrow is healthy. The second one, the
biggest coaching upgrade from Brandon Staley to Jim Harbaugh would
be the Chargers. They had actually made the team with
Brandon Staley made the playoffs. Last year, everything circled the
drain and they became a really bad football team by Thanksgiving.
(30:56):
In the end, though, Harbaugh is not only a great coach,
but he's a quick turnaround artist. This team doesn't have
super Bowl perimeter weapons, everywhere else they're very good. Number
three is actually the Jets. If Aaron Rodgers is just healthy,
with that defense, they should win a bunch of games. Eight, nine, ten.
(31:17):
I don't buy the eleven, twelve, thirteen. He is forty
will be off an achilles surgery. They really have one
big time back and one receiver who's a star that
doesn't have a history of injuries. But if people are healthy,
including Aaron Rodgers, they're gonna be in virtually every game.
I mean, just think of how bad they were offensively
(31:39):
last year. I would say four the biggest quarterback upgrades
the Atlanta Falcons Desmond Ritter A kirk Cousins. This is
a really good offense with an excellent O line. Only
Detroit's O line is better, unquestionably better. Outside of that,
Atlanta's in the top four or five. Again, this is
(32:01):
a really really weak division, feels like it is most years.
And kirk Cousins if he can't play early. They drafted
Michael Pennix. The knock on Atlanta. They don't have a
consistent pass rush and they have too many good quarterbacks.
I would say number five is Chicago. I mean, Chicago
felt like a bad team last year they won seven games.
(32:24):
They can't win nine with a transformational, transformative college quarterback.
They've upgraded the offensive line, They've actually drafted pretty good.
And if you go to look at Matt Eberfluss's defense
Week ten on last year when they got Montes sweat,
it was really really good. I think you have to
keep your eye on Indianapolis. We loved what we saw
(32:46):
with the quarterback Anthony Richardson, and we love Shane Steikn.
They went nine to eight with Gardner Minshew and Anthony
Richardson is like jump off the television explosive. I think
you got to keep your eye on the Colts and
number seven the Jaguars. They went nine to eight last year.
(33:08):
And how many different injuries did Trevor Lawrence suffer during
the season. Christian Kirk, their number two receiver, was out
for much of the season. They drafted that receiver out
of LSU Brian Thomas. So Kirk's back, Trevor's healthy. Brian
Thomas offensive coach weird division. We don't know if Tennessee's
(33:29):
any good. So it does feel like if you had
to make a bet, either there's a coaching upgrade, a
quarterback upgrade, A health upgrade, an acquisition upgrade. Bears, Bengals, Chargers, Colts, Falcons, Jags, Yes,
the New York Jets. I do not think the Jets
(33:49):
are going to be a great team, but could they
be good to very good if Aaron's healthy and Breecee
Hall doesn't get banged up. Absolutely, Miami now is paying
all their money to wide receivers. How's that gonna play
as two A wants a contract and probably doesn't get
one going into the season. I like Miami. Miami and
(34:10):
the Jets play. I believe last game of the year.
I think it could be a deciding game. It's in
cold weather, New York. That helps. But I do think
those are the seven teams. I look at Bears quarterback
up grade, Bengals quarterback up grade, Chargers coaching upgrade, Colts
quarterbackup grade, Falcons quarterbackup grade, Jaguars health upgrade, Jets quarterback
(34:31):
up grade.
Speaker 5 (34:32):
Okay, so you want to take it next level. I
love this. These are great teams.
Speaker 4 (34:37):
Now look at last year's playoff teams and tell me
who's not making it and who each of these are replacing.
Speaker 5 (34:41):
I'll give you Falcons over bucks that's an easy one.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
Well, let's go back. Let's go back to the beginning
of this segment, the first graphic when we named the
playoff teams last year. Yes, so let me throw one
at you off the top. Okay, So I would say
in the AFC, Pittsburgh is odd. I think Baltimore's not
going anywhere. Best run organization arguably Burrow was back. Deshaun
(35:07):
Watson's whole season was weird. Is he gonna play? Is
he not? We like their GM and we like their coach,
we like their O line, we like their weapons. I
would say Pittsburgh out the division's tougher. I think Miami,
do we really believe Tua is going to be healthy again?
I think that's arguable. Outside of that, I'm sorry, I
(35:29):
think the Bills are fine.
Speaker 4 (35:30):
The only problem is you have two teams, Jags and
Colts from that division. So will you now put three
in with the Texans? Or do Texans slide back with
a tough first play schedule but their roster's pretty sick.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
Well, let's go to the NFS.
Speaker 7 (35:44):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (35:45):
I don't like Dallas. I think they couldn't improve their team.
M I think Mike McCarthy's on the hot seat. If
they struggle in the first six weeks, I think they're
going to become very Dak dependent without having a solid
run game. A seed Lamb. Now, you hope he gets
signed early to get rid of that drama. But I
think Dallas there is a history when they're very Dac dependent,
(36:07):
throwing thirty eight times or more. They're a sub five
hundred team. I think Washington makes a big leap up.
So Washington was the eighth team. I would have said
made the playoffs, but I haven't seen Jane Daniels play.
But I think Washington's better. Philadelphia is better. They got
their coordinators in Saquon Barkley. Dallas could miss the playoffs.
I think the Bucks, Bucks. I mean it was.
Speaker 5 (36:30):
We got that, but there's one other you gotta pull.
Speaker 1 (36:33):
Well, no, no, right now, I said the easy ones for
me are the easiest ones are Steelers, Dolphins, Cowboys, Bucks,
Browns two right, Browns two okay, okay, So Cleveland, Miami, Pittsburgh.
So I'm at five, and I would say Dallas and Tampa.
Now we also know this to be true. There will
(36:53):
be a team that will lose a star quarterback yeah,
So I'm not going to predict who that's going to be.
Sixty six quarterbacks played last year, so there's no question
that some great quarterback in this league. I mean, if
Matt Stafford, they made the playoffs. If Matt Stafford goes down,
rams aren't making the play Two years ago, he went
down right, and he tends to even if it's banging
his hand in a helmet. He gets banged up, he
(37:16):
sits in the pocket to the very end. He takes shots.
They're all lines better interior. I don't know if it's
great left tackle, but there will be a team more too.
Anthony Richardson last year, we love the Colts and then
he got hurt. We love the Bengals, then Burrow got hurt.
So I can look at five and say, circumstantially they
won't be as good. You know, there's going to be
two more that lose a quarterback.
Speaker 4 (37:36):
Yeah, ultimately, I kind of like it now. The other
one is you have Lions and Packers making it again
along with Bears, so that division becomes very, very challenging.
Speaker 1 (37:48):
Well, I think there's an argument it's the best offensive
division in football. The AFC North is the best defense division.
In football, So I yeah, I think Minnesota finishes probably fourth.
Yeah yeah, and that is an offense that's only missing
a star quarterback.
Speaker 5 (38:04):
I mean they're like, who's starting Week one as it,
Darnald Darna.
Speaker 1 (38:07):
We'll see you think darnld Yeah, I think he'll start.
You'll get some reps. So yeah, I mean I don't
think any of this, but six point eight new playoff
teams per year. That's crazy or is it? I think
you know it's funny. So the league has gone out
of its way, we know this with rule changes to
protect the quarterback. Yet sixty quarterbacks play the year before that,
(38:32):
it was like fifty four to fifty five somewhere around there.
So the league is doing everything they can so as simultaneously,
the league is doing its best job to protect quarterbacks.
There's an argument that because the players won in the
CBA and got fewer practices, that it's hurt the offensive
lines more than any unit. Because offensive lines in football
(38:55):
are very much a cohesion and chemistry play. They're practicing last.
So offensive line play has regressed badly over the last
three to four years, maybe longer. In the CBA, they
don't practice as much, and of all the units that
need time. Of all the individual units, it's probably a line.
(39:18):
So the league is doing it through safety measures protecting
the quarterbacks, but the players think they win. Right when
you go to the CBA, it's like, oh, we want
we don't have to practice as much. That's awful for
the league. You want your offensive lineman to practice. And
as the league is more mobile and younger, you're getting
I mean, how many times does an offensive line bring
(39:40):
everybody back? It's almost unheard of. Somebody's a free agent,
somebody gets moved. I mean, it's just almost unheard of.
Like offensive line now you have what they call swing tackles.
The left tackle can play right tackle. It used to
be you were a left, you were a right. Now
you have guards moving to center. So there's so much
mobility on the offensive line. We've he also had two
(40:00):
or three great offensive line coaches retire, like Dante Scarneki.
Jimmy Johnson's told me for years, the hardest good coach
to find on the staff as offensive line coach. So
you've got legends retiring, fewer practices, more mobility and flexibility,
swing tackles. So the offensive line now is just in flux.
All the time and quarterbacks go down line.
Speaker 4 (40:22):
I know you mentioned the Ravens as a team not
going anywhere. One of my buddies did a thing online
where he said the Ravens have lost more players who
played fifty percent of their snaps than any playoff team
in recent memory, and like they lost a lot of
guys and their defensive coordinator. Be careful with the Ravens
this year. My brother goes to Gaines, he's a fan.
Speaker 5 (40:41):
Just be careful with the Ravens.
Speaker 1 (40:43):
Collin greg Olsen around the corner hour or two
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