August 8, 2026 • 52 mins
Mike Harmon and Aaron Torres headed out to Las Vegas where tempers flared during a Raiders’ training camp practice, then they're joined by longtime NFL Insider and Hall of Fame voter Jason Cole. Later, Vegas Odds Guru Todd Furman joined the Friday night party!
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Listen
Watch
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to the best of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Carmon podcast. Be sure to catch us
live every weeknight from ten pm to two am Eastern
seven to eleven pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio. Find
your local station for The Jason Smith Show with Mike
Harmon at Fox Sports Radio dot com, or stream us
live every night on the iHeartRadio app by searching FSR.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
This is the best of the Jason Smith Show with
Mike Harmon on Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Thanks for listening to The Jason Smith Show with Mike
Harmon podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weeknight
ten pm to two am Eastern seven to eleven pm
Pacific on Fox Sports Radio. Find your local station for
The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon at Foxsports Radio
dot com, or stream us live every night on the
iHeartRadio app by searching FSR.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
You know, every time I come into the studio following
Rob Parker, I feel that much shorter because he's got
the what six or four frame long legs, so the
seed is high so he can be comfortable, and I
feel like I'm four years old and someone's gonna spin
me around so I can go Wi wi, And that's
how we start Fox Sports Trading on a Friday night,
(01:19):
Mike Carbon alongside Aaron Torres, No Jason Smith tonight out gallivanting.
I think south of the BORDERHATTERI lied to me. I
don't know either way. He's having himself some fun and
some time away. I and be back next week. I'll
be off for a couple of days as I get
ready to send my kid off to college. It's musical
chairs time here as we end the summer season. Because
(01:41):
last night we had the Hall of Fame Game, which
launches us fully into our NFL slate College Football Week zero,
just a couple of weeks away. You got ads getting chest,
the coaches talking out there. Hey, welcome in. It's a
Friday night. We appreciate you being with us. As I
said Eron Torres, you hear him Saturday nights alongside Jason
(02:03):
Martin here on the network. Good enough to come and
hang out with us for four hours here on a
beautiful Friday night. Aaron, good to see. It's been a
minute since you and I get to chop it up
plenty on the Sporting Radar today.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
I believe last time I was in with you was
during the NCAA tournament. It was many moons ago, so a.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Lot a long time ago. It's a lot's transpired.
Speaker 4 (02:23):
Yeah, Purdue Miami, I remember being a game on that
we had on here in the Fox Sports Radio studios.
So yeah, I've done a lot of shows since then.
You and Jason have done a ton plus your your
weekend stuff. So as always, it is a privilege to
be in this seat. And I'll tell you what, man,
doesn't feel like there's really been that lull in the
world of sports, and it's only gonna ramp up here
(02:45):
now that camps are open.
Speaker 5 (02:46):
We got fights breaking out.
Speaker 4 (02:48):
Which I know we're gonna break down here in half
a second. There's a lot to talk.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
But yeah, I mean, we had the glory of the
World Cup, all the chaos around it in tournament, and
then certainly in the PostScript of what happens next, let's
sell off portions of rights and let's have boycotts and
let's oust the president and all those kinds of things.
So we got plenty of that. In other words, another
(03:11):
day in him. But you mentioned the fight, and then
that's where we start. The fight in Las Vegas, Raiders.
We got two stories for them to both involving kirk Cousins.
For now, we'll keep it on the field and a
little bit of the chaos because you had a couple
of circumstances where Max Crosby, remember he was traded then
(03:32):
he came back, may still have some agitation and deciding
to take it out on the practice field as he
hit kirk Cousins twice during the team period of today's workouts,
and when he hit Cousin's arm the second time, kirk
Cousins had enough, got into his face, grabbed his jersey,
exchanging some words. Maybe, as we like to say, a
(03:54):
Vin Scully fertilizer found its way in there. Clint Kubiak said, well,
it's part of but you gotta be smart when those
situations occur. I'm like, yeah, clearly, but here you go
two leaders on our team going at it. Obviously fighting
in a game. You throw a punch in a game,
you're out, So you gotta be smart. It's like I
like that down playing of it. It's more so it's
(04:15):
your quarterback and it's your edge rusher. It's the two
most important guys you got going except for when you
do the two step to jenty in the backfield. You
gotta keep these guys up right and moving, especially as
we have the moving piece of Weather Cousins. Yeah, they're
long term ahead of Mendoza eventually becoming the guy mid season,
(04:35):
postseason whatever. I mean. I like the fire in the belly,
don't get me wrong, But Kirk Cousins fighting things I
never thought i'd see.
Speaker 4 (04:42):
By the way I was gonna say, Yeah, Kirk Cousins
might not necessarily be the second most important player in
that building depending on how this season plays out, or
he might actually end up being it, which might not
be a good thing, but.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
At least right now.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
Yes, no, And I'll tell you I had the exact
same thought that you did. Is I have been hosting
f Fox Sports Radio National Radio long enough to have
done the let's not overreact to a training camp fight segment.
This is my eighth year at Fox Sports Radio, so
I have done it for eight consecutive summers. With that said,
(05:14):
I do think it's a little bit different when you're
your best defensive player is going after the starting quarterback,
and I think there is a fine line of you
don't want to take away from Max Crosby what makes
him Max Crosby, while also acknowledging that if you have
any chance to be even like a little bit half decent,
we probably don't want to kill And I'm using that metaphorically.
(05:37):
We don't want to injure is probably the better way
to put it.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
There.
Speaker 4 (05:40):
You go the projected at least four right now, week
one starter and we know he might not be the
week one starter by or he might.
Speaker 5 (05:46):
Not be the starter by week two, week three, week four,
week five, but.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
Probably not the move you want to make if you're
Max Crosby. And again I understand you don't want to
take the edge that makes him the great player that
he is.
Speaker 5 (05:58):
Maybe you pick on some one of your own size,
Max Crust.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
Yeah, it's just the curiosity as you're in and I
get it, the old, the old rule of thumb of
they need to hit somebody else. We're not that far
into camp. Yes, we don't do two days anymore. You're
not out there grinding away the way you did many
years ago. Like I remember, you know, doing training camp
tours twenty years ago when I first started doing some
(06:24):
media stuff, and you'd have the eight am session and
then in the middle of a one hundred degrees scorching
heat in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. They're back out there. Guess what,
within ten minutes, they're trying to beat the hell out
of each other because one of them has decided, if
we do this, we can get ourselves kicked out, sure,
and we can finish our day at The coaches were
(06:45):
smarter than that. There was no early exits, probably just
a couple extra sprints and maybe a little extended period there.
But the fact that you know there's multiple reports of Hey,
before camp Crosby was warned about this, Hey, let's not
let's have repeats of the past, going back to his
college days, he laughed and said, well, I used to
(07:06):
get kicked out of practice all the time. That's fine,
and I like the fire in the belly because right
even last night, and I know a lot of the
talk we were talking with Danny g Wright, working with
Cavino and Rich and the overreaction and I use that
in quotes because that's all we got right now. Sure, right,
what we have to evaluate is here's some notes from practice,
(07:26):
here's some Subruta film. Maybe you're one of the people
that watched Hard Knocks of the Seattle Seahawks. I saw
a billboard down the street. I'm like, oh yeah, I
forgot about that.
Speaker 4 (07:36):
Okay, so I'm not the only one I knew what happened.
I just haven't carved out the time.
Speaker 6 (07:40):
No.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
I saw a couple of clips and we played a
Sam Darnolton because he was reacting to the Lebron James news. Okay,
so it was germane to the conversation we were having,
so we grabbed that. But otherwise, hard knocks. I mean,
as soon as DJ Moore and his family, the most
exciting thing was them going to an ice cream museum
when the Bears were there, and the word was that
everybody in Hell Hall didn't want any cursing because they
(08:02):
wanted the Bears to look prim and proper. As soon
as those are the two big notes coming out of
that camp. Ben Johnson not doing very well on that
no swearing policy. No, no, not at all. And so
you know, f.
Speaker 5 (08:13):
The packers apply to that policy.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
After no, no, no, that that one's exempted.
Speaker 5 (08:18):
That's what I say.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
I think you could say that as many times.
Speaker 4 (08:21):
As you want, especially when you beat them, but yees
can tell.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
But that's the thing. If you if you take away
some of that ownership that Aaron Rodgers used to talk
back away from the Packers, that it works. But it's
fun when we've got something that that pops out right,
Because this isn't a makeup, made up story. This is
activity and hyperactivity in a camp for a team that's
(08:44):
projected wind total is five and a half. Right, It's
like going back to last night and the Carson back
stuff talking about overreactionally. Okay, you're trying to sell hope, right,
That's what training camp and this new new season is.
By week four, you're gonna know how bad you are.
But for the moment, if you got a quarterback that
looks like he could be your guy, cool and the
(09:05):
Raiders with Kirk Cousins. Whatever you feel about Kirk Cousins
late in the season, postseason whatever, the guy's had a
pretty damn good career. When it's all said and done
and you're looking to take that next step that A
to B with a new coach, a new attitude, some
better players. Now, the offensive line is still the giant
question mark to all of it, but you've got some
(09:26):
solid skill position players. You obviously have your key defensive
player back on the d line for as long as
he's there, and Kirk Cousins is at least as we
we expect it, at least at this point from what
they're selling that he's starting your season, which means let's
(09:47):
at least get to opening day before we implode.
Speaker 4 (09:50):
Let me ask you this, what is your stance on
You have the number one pick, You stink forever to
get the quarter that gives your franchise hope, and then
you're not gonna run him out there. Potentially we don't
know yet for sure, but it looks like Kirk Cousins
will start the season as your starting quarterback.
Speaker 5 (10:11):
Do you care? Is it a big deal, a little deal,
no deal to you?
Speaker 3 (10:14):
To me, it's no deal. I don't worry about the
running clock of the rookie contracts like everybody else, Like,
all right, you paid him, he's your guy. When he
gets on that field, you want to make sure you're
putting him in as best a situation as you can,
because if he's terrible and you look around going well,
it's clear that we still had three of our five
(10:35):
offensive line guys were subpar. We weren't fully rounded out
at wide receiver. He didn't necessarily grasp the game quite
so well are we putting him in the best position
to succeed? And with history's littered with quarterbacks, including with
the Raiders that have never really been in that spot.
Look a guy, I mean we mentioned the Seahawks and
(10:55):
Sam Darnold. All right, he's a jet, he bounces around,
gets some better training, some better ground, and then now
he's a super Bowl champion. Now it's a convergence of circumstance,
roster building, whatever, and eventually you got to see what
Mendoza is. But one of the reasons you would bring
in a guy like Kirk Cousins is as a mentor,
(11:16):
a guy who recognizes where he's at. He's not ready
to give it up just yet, but recognizes that Mendoz
is coming. So why not lean into his history his knowledge.
And if Mendoza is ready and you feel he's ready,
and you got Brady there, who was behind Bledsoe, and
then he's been around long enough to see the land
(11:39):
mines from all these and look at his own division
for all those years, look at how many times they
reset in Miami and with the Jets, and you know,
just going on down the line that you're like, Okay,
I've watched these guys be forced into situations before they
were ready. Let's not do that here. So I'm of
the old school camp. I'm also the three yards and
(12:00):
a cloud of dust guys. Sure, running backs getting paid
brings a little tier. There you go, But I don't
think he forged it. What do you think?
Speaker 4 (12:07):
No, I I think I've pivoted the deeper that I've
gotten into this thought experiment because I was one forever
I didn't think you should rush guys, and then it
was actually it was ironic. I was working with I
don't believe he works here anymore. He may on the
weekend sometimes, Bucky Brooks, who's.
Speaker 3 (12:23):
Yes, still Sunday morning, still getting.
Speaker 4 (12:26):
Early early more so he's like on four hours after
I that's right. Yeah, So I'm rarely up to hear
he got that Bernie Bridge in that, Yes, the the
Bernie Frattlebridge Craig. So no, I and I remember Bucky
really selling me on that clock is ticking with the
rookie quarterback. And so I kind of pivoted. I was
old school of give him as much time as you want,
(12:47):
or as much time as you think he needs. I
was of the belief that what did you lose all
those games for other than to get into position to
take this guy. But the more I talk to Raiders fans,
we did see Danny G in the hallways, it's not
Danny G. The more that they don't seem upset by
the possibility of not seeing Fernando Mendoza week one.
Speaker 5 (13:06):
And so if.
Speaker 4 (13:07):
Raiders fans are okay, if they say, hey, we've seen
a lot of losses the last twenty five years. If
we have to see four or five more before we
get to Mendoza and he's ready, to your point, it's
not the worst thing.
Speaker 5 (13:21):
I just think it's very.
Speaker 4 (13:22):
Interesting because very rarely do we get these circumstances, especially
with young quarterbacks that are drafted this high. I'll be
really quick and I'll toss it back to you, but
what do we have six quarterbacks go in the top
eleven or twelve A couple years ago, they all played
Week one except for Pennix, who I believe there was
that whole situation ironically with Kirk coutterins, yes, but all
(13:44):
the other ones played, So that to me is just
it's just interesting that the Raiders are willing to take
this approach, and I don't hate it, especially now that
I'm talking to more and more Raiders fans as we
get closer to the season. I'm just surprised given recent history,
everyone feeling the need to play rookie quarterbacks right away.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
Yeah, just the old the contract clock thing to me
is just it's a it's not a terrible argument, but
it's it's lesser for me because of all, right, is
the player ready? But is your team ready? Because if
I'm gonna put him in and he's gonna fail, and look,
I've always been a believer of if it's gonna ruin
(14:22):
his confidence, I'm not worried about the confidence. It's the
worried about physically development and development and whatever. Right do
you get into really bad habits because it's that you're
not ready and whatever else. But it's it's just that
idea of going into uh, what's presumably a lost year,
Like again, five and a half is your win total
(14:43):
in a very difficult division, no doubt. So you're looking
for growth. So I understand the logic of what what
do we got to lose? But if it's now proven
that he's not your guy, now it's it's all bets
are off and we're back to the drawing board. True anyway,
so I could see both sides of it. But you
(15:04):
brought in Kirk Cousins. So at this point, why would
you not give Mendoza every opportunity to prove he's learned
whatever behind the scenes you need to put him in
the best position to succeed.
Speaker 5 (15:16):
Yeah, and I guess I would.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
I guess I would just put a bow on it
by saying Kirk Cousins at his age and frankly with
his injury history as well, but mostly with his age, like,
he's not a threat to be so good that you
like won't like. There probably aren't a ton of examples,
but I'm sure there are some examples of you play
the older guy, he ends up being better than you think.
(15:37):
Then it's hard to make that transition. I don't think
kirk cousins body will physically hold up over seventeen games,
you know, knock on wood. I hope I'm wrong. I'm
not rooting for injury, but bigger picture, he's probably not
the guy that's gonna stunt Mendoza's growth too long by
being too good where you can eventually turn it over.
Speaker 3 (15:55):
Yeah, I mean, the only other recent example of the
we drafted a guy in the first it goes back
to the wonderful world in Green Bay. I was a
big believer of eventually you've got to have a succession plan. Yeah,
so when they drafted Jordan Love and everybody was upset
about it, going wanted to do this that the other. Eventually,
father time comes. Aaron Rodgers kept doing the I'm gonna retire,
(16:16):
I'm not with lo and behold here he is still
quarterbacking in twenty twenty six. But you had a year
where when he got hurt you had to go to
Brent Huntley. I'm sorry that Brent Huntley has to take
the incoming once again, but you had no succession plan
and readiness, and you got two MVPs out of Aaron
Rodgers before it was all said and done. In this case,
(16:37):
you're not looking at that. For Kirk, it's just the
easier bridge. Can he give you a chance to win
a couple of games and show where potential weaknesses are.
Obviously far more mobile is Mendoza, and it's even more exacerbated.
I don't know if you've seen the video of Captain
Kirk try to do a couple of sprints. It's making
me feel spry. Aaron Underscore Tours. Where you find him
(17:02):
in the Twitter verse Find me over at Swollen Dome. Reminder,
if you miss any of today's show, catch the podcast
search Jason Smith Mike Harmon wherever you get your podcasts.
Also you can add Torres t o double Ries followed
the podcast rated five stars. Provide that review against Search
Jason Smith Mike Harmon wherever you get your podcasts, you'll
find today's full show and a best of version posted
(17:23):
right after we get off the air. Coming up next,
we turn our attention to Major League Baseball. Era was
on air when the Tarrek Schooble trade went down. He
did an interview and might have folks scratching their heads
out of this one. We'll talk about it next here
on Fox Sports Radio wie wie.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 7 (17:53):
Hey, It's Rob Parker and Calvin Washington from The Odd
Couple on Fox Sports.
Speaker 8 (17:56):
Radio and in addition to hearing us live week nights,
having a ten pm Eastern on Fox Sports Radio. We
are excited to announce brand new YouTube channel for the show.
Speaker 5 (18:07):
That's right.
Speaker 7 (18:08):
You can now watch the Odd Couple live on YouTube
every day.
Speaker 8 (18:13):
All you gotta do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube
again YouTube, Just search Odd Couple FSR. Check us out
on YouTube and subscribe.
Speaker 3 (18:23):
Hey, welcome back in Fox Sports Some Radio Jason Smith
Show with Me Mike Harmon. There is no Jason Smith tonight.
He has been exiled, replaced by Aaron Torres at Aaron Underscore.
Speaker 5 (18:34):
Torres.
Speaker 3 (18:34):
You hear him Saturday nights alongside Jason Martin as they
break it all down as he's starting to gear up
for college football, boning up on all those depth charts
and the hundreds of guys that have changed teams thousands,
but wow, hundreds of guys that you'll talk about.
Speaker 4 (18:50):
I was gonna say, yeah, the ones that actually matter
are fewer and further between than people realized.
Speaker 3 (18:54):
No, that is true. We went through a little bit
of the quarterback carousel last night Anthony Gargano and I
will do a little more of that as we roll
on tonight. But now we go to the hotline, bring
out our weekly contributor guests gives us the gift of
his time, insights, intellect wit. He's a pro football Hall
(19:15):
of Fame voter, longtime scribe and pundit. He's the author
of many books that you can buy at bookstores across
this great land and online. It's Jason Cole at Jason
Cole sixty two where you find him in the Twitter verse. Man,
that's a Hall of Fame introduction right there.
Speaker 6 (19:32):
How you doing buddy that I'm I'm fantastic. You've sat
by just saying that, by says saying the work intellect
with me. Along with La Grange, we have put the
combination of expectation on my shoulders well fully and I
hope to fulfill it.
Speaker 3 (19:52):
Let's go at lets, what do you got for me?
Nicely done? How great did he look?
Speaker 6 (19:58):
Great?
Speaker 3 (19:58):
How great was that game?
Speaker 6 (20:00):
Straight into the Hall of Fame? Just you know, just
go straight to the ceremony. You know I quoted, don't pass,
you don't have to pass, go you just go straight
to the ceremony.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
Now, I quoted the American President to start yesterday's show.
You know they you know where you're drinking the sand.
It's like, no, they don't know the difference, like, hey,
it's football, man, let's go. I just wanted to see
some excitement, and I got a game that went to
the final play for crying out loud, and.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
It was by by exhibition or preseason standard. So as
I'd like to say, uh, I'm bad, not bad. There
was some interesting stuff. You know, I give us more
credit when when the quarterbacks are decent, that makes that
game more interesting. I remember watching one of those Hall
of Fame games and Andrew Walter was trying like his best,
(20:50):
Wow Andrew to make one last go with the Raiders,
and he threw a screen pass and it's where to
god you could have clocked that with hang time. It
was like he punted the screen pass and I was like,
there might be six defenders who take a shot and
intercepting that pass. Yes, it was good Carson Beck. Yeah,
(21:15):
maybe he actually becomes what everybody expected he was going
to be. I got my doubts, but for one night,
we can dream big. And Carson Beck gave Cardinal fans
a reason to dream big, if that makes sense. And
because Jakoby Brissette ain't the long term answer, let's put
(21:38):
it that way, all right.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Well, I actually want to ask you about a former
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, What is there anything to make
out of Minnesota?
Speaker 5 (21:49):
It's clear to me, or maybe it shouldn't be.
Speaker 4 (21:51):
I don't know, but it feels to me like O'Connell
just does not care for JJ McCarthy. Is Kyler Murray
gonna get that Week one start for the Vikings?
Speaker 6 (22:01):
Good think? So? I mean they've been telegraphed, telegraphing this
since the middle of last season. They're just sort of
done with McCarthy and that they realized they made a mistake,
and you know that bait move on, which is the
best thing to do if you if you know you
made a mistake, just go. I don't think they're quite
(22:21):
there yet with McCarthy, and there's still some hope from
some people in that organization that is going to all
come together. All of that being said, look, Tyler Murray,
I mean that's another band aid. I mean, what what's
Kyler Murray really got.
Speaker 9 (22:37):
At this point?
Speaker 6 (22:38):
I mean he he was exposed as not having much
of a work ethic, you know, by the team as
much as by his own play right, Like the team
you know, basically said you're not working hard enough. When
they gave him the big contract, right, and then his
play confirmed that on the field. And add on to
that that when you're a you know, when you're a
(23:00):
tiny little quarterback and I will avoid the M word
to keep people from getting on my case, but you know,
when you're a tiny quarterback and then you don't move
as well as you once did, you got real problems.
And yeah, like all of his liabilities you get exposed.
(23:24):
So like he's not a long term answer either. And
then it's start just going to take advantage of the
Justin Jefferson era. They're going to have to find a
different solution. This season is just sort of a waystation
until they get to that next solution.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
The cannibalization there in the NFC North. I mean, if
you could give me five thousand words on the separation.
Speaker 6 (23:48):
There's no one ever reads five thousand words. They can
barely get to five hundred.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
I'm trying to get you another book, Great Mascots in
NFL History, and there's the chapter on ragnar but you
just killed it.
Speaker 6 (24:01):
Sorry, I apologize, trying to get you another book. I
need to have another beer to go along with this.
I'm okay, par tonight I'm at a I'm at a
writer's show, so uh, I'm a couple of beers in
you guys.
Speaker 3 (24:15):
Just remember dim you do Bill solid Air dyte analysis,
no question, Hey.
Speaker 6 (24:20):
We were talking diminutive is more like Kyler Murray. Yeah,
that d is definitely me.
Speaker 3 (24:26):
No, that's it. That's what I was saying. I was
giving you the word for earlier. Uh to keep it,
you know, highbrow and then move on to there. All right,
let's go. You mentioned Andrew Walters, and let's get back
to the Raiders. Aaron and I started today because we
had a scuffle between Captain Kirk Cousins and Max Crosby.
I want to see that's.
Speaker 6 (24:43):
Funny it was. Does that sound like? That was two
older guys saying, hey, let's uh, let's liven things up
today and get things started.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
A little bit. Let's put on a show. I like that.
Speaker 6 (24:54):
Let's put our little show for the younger guys, you know,
get a little intensity, talk a little trash, and then
they go back in the locker room afterwards and laugh
between the two of them. That's what That's what it
sounds like, because what is Kirk Cousins really going to
do to Max Crosby, but like, what's he really gonna do? Like,
let's get serious. This is not like Steve Smith, you know,
(25:18):
you know, going after camp, going after Cam Newton, Like
that's not what this is. This is Kirk Cousins and
Max Crosby, And who's Kirk kidding? Like like, let's let's
get serious. Like like Max Crosby is one of those
guys that if you really let him up and got
him angry, he would go completely He go completely ape
(25:41):
on you. There's no question about it that he would
just go relentless. And Kirk's not ready for that. No,
he's not. I mean, you know you can say, did
you like that all you want? That's not gonna work.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
No, It's kind of funny, but you know, Jake Cole,
I had a couple of books that were published way
back in the day on the Fantasy Football World and
one was like a season preview And when they asked
me who I wanted for the cover and they're like, oh,
you know this I got. I want Steve Smith, and
I fought for Steve Smith.
Speaker 6 (26:12):
Steve Smith is so great, Steve Smith. I love Steve
smith Man. Steve Smith. I got a couple of good
stories I can't repeat on this show about Steve Smith.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
We'll have that over a beer super Bowl weekend.
Speaker 6 (26:24):
Yeah, we will have that. But one time, like after
a game against the Bears, and he was going up
against some corner that he just couldn't he couldn't handle
him at all, and he just let that guy up.
I just said, man, you you like taking advantage of somebody.
It was easy, he goes. Man. If my mom was
on the other side, I would tell her I got
to burn you too, man, Like that's the way it goes.
(26:47):
He he has no holds bar. I love Steve Smith.
He's a guy who should be in the Hall of Fame,
certainly over a guy like Drew Pearson. We'll just put
it that way.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
I just wow. Look see I told you, hey, I
told you toys rabbit Hole.
Speaker 6 (27:02):
Do it oligatory sideswipe at the Cowboys. I went there.
I went there. I did it intentionally. I did it.
I had to. You asked me to name the five
cowboys that have to be kicked out of the Hall
of Fames. Didn't quite go there, but Drew Pearson number
one on my list. I got to tell you.
Speaker 4 (27:17):
That I always thought emittt Smith was more of an
Arizona cardinal than a Dallas cowboy. I was surprised, you know,
that he went into the manner that he did, so wow,
a lot of Arizona Cardinals. Yeah, no, it is a
lot of Cardinals sock today. Our Phoenix affiliate must be
thrilled right now, real quick. I actually did have a
semi serious question, you know, Mike asked about the Raiders
(27:37):
and everything that happened in camp today. Are you surprised
at all that they seem comfortable starting the year with
Mendoza on the bench. And I gave Mike this take earlier,
but I'm happy. I'm old school. I say, don't rush
these guys that you're, you know, hoping to one day
build a franchise around. It just doesn't happen anymore. And
I'm surprised that they seem to be willing to do it.
Speaker 6 (28:00):
Oh, I don't think they want it. Let's just put
this way. Raiders fans have a tendency to go off
the deep end just because they're Raiders fans. They think that,
you know, like, oh, we got him as an ambrem pick,
this means that we're going to be a super Bowl
(28:20):
contender right away. It's like, you can't. I'm not sure
you can get out of your division yet. Okay, we
got too much in that division to get in the way,
you know, between Kansas, Ay Denver the Chargers, Like this
is a climb. So you know, he's the burden on
the kid. Let him take a little time. I understand
(28:41):
the people who say, why are we wasting our time?
I'm not sure if they're that great a protection just yet.
So let cousins take a few lumps. Let Mondoza, you know,
do a little bit of learning. It's okay. But I
also wouldn't wait much past halfway through the season, Like
I would say, my goal is he's got to be
are in the second half of the season because they
(29:02):
do have weapons, you know, and that's barring all sorts
of other things that might come up. But if he's
not ready by the middle of season, I'm sort of
wondering because this is a pretty advanced kid in terms
of experience and knowledge and also intellect. I mean, he's
a really bright kid. I just kind of think, like, Okay,
(29:24):
let's move, let's get there. Otherwise, if that's not the case,
you kind of wonder, like is my My analysis him
before the draft was he reminds me of Kirk Cousins.
So is he the next coming of Kirk Cousins? And
you hope that's not true because Kirk was what a
sixth round pick or you know, like, that's not what
you want our fourth round picks? Yeah, fourth round er. Yeah,
(29:47):
I mean, like that's not what you want to your
number one guy. Your number one guy's got to be
you know, magical and be able to put a team
on his back and carry it. But we're gonna see
on this one. But I don't mind them waiting. I
mean what Carson Tomer waited an entire year in Cincinnati
and had a heck of a career. You can you
(30:08):
can do it that way, Tom Brady, you know, waiting
an entire year before he got out there. Of course,
you know he's famously a six round pick. But you
can do that and it'll work out, Okay.
Speaker 3 (30:19):
All right, Jacob first Off twelve catches to eighteen and
two touchdowns against the Bears of the divisional round. I'm
watching the highlights right now and I may crist Yeah.
Speaker 6 (30:29):
Yeah, you know, in Chicago, Yeah, in Chicago. Yeah, that
was that was natural.
Speaker 3 (30:35):
All the headlines say torches bears, so it gets let out.
Speaker 6 (30:40):
I can't remember who the I can't remember who the
corner was, but it was somebody who's actually having some
name value.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Well I got him running past Peanut tilman on at
least one of them.
Speaker 6 (30:49):
Yeah, but it wasn't Peanut, because he wouldn't disrespect Peanuts
that way.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
No, not quite that way.
Speaker 6 (30:54):
It was it was somebody. It was a guy on
the other side. Yeah. Well, yeah, he was faster than Peanuts.
I mean, so that's a bad matchup for Peanut if
he can't if he can't get a hold of him
in the first ten yards. But that's how he wouldn't disrepect.
Speaker 3 (31:10):
Yeah, I'll go back down the rabbit hole and ferret
that out a little bit more as I blow up
the uh the video there.
Speaker 6 (31:17):
Actually, Stein's for an example of the guy who you
know might not get in the Hall of Fame because
of the new rules. And I think he's he's the
kind of guy I think is a Hall of Fame player,
but he's kind of stuck in this rotation of guys
you know behind we can get, you know, we can't
get Tory Holton reggu Wayne in and therefore we can't
get Steve Smith in the room. And then we get
all these other receivers who are you know, look they're better.
(31:39):
You know, you get a guy like Calvin Johnson out there,
he's better than Steve Smith. Andre Johnson, it was better
than Steve Smith this year. Larry Fitzgerald's going in this year.
He was better than Steve. But these other receivers who
have really great resumes in some great moments are going
to get stuck. Like there's no way Tory Holt or
reggu Wayne's getting in this year for the twenty twenty
(32:00):
seven class. Because you've got Bronkowski, Adrian Peterson, Ben Roethlisberger,
and Richard Sherman coming up as first year as first
year eligible guys, those guys might swallow up three to
four spots.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
See that's the curiosity. I was going to take you
to your list that you put up. We got about
a minute left where you put up And this is
on Twitter at Jason Coles sixty two. Right, these quarterbacks
for Hall of Fame consideration include yes, no final evaluation.
I retweeted it at Swollen Dome. I'd love for you
all to give Jason a little bit of stuff on
this one. Cam Newton, Eli Manning, Donod, mcdab rivers, the
(32:38):
aforementioned Roethlisberger, Russell Wilson, Matt Ryan, and Steve McNair, and
any good responses to that thus far in your timeline,
keep it clean for air.
Speaker 6 (32:48):
It's pretty varied, and if you look at all of them,
they have some cases. The reason I came up with
is Luke Keickley talked about Cam Newton going to the
Hall of Fame, and I started thinking about these other guys,
and I'm like, and this is not includingly guys are
obvious who are out there, like Stafford and Mahomes, Brady's
coming up soon. You've got Aaron Rodgers going to come
up in four or five years. Philip Rivers. Philip Rivers
(33:11):
is an example. In next second group, next gript down,
Cam Newton's in this next next gript down. I think
there's a lot of really good name quarterbacks who have
no shot ever getting into the Hall of Fame. And
this is going to be like Russell Wilson's going to
have a hard time. Eli Mayng already has a hard time.
Ben Roethlisberger, I think gets in, but I'm not sure
(33:33):
he could he get in this year. Yeahcause you've got Gronkowski, Peterson,
and Sherman, along with some other guys who are returning,
like Marshall, Yanda, and we talked about the two wide receivers,
Willie Anderson, guys like that. It's going to be really
hard to get some of these guys in the Hall
of Fame.
Speaker 3 (33:47):
Yeah, Jake Cole, I think what we're going to have
to do is buy a big three D printer and
make our own bus and our own Hall of Fame.
I appreciate you well.
Speaker 6 (33:56):
I'm sure Smith would want to do that, Yeah, because
Smith believe that not much paper with that take though.
For Smith, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
We'll figure it out. I mean, we'll figure out the
cost benefit analysis.
Speaker 6 (34:06):
It could be several reams of paper. I could just
tell you that boxes, boxes.
Speaker 3 (34:11):
Boxes, boxes for days at Jason Call sixty two is
where you find him. Enjoy the enshrinement stuff in your
conference and whatever you're up to. You can go have
that third beer. Thanks for stopping down.
Speaker 6 (34:23):
No problem.
Speaker 3 (34:24):
He's the wizard. That's our guy. Jason Cole. Always fun conversation.
The Hall of Fame stuff. We can do with him
for hours, no question, Aaron. But coming up next, we're
going to talk about beer. Thanks Steve Desager, you are
the king running back, got paid, everybody got a free drink.
What's that about? We'll tell you next year on Fox.
Speaker 2 (34:42):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern seven
pm Pacific.
Speaker 7 (34:49):
Hey, it's Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington from The Odd
Couple on Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 8 (34:54):
And in addition to hearing us live weeknights from seven
to ten pm Eastern on Fox Sports Radio, we are
excited to announce brand new YouTube channel for the show.
Speaker 7 (35:04):
That's right, you can now watch The Odd Couple live
on YouTube every day.
Speaker 8 (35:09):
All you gotta do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube
again YouTube, just search Odd Couple FSR. Check us out
on YouTube and subscribe.
Speaker 3 (35:20):
Oh no, I mean not that you're playing Narco on
the road. Bad bad, bad things as a losing streak
hit seven for the Dodgers. Welcome back in, Mike Harmon,
Aaron Torres here The Jason Smith Show with me Mike
carmon Fox Sports Radio. As we're rolling on here, we
(35:43):
just add a big fly to end this game, Edwin
diaz On in relief and just over the yellow line
to the deepest part of the ball.
Speaker 4 (35:57):
I thought the Dodgers could never lose again because they
made one trade week ago.
Speaker 3 (36:00):
No no, no, no, no, that was when Kyle Tucker showed up.
Speaker 5 (36:03):
Okay, okay, so you're.
Speaker 3 (36:05):
Already lied to all those months ago, and now once
schoobl showed up, I mean, it was supposed to be
everybody just laid down their bats instead another loss, and.
Speaker 4 (36:16):
He laid down his helmet for the dogpile after the walkoff.
Speaker 3 (36:21):
Yeah, yeah, no crazy. So it's it's a final. So
we're we're going to effort here, Todd Furman here in
just a second. I did get a little bit on
the updated odds post Schooble and the chaos major League Baseball.
We had the Hall of Fame game last night. We'll
talk here from the Lafleur, No, not Peter LeFleur and Dodgeball,
(36:42):
but the Cardinals coach on his rookie quarterback and expectations
there as we look forward to the big NFL season
and getting into the preseason games in earnest. I've found
it funny that we're August seventh, and one of the
headlines on my timeline this morning, Aaron, was that the
(37:05):
Rams were having their last padded practice. Wow.
Speaker 5 (37:08):
I didn't even see it is seventh.
Speaker 3 (37:10):
What are we doing, do you?
Speaker 6 (37:12):
So?
Speaker 4 (37:13):
You know we're talking about the Dodgers being this overwhelming favorite.
Speaker 6 (37:15):
Huh.
Speaker 4 (37:16):
I get why in Vegas the Rams are the favorite
plus five point fifty baby. I also think in their division,
a team that went fourteen to three in the regular season,
their three losses by a combined nine points, and they
largely dominated the playoffs with the exception of a game
(37:38):
against the Rams. So I understand why the Rams are favorites.
I'm not saying they shouldn't be favored.
Speaker 10 (37:43):
It does feel crazy, like we remember that the Seahawks
won the Super Bowl and kicked you know what and
took names in said Super Bowl against the Patriots.
Speaker 5 (37:54):
Right, we all remember that was a thing that happened.
Speaker 3 (37:58):
Yeah, has performed is not indicative of future results.
Speaker 5 (38:01):
Okay, I understand what I would also say.
Speaker 6 (38:04):
You have.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
I just went to the end of every financial ad
that you here.
Speaker 4 (38:08):
Okay, cool, So then we can't in that case that
we can't preview anything ever, because we just we we
we are waiting on the present performance in the present moment.
My my point is, it's not like it was last
chance you here and whatever.
Speaker 5 (38:25):
Like I'm talking about a.
Speaker 4 (38:27):
Team that has a coach under forty, a quarterback who's
right in his prime, young players all over that ross.
I just I'm not saying the Rams should it be favorites.
Speaker 5 (38:37):
I just I don't. I don't even know what I'm saying. Well,
let's talk to our next games.
Speaker 3 (38:41):
Just the mic as we're talking odds and ends, let's
go out to Las Vegas. It's our guy. Todd Furman
joins us each and every week giving us a look
see at the marketplace, and Todd, as you heard it.
My guy Aaron Torres getting a little worked up. Uh,
he's backing Sam Darnold for a repeat perform. Mormans, what
say you?
Speaker 9 (39:01):
Well, I'll pick up Bert Torres left off. The Rams
should be favorites, and they are rightfully so, atop the
odds board, one of the only teams in single digits.
But to Aaron's point, I'm not sure they're worthy of
a bet at this juncture of the season. So many
things have to go right in the national Football League,
and you do have an aging quarterback. We know they
check a lot of boxes on the defensive side. They're
gonna need some weapons to emerge offensively. So I think
(39:23):
you can find a lot better ways to attack the
NFL futures market than betting the Rams at a price
tag right around five and a half to one before
we even see what team is going to take the
field for their opener in Melbourne, Australia, down on September.
Speaker 3 (39:36):
Tenth, So todd since we looked for action and opportunity
in the marketplace everywhere we go, how many people were
lined up? I had a kickoff for the Hall of
Fame game.
Speaker 9 (39:46):
I mean, look, people have been craving football since the
Lombardi Trophy was handed out. Now, granted, the World Cup
gave them a little bit of a reprie from a
betting standpoint, and some of the regulated sports books coast
to coast did record handle given that they had that
event played on US soil. But the NFL is always king,
and while the betting volume for Arizona in Carolina in
(40:06):
the Hall of Fame game won't rival what we see
when they start playing for real, it does better betting
a volume than any of the Major League Baseball games
that are on the schedule, and people do everything they
can and then some when they have a full slate
of NFL action next Thursday, Friday and Saturday for Week
one of the preseason.
Speaker 4 (40:23):
So since NFL is king, let me just ask you,
is there something right now? And it doesn't have to
be a Super Bowl bet, but it could be a
division bet, it could be a playoff bet, it could
be an NFCFC championship bet.
Speaker 5 (40:35):
Whatever.
Speaker 4 (40:36):
Do you feel like there's a team, a player, a
side that is undervalued right now as we talk here
on August seventh.
Speaker 9 (40:42):
Two teams that I kind of like a little bit,
and I've bet them, not massive amounts by any stretch,
to win the Lombardi Trophy in the AFC, the Cincinnati
Bengals being one. And granted this means Joe Burrow will
maybe play two games before he misses about seven or
eight due to an unforeseen injury. And I'm a buyer
in Houston, Texans, I know there's a lot of concerns
and reservations given the lasting image we saw C. J.
(41:05):
Stroud leading that offense directly into the ground in inclement weather.
At Jillette Stadium in the AFC playoffs last year. But
I think the defense provides a baseline giving them a
relatively high floor. And if CJ. Stroud can scratch the
surface of what we saw from him early on in
his career, with an underappreciated receiving core, slightly upgraded backfield,
and an offensive line that can't possibly get worse, I
(41:25):
think both of those teams are legitimate threats to get
out of the AFC and not getting nearly the same
buzz as teams that are priced a little bit shorter
in the form of the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, New
England Patriots, and of course everyone's favorite team that comes
up short in the postseason, justin Frostburg's Los Angeles Chargers.
Speaker 3 (41:41):
Yeah, that one seems to come up. And I saw
to Seger perk up as you know, you invoked Frostburg's
name and the Chargers, and I have no doubt he's
going to be texting me a bunch of gifts of
something profane here momentarily with that. But he's always everybody,
he's darling right waiting for that to come to fruition.
(42:03):
But last year, what we were down to tackles five, six,
and seven. And for Justin Herbert, as much as you
know folks absolve him, is he destined to be the
next iteration of Matthew Stafford Where it has to happen
somewhere else.
Speaker 9 (42:18):
I mean somewhere along the way. You're going to assume
that the Chargers will have a healthier lineup around Justin
Herbert to give him a puncher's chance in the highest
leverage games. You mentioned the offensive line injuries, and it's
going to be tough for any starting quarterback to play
the majority of the regular season without Rashawn Slater, without
Joe Wald and hope that the backups can step up admirably.
Speaker 2 (42:37):
But while the Chargers do.
Speaker 9 (42:39):
Get an upgraded offensive coordinator with Mike McDaniel, which I
think will make them a little bit more versatile on
the offensive side, it's still a team that has a
lot of questions that have to be answered in terms
of their overall weapons. Well, Marion Hampton is a nice
piece in the backfield, He's not elite, at least for me.
Maybe he'll prove me wrong in a sophomore season. Lad
McConkie a nice receiver, but I don't know if he's
necessarily a bona fide number one that you put in
(43:01):
the same breath as some of the alphas around the league.
And then when you go further down the roster you
look at Trey Harris, Quintin Johnson, Ronde Gaston. Again, nice pieces,
but I think the quarterback has to take a lot
more in the way of responsibility given that the weapons
aren't anywhere on the same level as some of the
elite teams around the league.
Speaker 4 (43:18):
Tod what do you make of the Chicago Bears great
season last year when the division we know all that
also a million fourth quarter comebacks with Caleb Williams not
being necessarily elite early in games, and Ben Johnson said,
we are the number one regression candidate. We're fighting it
every day. Just what do you make of them?
Speaker 5 (43:38):
Big picture?
Speaker 9 (43:39):
Kudos to Ben Johnson for basically mentioning the eight hundred
pound guerrilla in the room knowing that what they did
last year will not be sustainable if they hope to
snatch victory from the jaws of defeat after trailing for
the majority of the first fifty eight minutes of football
games more often than not. But I do think Aaron
that the Bears can be one of the most entertaining
teams in the NFL to watch this And the reason
(44:00):
I say that is because I anticipate that Caleb Williams
takes another step forward. They have weapons that are going
to torment some defensive coordinators and have all the capabilities
to be a top three offense. But on the flip side,
if you're looking for this group to remind you of
the nineteen eighty five version of the Chicago Bears defensively,
that couldn't be further from the truth. So you could
have a top three offense combined with a bottom three defense,
(44:22):
meaning they're going to find themselves in more shootouts where
they're going to need multiple score leads, or they're going
to find themselves holding on for dear life like they
did against the Cincinnati Bengals last year. And I think
Caleb Williams, no doubt has to take the next step
in his evolution, not just making those highlight reel plays
on high leverage downs and third and fourth, but making
the easy throws and seeing that completion percentage really tick
(44:43):
up into the mid sixties.
Speaker 3 (44:44):
Todd. One of my favorite audio clips of last week
was Liam Cohen being mad that he was disrespected, that
they weren't disrespected because it didn't get many bulletin board materials,
saying Olliekeepsian were pictures of Caleb Williams.
Speaker 9 (45:00):
I mean, look, Liam Cohne did more with less down
there in Jacksonville late in the season. I mean, they
were playing some of the best football down the stretch,
and clearly Trevor Lawrence benefited from having an adult in
the room that could coach him along and start to
scratch the service of the kind of potential we thought
he could bring to the table at Clemson. But I
also have some real reservations now that Liam Cohne has
put a lot of his best stuff on tape. Teams
(45:21):
are going to adjust, and I think defensively when I
look at this Jaguars team, they lost a couple of
key contributors and they didn't really make an effort of
free agency to kind of bolster the roster. I'm sure
they think they're going to get more out of Brian
Thomas Junior, who was a little bit of an afterthought
in the receiving room, didn't really run to try and
find a true number one running back. If they think
Mishal Touton out of Virginia Tech is going to be
(45:43):
that guy. But I'm a little bit of a seller
of the Jacksonville Jaguars this year. Not because I don't
think Liam Cone is an outstanding coach, but I just
don't love that overall roster mix on the offensive or
defensive side of the ball.
Speaker 4 (45:55):
Todd Senior reference a few times this summer. Can't believe
in my cf B prep, Indiana is our defending national
champions besides Indiana being an unbeatable juggernaut. What are some
early thoughts on the college football season ahead?
Speaker 9 (46:10):
Well, apparently you can put me in the same breath
as the new Ada. I won the national championship last year.
But I digress completely in terms of the college football playoff.
If we look at the ten thousand foot view of
the landscape, I don't see anybody really coming from off
to pace to surprise. You know, the Ohio States, Nerdames, Oregon, Texas,
(46:33):
Indiana's of the world, all the relative short shots at
prices of ten to one on the futures board. Now,
if we had this discussion last year, I probably wouldn't
have been advocating, and I sure really wasn't for Indiana
who was outside the top twenty five and a lot
of people's ratings at fifty to one or one hundred
to one or Fernando Mendoz at one hundred and fifty
to one. But in terms of the Heisman Trophy market,
(46:54):
the one bet I have made is on a quarterback
that I'm not sure is even going to be his
team starter going into the twenty twenty six season, and
that's down there in Tuscaloosa, where I think Kielan Russell
gives Alabama a little bit more upside at the position
than Austin Mack, who traveled with this coaching staff from
their time in Seattle. Russell's mobility in the pocket, if
Alabama is a little bit slow to jel on the
(47:16):
offensive line, gives them the kind of element they didn't
have a Ty Simpson and it was a ground game
that really got bogged down. I think Alabama defensively is
going to have some problems. It won't be a lockdown
unit like you grew accustomed to a Nick Saban, And
I think Kilan Russell at a price tag right around
thirty five to one, offers a little bit of value
in the heis and market given that most of the
alphas in the room, the arch Manning, CJ. Carrs, Darien
(47:37):
Mensis are all rightfully priced in that eight, nine, ten, eleven,
twelve range.
Speaker 3 (47:41):
All right. Lastly, let's circle to the wonderful world of
Major League Baseball where the Dodgers, I mean, everybody's supposed
to lay down their bats, just give up. After schools
showed up. They've now lost seven in a row. After
Diez gives up a game winning home run, the lights
flicker and Narco is nary area sound to be heard, Todd,
(48:02):
have we seen any money come in on Atlanta or
Milwaukee given this recent soft underbelly being exposed?
Speaker 9 (48:10):
I mean, I feel like we were at this very
same juncture at this time last year, harm where people
ready to hit the panic button on the Dodgers in
early August and oh maybe they're vulnerable. When we get
into the National League playoffs and the Dodgers reminded us
exactly who they were, I'll albeit doing it in a
slightly more difficult manner in winning in Game seven against
the Toronto Blue Jay. So, despite this recent run of
(48:31):
poor form, the Dodgers odds have not really drifted much
from where they were set to win the World Series
after the trade deadline, kind of plus one forty plus
one fifty. And you look at some of the other
teams that are bunched up behind them, the Yankees, the Brewers,
the Brads, and the Cubs, and a team that I
don't think any of us anticipated. We're going to be
priced around ten to one on August seventh, if we
had this discussion even two months ago. The Boston Red Sox,
(48:53):
who apparently are the greatest baseball team ever assembled and
are going to continue to win games at a record
and clip with one of the more improvable runs that
are tra Chad Tracy's tutelage for a group that look
destined to lose ninety plus games this season.
Speaker 4 (49:09):
Todd one last quick one for me. Back to college football.
You know you mentioned basically nobody coming off the board
to win a championship, quite like Indiana last year. Is
there anybody we know because of the schedules that probably
somebody that we're not anticipating is at least going to
make the playoff, probably out of one of the four
power conferences. Does anybody stand out to you as just
(49:30):
like a dark horse team to get that eight nine
ten spot in the college football playoff.
Speaker 9 (49:34):
Well, I'll share some of the teams that have been
the trendiest, at least in terms of group think. And
I'm never sure if this is a great thing or
it's something that teams are going to have to struggle
against the weight of expectations. One of them right in
your guys backyard, that of course, being USC who unfortunately
loses their starting center from a position group that wasn't
overly deep, and somewhere along the way it's put up
a shut up time for Lincoln Riley. You can only
(49:56):
make so many excuses about traveling east. They get some
very difficul games at home, but if they're going to
punch a ticket to the postseason, gonna have to beat
an Oregon or in Ohio State at the coliseum. If
not both should they lose some of their trickier road games.
And Penn State's another team where a schedule sets up
extremely well, and Matt Campbell's first year, they've been a
trendy pick to be bet. Over eight and a half wins,
(50:17):
we've seen their yes price to make the playoffs come
drifting down from six to one to three to one.
Do I think that that roster is one of the
better ones in the Big Ten. No, So it makes
it harder for me to buy in, even if the
schedule sets up well. Matt Campbell's always done a little
bit better when he doesn't have the weight of expectations,
and I'm very interested to see what his first trip
around the Big Ten looks like in Happy Valley. So
(50:38):
those are the two teams catching all a lot of
buzz in the Big Ten. And in terms of the SCC,
I think if you can find a team in that
second tier, and that's where you're going to look, whether
it's in Alabama and LSU and Old Miss or in Oklahoma,
if I had to pick from that group, I think
this sooner. So our team that's gonna have another top
five defense under bred venables. And we have to assume
that Josh Mattier is going to look more like the
quarterback we saw early last year and Impullman a couple
(51:00):
of seasons ago than the guy that limped to the
finish dealing with that broken thumb. He'll equipped to throw
anything more than worm burners to his receivers in space.
Speaker 3 (51:08):
He's a wizard joins us each and every week from
Las Vegas. You ask a question there, there's there's nothing
he can't answer. Very true, no question about it. At
Todd ferman Is where you find him, longtime friend of
the show, Todd's thanks for stopping by. I excited to
have football back on the sleigh buddy.
Speaker 9 (51:25):
Always a pleasure, gentlemen. Harm it might be trying to
press that panic button on the south side. The White
Sox start to take on water like the Titanic. My friend.
Speaker 3 (51:33):
Yeah, no, it's not good, my friend. I struggling, struggling tonight,
even though they look great in those uniforms. That's all
I got. Good boy, be good, have a good week.
At Todd Furman again where you find him all right.
Coming up next, we'll talk a little bit more. Rewind
to the Hall of Fame game, because you know, when
you play that well as a rookie quarterback and you
(51:54):
give a little bit of hope in the desert, see Tye.
And get back to that great American President quote from earlier.
We have to spotlight it because it's over reaction. Friday
here at Fox Sports Radio,
Thanks for listening to the best of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Carmon podcast. Be sure to catch us
live every weeknight from ten pm to two am Eastern
seven to eleven pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio. Find
your local station for The Jason Smith Show with Mike
Harmon at Fox Sports Radio dot com, or stream us
live every night on the iHeartRadio app by searching FSR.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
This is the best of the Jason Smith Show with
Mike Harmon on Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Thanks for listening to The Jason Smith Show with Mike
Harmon podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weeknight
ten pm to two am Eastern seven to eleven pm
Pacific on Fox Sports Radio. Find your local station for
The Jason Smith Show with Mike Harmon at Foxsports Radio
dot com, or stream us live every night on the
iHeartRadio app by searching FSR.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
You know, every time I come into the studio following
Rob Parker, I feel that much shorter because he's got
the what six or four frame long legs, so the
seed is high so he can be comfortable, and I
feel like I'm four years old and someone's gonna spin
me around so I can go Wi wi, And that's
how we start Fox Sports Trading on a Friday night,
(01:19):
Mike Carbon alongside Aaron Torres, No Jason Smith tonight out gallivanting.
I think south of the BORDERHATTERI lied to me. I
don't know either way. He's having himself some fun and
some time away. I and be back next week. I'll
be off for a couple of days as I get
ready to send my kid off to college. It's musical
chairs time here as we end the summer season. Because
(01:41):
last night we had the Hall of Fame Game, which
launches us fully into our NFL slate College Football Week zero,
just a couple of weeks away. You got ads getting chest,
the coaches talking out there. Hey, welcome in. It's a
Friday night. We appreciate you being with us. As I
said Eron Torres, you hear him Saturday nights alongside Jason
(02:03):
Martin here on the network. Good enough to come and
hang out with us for four hours here on a
beautiful Friday night. Aaron, good to see. It's been a
minute since you and I get to chop it up
plenty on the Sporting Radar today.
Speaker 4 (02:15):
I believe last time I was in with you was
during the NCAA tournament. It was many moons ago, so a.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Lot a long time ago. It's a lot's transpired.
Speaker 4 (02:23):
Yeah, Purdue Miami, I remember being a game on that
we had on here in the Fox Sports Radio studios.
So yeah, I've done a lot of shows since then.
You and Jason have done a ton plus your your
weekend stuff. So as always, it is a privilege to
be in this seat. And I'll tell you what, man,
doesn't feel like there's really been that lull in the
world of sports, and it's only gonna ramp up here
(02:45):
now that camps are open.
Speaker 5 (02:46):
We got fights breaking out.
Speaker 4 (02:48):
Which I know we're gonna break down here in half
a second. There's a lot to talk.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
But yeah, I mean, we had the glory of the
World Cup, all the chaos around it in tournament, and
then certainly in the PostScript of what happens next, let's
sell off portions of rights and let's have boycotts and
let's oust the president and all those kinds of things.
So we got plenty of that. In other words, another
(03:11):
day in him. But you mentioned the fight, and then
that's where we start. The fight in Las Vegas, Raiders.
We got two stories for them to both involving kirk Cousins.
For now, we'll keep it on the field and a
little bit of the chaos because you had a couple
of circumstances where Max Crosby, remember he was traded then
(03:32):
he came back, may still have some agitation and deciding
to take it out on the practice field as he
hit kirk Cousins twice during the team period of today's workouts,
and when he hit Cousin's arm the second time, kirk
Cousins had enough, got into his face, grabbed his jersey,
exchanging some words. Maybe, as we like to say, a
(03:54):
Vin Scully fertilizer found its way in there. Clint Kubiak said, well,
it's part of but you gotta be smart when those
situations occur. I'm like, yeah, clearly, but here you go
two leaders on our team going at it. Obviously fighting
in a game. You throw a punch in a game,
you're out, So you gotta be smart. It's like I
like that down playing of it. It's more so it's
(04:15):
your quarterback and it's your edge rusher. It's the two
most important guys you got going except for when you
do the two step to jenty in the backfield. You
gotta keep these guys up right and moving, especially as
we have the moving piece of Weather Cousins. Yeah, they're
long term ahead of Mendoza eventually becoming the guy mid season,
(04:35):
postseason whatever. I mean. I like the fire in the belly,
don't get me wrong, But Kirk Cousins fighting things I
never thought i'd see.
Speaker 4 (04:42):
By the way I was gonna say, Yeah, Kirk Cousins
might not necessarily be the second most important player in
that building depending on how this season plays out, or
he might actually end up being it, which might not
be a good thing, but.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
At least right now.
Speaker 4 (04:54):
Yes, no, And I'll tell you I had the exact
same thought that you did. Is I have been hosting
f Fox Sports Radio National Radio long enough to have
done the let's not overreact to a training camp fight segment.
This is my eighth year at Fox Sports Radio, so
I have done it for eight consecutive summers. With that said,
(05:14):
I do think it's a little bit different when you're
your best defensive player is going after the starting quarterback,
and I think there is a fine line of you
don't want to take away from Max Crosby what makes
him Max Crosby, while also acknowledging that if you have
any chance to be even like a little bit half decent,
we probably don't want to kill And I'm using that metaphorically.
(05:37):
We don't want to injure is probably the better way
to put it.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
There.
Speaker 4 (05:40):
You go the projected at least four right now, week
one starter and we know he might not be the
week one starter by or he might.
Speaker 5 (05:46):
Not be the starter by week two, week three, week four,
week five, but.
Speaker 4 (05:49):
Probably not the move you want to make if you're
Max Crosby. And again I understand you don't want to
take the edge that makes him the great player that
he is.
Speaker 5 (05:58):
Maybe you pick on some one of your own size,
Max Crust.
Speaker 3 (06:01):
Yeah, it's just the curiosity as you're in and I
get it, the old, the old rule of thumb of
they need to hit somebody else. We're not that far
into camp. Yes, we don't do two days anymore. You're
not out there grinding away the way you did many
years ago. Like I remember, you know, doing training camp
tours twenty years ago when I first started doing some
(06:24):
media stuff, and you'd have the eight am session and
then in the middle of a one hundred degrees scorching
heat in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. They're back out there. Guess what,
within ten minutes, they're trying to beat the hell out
of each other because one of them has decided, if
we do this, we can get ourselves kicked out, sure,
and we can finish our day at The coaches were
(06:45):
smarter than that. There was no early exits, probably just
a couple extra sprints and maybe a little extended period there.
But the fact that you know there's multiple reports of Hey,
before camp Crosby was warned about this, Hey, let's not
let's have repeats of the past, going back to his
college days, he laughed and said, well, I used to
(07:06):
get kicked out of practice all the time. That's fine,
and I like the fire in the belly because right
even last night, and I know a lot of the
talk we were talking with Danny g Wright, working with
Cavino and Rich and the overreaction and I use that
in quotes because that's all we got right now. Sure, right,
what we have to evaluate is here's some notes from practice,
(07:26):
here's some Subruta film. Maybe you're one of the people
that watched Hard Knocks of the Seattle Seahawks. I saw
a billboard down the street. I'm like, oh yeah, I
forgot about that.
Speaker 4 (07:36):
Okay, so I'm not the only one I knew what happened.
I just haven't carved out the time.
Speaker 6 (07:40):
No.
Speaker 3 (07:40):
I saw a couple of clips and we played a
Sam Darnolton because he was reacting to the Lebron James news. Okay,
so it was germane to the conversation we were having,
so we grabbed that. But otherwise, hard knocks. I mean,
as soon as DJ Moore and his family, the most
exciting thing was them going to an ice cream museum
when the Bears were there, and the word was that
everybody in Hell Hall didn't want any cursing because they
(08:02):
wanted the Bears to look prim and proper. As soon
as those are the two big notes coming out of
that camp. Ben Johnson not doing very well on that
no swearing policy. No, no, not at all. And so
you know, f.
Speaker 5 (08:13):
The packers apply to that policy.
Speaker 3 (08:16):
After no, no, no, that that one's exempted.
Speaker 5 (08:18):
That's what I say.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
I think you could say that as many times.
Speaker 4 (08:21):
As you want, especially when you beat them, but yees
can tell.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
But that's the thing. If you if you take away
some of that ownership that Aaron Rodgers used to talk
back away from the Packers, that it works. But it's
fun when we've got something that that pops out right,
Because this isn't a makeup, made up story. This is
activity and hyperactivity in a camp for a team that's
(08:44):
projected wind total is five and a half. Right, It's
like going back to last night and the Carson back
stuff talking about overreactionally. Okay, you're trying to sell hope, right,
That's what training camp and this new new season is.
By week four, you're gonna know how bad you are.
But for the moment, if you got a quarterback that
looks like he could be your guy, cool and the
(09:05):
Raiders with Kirk Cousins. Whatever you feel about Kirk Cousins
late in the season, postseason whatever, the guy's had a
pretty damn good career. When it's all said and done
and you're looking to take that next step that A
to B with a new coach, a new attitude, some
better players. Now, the offensive line is still the giant
question mark to all of it, but you've got some
(09:26):
solid skill position players. You obviously have your key defensive
player back on the d line for as long as
he's there, and Kirk Cousins is at least as we
we expect it, at least at this point from what
they're selling that he's starting your season, which means let's
(09:47):
at least get to opening day before we implode.
Speaker 4 (09:50):
Let me ask you this, what is your stance on
You have the number one pick, You stink forever to
get the quarter that gives your franchise hope, and then
you're not gonna run him out there. Potentially we don't
know yet for sure, but it looks like Kirk Cousins
will start the season as your starting quarterback.
Speaker 5 (10:11):
Do you care? Is it a big deal, a little deal,
no deal to you?
Speaker 3 (10:14):
To me, it's no deal. I don't worry about the
running clock of the rookie contracts like everybody else, Like,
all right, you paid him, he's your guy. When he
gets on that field, you want to make sure you're
putting him in as best a situation as you can,
because if he's terrible and you look around going well,
it's clear that we still had three of our five
(10:35):
offensive line guys were subpar. We weren't fully rounded out
at wide receiver. He didn't necessarily grasp the game quite
so well are we putting him in the best position
to succeed? And with history's littered with quarterbacks, including with
the Raiders that have never really been in that spot.
Look a guy, I mean we mentioned the Seahawks and
(10:55):
Sam Darnold. All right, he's a jet, he bounces around,
gets some better training, some better ground, and then now
he's a super Bowl champion. Now it's a convergence of circumstance,
roster building, whatever, and eventually you got to see what
Mendoza is. But one of the reasons you would bring
in a guy like Kirk Cousins is as a mentor,
(11:16):
a guy who recognizes where he's at. He's not ready
to give it up just yet, but recognizes that Mendoz
is coming. So why not lean into his history his knowledge.
And if Mendoza is ready and you feel he's ready,
and you got Brady there, who was behind Bledsoe, and
then he's been around long enough to see the land
(11:39):
mines from all these and look at his own division
for all those years, look at how many times they
reset in Miami and with the Jets, and you know,
just going on down the line that you're like, Okay,
I've watched these guys be forced into situations before they
were ready. Let's not do that here. So I'm of
the old school camp. I'm also the three yards and
(12:00):
a cloud of dust guys. Sure, running backs getting paid
brings a little tier. There you go, But I don't
think he forged it. What do you think?
Speaker 4 (12:07):
No, I I think I've pivoted the deeper that I've
gotten into this thought experiment because I was one forever
I didn't think you should rush guys, and then it
was actually it was ironic. I was working with I
don't believe he works here anymore. He may on the
weekend sometimes, Bucky Brooks, who's.
Speaker 3 (12:23):
Yes, still Sunday morning, still getting.
Speaker 4 (12:26):
Early early more so he's like on four hours after
I that's right. Yeah, So I'm rarely up to hear
he got that Bernie Bridge in that, Yes, the the
Bernie Frattlebridge Craig. So no, I and I remember Bucky
really selling me on that clock is ticking with the
rookie quarterback. And so I kind of pivoted. I was
old school of give him as much time as you want,
(12:47):
or as much time as you think he needs. I
was of the belief that what did you lose all
those games for other than to get into position to
take this guy. But the more I talk to Raiders fans,
we did see Danny G in the hallways, it's not
Danny G. The more that they don't seem upset by
the possibility of not seeing Fernando Mendoza week one.
Speaker 5 (13:06):
And so if.
Speaker 4 (13:07):
Raiders fans are okay, if they say, hey, we've seen
a lot of losses the last twenty five years. If
we have to see four or five more before we
get to Mendoza and he's ready, to your point, it's
not the worst thing.
Speaker 5 (13:21):
I just think it's very.
Speaker 4 (13:22):
Interesting because very rarely do we get these circumstances, especially
with young quarterbacks that are drafted this high. I'll be
really quick and I'll toss it back to you, but
what do we have six quarterbacks go in the top
eleven or twelve A couple years ago, they all played
Week one except for Pennix, who I believe there was
that whole situation ironically with Kirk coutterins, yes, but all
(13:44):
the other ones played, So that to me is just
it's just interesting that the Raiders are willing to take
this approach, and I don't hate it, especially now that
I'm talking to more and more Raiders fans as we
get closer to the season. I'm just surprised given recent history,
everyone feeling the need to play rookie quarterbacks right away.
Speaker 3 (14:02):
Yeah, just the old the contract clock thing to me
is just it's a it's not a terrible argument, but
it's it's lesser for me because of all, right, is
the player ready? But is your team ready? Because if
I'm gonna put him in and he's gonna fail, and look,
I've always been a believer of if it's gonna ruin
(14:22):
his confidence, I'm not worried about the confidence. It's the
worried about physically development and development and whatever. Right do
you get into really bad habits because it's that you're
not ready and whatever else. But it's it's just that
idea of going into uh, what's presumably a lost year,
Like again, five and a half is your win total
(14:43):
in a very difficult division, no doubt. So you're looking
for growth. So I understand the logic of what what
do we got to lose? But if it's now proven
that he's not your guy, now it's it's all bets
are off and we're back to the drawing board. True anyway,
so I could see both sides of it. But you
(15:04):
brought in Kirk Cousins. So at this point, why would
you not give Mendoza every opportunity to prove he's learned
whatever behind the scenes you need to put him in
the best position to succeed.
Speaker 5 (15:16):
Yeah, and I guess I would.
Speaker 4 (15:17):
I guess I would just put a bow on it
by saying Kirk Cousins at his age and frankly with
his injury history as well, but mostly with his age, like,
he's not a threat to be so good that you
like won't like. There probably aren't a ton of examples,
but I'm sure there are some examples of you play
the older guy, he ends up being better than you think.
(15:37):
Then it's hard to make that transition. I don't think
kirk cousins body will physically hold up over seventeen games,
you know, knock on wood. I hope I'm wrong. I'm
not rooting for injury, but bigger picture, he's probably not
the guy that's gonna stunt Mendoza's growth too long by
being too good where you can eventually turn it over.
Speaker 3 (15:55):
Yeah, I mean, the only other recent example of the
we drafted a guy in the first it goes back
to the wonderful world in Green Bay. I was a
big believer of eventually you've got to have a succession plan. Yeah,
so when they drafted Jordan Love and everybody was upset
about it, going wanted to do this that the other. Eventually,
father time comes. Aaron Rodgers kept doing the I'm gonna retire,
(16:16):
I'm not with lo and behold here he is still
quarterbacking in twenty twenty six. But you had a year
where when he got hurt you had to go to
Brent Huntley. I'm sorry that Brent Huntley has to take
the incoming once again, but you had no succession plan
and readiness, and you got two MVPs out of Aaron
Rodgers before it was all said and done. In this case,
(16:37):
you're not looking at that. For Kirk, it's just the
easier bridge. Can he give you a chance to win
a couple of games and show where potential weaknesses are.
Obviously far more mobile is Mendoza, and it's even more exacerbated.
I don't know if you've seen the video of Captain
Kirk try to do a couple of sprints. It's making
me feel spry. Aaron Underscore Tours. Where you find him
(17:02):
in the Twitter verse Find me over at Swollen Dome. Reminder,
if you miss any of today's show, catch the podcast
search Jason Smith Mike Harmon wherever you get your podcasts.
Also you can add Torres t o double Ries followed
the podcast rated five stars. Provide that review against Search
Jason Smith Mike Harmon wherever you get your podcasts, you'll
find today's full show and a best of version posted
(17:23):
right after we get off the air. Coming up next,
we turn our attention to Major League Baseball. Era was
on air when the Tarrek Schooble trade went down. He
did an interview and might have folks scratching their heads
out of this one. We'll talk about it next here
on Fox Sports Radio wie wie.
Speaker 2 (17:42):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike Harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern, seven
pm Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 7 (17:53):
Hey, It's Rob Parker and Calvin Washington from The Odd
Couple on Fox Sports.
Speaker 8 (17:56):
Radio and in addition to hearing us live week nights,
having a ten pm Eastern on Fox Sports Radio. We
are excited to announce brand new YouTube channel for the show.
Speaker 5 (18:07):
That's right.
Speaker 7 (18:08):
You can now watch the Odd Couple live on YouTube
every day.
Speaker 8 (18:13):
All you gotta do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube
again YouTube, Just search Odd Couple FSR. Check us out
on YouTube and subscribe.
Speaker 3 (18:23):
Hey, welcome back in Fox Sports Some Radio Jason Smith
Show with Me Mike Harmon. There is no Jason Smith tonight.
He has been exiled, replaced by Aaron Torres at Aaron Underscore.
Speaker 5 (18:34):
Torres.
Speaker 3 (18:34):
You hear him Saturday nights alongside Jason Martin as they
break it all down as he's starting to gear up
for college football, boning up on all those depth charts
and the hundreds of guys that have changed teams thousands,
but wow, hundreds of guys that you'll talk about.
Speaker 4 (18:50):
I was gonna say, yeah, the ones that actually matter
are fewer and further between than people realized.
Speaker 3 (18:54):
No, that is true. We went through a little bit
of the quarterback carousel last night Anthony Gargano and I
will do a little more of that as we roll
on tonight. But now we go to the hotline, bring
out our weekly contributor guests gives us the gift of
his time, insights, intellect wit. He's a pro football Hall
(19:15):
of Fame voter, longtime scribe and pundit. He's the author
of many books that you can buy at bookstores across
this great land and online. It's Jason Cole at Jason
Cole sixty two where you find him in the Twitter verse. Man,
that's a Hall of Fame introduction right there.
Speaker 6 (19:32):
How you doing buddy that I'm I'm fantastic. You've sat
by just saying that, by says saying the work intellect
with me. Along with La Grange, we have put the
combination of expectation on my shoulders well fully and I
hope to fulfill it.
Speaker 3 (19:52):
Let's go at lets, what do you got for me?
Nicely done? How great did he look?
Speaker 6 (19:58):
Great?
Speaker 3 (19:58):
How great was that game?
Speaker 6 (20:00):
Straight into the Hall of Fame? Just you know, just
go straight to the ceremony. You know I quoted, don't pass,
you don't have to pass, go you just go straight
to the ceremony.
Speaker 3 (20:09):
Now, I quoted the American President to start yesterday's show.
You know they you know where you're drinking the sand.
It's like, no, they don't know the difference, like, hey,
it's football, man, let's go. I just wanted to see
some excitement, and I got a game that went to
the final play for crying out loud, and.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
It was by by exhibition or preseason standard. So as
I'd like to say, uh, I'm bad, not bad. There
was some interesting stuff. You know, I give us more
credit when when the quarterbacks are decent, that makes that
game more interesting. I remember watching one of those Hall
of Fame games and Andrew Walter was trying like his best,
(20:50):
Wow Andrew to make one last go with the Raiders,
and he threw a screen pass and it's where to
god you could have clocked that with hang time. It
was like he punted the screen pass and I was like,
there might be six defenders who take a shot and
intercepting that pass. Yes, it was good Carson Beck. Yeah,
(21:15):
maybe he actually becomes what everybody expected he was going
to be. I got my doubts, but for one night,
we can dream big. And Carson Beck gave Cardinal fans
a reason to dream big, if that makes sense. And
because Jakoby Brissette ain't the long term answer, let's put
(21:38):
it that way, all right.
Speaker 4 (21:40):
Well, I actually want to ask you about a former
Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, What is there anything to make
out of Minnesota?
Speaker 5 (21:49):
It's clear to me, or maybe it shouldn't be.
Speaker 4 (21:51):
I don't know, but it feels to me like O'Connell
just does not care for JJ McCarthy. Is Kyler Murray
gonna get that Week one start for the Vikings?
Speaker 6 (22:01):
Good think? So? I mean they've been telegraphed, telegraphing this
since the middle of last season. They're just sort of
done with McCarthy and that they realized they made a mistake,
and you know that bait move on, which is the
best thing to do if you if you know you
made a mistake, just go. I don't think they're quite
(22:21):
there yet with McCarthy, and there's still some hope from
some people in that organization that is going to all
come together. All of that being said, look, Tyler Murray,
I mean that's another band aid. I mean, what what's
Kyler Murray really got.
Speaker 9 (22:37):
At this point?
Speaker 6 (22:38):
I mean he he was exposed as not having much
of a work ethic, you know, by the team as
much as by his own play right, Like the team
you know, basically said you're not working hard enough. When
they gave him the big contract, right, and then his
play confirmed that on the field. And add on to
that that when you're a you know, when you're a
(23:00):
tiny little quarterback and I will avoid the M word
to keep people from getting on my case, but you know,
when you're a tiny quarterback and then you don't move
as well as you once did, you got real problems.
And yeah, like all of his liabilities you get exposed.
(23:24):
So like he's not a long term answer either. And
then it's start just going to take advantage of the
Justin Jefferson era. They're going to have to find a
different solution. This season is just sort of a waystation
until they get to that next solution.
Speaker 3 (23:40):
The cannibalization there in the NFC North. I mean, if
you could give me five thousand words on the separation.
Speaker 6 (23:48):
There's no one ever reads five thousand words. They can
barely get to five hundred.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
I'm trying to get you another book, Great Mascots in
NFL History, and there's the chapter on ragnar but you
just killed it.
Speaker 6 (24:01):
Sorry, I apologize, trying to get you another book. I
need to have another beer to go along with this.
I'm okay, par tonight I'm at a I'm at a
writer's show, so uh, I'm a couple of beers in
you guys.
Speaker 3 (24:15):
Just remember dim you do Bill solid Air dyte analysis,
no question, Hey.
Speaker 6 (24:20):
We were talking diminutive is more like Kyler Murray. Yeah,
that d is definitely me.
Speaker 3 (24:26):
No, that's it. That's what I was saying. I was
giving you the word for earlier. Uh to keep it,
you know, highbrow and then move on to there. All right,
let's go. You mentioned Andrew Walters, and let's get back
to the Raiders. Aaron and I started today because we
had a scuffle between Captain Kirk Cousins and Max Crosby.
I want to see that's.
Speaker 6 (24:43):
Funny it was. Does that sound like? That was two
older guys saying, hey, let's uh, let's liven things up
today and get things started.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
A little bit. Let's put on a show. I like that.
Speaker 6 (24:54):
Let's put our little show for the younger guys, you know,
get a little intensity, talk a little trash, and then
they go back in the locker room afterwards and laugh
between the two of them. That's what That's what it
sounds like, because what is Kirk Cousins really going to
do to Max Crosby, but like, what's he really gonna do? Like,
let's get serious. This is not like Steve Smith, you know,
(25:18):
you know, going after camp, going after Cam Newton, Like
that's not what this is. This is Kirk Cousins and
Max Crosby, And who's Kirk kidding? Like like, let's let's
get serious. Like like Max Crosby is one of those
guys that if you really let him up and got
him angry, he would go completely He go completely ape
(25:41):
on you. There's no question about it that he would
just go relentless. And Kirk's not ready for that. No,
he's not. I mean, you know you can say, did
you like that all you want? That's not gonna work.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
No, It's kind of funny, but you know, Jake Cole,
I had a couple of books that were published way
back in the day on the Fantasy Football World and
one was like a season preview And when they asked
me who I wanted for the cover and they're like, oh,
you know this I got. I want Steve Smith, and
I fought for Steve Smith.
Speaker 6 (26:12):
Steve Smith is so great, Steve Smith. I love Steve
smith Man. Steve Smith. I got a couple of good
stories I can't repeat on this show about Steve Smith.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
We'll have that over a beer super Bowl weekend.
Speaker 6 (26:24):
Yeah, we will have that. But one time, like after
a game against the Bears, and he was going up
against some corner that he just couldn't he couldn't handle
him at all, and he just let that guy up.
I just said, man, you you like taking advantage of somebody.
It was easy, he goes. Man. If my mom was
on the other side, I would tell her I got
to burn you too, man, Like that's the way it goes.
(26:47):
He he has no holds bar. I love Steve Smith.
He's a guy who should be in the Hall of Fame,
certainly over a guy like Drew Pearson. We'll just put
it that way.
Speaker 3 (26:58):
I just wow. Look see I told you, hey, I
told you toys rabbit Hole.
Speaker 6 (27:02):
Do it oligatory sideswipe at the Cowboys. I went there.
I went there. I did it intentionally. I did it.
I had to. You asked me to name the five
cowboys that have to be kicked out of the Hall
of Fames. Didn't quite go there, but Drew Pearson number
one on my list. I got to tell you.
Speaker 4 (27:17):
That I always thought emittt Smith was more of an
Arizona cardinal than a Dallas cowboy. I was surprised, you know,
that he went into the manner that he did, so wow,
a lot of Arizona Cardinals. Yeah, no, it is a
lot of Cardinals sock today. Our Phoenix affiliate must be
thrilled right now, real quick. I actually did have a
semi serious question, you know, Mike asked about the Raiders
(27:37):
and everything that happened in camp today. Are you surprised
at all that they seem comfortable starting the year with
Mendoza on the bench. And I gave Mike this take earlier,
but I'm happy. I'm old school. I say, don't rush
these guys that you're, you know, hoping to one day
build a franchise around. It just doesn't happen anymore. And
I'm surprised that they seem to be willing to do it.
Speaker 6 (28:00):
Oh, I don't think they want it. Let's just put
this way. Raiders fans have a tendency to go off
the deep end just because they're Raiders fans. They think that,
you know, like, oh, we got him as an ambrem pick,
this means that we're going to be a super Bowl
(28:20):
contender right away. It's like, you can't. I'm not sure
you can get out of your division yet. Okay, we
got too much in that division to get in the way,
you know, between Kansas, Ay Denver the Chargers, Like this
is a climb. So you know, he's the burden on
the kid. Let him take a little time. I understand
(28:41):
the people who say, why are we wasting our time?
I'm not sure if they're that great a protection just yet.
So let cousins take a few lumps. Let Mondoza, you know,
do a little bit of learning. It's okay. But I
also wouldn't wait much past halfway through the season, Like
I would say, my goal is he's got to be
are in the second half of the season because they
(29:02):
do have weapons, you know, and that's barring all sorts
of other things that might come up. But if he's
not ready by the middle of season, I'm sort of
wondering because this is a pretty advanced kid in terms
of experience and knowledge and also intellect. I mean, he's
a really bright kid. I just kind of think, like, Okay,
(29:24):
let's move, let's get there. Otherwise, if that's not the case,
you kind of wonder, like is my My analysis him
before the draft was he reminds me of Kirk Cousins.
So is he the next coming of Kirk Cousins? And
you hope that's not true because Kirk was what a
sixth round pick or you know, like, that's not what
you want our fourth round picks? Yeah, fourth round er. Yeah,
(29:47):
I mean, like that's not what you want to your
number one guy. Your number one guy's got to be
you know, magical and be able to put a team
on his back and carry it. But we're gonna see
on this one. But I don't mind them waiting. I
mean what Carson Tomer waited an entire year in Cincinnati
and had a heck of a career. You can you
(30:08):
can do it that way, Tom Brady, you know, waiting
an entire year before he got out there. Of course,
you know he's famously a six round pick. But you
can do that and it'll work out, Okay.
Speaker 3 (30:19):
All right, Jacob first Off twelve catches to eighteen and
two touchdowns against the Bears of the divisional round. I'm
watching the highlights right now and I may crist Yeah.
Speaker 6 (30:29):
Yeah, you know, in Chicago, Yeah, in Chicago. Yeah, that
was that was natural.
Speaker 3 (30:35):
All the headlines say torches bears, so it gets let out.
Speaker 6 (30:40):
I can't remember who the I can't remember who the
corner was, but it was somebody who's actually having some
name value.
Speaker 3 (30:46):
Well I got him running past Peanut tilman on at
least one of them.
Speaker 6 (30:49):
Yeah, but it wasn't Peanut, because he wouldn't disrespect Peanuts
that way.
Speaker 3 (30:52):
No, not quite that way.
Speaker 6 (30:54):
It was it was somebody. It was a guy on
the other side. Yeah. Well, yeah, he was faster than Peanuts.
I mean, so that's a bad matchup for Peanut if
he can't if he can't get a hold of him
in the first ten yards. But that's how he wouldn't disrepect.
Speaker 3 (31:10):
Yeah, I'll go back down the rabbit hole and ferret
that out a little bit more as I blow up
the uh the video there.
Speaker 6 (31:17):
Actually, Stein's for an example of the guy who you
know might not get in the Hall of Fame because
of the new rules. And I think he's he's the
kind of guy I think is a Hall of Fame player,
but he's kind of stuck in this rotation of guys
you know behind we can get, you know, we can't
get Tory Holton reggu Wayne in and therefore we can't
get Steve Smith in the room. And then we get
all these other receivers who are you know, look they're better.
(31:39):
You know, you get a guy like Calvin Johnson out there,
he's better than Steve Smith. Andre Johnson, it was better
than Steve Smith this year. Larry Fitzgerald's going in this year.
He was better than Steve. But these other receivers who
have really great resumes in some great moments are going
to get stuck. Like there's no way Tory Holt or
reggu Wayne's getting in this year for the twenty twenty
(32:00):
seven class. Because you've got Bronkowski, Adrian Peterson, Ben Roethlisberger,
and Richard Sherman coming up as first year as first
year eligible guys, those guys might swallow up three to
four spots.
Speaker 3 (32:15):
See that's the curiosity. I was going to take you
to your list that you put up. We got about
a minute left where you put up And this is
on Twitter at Jason Coles sixty two. Right, these quarterbacks
for Hall of Fame consideration include yes, no final evaluation.
I retweeted it at Swollen Dome. I'd love for you
all to give Jason a little bit of stuff on
this one. Cam Newton, Eli Manning, Donod, mcdab rivers, the
(32:38):
aforementioned Roethlisberger, Russell Wilson, Matt Ryan, and Steve McNair, and
any good responses to that thus far in your timeline,
keep it clean for air.
Speaker 6 (32:48):
It's pretty varied, and if you look at all of them,
they have some cases. The reason I came up with
is Luke Keickley talked about Cam Newton going to the
Hall of Fame, and I started thinking about these other guys,
and I'm like, and this is not includingly guys are
obvious who are out there, like Stafford and Mahomes, Brady's
coming up soon. You've got Aaron Rodgers going to come
up in four or five years. Philip Rivers. Philip Rivers
(33:11):
is an example. In next second group, next gript down,
Cam Newton's in this next next gript down. I think
there's a lot of really good name quarterbacks who have
no shot ever getting into the Hall of Fame. And
this is going to be like Russell Wilson's going to
have a hard time. Eli Mayng already has a hard time.
Ben Roethlisberger, I think gets in, but I'm not sure
(33:33):
he could he get in this year. Yeahcause you've got Gronkowski, Peterson,
and Sherman, along with some other guys who are returning,
like Marshall, Yanda, and we talked about the two wide receivers,
Willie Anderson, guys like that. It's going to be really
hard to get some of these guys in the Hall
of Fame.
Speaker 3 (33:47):
Yeah, Jake Cole, I think what we're going to have
to do is buy a big three D printer and
make our own bus and our own Hall of Fame.
I appreciate you well.
Speaker 6 (33:56):
I'm sure Smith would want to do that, Yeah, because
Smith believe that not much paper with that take though.
For Smith, I don't know.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
We'll figure it out. I mean, we'll figure out the
cost benefit analysis.
Speaker 6 (34:06):
It could be several reams of paper. I could just
tell you that boxes, boxes.
Speaker 3 (34:11):
Boxes, boxes for days at Jason Call sixty two is
where you find him. Enjoy the enshrinement stuff in your
conference and whatever you're up to. You can go have
that third beer. Thanks for stopping down.
Speaker 6 (34:23):
No problem.
Speaker 3 (34:24):
He's the wizard. That's our guy. Jason Cole. Always fun conversation.
The Hall of Fame stuff. We can do with him
for hours, no question, Aaron. But coming up next, we're
going to talk about beer. Thanks Steve Desager, you are
the king running back, got paid, everybody got a free drink.
What's that about? We'll tell you next year on Fox.
Speaker 2 (34:42):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Jason Smith
Show with Mike harmon weekdays at ten pm Eastern seven
pm Pacific.
Speaker 7 (34:49):
Hey, it's Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington from The Odd
Couple on Fox Sports Radio.
Speaker 8 (34:54):
And in addition to hearing us live weeknights from seven
to ten pm Eastern on Fox Sports Radio, we are
excited to announce brand new YouTube channel for the show.
Speaker 7 (35:04):
That's right, you can now watch The Odd Couple live
on YouTube every day.
Speaker 8 (35:09):
All you gotta do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube
again YouTube, just search Odd Couple FSR. Check us out
on YouTube and subscribe.
Speaker 3 (35:20):
Oh no, I mean not that you're playing Narco on
the road. Bad bad, bad things as a losing streak
hit seven for the Dodgers. Welcome back in, Mike Harmon,
Aaron Torres here The Jason Smith Show with me Mike
carmon Fox Sports Radio. As we're rolling on here, we
(35:43):
just add a big fly to end this game, Edwin
diaz On in relief and just over the yellow line
to the deepest part of the ball.
Speaker 4 (35:57):
I thought the Dodgers could never lose again because they
made one trade week ago.
Speaker 3 (36:00):
No no, no, no, no, that was when Kyle Tucker showed up.
Speaker 5 (36:03):
Okay, okay, so you're.
Speaker 3 (36:05):
Already lied to all those months ago, and now once
schoobl showed up, I mean, it was supposed to be
everybody just laid down their bats instead another loss, and.
Speaker 4 (36:16):
He laid down his helmet for the dogpile after the walkoff.
Speaker 3 (36:21):
Yeah, yeah, no crazy. So it's it's a final. So
we're we're going to effort here, Todd Furman here in
just a second. I did get a little bit on
the updated odds post Schooble and the chaos major League Baseball.
We had the Hall of Fame game last night. We'll
talk here from the Lafleur, No, not Peter LeFleur and Dodgeball,
(36:42):
but the Cardinals coach on his rookie quarterback and expectations
there as we look forward to the big NFL season
and getting into the preseason games in earnest. I've found
it funny that we're August seventh, and one of the
headlines on my timeline this morning, Aaron, was that the
(37:05):
Rams were having their last padded practice. Wow.
Speaker 5 (37:08):
I didn't even see it is seventh.
Speaker 3 (37:10):
What are we doing, do you?
Speaker 6 (37:12):
So?
Speaker 4 (37:13):
You know we're talking about the Dodgers being this overwhelming favorite.
Speaker 6 (37:15):
Huh.
Speaker 4 (37:16):
I get why in Vegas the Rams are the favorite
plus five point fifty baby. I also think in their division,
a team that went fourteen to three in the regular season,
their three losses by a combined nine points, and they
largely dominated the playoffs with the exception of a game
(37:38):
against the Rams. So I understand why the Rams are favorites.
I'm not saying they shouldn't be favored.
Speaker 10 (37:43):
It does feel crazy, like we remember that the Seahawks
won the Super Bowl and kicked you know what and
took names in said Super Bowl against the Patriots.
Speaker 5 (37:54):
Right, we all remember that was a thing that happened.
Speaker 3 (37:58):
Yeah, has performed is not indicative of future results.
Speaker 5 (38:01):
Okay, I understand what I would also say.
Speaker 6 (38:04):
You have.
Speaker 3 (38:05):
I just went to the end of every financial ad
that you here.
Speaker 4 (38:08):
Okay, cool, So then we can't in that case that
we can't preview anything ever, because we just we we
we are waiting on the present performance in the present moment.
My my point is, it's not like it was last
chance you here and whatever.
Speaker 5 (38:25):
Like I'm talking about a.
Speaker 4 (38:27):
Team that has a coach under forty, a quarterback who's
right in his prime, young players all over that ross.
I just I'm not saying the Rams should it be favorites.
Speaker 5 (38:37):
I just I don't. I don't even know what I'm saying. Well,
let's talk to our next games.
Speaker 3 (38:41):
Just the mic as we're talking odds and ends, let's
go out to Las Vegas. It's our guy. Todd Furman
joins us each and every week giving us a look
see at the marketplace, and Todd, as you heard it.
My guy Aaron Torres getting a little worked up. Uh,
he's backing Sam Darnold for a repeat perform. Mormans, what
say you?
Speaker 9 (39:01):
Well, I'll pick up Bert Torres left off. The Rams
should be favorites, and they are rightfully so, atop the
odds board, one of the only teams in single digits.
But to Aaron's point, I'm not sure they're worthy of
a bet at this juncture of the season. So many
things have to go right in the national Football League,
and you do have an aging quarterback. We know they
check a lot of boxes on the defensive side. They're
gonna need some weapons to emerge offensively. So I think
(39:23):
you can find a lot better ways to attack the
NFL futures market than betting the Rams at a price
tag right around five and a half to one before
we even see what team is going to take the
field for their opener in Melbourne, Australia, down on September.
Speaker 3 (39:36):
Tenth, So todd since we looked for action and opportunity
in the marketplace everywhere we go, how many people were
lined up? I had a kickoff for the Hall of
Fame game.
Speaker 9 (39:46):
I mean, look, people have been craving football since the
Lombardi Trophy was handed out. Now, granted, the World Cup
gave them a little bit of a reprie from a
betting standpoint, and some of the regulated sports books coast
to coast did record handle given that they had that
event played on US soil. But the NFL is always king,
and while the betting volume for Arizona in Carolina in
(40:06):
the Hall of Fame game won't rival what we see
when they start playing for real, it does better betting
a volume than any of the Major League Baseball games
that are on the schedule, and people do everything they
can and then some when they have a full slate
of NFL action next Thursday, Friday and Saturday for Week
one of the preseason.
Speaker 4 (40:23):
So since NFL is king, let me just ask you,
is there something right now? And it doesn't have to
be a Super Bowl bet, but it could be a
division bet, it could be a playoff bet, it could
be an NFCFC championship bet.
Speaker 5 (40:35):
Whatever.
Speaker 4 (40:36):
Do you feel like there's a team, a player, a
side that is undervalued right now as we talk here
on August seventh.
Speaker 9 (40:42):
Two teams that I kind of like a little bit,
and I've bet them, not massive amounts by any stretch,
to win the Lombardi Trophy in the AFC, the Cincinnati
Bengals being one. And granted this means Joe Burrow will
maybe play two games before he misses about seven or
eight due to an unforeseen injury. And I'm a buyer
in Houston, Texans, I know there's a lot of concerns
and reservations given the lasting image we saw C. J.
(41:05):
Stroud leading that offense directly into the ground in inclement weather.
At Jillette Stadium in the AFC playoffs last year. But
I think the defense provides a baseline giving them a
relatively high floor. And if CJ. Stroud can scratch the
surface of what we saw from him early on in
his career, with an underappreciated receiving core, slightly upgraded backfield,
and an offensive line that can't possibly get worse, I
(41:25):
think both of those teams are legitimate threats to get
out of the AFC and not getting nearly the same
buzz as teams that are priced a little bit shorter
in the form of the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Ravens, New
England Patriots, and of course everyone's favorite team that comes
up short in the postseason, justin Frostburg's Los Angeles Chargers.
Speaker 3 (41:41):
Yeah, that one seems to come up. And I saw
to Seger perk up as you know, you invoked Frostburg's
name and the Chargers, and I have no doubt he's
going to be texting me a bunch of gifts of
something profane here momentarily with that. But he's always everybody,
he's darling right waiting for that to come to fruition.
(42:03):
But last year, what we were down to tackles five, six,
and seven. And for Justin Herbert, as much as you
know folks absolve him, is he destined to be the
next iteration of Matthew Stafford Where it has to happen
somewhere else.
Speaker 9 (42:18):
I mean somewhere along the way. You're going to assume
that the Chargers will have a healthier lineup around Justin
Herbert to give him a puncher's chance in the highest
leverage games. You mentioned the offensive line injuries, and it's
going to be tough for any starting quarterback to play
the majority of the regular season without Rashawn Slater, without
Joe Wald and hope that the backups can step up admirably.
Speaker 2 (42:37):
But while the Chargers do.
Speaker 9 (42:39):
Get an upgraded offensive coordinator with Mike McDaniel, which I
think will make them a little bit more versatile on
the offensive side, it's still a team that has a
lot of questions that have to be answered in terms
of their overall weapons. Well, Marion Hampton is a nice
piece in the backfield, He's not elite, at least for me.
Maybe he'll prove me wrong in a sophomore season. Lad
McConkie a nice receiver, but I don't know if he's
necessarily a bona fide number one that you put in
(43:01):
the same breath as some of the alphas around the league.
And then when you go further down the roster you
look at Trey Harris, Quintin Johnson, Ronde Gaston. Again, nice pieces,
but I think the quarterback has to take a lot
more in the way of responsibility given that the weapons
aren't anywhere on the same level as some of the
elite teams around the league.
Speaker 4 (43:18):
Tod what do you make of the Chicago Bears great
season last year when the division we know all that
also a million fourth quarter comebacks with Caleb Williams not
being necessarily elite early in games, and Ben Johnson said,
we are the number one regression candidate. We're fighting it
every day. Just what do you make of them?
Speaker 5 (43:38):
Big picture?
Speaker 9 (43:39):
Kudos to Ben Johnson for basically mentioning the eight hundred
pound guerrilla in the room knowing that what they did
last year will not be sustainable if they hope to
snatch victory from the jaws of defeat after trailing for
the majority of the first fifty eight minutes of football
games more often than not. But I do think Aaron
that the Bears can be one of the most entertaining
teams in the NFL to watch this And the reason
(44:00):
I say that is because I anticipate that Caleb Williams
takes another step forward. They have weapons that are going
to torment some defensive coordinators and have all the capabilities
to be a top three offense. But on the flip side,
if you're looking for this group to remind you of
the nineteen eighty five version of the Chicago Bears defensively,
that couldn't be further from the truth. So you could
have a top three offense combined with a bottom three defense,
(44:22):
meaning they're going to find themselves in more shootouts where
they're going to need multiple score leads, or they're going
to find themselves holding on for dear life like they
did against the Cincinnati Bengals last year. And I think
Caleb Williams, no doubt has to take the next step
in his evolution, not just making those highlight reel plays
on high leverage downs and third and fourth, but making
the easy throws and seeing that completion percentage really tick
(44:43):
up into the mid sixties.
Speaker 3 (44:44):
Todd. One of my favorite audio clips of last week
was Liam Cohen being mad that he was disrespected, that
they weren't disrespected because it didn't get many bulletin board materials,
saying Olliekeepsian were pictures of Caleb Williams.
Speaker 9 (45:00):
I mean, look, Liam Cohne did more with less down
there in Jacksonville late in the season. I mean, they
were playing some of the best football down the stretch,
and clearly Trevor Lawrence benefited from having an adult in
the room that could coach him along and start to
scratch the service of the kind of potential we thought
he could bring to the table at Clemson. But I
also have some real reservations now that Liam Cohne has
put a lot of his best stuff on tape. Teams
(45:21):
are going to adjust, and I think defensively when I
look at this Jaguars team, they lost a couple of
key contributors and they didn't really make an effort of
free agency to kind of bolster the roster. I'm sure
they think they're going to get more out of Brian
Thomas Junior, who was a little bit of an afterthought
in the receiving room, didn't really run to try and
find a true number one running back. If they think
Mishal Touton out of Virginia Tech is going to be
(45:43):
that guy. But I'm a little bit of a seller
of the Jacksonville Jaguars this year. Not because I don't
think Liam Cone is an outstanding coach, but I just
don't love that overall roster mix on the offensive or
defensive side of the ball.
Speaker 4 (45:55):
Todd Senior reference a few times this summer. Can't believe
in my cf B prep, Indiana is our defending national
champions besides Indiana being an unbeatable juggernaut. What are some
early thoughts on the college football season ahead?
Speaker 9 (46:10):
Well, apparently you can put me in the same breath
as the new Ada. I won the national championship last year.
But I digress completely in terms of the college football playoff.
If we look at the ten thousand foot view of
the landscape, I don't see anybody really coming from off
to pace to surprise. You know, the Ohio States, Nerdames, Oregon, Texas,
(46:33):
Indiana's of the world, all the relative short shots at
prices of ten to one on the futures board. Now,
if we had this discussion last year, I probably wouldn't
have been advocating, and I sure really wasn't for Indiana
who was outside the top twenty five and a lot
of people's ratings at fifty to one or one hundred
to one or Fernando Mendoz at one hundred and fifty
to one. But in terms of the Heisman Trophy market,
(46:54):
the one bet I have made is on a quarterback
that I'm not sure is even going to be his
team starter going into the twenty twenty six season, and
that's down there in Tuscaloosa, where I think Kielan Russell
gives Alabama a little bit more upside at the position
than Austin Mack, who traveled with this coaching staff from
their time in Seattle. Russell's mobility in the pocket, if
Alabama is a little bit slow to jel on the
(47:16):
offensive line, gives them the kind of element they didn't
have a Ty Simpson and it was a ground game
that really got bogged down. I think Alabama defensively is
going to have some problems. It won't be a lockdown
unit like you grew accustomed to a Nick Saban, And
I think Kilan Russell at a price tag right around
thirty five to one, offers a little bit of value
in the heis and market given that most of the
alphas in the room, the arch Manning, CJ. Carrs, Darien
(47:37):
Mensis are all rightfully priced in that eight, nine, ten, eleven,
twelve range.
Speaker 3 (47:41):
All right. Lastly, let's circle to the wonderful world of
Major League Baseball where the Dodgers, I mean, everybody's supposed
to lay down their bats, just give up. After schools
showed up. They've now lost seven in a row. After
Diez gives up a game winning home run, the lights
flicker and Narco is nary area sound to be heard, Todd,
(48:02):
have we seen any money come in on Atlanta or
Milwaukee given this recent soft underbelly being exposed?
Speaker 9 (48:10):
I mean, I feel like we were at this very
same juncture at this time last year, harm where people
ready to hit the panic button on the Dodgers in
early August and oh maybe they're vulnerable. When we get
into the National League playoffs and the Dodgers reminded us
exactly who they were, I'll albeit doing it in a
slightly more difficult manner in winning in Game seven against
the Toronto Blue Jay. So, despite this recent run of
(48:31):
poor form, the Dodgers odds have not really drifted much
from where they were set to win the World Series
after the trade deadline, kind of plus one forty plus
one fifty. And you look at some of the other
teams that are bunched up behind them, the Yankees, the Brewers,
the Brads, and the Cubs, and a team that I
don't think any of us anticipated. We're going to be
priced around ten to one on August seventh, if we
had this discussion even two months ago. The Boston Red Sox,
(48:53):
who apparently are the greatest baseball team ever assembled and
are going to continue to win games at a record
and clip with one of the more improvable runs that
are tra Chad Tracy's tutelage for a group that look
destined to lose ninety plus games this season.
Speaker 4 (49:09):
Todd one last quick one for me. Back to college football.
You know you mentioned basically nobody coming off the board
to win a championship, quite like Indiana last year. Is
there anybody we know because of the schedules that probably
somebody that we're not anticipating is at least going to
make the playoff, probably out of one of the four
power conferences. Does anybody stand out to you as just
(49:30):
like a dark horse team to get that eight nine
ten spot in the college football playoff.
Speaker 9 (49:34):
Well, I'll share some of the teams that have been
the trendiest, at least in terms of group think. And
I'm never sure if this is a great thing or
it's something that teams are going to have to struggle
against the weight of expectations. One of them right in
your guys backyard, that of course, being USC who unfortunately
loses their starting center from a position group that wasn't
overly deep, and somewhere along the way it's put up
a shut up time for Lincoln Riley. You can only
(49:56):
make so many excuses about traveling east. They get some
very difficul games at home, but if they're going to
punch a ticket to the postseason, gonna have to beat
an Oregon or in Ohio State at the coliseum. If
not both should they lose some of their trickier road games.
And Penn State's another team where a schedule sets up
extremely well, and Matt Campbell's first year, they've been a
trendy pick to be bet. Over eight and a half wins,
(50:17):
we've seen their yes price to make the playoffs come
drifting down from six to one to three to one.
Do I think that that roster is one of the
better ones in the Big Ten. No, So it makes
it harder for me to buy in, even if the
schedule sets up well. Matt Campbell's always done a little
bit better when he doesn't have the weight of expectations,
and I'm very interested to see what his first trip
around the Big Ten looks like in Happy Valley. So
(50:38):
those are the two teams catching all a lot of
buzz in the Big Ten. And in terms of the SCC,
I think if you can find a team in that
second tier, and that's where you're going to look, whether
it's in Alabama and LSU and Old Miss or in Oklahoma,
if I had to pick from that group, I think
this sooner. So our team that's gonna have another top
five defense under bred venables. And we have to assume
that Josh Mattier is going to look more like the
quarterback we saw early last year and Impullman a couple
(51:00):
of seasons ago than the guy that limped to the
finish dealing with that broken thumb. He'll equipped to throw
anything more than worm burners to his receivers in space.
Speaker 3 (51:08):
He's a wizard joins us each and every week from
Las Vegas. You ask a question there, there's there's nothing
he can't answer. Very true, no question about it. At
Todd ferman Is where you find him, longtime friend of
the show, Todd's thanks for stopping by. I excited to
have football back on the sleigh buddy.
Speaker 9 (51:25):
Always a pleasure, gentlemen. Harm it might be trying to
press that panic button on the south side. The White
Sox start to take on water like the Titanic. My friend.
Speaker 3 (51:33):
Yeah, no, it's not good, my friend. I struggling, struggling tonight,
even though they look great in those uniforms. That's all
I got. Good boy, be good, have a good week.
At Todd Furman again where you find him all right.
Coming up next, we'll talk a little bit more. Rewind
to the Hall of Fame game, because you know, when
you play that well as a rookie quarterback and you
(51:54):
give a little bit of hope in the desert, see Tye.
And get back to that great American President quote from earlier.
We have to spotlight it because it's over reaction. Friday
here at Fox Sports Radio,
Hosts And Creators
Jason Smith
Mike Harmon
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com