July 14, 2025 • 40 mins
Jason gives his NFL Division Winner predictions for the upcoming NFL season, why Jags WR/DB Travis Hunter should not try and play two ways, and more!
Guests: Matt Hassellbeck, Ryan Hollins
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Thanks for listening to The Herd Podcast. Be sure to
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to The Herd podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Welcome back our number two here on the Herd. It's
me Jason McIntyre. They went to the bullpen today, folks.
Cowherd a little travel issues. He'll be back tomorrow, that's promised.
I think he's on a bird right now, very excited
to come back. He's got takes galore. This is a
guy who can't stop with the takes. I mean, if
(00:42):
you guys ever see Cowherd out in the wild, just
shout him up.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
He will talk about sports anytime.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
Me.
Speaker 3 (00:47):
I'm more earbuds in. Just give the head nod what's up.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
But very happy to be here on a Monday, exciting
week of sports ahead.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
A lot of NFL action.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
You got the Major League Baseball All Star get home
run derby tonight, you got the w NBA All Star
Game coming up, and obviously we have Matt Hasselbeck dropping
by here in a minute. Boy, I'm seeing his list
of winners in the offseason. Wow, he's got some takes.
Final hour, Chris Brusard. I'm gonna beat him up on
(01:17):
some NBA topics. That's what I do. All right, let's
quickly before we get to Hasslebeck, Let's just get this
out of the way early. I was gonna save it
for August, but let's just fire it now. I'm gonna
go ahead and pick your division winners because I'll be
going to Vegas soon my summer sojourn to get into
the gambling contest futures bets. Here are my eight division
winners in the NFL. A lot of sameness from last year.
(01:39):
Let's get started with the AFC East. This is a
no brainer. It's gonna be the Bills in Josh Allen.
They are an overwhelming favorite. Understandably, they're my pick to
win the Super Bowl the short of Josh Allen not playing,
the Bills are winning this division. I don't care how
good the Patriots are, Miami ain't gonna be great. My
Jets not there yet. The Bills will win the AFC East.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
That is an absolute lock.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
They are the biggest favorite to win their division at
minus two eighty.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Next up, AFC North. I thought about the Bengals.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Obviously cannot do Steelers here or Browns, so you gotta
go Ravens. They are heavily favored to win the AFC
norths minus one p fifty.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Obviously, Lamar Jackson has a.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
Very good group of receivers, a tight end is back there,
Rick Henry's back. I like what the defense did, and
you got to give a shout out to Marlin Humphrey
who was amazing on the show last week.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
What a great guest he was. So you gotta go
Ravens in the AFC North. I will accept.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Bengals, but their defense is still in shambles. AFC South,
here's where I'm going a little bit of a surprise.
I don't believe as much in the Texans. Not ready
to go Colts because of the Anthony Richardson situation. So
going Jacksonville Jags going from four and thirteen to winning
the division. Shout out to Travis Hunter joining forces with
(02:56):
their wide receiver they had last year who was awesome.
Their quarterback who's very good. If the defense could take
a step up and the new coach can really get
his act together in Jacksonville. They've had some coaching issues
over the years. I like the Jags guys and Liam
Cohen to win the division. Bit of a surprise there
plus two sixty to win the division, and finally AFC
(03:17):
West Chiefs fans.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
You know, go ahead and fire your mud at knee online.
I'm used to it.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
I'm going with the Chargers, but with Jim Harbaugh to
deliver in year two.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Obviously, Herbert has better weapons.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Hopefully Naj Harris's superficial eye injury suffered on July fourth,
Hopefully he's okay.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
I think the offense is much better. Defense is going
to be great.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
It's a tough division, but I'm going with Chargers in
the AFC West, all right, NFC East. I toy with
the idea of Washington or Jaden Daniels.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
I'm not quite there. Obviously, Giants stink.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Cowboys are not going to be about five hundred. So
I will go with the Philadelphia Eagles to repeat as
the division winner. They are minus one thirty to win
the division, which is not bad for defending.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Super Bowl champ. The defense is still going to be exceptional.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
The offense, another offensive coordinator somebody named Kevin Patulo. They
added a good linebacker and Campbell out of Alabama.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
I think this is going to be a very good team.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
I don't think they're quite due to the schedule super
Bowl contenders, but they're right there in the mix. Should
something happen to one of the better teams NFC North,
here's my major curveball. I'm going with the Minnesota Vikings.
I know, Jay, they won fourteen games. That's not a curveball. Well,
when you look at the odds, they are third best,
(04:39):
third after the Lions and Packers.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
They are plus three point fifty to win the division.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
I have planted my flag in the JJ McCarthy camp.
I know some people do not like that, and yes,
I'll hear from you about it. Hopefully he cleans up
his off field stuff and I think the confidence will
be there. I like Kevin O'Connell JJ McCarthy to win
the a NFC North NFC South slight wrinkle, though not
(05:04):
a huge one. I'm going with the Atlanta Falcons and
Michael Pennix to dethrone Tampa in the division. I really
like the offense. I think the defense had a good
draft with the edge rushers.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
I don't love some of the front office stuff, but.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
I'm gonna overlook it because I think Pennix has a
good enough year, and even if Pennick flops, Kirk Cousins
is still the best backup in the league.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
So give me the Falcons to win the NFC North.
Speaker 2 (05:28):
NFC South, sorry, and finally NFC West. Oh yeah, Rock
Purdy and the Niners. They will win the division. They
are plus one point fifty behind the Rams.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Folks. This is schedule oriented. Go look at the schedule.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
Easiest in the league by a mile. Robert Salah returns
on defense. They'll need him because they're down four starters
from last year. A lot of change. We'll get to
the Juwan Jennings stuff that popped this morning.
Speaker 3 (05:55):
Not great. Obviously, they'll need Brandon and I you badly.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
I think the fiftees, fifty three million dollar man Rock
Perty delivers Niners win the division.
Speaker 3 (06:05):
So there are my division winners, Bill's and Ravens.
Speaker 2 (06:08):
No surprise Jags are surprise Chargers and upset Eagles nobody
would be surprised by. And then Vikings Falcon designers. So
I've got Niners missed the playoffs. Falcons missed the playoffs,
Jags missed the playoffs. Three new teams just a the
division winners.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
All right, let's get to our guest.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Matt Hasselbeck played eighteen seasons in the NFL.
Speaker 3 (06:33):
Obviously a great analyst here at Fox.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
I like, he's coming right off the practice field and
I will say this.
Speaker 4 (06:40):
Hey, yeah, cool, I'm in my high school coaching outfit.
Speaker 5 (06:44):
Here.
Speaker 4 (06:44):
It's sweaty down here at Nashville.
Speaker 6 (06:46):
But I cannot wait for when Jmack was right and
when Jmax was wrong.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Yeah that's coming probably eventually next month, but really quickly.
Speaker 3 (06:54):
So you're coaching a high profile football program and I
just love it. I'm just curious.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Are what's it like on the recruiting trail because you
obviously played in the NFL, big name, you're on TV,
you know, quarterback.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Is it easy to recruit? Like? Is that so fun? Again?
I get nerdy about.
Speaker 6 (07:12):
This, well, I mean recruiting in high school football, it
sounds like a big thing.
Speaker 4 (07:17):
I mean I think of it more like an open house.
Speaker 6 (07:19):
You know, like you're an open house to your program
and everyone says, oh, you guys, recruit, I mean, our
whole conference recruits. But no, I think what it is
is like, you know, and I had high school athlete kids,
and I was once that kid. You just want to
go where other people, other good players are, and you
want to go where someone can develop you and to
coach you.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
And you know, personally, how we.
Speaker 6 (07:38):
Coach, you know, we don't we don't tackle each other
in practice. We kind of run it like an NFL program,
and I think a smarter way to practice so that
you can stay healthy and play multiple sports and that
kind of thing. But also like not a lot of
yelling at kids, more about coaching kids, you know.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
And that's not necessarily how I grew up, you know.
I was kind of old school or Pop Warner, like
get on the lawne do it again. Like I don't
even know what I did wrong.
Speaker 6 (08:03):
But it is fun. It is definitely fun coaching these guys.
And we have a lot of talent down here in Nashville,
Tennessee too, so Friday night lights are are incredible and
so much fun.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
That's awesome, man, congrats.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
That's a big thing in the communities, you know, coaching
kids like your father figure people looking up to you.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
So anyways, let's get to a We'll start with I'm
going to.
Speaker 6 (08:21):
Give a shout out to my nephew is the quarterback,
and my brother Tim is the head coach.
Speaker 4 (08:26):
It's his son, So I'm.
Speaker 6 (08:27):
A nice little buffer between the father son the way
that like Mike Holmgren had Andy Reid with Brett Farv.
Speaker 4 (08:35):
You know Mike Home.
Speaker 6 (08:35):
Uh, you know Jim Zorn was in there between me.
So it can get a little you know, it can
get a little intense.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
Wow, wait a step in there. Nicely done.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
All right, let's go to quickly my division winners. Uh,
hear what you hate? Where I'm gonna be wrong, where
I'm gonna be right. We can get them on the
screen here.
Speaker 7 (08:53):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
You gotta love the forty nine Ers, Falcons, Vikings, Eagles,
And then in the AFC, I don't have the Chiefs,
so go ahead and beat me up for that.
Speaker 4 (09:02):
Well, start, I'll start with the AFC. I think everyone's
with you on the Bills and Ravens. That's a no brainer.
Speaker 6 (09:07):
I think every year there's a quarterback that is kind
of like that'll be this year.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Sam Darnold comes out of nowhere. To me, I think
Daniel Jones in Indianapolis Colts have the best chance to
be that guy.
Speaker 6 (09:19):
Someone will like research their career the way that Baker
Mayfield once did. And I think Daniel Jones has an
opportunity to win the division with Indianapolis Colts there. And
then the AFC West is an incredible division, but I
think people are sleeping on Sean Payton and bow Nicks
and what they could be in that division. I mean,
the easy pick would just to be said to say
(09:39):
the Chiefs Chargers are kind of a sexy pick, but
I think that in year two, bow Nicks is going
to be under center a lot more running that Drew
Brees offense. Their defense is way underrated with Vance Joseph,
I love them.
Speaker 4 (09:53):
And then on your list, yeah Eagles. I love the
Vikings just as much as anybody. I think they're a
great team.
Speaker 6 (09:59):
I think Brian Flora is gonna be probably coach of
the year on the like a defensive coordinator coach.
Speaker 4 (10:04):
Of the year type guy.
Speaker 6 (10:06):
But the Baker Mayfield slander here, like leaving Tampa off
is shocking, Like I'm like what, I don't get that one.
So you'll have to explain that one to me maybe.
But and then the NFC West is a lot like
the AFC West, some really good teams, some good parody.
I think I would go with the Seattle Seahawks in
that situation. I think they're a lot better than people
realized last year. They are double double digit win team
(10:29):
with the top ten defense. Mike McDonald has his vision
for what that offense is going to be. They're not
spending as much in the wide receiver situation, but they've
invested more in the offensive line, in the running game
and some of that. Obviously, they got a little bit
younger and they think maybe more talented at the quarterback position.
So I'll take the Seahawks in a tight division.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
There, Wow a lot to chew on there. Let me
just drill down on the Colts for a second. So
you just get right over Anthony Richardson and what to
Daniel Jones. Are you hearing the Daniel Jones has an edge?
I know Richardson's kind of banged up right now, but
that would be a surprise. But like you said, the
quarterback resurgence first round picks, you know, kind of flame
out in the first spot and then the second spot. Recently,
(11:11):
guys have guys have popped again, So you're bullish on
Daniel Jones.
Speaker 4 (11:15):
Well, here's the thing.
Speaker 6 (11:16):
Like if you go to I played for the Indianapolis Colts,
they used to have signs around the buildings. One of
those signs used to say, the greatest ability is availability.
And so you know you've got Anthony Richardson, who was
incredible at the combine.
Speaker 5 (11:26):
I was there.
Speaker 6 (11:27):
I saw it firsthand. I've never seen anything like it.
It was so impressive. But he hasn't played a lot
of football. I didn't play a lot of football in college.
You know, he was hurt last year. I think the
whole thing where he was out of breath and he
tapped out and said, hey.
Speaker 4 (11:39):
I need to play.
Speaker 6 (11:41):
When your franchise quarterback does that, and the previous franchise
quarterbacks were guys like Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck. Like,
I think it just it's going to be hard to
overcome some of that. And then you know, he wasn't
available all off season with a shoulder injury once again.
And then Daniel Jones is a guy that you know,
he's not as excited to watch, but it's kind of
(12:01):
a slow and steady wins the race kind of thing,
and so I don't know that's it'll be a it'll
be a competition. But as I look at it and
I just kind of know that organization, I know what
they're looking for. They're looking for consistency, and they're looking
to compete and win that division now this year. That
doesn't mean that I don't think Anthony Richardson could have
a great career. I just think he's off to a
(12:23):
really really slow start.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
Stichen maybe needs the wins to keep his job. I
don't know.
Speaker 4 (12:28):
Well, he's a great runner too.
Speaker 6 (12:30):
Yeah, And I think Anthony Richardson's like you know, he's
he's a real He's a great runner, red zone threat,
all that stuff. But Daniel Jones ironically is a much
better runner than people realize. I mean even in New
York he didn't go great there, but Brian Daball was
running a lot of that Josh Allen run game with
Daniel Jones, he.
Speaker 4 (12:47):
Did a lot better.
Speaker 6 (12:47):
I mean he I know what some people say, well,
he looks like a giraffe on ice when he runs,
But like, I think it's pretty effective.
Speaker 4 (12:54):
I think it's pretty effective as a runner.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Remember Vanilla Vick was his nickname, which not everybody loved.
It might be a strategy but yeah, all right, let's
move to Denver Broncos real quick, you said, Bo Nixon,
Sean Payton, I keep reading this defense man, they might
have the best defense in the league, like Shretan is amazing.
And then what they did in a draft and Riley
Moss who funga Drake Greenlaw a lot of guys coming
(13:18):
over Denver might have the number one defense in the NFL.
Speaker 4 (13:22):
Yeah, no doubt, listen. I played a long time in
the NFL.
Speaker 6 (13:25):
One of the one of the toughest guys to go
up but go up against on third down was Vance Joseph.
And you know, wherever he was like, he always seemed
like he was very aggressive. His dbs and his linebackers
all kind of played on a yo yo.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
They were all disguising at the same time. One of
the best quarterbacks at the.
Speaker 6 (13:42):
Line of scrimmage that I've ever seen was Peyton Manning.
And I would say that Vance Joseph is one of
the guys that I feel like had an advantage on
a guy like Peyton Manning at the line of scrimmage.
They do a nice job with their pre snap post
snap stuff. I think that's a pretty good fan base
with crowd and noise, they can get role and if
their offense can score, I think this is a good team.
(14:03):
You know, bo Nicks had an incredible year last year.
I think surprised a lot of people. Sean Payton said, no,
I know exactly what I'm looking for in a quarterback.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
That is my guy.
Speaker 4 (14:11):
There weren't a lot of scouts saying, oh, yeah, he's
definitely the guy. He's definitely going to succeed. He had
a great year.
Speaker 6 (14:16):
And if it wasn't for Jayden Daniels having just an epic,
all time historic rookie campaign, people would be talking a
lot more about bon Nicks and last year, like I said,
they were in shotgun a lot more because that's what
he was most comfortable with. But I think what Sean
Payton is most comfortable with is more under center stuff.
Speaker 4 (14:34):
So you're gonna see bon Nicks under center more.
Speaker 6 (14:37):
It's going to be better for the play action, better
for the run game, harder to defend.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
They'll still go empty, they'll still all do that stuff.
Speaker 6 (14:43):
Running back out of the backfield type stuff is dangerous
for this team as well.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
You know, I just have a lot of respect for
what that team can be.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Interesting all right, let's go to ESPN had a list
of the ten best quarterbacks. Apparently they pulled executives, coaches,
and scouts. I don't listen. I don't want to of
those too bad. Obviously, the top four needs no introduction.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
We all agree with that. But five through ten, I
just had a lot of issues. Again.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
You know, do people understand that Jalen Hurts statistically is
winning from the pocket?
Speaker 3 (15:16):
Matt, do you think that there's maybe.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
A little bias because he's the only non first round
pick among all these guys, and then first round picks
get like the benefit of the doubt in the style
you're at.
Speaker 6 (15:27):
Yeah, you're asking a six round pick, So you think
that I would be biased here?
Speaker 4 (15:31):
No, I don't think so.
Speaker 6 (15:33):
I think people are looking for a certain thing when
they hear that word quarterback. And you know, that's kind
of what I love so much about that Netflix documentary Quarterback,
because there's not one style, there's not one flavor, there's
not one leadership style, play style, none of that. I
love that top five. I would put Lamar higher, but
I love that top five. Listen, Jalen, you could make
(15:54):
the argument that, I mean, I think he's definitely in
that six to ten, but you could make the argument
that he should be at number six.
Speaker 4 (16:00):
And I think why I say that.
Speaker 6 (16:02):
You know, people don't give him enough credit for the
quarterback sneak, Like they just don't like they think, like, oh,
it's just a quarterback sneak, it doesn't count. It's just
like a free play. We should make it illegal. That
is a real weapon that he uses, and like, so
like sometimes it's maybe easy to gloss over some of
some of the other stuff because he's not you know,
he's staying in the pocket. He's not bolting. A lot
(16:23):
of young quarterbacks just bolt outside the pocket.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
He stays in the pocket. He doesn't flinch.
Speaker 5 (16:29):
You know.
Speaker 6 (16:29):
Maybe it's boring to some people, but listen, my favorite
ice ice cream flavor is vanilla. It's Hoggindaw's vanilla, and
it's better than all the other vanillas. You can't just say, oh,
it's just been No, it's way better. And Jalen hurts
it's some of the things that he does. It might
be boring, but it is way better than how the
other guys in the league do it.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
Totally agree.
Speaker 2 (16:49):
I do have to ask. I mean, listen, it's just
one season of Jayden Dings.
Speaker 3 (16:54):
Was it the greatest rookie season ever? Maybe?
Speaker 2 (16:56):
Possibly, But it's also possible that he just took the
league by storm. They were not ready for him and
his speed and his third down scrambling ability. They did
win a lot of close games late. You could say
there was some luck involved. I'm not comparing it to CJ. Stroud,
but Stroud as a rookie was oh my gosh, where'd.
Speaker 3 (17:13):
This guy come from?
Speaker 2 (17:14):
And now he doesn't even make the top ten after
year two? There was some regression. I don't know, are
we going a little irrational on Daniel's after one season?
Speaker 3 (17:22):
I get he's top ten, but five, I mean, I
love him.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
I think he's awesome in every way. I mean, I
can't find a weakness in his game. His weakness is
that he was putting himself in, putting himself in harm
too much. But I think he learned that lesson he
got the rib injury.
Speaker 6 (17:36):
You know, once you get the rib injury, you're like, oh, okay, yeah,
I'm good, I'll slide earlier.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
You know, that kind of stuff. But they also invested
on the offensive side of the ball this year.
Speaker 6 (17:44):
They invested in you know, two tackles. It's gonna help
the run game, it's gonna protect him more. You know
the weakness of this team and why I don't think
they'll dethrown the Eagles right away is because their defense
hasn't caught up.
Speaker 4 (17:55):
You know, they let Fowler go.
Speaker 6 (17:57):
I think they could have. I guess you got to
pick what you're going to do. They invested in the
young quarterback. It's hard to argue that. So offensively, I
think he will be just as good as he was
last year. But he was incredible, and I think the
clutch gene is what I would pay to him.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
Like, you know, a lot of guys, look, oh I
can make that throw. I could make that play. Yeah,
well guess what.
Speaker 6 (18:15):
Jaden Daniels makes it the one opportunity when it's there
to be made, he makes it in that split second
and he just he makes.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
It look easy.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
I do have to ask Dak Prescott is the highest
paid quarterback in the NFL. He's not even on the
top ten. Also, two years ago he was runner up
for MVP. So again, I don't want to say people
are getting knee jerk, but should Dak be in there?
He was hurt a lot of last year.
Speaker 4 (18:37):
But still no, no, no, he should not be in there.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
No.
Speaker 6 (18:40):
I mean, I know he's the Cowboys quarterback, but I mean,
who are you going to take out?
Speaker 4 (18:43):
There's a that's a hard.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Herbert I love, but Herbert doesn't have a playoff win.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
Yeah, okay, Well, I mean I'll just say this that
this is one of the best things about the NFL.
Then good teams get this right.
Speaker 6 (18:56):
And Mike Holmgrian, I remember the Packers were coming off
a consecutive Super Bowls and I came in my very
first meeting with Mike Hongrin and he said, listen, I
do not care how much money you make.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
I do not care where you were drafted. I don't
care what you have done in the past. The best
players are going to play. It is not about these
other things. And listen, that's a room with Reggie White
and Brett fav coming off with like three MVPs in
a row. And that's the mindset.
Speaker 6 (19:22):
So like for players, and I think the best coaches,
what's someone's contract is is irrelevant. And I would say
that when I'm game planning against a defense, I don't
care if you're the highest paid corner in the league.
If I find a weakness in your game, we're going
to try to exploit it. And I think that's the
best way to look at, you know, some of these
positional rankings as well, your contract that's for somebody else
(19:45):
for us as we evaluate, you know, I think you.
Speaker 4 (19:48):
Let the film do the talking.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
All right, final one on this before we get to
your offseason winners. My guy, brock Perdy did not crack
the top ten. Now, he didn't have a phenomenal year,
a lot of injuries, but Matt, you saw him before this.
He was an elite quarterback. He was in the MVP
discussion two years ago, led the Niners to a Super Bowl,
led them to a conference championship. Brock Perty's numbers are
really good. Should he have made a case for the
(20:10):
top ten?
Speaker 6 (20:11):
No, listen, I think he's awesome, and I think Dak's
a good quarterback too, But top ten is top ten.
Speaker 4 (20:16):
I mean, that's you know, it's rare air.
Speaker 6 (20:19):
I think that brock Party is the right quarterback for
the forty nine ers. I think Dak is the right
quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. But Brock is a guy
that is always going to get doubted. You were talking
about the fact that Hurts wasn't a first rounder.
Speaker 4 (20:34):
I don't think.
Speaker 6 (20:35):
I don't care what brock Party does the rest of
his career. I think he will always be to some
people mister irrelevant.
Speaker 4 (20:41):
To me, he is not that.
Speaker 6 (20:43):
And to Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch, he is not that.
The challenge for them is they got to stick together
as guys are leaving, there's a lot of change. Juwan
Jennings wants a new contract right now, like there's a
lot of stuff. Can't pay everybody. But you know, he's
I think he's a good player. I think he could
be a great player if he continues to win that division,
that he continues to kind of do it when it
(21:04):
needs to be done. That's there's a fine line between
being a playoff quarterback and not a playoff quarterback, to
be a quarterback that wins playoff games and a quarterback
that's just one and done. And so I think he
certainly has the ingredients to do it. He's got the
coaching staff to do it. But that turnover is going
to be an issue for them.
Speaker 2 (21:21):
Yeah, all right, finally, let's get to your winners of
the offseason. I will say you listed four teams here.
I agree with two and a half of them. Colin
will greatly agree with one of them. But why don't
you reveal your four winners this offseason?
Speaker 6 (21:35):
Well, you know, I'm not sure what the order is here,
but I love Minnesota. Like I think Minnesota is going
to be the sneaky tim My team. I mentioned Brian Flores.
I think that defense is going to be underrated. They
invested up front. They spend one hundred and six million
dollars at center and right guard with you know, with
the veterans that they went there. They I mean, they're
(21:56):
just they're going up front in the trenches. I think
we kind of learned from that. That's what they did
last year. Now it's going to be all on JJ McCarthy.
Speaker 4 (22:04):
Can he do it? That's a huge question mark young quarterbacks.
Speaker 6 (22:08):
But I'll say this, the people in Minnesota believe that
he can. That's why they let Sam Darnold walk. They
said no to Aaron Rodgers, they said no to Daniel Jones.
They like they believe with Kevin O'Connell. They feel like
he could be the guy.
Speaker 4 (22:21):
You know, another team that I think he kind of
got to like buy low, sell high here that really improved.
Speaker 6 (22:27):
I think the Las Vegas Raiders did a great job,
you know, I think about Pete Carroll. They went and
got Chip Kelly, they upgraded, They got Geno Smith, they
got Ashton Genty, they got a good running back room,
Rock Bauers in this offense.
Speaker 4 (22:40):
I like it, you know, I can't.
Speaker 6 (22:42):
I think Tom Brady's influence in this is something.
Speaker 4 (22:45):
It's not nothing.
Speaker 6 (22:47):
So to me, I think the Raiders are a much
improved team. Will they be relevant enough in this division?
Speaker 4 (22:53):
I don't know. It's a year one thing.
Speaker 6 (22:56):
The New England Patriots in a similar way, I think
it's a bit upgrade Mike Rabel, Josh McDaniels, Drake May.
Speaker 5 (23:03):
Year two.
Speaker 4 (23:04):
They've invested in the draft on the.
Speaker 6 (23:05):
Offensive side of the ball early, and then they kind
of went free agency with guys like Milton Williams. They
got Christian Barmore back, they got two of the best
corners in the league, and Christian Gonzales and Carlton Davis.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Third.
Speaker 6 (23:17):
I think the Patriots make a huge jump. They were
terrible last year. They're going to be potentially a playoff
team this year, and then this might surprise people a
little bit coming from me, But I really believe that
this team has done, probably more than anybody the most
to improve and that's the Chicago Bears. And part of
the reason that I say it is I love the
(23:38):
fact that they locked up Ryan Poles.
Speaker 4 (23:40):
I think one of the biggest issues in.
Speaker 6 (23:42):
Chicago is that they have not had continuity and symmetry
with the GM and the head coach. So now you
get polls, you get Ben Johnson, you go maybe done
the best job of any team solidifying the inside of
the offensive line. They're building this whole thing around Caleb Williams.
They're saying, Caleb, it is your job. We are setting
you up. You are the guy that should be the
(24:05):
most improved quarterback from last year to this.
Speaker 4 (24:07):
Year, and we'll see. I mean it's he's certainly, I've
said it many times.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
He has the talent. He is off to a very
slow start. He has the potential. It's all surrounded great coaching,
great protection, weapons, Like I really think that this is
this is a make or break year for him in
that sense, and he certainly is capable of doing it.
But if you look on paper most improved, I'll say
(24:32):
that they've done a great job.
Speaker 3 (24:33):
Often so wrap up with give me your order for
that division?
Speaker 2 (24:36):
Then, I mean, I agree they got better, But is
there any way they're not last place in the division?
Speaker 4 (24:42):
Yeah, I listen.
Speaker 6 (24:44):
I think it's gonna be hard for Detroit. I think
it's gonna be hard for Detroit with all the losses
that they've had. I mean, they were one of the
best teams in football all last year. Loved him, but
losing both coordinators is tough. There's a lot of adversity
that they're going to have to overcome and Detroit and
they might overcome it.
Speaker 4 (25:00):
They might. They've got strong leadership there, the same quarterback there.
Speaker 6 (25:04):
That could happen to me. I think Minnesota is a
team that's going to shock people. I think they're really good,
like really good. Green Bays underrated. I thought they, you know,
a double digit win team last year.
Speaker 4 (25:16):
You know, are the Bears going to be fourth in
that division? Possibly?
Speaker 6 (25:19):
But I think it's they're kind of putting all their
chips on this guy that they think is a franchise quarterback,
the first pick in the overall in the draft. Can
he be a difference maker the way that Jaden Daniels was.
Jane Daniels took a bad team and said, hey, get
on my back, follow me.
Speaker 4 (25:33):
I will lead us.
Speaker 6 (25:35):
And they were one game away from from doing something
incredibly special.
Speaker 4 (25:38):
So you know, is Caleb that guy?
Speaker 6 (25:42):
I guess it kind of comes down to you believe
Caleb's that guy or not. But they put all the
pieces around him for him to do it.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
Yeah. I like it.
Speaker 2 (25:49):
That's a spicy take. All right, the great Matt hasselback.
Keep up the good work you guys doing two days
this week?
Speaker 4 (25:55):
No no, no, no, no, you come on now, we're
not great. Two days are over. Science has told us
that is not even smart.
Speaker 6 (26:02):
So we practiced once today Monday through Wednesday, seven on
seven on a Thursday.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Enjoy your weekend. You know that kind of Wow?
Speaker 2 (26:10):
Maybe I should play football for you. Oh my, that
sounds cushy.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
Gee. Well, most our kids are playing baseball and.
Speaker 6 (26:16):
Summer lacrosse and other stuff too, so we believe in
multi sport athletes.
Speaker 3 (26:20):
I like that. Totally agree. All right, Matt has all
my good stuff.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
Man, thanks a lot, see Jayson, all right, he's a
good guy. Sounds like a great coach. I mean, geez,
letting kids play multiple sports. I know a lot of
coaches were like, Hey, you got to drop the other
sports and focus on this, which is a terrible idea. Anyways,
coming up next, I'll tell you why Travis Hunter should
not play both ways next season, and a celebrity endorsement
(26:43):
comes along with it.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
That's next year on the Herd.
Speaker 8 (26:46):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
at noon Eastern non am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio
FS one and the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (26:55):
It's me Rob Parker.
Speaker 9 (26:57):
Check out my weekly MLB pod cast, Inside the Parker
for twenty two minutes of piping hot baseball talk featuring
the biggest names of newsmakers in the sport. Whether you
believe in analytics or the I Test, We've got all
the bases covered. New episodes dropped every Thursday, So do
your sofa favor and listen to Inside the Parker with
(27:20):
Rob Parker on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get
your podcast.
Speaker 3 (27:26):
Back here on the Herd.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
Fun stuff with Matt Hasselbeck, one of the seminal quarterbacks
in Seattle Seahawks history.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
He said he had a great career, three time Pro bowler.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Interesting teams to watch I listed the Jags as a
team to watch earlier in the show, and we had
a gambler.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
On last week. I forget if it was.
Speaker 2 (27:51):
It might have been Adam turnoff for Chris FeliCa. One
of those two was hyping Trevor Lawrence to lead the
league in touchdowns, and it's an interesting take because you know,
Lawrence has not really lived up to the hype, and they.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
You know, had a good receiver.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
I think Brian Thomas last year put up some great
rookie numbers and then they've trade up, which I didn't
love at the time, to draft Travis Hunter, the great
wide receiver who also plays cornerback at a very high
level at Colorado, and now he's going to the pros.
So I'm bullish on the Jags offense. But the question becomes,
is Travis Hunter going to play both ways? We've never
(28:29):
really seen it. Obviously, people want to compare it to
Dion Sanders. Dion it was a great cornerback and returned
punts and stuff, and then he played baseball, like that's
a little different than playing defensive back and then playing
wide receiver. And Travis Hunter had a quote this week
about how, hey, listen, it's a lot for Travis Hunter,
(28:53):
but he can handle.
Speaker 3 (28:54):
It's a lot to put on his plate, but he
can handle.
Speaker 2 (28:56):
He's a really polished route runner, he's an excellent cornerback.
Speaker 3 (28:59):
He's just a athlete. And I don't know.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
I think I said at the time that it struck
me as hey, we need to make a splash as Jacksonville.
You know, there's a lot of jokes about the Jags.
They're London's team, they don't really have a fan base,
and this was the kind of move like, Travis Hunter
was one of the most popular players in the draft
when you factor in social media activity, off the field, endorsements.
(29:24):
He's just he's super popular. People like him, gravitate toward him.
So it was a play of hey, we got a
duel threat athlete, Hey we got an elite athlete, and oh,
by the way, he's super popular. Everybody loves him, so
you kind of put Jacksonville a little more on the map. However,
we had Marlon Humphrey, the great Ravens defensive back last week,
(29:44):
who said, Travis Hunter, I don't know about going both ways.
Speaker 3 (29:48):
Here's Marlon Humphrey.
Speaker 4 (29:49):
To do both It seems very mission impossible esque.
Speaker 7 (29:53):
You know, I think Dion obviously did a little bit
of it, you know, back in his day, but I
just think the game has changed so much since then.
Dion was clearly light and day the fastest guy out there.
Nowadays everybody's fast. I think he's really got a tough
challenge ahead. I think eventually he will realize, Man, it's
(30:14):
really really hard to do this at a high level
where every week you're playing a top NFL team. It's
not like college where you know, there is teams on
everyone's roster, where it's like this should be a pretty
easy game, and that's just not the case.
Speaker 5 (30:28):
In the NFL.
Speaker 7 (30:29):
I hope he has success with it, and I hope
he just decides it's just too much for me as
opposed to you know, he kind of struggles with it.
Speaker 3 (30:38):
Yeah, and I totally agree with Marlon Humphrey.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
By the way, I don't know that many other people
are advising him against this. Everybody's endorsing it as being positive,
and I get it, you want to be positive. By
the way, this is how popular Travis Hunter is. After
we had on Marlon Humphrey last week, I said, I
agreed with him. I got a DM from my guy
low Wayne, the rapper who has appeared on this network
plenty of times, and he's like, hey, man, that's my guy.
(31:01):
You gotta stop putting him down. Why you guys hating
on him? And we're not hating on Travis Hunter. He's
a great athlete. But the idea that he's gonna go
out on the first defensive series and try to tackle
running backs in space and then chase wide receivers and
then hey, we're on offense, go out there and run
round that's insane. That's way too much pressure on a
(31:21):
young kid. And I looked at the Jags schedule. Okay,
so you know what's gonna happen. Travis Hunter can play
both ways against the Carolina Panthers in the opener, he.
Speaker 3 (31:31):
Can do that.
Speaker 2 (31:31):
He probably will excel. Carolina's not a great offense. You know,
Bryce Young doesn't have many weapons, they don't have a
running back that scares you.
Speaker 3 (31:40):
He can do that in the.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
Opener and everybody's gonna see I told you guys, he
can do it, and I'd be happy for Week two
Cincinnati Bengals. He's gonna be chasing around Jamar Chase and
or T Higgins.
Speaker 3 (31:58):
That's a tall order. And then he's gonna be running routes.
Speaker 2 (32:01):
Week three, Hello Nico Collins, who emerged last year before
the injury. It's one of the best receivers in the league. Okay,
and CJ. Stroud, you know, likes to chuck and duck.
Week four, San Francisco forty nine Ers, hey man, we
need you to tackle Christian McCaffrey at George Kittle's gonna
be blocking you good looking around him, and then we
(32:22):
need you to chase around I you Cor Jennings or
whoever they got a receiver.
Speaker 3 (32:26):
Not gonna be easy.
Speaker 2 (32:27):
Week five, Kansas City Chiefs, hey man, Isaiah Pacheco.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
A few guys run as hard as him.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
Need you to get him in space, wrap him up,
no pile inspector stuff.
Speaker 3 (32:39):
You got to get in there and wrap.
Speaker 2 (32:41):
And then I need you chasing around Xavier Worthy, one
of the fastest players in the league.
Speaker 3 (32:45):
And Rashid Rice over the middle.
Speaker 2 (32:47):
You just look at the schedule and you're like, Okay,
Travis Hunter makes out for a week and maybe he
has a splash play or two against Jamar Chase or
Xavier Worthy or Rashi Rice, but that schedule is Bruce, Guys,
I just don't like this for Travis Hunter, and I
like the kid.
Speaker 3 (33:05):
He might be rookie the year. I just think it's
too much for a young guy.
Speaker 4 (33:08):
All right.
Speaker 2 (33:09):
Coming up next, former NBA center Ryan Hollins drops by, listen,
this Lebron.
Speaker 3 (33:15):
Stuff is concerning everybody. He's near the end. He's carrying
the league for fifteen years.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
What does Ryan Hollins have to say about the goat
that's next year on the Herd?
Speaker 8 (33:24):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
and noon Easter not a Empacific.
Speaker 10 (33:31):
All right.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
He's spent ten seasons in the NBA with nine different
teams at some clean livin.
Speaker 3 (33:38):
Let's welcome in Ryan Hollins.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
Fox Sports Radio every Sunday, nine am Easter. Look at
my guy sitting in his Elon muskmobile with with the
shades on, looking tough.
Speaker 3 (33:50):
How hot is that Houston heat?
Speaker 7 (33:52):
Was it?
Speaker 3 (33:52):
One? Ten?
Speaker 5 (33:54):
Is burning up?
Speaker 7 (33:55):
Man?
Speaker 10 (33:55):
I'm over in the gym with my guy, Justin Allen
over in Houston, and you are right, man, it is.
Speaker 5 (33:59):
By the humidity is different for this California boy.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
Man.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
Yeah, you got to get back to Cali. Baby.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
A little too hot in Houston, by the way, I
will say, speaking of hot how good did Reed Shepherd
look in Summer League. He's out here frying guys. He's
going to be big in the rotation for the Rockets
this year, right.
Speaker 5 (34:16):
He's gonna be huge. He's right now?
Speaker 10 (34:19):
Is everybody assessus Houston's Rocket roster? You like to say
that he can be the most pivotal piece. You know,
everyone's looking to what he can do. And last season,
the biggest frustration I would say, wasn't you know that
Reid wasn't talented or didn't have the IQ. He knows
everywhere that he's supposed to be on the floor. You know,
it's the other way, you know. I never had these
(34:40):
problems with j Mac. They're like shoot the ball more,
you know, let it rip, let the ball fly. So
at Summer League you can see the big emphasis for
Reid to look for his shot, and he's got a
unique skill set.
Speaker 5 (34:53):
Comparable J Mac.
Speaker 10 (34:55):
Don't go crazy when I say this, Oh go crazy
when I say this, Okay, comparable to have Curry in
the sinse of the smaller guard Jay Man, Come on, bro,
that's not I said comparable. I didn't say he's Curry,
but he can get his shot off off the bounce.
He has a very quick release, and you see why
he's encouraged to shoot the ball more. And that's one
(35:16):
thing that Houston really needed. That you have the defense,
the rebounding, but the three point shooting, which would open
up the four for guys like Durant and Van Vliet
and men Thompson and Shingoon.
Speaker 5 (35:28):
Inside, stop laughing.
Speaker 3 (35:31):
Man, Sorry, sorry for laughing. Obviously that wasn't a comparison.
Speaker 2 (35:34):
I'll say Shepherd's game is clean, smooth, nice. It looks
like he has worked on these moves like Kobe Bryant
over the years, Like Kobe's moves are just so smooth,
it's like it's perfected. Now it is only summer league,
let's seehim do it against elite NBA players.
Speaker 3 (35:49):
But all right, one last thing on summer league before
we move on.
Speaker 2 (35:53):
Cooper Flag looked I thought fine in the opener, A
lot of people were saying more mid five for twenty
one shooting, and then he was off for thirty one
against the Spurs, just dunk after dunk off the dribble bombs,
like that's the real Cooper Flag. How impressed were you?
Speaker 10 (36:11):
I was extremely impressed with Cooper Flag, and I think
it's a great call by Dallas. You know, the one
reason he has one reason to be in Summer League,
not just to show the fans and pay it off
because it's just a part of our game and the
way that it's played, but to have confidence. He is
gaining confidence in that second game where he went off
was great. And then Cooper Flagg being the number one pick,
(36:33):
he's the guy that the media is going.
Speaker 5 (36:34):
To be all over. You know.
Speaker 10 (36:35):
Unfortunately for Sarrow last year and the kid over in Atlanta,
you know, everybody was talking about Bronnie James. He took
that pressure. But this year, Cooper Flag undisputedly is the guy.
So you get him feeling good, he's positive, they're excellent.
Storylines are going to be going around him. And the
one thing that I take away and we saw this
(36:56):
is for Cooper Flag, He's in the perfect situation in Dallas.
He's not going to be great creating off the dribble,
just going one on one, but he excels in the
open floor.
Speaker 5 (37:06):
He brings it out a lot of length and.
Speaker 10 (37:09):
I think for the mistakes or you know, rookie understanding
of where to be on the floor, you know, you
got Anthony Davis behind you, you got Gafford behind you.
Speaker 5 (37:18):
You know you got those Derek Lively behind you, have
those big bodies.
Speaker 10 (37:21):
So I think he's going to be excellent over there
in Dallas, and that if you defend, you can get
out and run.
Speaker 5 (37:26):
And one thing Dallas wants to do is play a
lot faster.
Speaker 3 (37:29):
All right, Ryan, I'm work shopping a take.
Speaker 2 (37:32):
So the Bucks, you know, they probably should trade Giannis,
but they don't want to, right, So let's go over
pay Miles Turner, which is a bad deal. That Damian
low is in disaster. They're not going to be good,
but they're keeping Jannis for now. The Denver Nuggets are
doing the opposite. We got to do everything we can
to keep Yokic, right, Let's get Cam Johnson like Tim
Hardaway Junior. Let's get we actually have a bench this year,
(37:56):
and Jokic said, no, thank you to the extension this year.
Let me see how we do now. Obviously you can
make more money next year. But I'm just curious. Are
we seeing a different approach toward keeping these European stars,
because even the Lakers with Luca Hey.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
We don't want to commit to anybody long term. Lebron.
Speaker 2 (38:12):
Sorry, so we're seeing, like Luka, Jannison, Jokicic, the three
next pillars in the league and how teams are trying
to keep them or build around them. I'm just curious
your thoughts about team building in regards to those three.
Speaker 10 (38:25):
Well, the one thing that you have to understand, j
mac is is you don't want to go back into
the ice ages of development and tanking.
Speaker 5 (38:33):
We'll just call it for what it is.
Speaker 10 (38:35):
And if you're not one of these mega markets, you
can use this JAMC.
Speaker 5 (38:38):
If you're not one of these mega.
Speaker 10 (38:39):
Markets and you have one of these mega stars, you
gotta sign the nassis to keep them. You got to
be aggressive in free agency. You gotta make these moves
because they mean that much. And even more so, you know,
following the heels of Lebron James, these stars know their
value and they're willing to go. So you know, with
(39:00):
the stars of the past would stay put, you can
build around them. You know there wasn't movement gonna be there. Uh,
these guys get it. So I'm all in for Milwaukee. Giannis.
Is that darn good that you go and you make
moves And it was a historical buyout with Damian Lillard.
That's not the best thing obviously for the franchise moving forward,
but for Giannis, you want to stay competitive, and you
(39:21):
look at the injuries in the Eastern Conference. Giannis out
to the Coupo has to be looking over and saying, Okay,
I lose Lopez, but.
Speaker 5 (39:27):
I get I get a guy a.
Speaker 10 (39:28):
Little younger, the guy who can block shots the same,
and I can go pound for pound for the best,
the best of them in the East.
Speaker 5 (39:34):
And now you put a chip on my shoulders.
Speaker 10 (39:36):
So they get a buy out with with Anthony goes
over there from Memphis sou I'm telling you, man, I'm
not completely against it.
Speaker 5 (39:45):
They're settling for the now.
Speaker 2 (39:47):
Wow, col So Cole Anthony could start. I don't know, Ryan,
I like how you're hyping the bus. But hey, how
about this. We didn't even get unto Lebron. You know,
there's just not enough time. Uh yeah, so or anyways,
Ryan Hollins, the former end a Center Fox Sports radio star,
enjoy the summer and the heat, stay cool.
Speaker 3 (40:05):
In Houston, Ryan, I'd rather talk to him.
Speaker 2 (40:09):
Good stuff, Ryan Hans. I was gonna tell him they
could you text Lebron and tell him Lebron just just
just chill like it's gonna be fine. Start talking to
the media, all right. Coming up next, we got kind
of a controversial top ten quarterback NFL list floating around,
so I'm giving you my version of it, obviously more accurate.
Thanks for listening to The Herd Podcast. Be sure to
catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio in
noon to three Eastern nine am to noon Pacific. Find
your local station for The Herd at Fox Sportsradio dot com,
or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app
by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Thanks for listening
to The Herd podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Welcome back our number two here on the Herd. It's
me Jason McIntyre. They went to the bullpen today, folks.
Cowherd a little travel issues. He'll be back tomorrow, that's promised.
I think he's on a bird right now, very excited
to come back. He's got takes galore. This is a
guy who can't stop with the takes. I mean, if
(00:42):
you guys ever see Cowherd out in the wild, just
shout him up.
Speaker 3 (00:45):
He will talk about sports anytime.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
Me.
Speaker 3 (00:47):
I'm more earbuds in. Just give the head nod what's up.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
But very happy to be here on a Monday, exciting
week of sports ahead.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
A lot of NFL action.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
You got the Major League Baseball All Star get home
run derby tonight, you got the w NBA All Star
Game coming up, and obviously we have Matt Hasselbeck dropping
by here in a minute. Boy, I'm seeing his list
of winners in the offseason. Wow, he's got some takes.
Final hour, Chris Brusard. I'm gonna beat him up on
(01:17):
some NBA topics. That's what I do. All right, let's
quickly before we get to Hasslebeck, Let's just get this
out of the way early. I was gonna save it
for August, but let's just fire it now. I'm gonna
go ahead and pick your division winners because I'll be
going to Vegas soon my summer sojourn to get into
the gambling contest futures bets. Here are my eight division
winners in the NFL. A lot of sameness from last year.
(01:39):
Let's get started with the AFC East. This is a
no brainer. It's gonna be the Bills in Josh Allen.
They are an overwhelming favorite. Understandably, they're my pick to
win the Super Bowl the short of Josh Allen not playing,
the Bills are winning this division. I don't care how
good the Patriots are, Miami ain't gonna be great. My
Jets not there yet. The Bills will win the AFC East.
Speaker 3 (02:01):
That is an absolute lock.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
They are the biggest favorite to win their division at
minus two eighty.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Next up, AFC North. I thought about the Bengals.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
Obviously cannot do Steelers here or Browns, so you gotta
go Ravens. They are heavily favored to win the AFC
norths minus one p fifty.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Obviously, Lamar Jackson has a.
Speaker 2 (02:20):
Very good group of receivers, a tight end is back there,
Rick Henry's back. I like what the defense did, and
you got to give a shout out to Marlin Humphrey
who was amazing on the show last week.
Speaker 3 (02:30):
What a great guest he was. So you gotta go
Ravens in the AFC North. I will accept.
Speaker 2 (02:34):
Bengals, but their defense is still in shambles. AFC South,
here's where I'm going a little bit of a surprise.
I don't believe as much in the Texans. Not ready
to go Colts because of the Anthony Richardson situation. So
going Jacksonville Jags going from four and thirteen to winning
the division. Shout out to Travis Hunter joining forces with
(02:56):
their wide receiver they had last year who was awesome.
Their quarterback who's very good. If the defense could take
a step up and the new coach can really get
his act together in Jacksonville. They've had some coaching issues
over the years. I like the Jags guys and Liam
Cohen to win the division. Bit of a surprise there
plus two sixty to win the division, and finally AFC
(03:17):
West Chiefs fans.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
You know, go ahead and fire your mud at knee online.
I'm used to it.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
I'm going with the Chargers, but with Jim Harbaugh to
deliver in year two.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Obviously, Herbert has better weapons.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Hopefully Naj Harris's superficial eye injury suffered on July fourth,
Hopefully he's okay.
Speaker 3 (03:38):
I think the offense is much better. Defense is going
to be great.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
It's a tough division, but I'm going with Chargers in
the AFC West, all right, NFC East. I toy with
the idea of Washington or Jaden Daniels.
Speaker 3 (03:50):
I'm not quite there. Obviously, Giants stink.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Cowboys are not going to be about five hundred. So
I will go with the Philadelphia Eagles to repeat as
the division winner. They are minus one thirty to win
the division, which is not bad for defending.
Speaker 3 (04:04):
Super Bowl champ. The defense is still going to be exceptional.
Speaker 2 (04:08):
The offense, another offensive coordinator somebody named Kevin Patulo. They
added a good linebacker and Campbell out of Alabama.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
I think this is going to be a very good team.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
I don't think they're quite due to the schedule super
Bowl contenders, but they're right there in the mix. Should
something happen to one of the better teams NFC North,
here's my major curveball. I'm going with the Minnesota Vikings.
I know, Jay, they won fourteen games. That's not a curveball. Well,
when you look at the odds, they are third best,
(04:39):
third after the Lions and Packers.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
They are plus three point fifty to win the division.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
I have planted my flag in the JJ McCarthy camp.
I know some people do not like that, and yes,
I'll hear from you about it. Hopefully he cleans up
his off field stuff and I think the confidence will
be there. I like Kevin O'Connell JJ McCarthy to win
the a NFC North NFC South slight wrinkle, though not
(05:04):
a huge one. I'm going with the Atlanta Falcons and
Michael Pennix to dethrone Tampa in the division. I really
like the offense. I think the defense had a good
draft with the edge rushers.
Speaker 3 (05:16):
I don't love some of the front office stuff, but.
Speaker 2 (05:18):
I'm gonna overlook it because I think Pennix has a
good enough year, and even if Pennick flops, Kirk Cousins
is still the best backup in the league.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
So give me the Falcons to win the NFC North.
Speaker 2 (05:28):
NFC South, sorry, and finally NFC West. Oh yeah, Rock
Purdy and the Niners. They will win the division. They
are plus one point fifty behind the Rams.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Folks. This is schedule oriented. Go look at the schedule.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
Easiest in the league by a mile. Robert Salah returns
on defense. They'll need him because they're down four starters
from last year. A lot of change. We'll get to
the Juwan Jennings stuff that popped this morning.
Speaker 3 (05:55):
Not great. Obviously, they'll need Brandon and I you badly.
Speaker 2 (05:59):
I think the fiftees, fifty three million dollar man Rock
Perty delivers Niners win the division.
Speaker 3 (06:05):
So there are my division winners, Bill's and Ravens.
Speaker 2 (06:08):
No surprise Jags are surprise Chargers and upset Eagles nobody
would be surprised by. And then Vikings Falcon designers. So
I've got Niners missed the playoffs. Falcons missed the playoffs,
Jags missed the playoffs. Three new teams just a the
division winners.
Speaker 3 (06:25):
All right, let's get to our guest.
Speaker 2 (06:27):
Matt Hasselbeck played eighteen seasons in the NFL.
Speaker 3 (06:33):
Obviously a great analyst here at Fox.
Speaker 2 (06:36):
I like, he's coming right off the practice field and
I will say this.
Speaker 4 (06:40):
Hey, yeah, cool, I'm in my high school coaching outfit.
Speaker 5 (06:44):
Here.
Speaker 4 (06:44):
It's sweaty down here at Nashville.
Speaker 6 (06:46):
But I cannot wait for when Jmack was right and
when Jmax was wrong.
Speaker 2 (06:51):
Yeah that's coming probably eventually next month, but really quickly.
Speaker 3 (06:54):
So you're coaching a high profile football program and I
just love it. I'm just curious.
Speaker 2 (07:00):
Are what's it like on the recruiting trail because you
obviously played in the NFL, big name, you're on TV,
you know, quarterback.
Speaker 3 (07:09):
Is it easy to recruit? Like? Is that so fun? Again?
I get nerdy about.
Speaker 6 (07:12):
This, well, I mean recruiting in high school football, it
sounds like a big thing.
Speaker 4 (07:17):
I mean I think of it more like an open house.
Speaker 6 (07:19):
You know, like you're an open house to your program
and everyone says, oh, you guys, recruit, I mean, our
whole conference recruits. But no, I think what it is
is like, you know, and I had high school athlete kids,
and I was once that kid. You just want to
go where other people, other good players are, and you
want to go where someone can develop you and to
coach you.
Speaker 4 (07:37):
And you know, personally, how we.
Speaker 6 (07:38):
Coach, you know, we don't we don't tackle each other
in practice. We kind of run it like an NFL program,
and I think a smarter way to practice so that
you can stay healthy and play multiple sports and that
kind of thing. But also like not a lot of
yelling at kids, more about coaching kids, you know.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
And that's not necessarily how I grew up, you know.
I was kind of old school or Pop Warner, like
get on the lawne do it again. Like I don't
even know what I did wrong.
Speaker 6 (08:03):
But it is fun. It is definitely fun coaching these guys.
And we have a lot of talent down here in Nashville,
Tennessee too, so Friday night lights are are incredible and
so much fun.
Speaker 3 (08:13):
That's awesome, man, congrats.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
That's a big thing in the communities, you know, coaching
kids like your father figure people looking up to you.
Speaker 3 (08:19):
So anyways, let's get to a We'll start with I'm
going to.
Speaker 6 (08:21):
Give a shout out to my nephew is the quarterback,
and my brother Tim is the head coach.
Speaker 4 (08:26):
It's his son, So I'm.
Speaker 6 (08:27):
A nice little buffer between the father son the way
that like Mike Holmgren had Andy Reid with Brett Farv.
Speaker 4 (08:35):
You know Mike Home.
Speaker 6 (08:35):
Uh, you know Jim Zorn was in there between me.
So it can get a little you know, it can
get a little intense.
Speaker 3 (08:42):
Wow, wait a step in there. Nicely done.
Speaker 2 (08:45):
All right, let's go to quickly my division winners. Uh,
hear what you hate? Where I'm gonna be wrong, where
I'm gonna be right. We can get them on the
screen here.
Speaker 7 (08:53):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
You gotta love the forty nine Ers, Falcons, Vikings, Eagles,
And then in the AFC, I don't have the Chiefs,
so go ahead and beat me up for that.
Speaker 4 (09:02):
Well, start, I'll start with the AFC. I think everyone's
with you on the Bills and Ravens. That's a no brainer.
Speaker 6 (09:07):
I think every year there's a quarterback that is kind
of like that'll be this year.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
Sam Darnold comes out of nowhere. To me, I think
Daniel Jones in Indianapolis Colts have the best chance to
be that guy.
Speaker 6 (09:19):
Someone will like research their career the way that Baker
Mayfield once did. And I think Daniel Jones has an
opportunity to win the division with Indianapolis Colts there. And
then the AFC West is an incredible division, but I
think people are sleeping on Sean Payton and bow Nicks
and what they could be in that division. I mean,
the easy pick would just to be said to say
(09:39):
the Chiefs Chargers are kind of a sexy pick, but
I think that in year two, bow Nicks is going
to be under center a lot more running that Drew
Brees offense. Their defense is way underrated with Vance Joseph,
I love them.
Speaker 4 (09:53):
And then on your list, yeah Eagles. I love the
Vikings just as much as anybody. I think they're a
great team.
Speaker 6 (09:59):
I think Brian Flora is gonna be probably coach of
the year on the like a defensive coordinator coach.
Speaker 4 (10:04):
Of the year type guy.
Speaker 6 (10:06):
But the Baker Mayfield slander here, like leaving Tampa off
is shocking, Like I'm like what, I don't get that one.
So you'll have to explain that one to me maybe.
But and then the NFC West is a lot like
the AFC West, some really good teams, some good parody.
I think I would go with the Seattle Seahawks in
that situation. I think they're a lot better than people
realized last year. They are double double digit win team
(10:29):
with the top ten defense. Mike McDonald has his vision
for what that offense is going to be. They're not
spending as much in the wide receiver situation, but they've
invested more in the offensive line, in the running game
and some of that. Obviously, they got a little bit
younger and they think maybe more talented at the quarterback position.
So I'll take the Seahawks in a tight division.
Speaker 2 (10:50):
There, Wow a lot to chew on there. Let me
just drill down on the Colts for a second. So
you just get right over Anthony Richardson and what to
Daniel Jones. Are you hearing the Daniel Jones has an edge?
I know Richardson's kind of banged up right now, but
that would be a surprise. But like you said, the
quarterback resurgence first round picks, you know, kind of flame
out in the first spot and then the second spot. Recently,
(11:11):
guys have guys have popped again, So you're bullish on
Daniel Jones.
Speaker 4 (11:15):
Well, here's the thing.
Speaker 6 (11:16):
Like if you go to I played for the Indianapolis Colts,
they used to have signs around the buildings. One of
those signs used to say, the greatest ability is availability.
And so you know you've got Anthony Richardson, who was
incredible at the combine.
Speaker 5 (11:26):
I was there.
Speaker 6 (11:27):
I saw it firsthand. I've never seen anything like it.
It was so impressive. But he hasn't played a lot
of football. I didn't play a lot of football in college.
You know, he was hurt last year. I think the
whole thing where he was out of breath and he
tapped out and said, hey.
Speaker 4 (11:39):
I need to play.
Speaker 6 (11:41):
When your franchise quarterback does that, and the previous franchise
quarterbacks were guys like Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck. Like,
I think it just it's going to be hard to
overcome some of that. And then you know, he wasn't
available all off season with a shoulder injury once again.
And then Daniel Jones is a guy that you know,
he's not as excited to watch, but it's kind of
(12:01):
a slow and steady wins the race kind of thing,
and so I don't know that's it'll be a it'll
be a competition. But as I look at it and
I just kind of know that organization, I know what
they're looking for. They're looking for consistency, and they're looking
to compete and win that division now this year. That
doesn't mean that I don't think Anthony Richardson could have
a great career. I just think he's off to a
(12:23):
really really slow start.
Speaker 3 (12:24):
Stichen maybe needs the wins to keep his job. I
don't know.
Speaker 4 (12:28):
Well, he's a great runner too.
Speaker 6 (12:30):
Yeah, And I think Anthony Richardson's like you know, he's
he's a real He's a great runner, red zone threat,
all that stuff. But Daniel Jones ironically is a much
better runner than people realize. I mean even in New
York he didn't go great there, but Brian Daball was
running a lot of that Josh Allen run game with
Daniel Jones, he.
Speaker 4 (12:47):
Did a lot better.
Speaker 6 (12:47):
I mean he I know what some people say, well,
he looks like a giraffe on ice when he runs,
But like, I think it's pretty effective.
Speaker 4 (12:54):
I think it's pretty effective as a runner.
Speaker 3 (12:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Remember Vanilla Vick was his nickname, which not everybody loved.
It might be a strategy but yeah, all right, let's
move to Denver Broncos real quick, you said, Bo Nixon,
Sean Payton, I keep reading this defense man, they might
have the best defense in the league, like Shretan is amazing.
And then what they did in a draft and Riley
Moss who funga Drake Greenlaw a lot of guys coming
(13:18):
over Denver might have the number one defense in the NFL.
Speaker 4 (13:22):
Yeah, no doubt, listen. I played a long time in
the NFL.
Speaker 6 (13:25):
One of the one of the toughest guys to go
up but go up against on third down was Vance Joseph.
And you know, wherever he was like, he always seemed
like he was very aggressive. His dbs and his linebackers
all kind of played on a yo yo.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
They were all disguising at the same time. One of
the best quarterbacks at the.
Speaker 6 (13:42):
Line of scrimmage that I've ever seen was Peyton Manning.
And I would say that Vance Joseph is one of
the guys that I feel like had an advantage on
a guy like Peyton Manning at the line of scrimmage.
They do a nice job with their pre snap post
snap stuff. I think that's a pretty good fan base
with crowd and noise, they can get role and if
their offense can score, I think this is a good team.
(14:03):
You know, bo Nicks had an incredible year last year.
I think surprised a lot of people. Sean Payton said, no,
I know exactly what I'm looking for in a quarterback.
Speaker 3 (14:10):
That is my guy.
Speaker 4 (14:11):
There weren't a lot of scouts saying, oh, yeah, he's
definitely the guy. He's definitely going to succeed. He had
a great year.
Speaker 6 (14:16):
And if it wasn't for Jayden Daniels having just an epic,
all time historic rookie campaign, people would be talking a
lot more about bon Nicks and last year, like I said,
they were in shotgun a lot more because that's what
he was most comfortable with. But I think what Sean
Payton is most comfortable with is more under center stuff.
Speaker 4 (14:34):
So you're gonna see bon Nicks under center more.
Speaker 6 (14:37):
It's going to be better for the play action, better
for the run game, harder to defend.
Speaker 4 (14:40):
They'll still go empty, they'll still all do that stuff.
Speaker 6 (14:43):
Running back out of the backfield type stuff is dangerous
for this team as well.
Speaker 4 (14:47):
You know, I just have a lot of respect for
what that team can be.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Interesting all right, let's go to ESPN had a list
of the ten best quarterbacks. Apparently they pulled executives, coaches,
and scouts. I don't listen. I don't want to of
those too bad. Obviously, the top four needs no introduction.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
We all agree with that. But five through ten, I
just had a lot of issues. Again.
Speaker 2 (15:10):
You know, do people understand that Jalen Hurts statistically is
winning from the pocket?
Speaker 3 (15:16):
Matt, do you think that there's maybe.
Speaker 2 (15:17):
A little bias because he's the only non first round
pick among all these guys, and then first round picks
get like the benefit of the doubt in the style
you're at.
Speaker 6 (15:27):
Yeah, you're asking a six round pick, So you think
that I would be biased here?
Speaker 4 (15:31):
No, I don't think so.
Speaker 6 (15:33):
I think people are looking for a certain thing when
they hear that word quarterback. And you know, that's kind
of what I love so much about that Netflix documentary Quarterback,
because there's not one style, there's not one flavor, there's
not one leadership style, play style, none of that. I
love that top five. I would put Lamar higher, but
I love that top five. Listen, Jalen, you could make
(15:54):
the argument that, I mean, I think he's definitely in
that six to ten, but you could make the argument
that he should be at number six.
Speaker 4 (16:00):
And I think why I say that.
Speaker 6 (16:02):
You know, people don't give him enough credit for the
quarterback sneak, Like they just don't like they think, like, oh,
it's just a quarterback sneak, it doesn't count. It's just
like a free play. We should make it illegal. That
is a real weapon that he uses, and like, so
like sometimes it's maybe easy to gloss over some of
some of the other stuff because he's not you know,
he's staying in the pocket. He's not bolting. A lot
(16:23):
of young quarterbacks just bolt outside the pocket.
Speaker 4 (16:25):
He stays in the pocket. He doesn't flinch.
Speaker 5 (16:29):
You know.
Speaker 6 (16:29):
Maybe it's boring to some people, but listen, my favorite
ice ice cream flavor is vanilla. It's Hoggindaw's vanilla, and
it's better than all the other vanillas. You can't just say, oh,
it's just been No, it's way better. And Jalen hurts
it's some of the things that he does. It might
be boring, but it is way better than how the
other guys in the league do it.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
Totally agree.
Speaker 2 (16:49):
I do have to ask. I mean, listen, it's just
one season of Jayden Dings.
Speaker 3 (16:54):
Was it the greatest rookie season ever? Maybe?
Speaker 2 (16:56):
Possibly, But it's also possible that he just took the
league by storm. They were not ready for him and
his speed and his third down scrambling ability. They did
win a lot of close games late. You could say
there was some luck involved. I'm not comparing it to CJ. Stroud,
but Stroud as a rookie was oh my gosh, where'd.
Speaker 3 (17:13):
This guy come from?
Speaker 2 (17:14):
And now he doesn't even make the top ten after
year two? There was some regression. I don't know, are
we going a little irrational on Daniel's after one season?
Speaker 3 (17:22):
I get he's top ten, but five, I mean, I
love him.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
I think he's awesome in every way. I mean, I
can't find a weakness in his game. His weakness is
that he was putting himself in, putting himself in harm
too much. But I think he learned that lesson he
got the rib injury.
Speaker 6 (17:36):
You know, once you get the rib injury, you're like, oh, okay, yeah,
I'm good, I'll slide earlier.
Speaker 4 (17:40):
You know, that kind of stuff. But they also invested
on the offensive side of the ball this year.
Speaker 6 (17:44):
They invested in you know, two tackles. It's gonna help
the run game, it's gonna protect him more. You know
the weakness of this team and why I don't think
they'll dethrown the Eagles right away is because their defense
hasn't caught up.
Speaker 4 (17:55):
You know, they let Fowler go.
Speaker 6 (17:57):
I think they could have. I guess you got to
pick what you're going to do. They invested in the
young quarterback. It's hard to argue that. So offensively, I
think he will be just as good as he was
last year. But he was incredible, and I think the
clutch gene is what I would pay to him.
Speaker 4 (18:10):
Like, you know, a lot of guys, look, oh I
can make that throw. I could make that play. Yeah,
well guess what.
Speaker 6 (18:15):
Jaden Daniels makes it the one opportunity when it's there
to be made, he makes it in that split second
and he just he makes.
Speaker 4 (18:21):
It look easy.
Speaker 2 (18:22):
I do have to ask Dak Prescott is the highest
paid quarterback in the NFL. He's not even on the
top ten. Also, two years ago he was runner up
for MVP. So again, I don't want to say people
are getting knee jerk, but should Dak be in there?
He was hurt a lot of last year.
Speaker 4 (18:37):
But still no, no, no, he should not be in there.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
No.
Speaker 6 (18:40):
I mean, I know he's the Cowboys quarterback, but I mean,
who are you going to take out?
Speaker 4 (18:43):
There's a that's a hard.
Speaker 3 (18:45):
Herbert I love, but Herbert doesn't have a playoff win.
Speaker 4 (18:49):
Yeah, okay, Well, I mean I'll just say this that
this is one of the best things about the NFL.
Then good teams get this right.
Speaker 6 (18:56):
And Mike Holmgrian, I remember the Packers were coming off
a consecutive Super Bowls and I came in my very
first meeting with Mike Hongrin and he said, listen, I
do not care how much money you make.
Speaker 4 (19:08):
I do not care where you were drafted. I don't
care what you have done in the past. The best
players are going to play. It is not about these
other things. And listen, that's a room with Reggie White
and Brett fav coming off with like three MVPs in
a row. And that's the mindset.
Speaker 6 (19:22):
So like for players, and I think the best coaches,
what's someone's contract is is irrelevant. And I would say
that when I'm game planning against a defense, I don't
care if you're the highest paid corner in the league.
If I find a weakness in your game, we're going
to try to exploit it. And I think that's the
best way to look at, you know, some of these
positional rankings as well, your contract that's for somebody else
(19:45):
for us as we evaluate, you know, I think you.
Speaker 4 (19:48):
Let the film do the talking.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
All right, final one on this before we get to
your offseason winners. My guy, brock Perdy did not crack
the top ten. Now, he didn't have a phenomenal year,
a lot of injuries, but Matt, you saw him before this.
He was an elite quarterback. He was in the MVP
discussion two years ago, led the Niners to a Super Bowl,
led them to a conference championship. Brock Perty's numbers are
really good. Should he have made a case for the
(20:10):
top ten?
Speaker 6 (20:11):
No, listen, I think he's awesome, and I think Dak's
a good quarterback too, But top ten is top ten.
Speaker 4 (20:16):
I mean, that's you know, it's rare air.
Speaker 6 (20:19):
I think that brock Party is the right quarterback for
the forty nine ers. I think Dak is the right
quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. But Brock is a guy
that is always going to get doubted. You were talking
about the fact that Hurts wasn't a first rounder.
Speaker 4 (20:34):
I don't think.
Speaker 6 (20:35):
I don't care what brock Party does the rest of
his career. I think he will always be to some
people mister irrelevant.
Speaker 4 (20:41):
To me, he is not that.
Speaker 6 (20:43):
And to Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch, he is not that.
The challenge for them is they got to stick together
as guys are leaving, there's a lot of change. Juwan
Jennings wants a new contract right now, like there's a
lot of stuff. Can't pay everybody. But you know, he's
I think he's a good player. I think he could
be a great player if he continues to win that division,
that he continues to kind of do it when it
(21:04):
needs to be done. That's there's a fine line between
being a playoff quarterback and not a playoff quarterback, to
be a quarterback that wins playoff games and a quarterback
that's just one and done. And so I think he
certainly has the ingredients to do it. He's got the
coaching staff to do it. But that turnover is going
to be an issue for them.
Speaker 2 (21:21):
Yeah, all right, finally, let's get to your winners of
the offseason. I will say you listed four teams here.
I agree with two and a half of them. Colin
will greatly agree with one of them. But why don't
you reveal your four winners this offseason?
Speaker 6 (21:35):
Well, you know, I'm not sure what the order is here,
but I love Minnesota. Like I think Minnesota is going
to be the sneaky tim My team. I mentioned Brian Flores.
I think that defense is going to be underrated. They
invested up front. They spend one hundred and six million
dollars at center and right guard with you know, with
the veterans that they went there. They I mean, they're
(21:56):
just they're going up front in the trenches. I think
we kind of learned from that. That's what they did
last year. Now it's going to be all on JJ McCarthy.
Speaker 4 (22:04):
Can he do it? That's a huge question mark young quarterbacks.
Speaker 6 (22:08):
But I'll say this, the people in Minnesota believe that
he can. That's why they let Sam Darnold walk. They
said no to Aaron Rodgers, they said no to Daniel Jones.
They like they believe with Kevin O'Connell. They feel like
he could be the guy.
Speaker 4 (22:21):
You know, another team that I think he kind of
got to like buy low, sell high here that really improved.
Speaker 6 (22:27):
I think the Las Vegas Raiders did a great job,
you know, I think about Pete Carroll. They went and
got Chip Kelly, they upgraded, They got Geno Smith, they
got Ashton Genty, they got a good running back room,
Rock Bauers in this offense.
Speaker 4 (22:40):
I like it, you know, I can't.
Speaker 6 (22:42):
I think Tom Brady's influence in this is something.
Speaker 4 (22:45):
It's not nothing.
Speaker 6 (22:47):
So to me, I think the Raiders are a much
improved team. Will they be relevant enough in this division?
Speaker 4 (22:53):
I don't know. It's a year one thing.
Speaker 6 (22:56):
The New England Patriots in a similar way, I think
it's a bit upgrade Mike Rabel, Josh McDaniels, Drake May.
Speaker 5 (23:03):
Year two.
Speaker 4 (23:04):
They've invested in the draft on the.
Speaker 6 (23:05):
Offensive side of the ball early, and then they kind
of went free agency with guys like Milton Williams. They
got Christian Barmore back, they got two of the best
corners in the league, and Christian Gonzales and Carlton Davis.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
Third.
Speaker 6 (23:17):
I think the Patriots make a huge jump. They were
terrible last year. They're going to be potentially a playoff
team this year, and then this might surprise people a
little bit coming from me, But I really believe that
this team has done, probably more than anybody the most
to improve and that's the Chicago Bears. And part of
the reason that I say it is I love the
(23:38):
fact that they locked up Ryan Poles.
Speaker 4 (23:40):
I think one of the biggest issues in.
Speaker 6 (23:42):
Chicago is that they have not had continuity and symmetry
with the GM and the head coach. So now you
get polls, you get Ben Johnson, you go maybe done
the best job of any team solidifying the inside of
the offensive line. They're building this whole thing around Caleb Williams.
They're saying, Caleb, it is your job. We are setting
you up. You are the guy that should be the
(24:05):
most improved quarterback from last year to this.
Speaker 4 (24:07):
Year, and we'll see. I mean it's he's certainly, I've
said it many times.
Speaker 6 (24:12):
He has the talent. He is off to a very
slow start. He has the potential. It's all surrounded great coaching,
great protection, weapons, Like I really think that this is
this is a make or break year for him in
that sense, and he certainly is capable of doing it.
But if you look on paper most improved, I'll say
(24:32):
that they've done a great job.
Speaker 3 (24:33):
Often so wrap up with give me your order for
that division?
Speaker 2 (24:36):
Then, I mean, I agree they got better, But is
there any way they're not last place in the division?
Speaker 4 (24:42):
Yeah, I listen.
Speaker 6 (24:44):
I think it's gonna be hard for Detroit. I think
it's gonna be hard for Detroit with all the losses
that they've had. I mean, they were one of the
best teams in football all last year. Loved him, but
losing both coordinators is tough. There's a lot of adversity
that they're going to have to overcome and Detroit and
they might overcome it.
Speaker 4 (25:00):
They might. They've got strong leadership there, the same quarterback there.
Speaker 6 (25:04):
That could happen to me. I think Minnesota is a
team that's going to shock people. I think they're really good,
like really good. Green Bays underrated. I thought they, you know,
a double digit win team last year.
Speaker 4 (25:16):
You know, are the Bears going to be fourth in
that division? Possibly?
Speaker 6 (25:19):
But I think it's they're kind of putting all their
chips on this guy that they think is a franchise quarterback,
the first pick in the overall in the draft. Can
he be a difference maker the way that Jaden Daniels was.
Jane Daniels took a bad team and said, hey, get
on my back, follow me.
Speaker 4 (25:33):
I will lead us.
Speaker 6 (25:35):
And they were one game away from from doing something
incredibly special.
Speaker 4 (25:38):
So you know, is Caleb that guy?
Speaker 6 (25:42):
I guess it kind of comes down to you believe
Caleb's that guy or not. But they put all the
pieces around him for him to do it.
Speaker 3 (25:48):
Yeah. I like it.
Speaker 2 (25:49):
That's a spicy take. All right, the great Matt hasselback.
Keep up the good work you guys doing two days
this week?
Speaker 4 (25:55):
No no, no, no, no, you come on now, we're
not great. Two days are over. Science has told us
that is not even smart.
Speaker 6 (26:02):
So we practiced once today Monday through Wednesday, seven on
seven on a Thursday.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Enjoy your weekend. You know that kind of Wow?
Speaker 2 (26:10):
Maybe I should play football for you. Oh my, that
sounds cushy.
Speaker 4 (26:13):
Gee. Well, most our kids are playing baseball and.
Speaker 6 (26:16):
Summer lacrosse and other stuff too, so we believe in
multi sport athletes.
Speaker 3 (26:20):
I like that. Totally agree. All right, Matt has all
my good stuff.
Speaker 2 (26:22):
Man, thanks a lot, see Jayson, all right, he's a
good guy. Sounds like a great coach. I mean, geez,
letting kids play multiple sports. I know a lot of
coaches were like, Hey, you got to drop the other
sports and focus on this, which is a terrible idea. Anyways,
coming up next, I'll tell you why Travis Hunter should
not play both ways next season, and a celebrity endorsement
(26:43):
comes along with it.
Speaker 3 (26:45):
That's next year on the Herd.
Speaker 8 (26:46):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
at noon Eastern non am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio
FS one and the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (26:55):
It's me Rob Parker.
Speaker 9 (26:57):
Check out my weekly MLB pod cast, Inside the Parker
for twenty two minutes of piping hot baseball talk featuring
the biggest names of newsmakers in the sport. Whether you
believe in analytics or the I Test, We've got all
the bases covered. New episodes dropped every Thursday, So do
your sofa favor and listen to Inside the Parker with
(27:20):
Rob Parker on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get
your podcast.
Speaker 3 (27:26):
Back here on the Herd.
Speaker 2 (27:28):
Fun stuff with Matt Hasselbeck, one of the seminal quarterbacks
in Seattle Seahawks history.
Speaker 3 (27:37):
He said he had a great career, three time Pro bowler.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
Interesting teams to watch I listed the Jags as a
team to watch earlier in the show, and we had
a gambler.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
On last week. I forget if it was.
Speaker 2 (27:51):
It might have been Adam turnoff for Chris FeliCa. One
of those two was hyping Trevor Lawrence to lead the
league in touchdowns, and it's an interesting take because you know,
Lawrence has not really lived up to the hype, and they.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
You know, had a good receiver.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
I think Brian Thomas last year put up some great
rookie numbers and then they've trade up, which I didn't
love at the time, to draft Travis Hunter, the great
wide receiver who also plays cornerback at a very high
level at Colorado, and now he's going to the pros.
So I'm bullish on the Jags offense. But the question becomes,
is Travis Hunter going to play both ways? We've never
(28:29):
really seen it. Obviously, people want to compare it to
Dion Sanders. Dion it was a great cornerback and returned
punts and stuff, and then he played baseball, like that's
a little different than playing defensive back and then playing
wide receiver. And Travis Hunter had a quote this week
about how, hey, listen, it's a lot for Travis Hunter,
(28:53):
but he can handle.
Speaker 3 (28:54):
It's a lot to put on his plate, but he
can handle.
Speaker 2 (28:56):
He's a really polished route runner, he's an excellent cornerback.
Speaker 3 (28:59):
He's just a athlete. And I don't know.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
I think I said at the time that it struck
me as hey, we need to make a splash as Jacksonville.
You know, there's a lot of jokes about the Jags.
They're London's team, they don't really have a fan base,
and this was the kind of move like, Travis Hunter
was one of the most popular players in the draft
when you factor in social media activity, off the field, endorsements.
(29:24):
He's just he's super popular. People like him, gravitate toward him.
So it was a play of hey, we got a
duel threat athlete, Hey we got an elite athlete, and oh,
by the way, he's super popular. Everybody loves him, so
you kind of put Jacksonville a little more on the map. However,
we had Marlon Humphrey, the great Ravens defensive back last week,
(29:44):
who said, Travis Hunter, I don't know about going both ways.
Speaker 3 (29:48):
Here's Marlon Humphrey.
Speaker 4 (29:49):
To do both It seems very mission impossible esque.
Speaker 7 (29:53):
You know, I think Dion obviously did a little bit
of it, you know, back in his day, but I
just think the game has changed so much since then.
Dion was clearly light and day the fastest guy out there.
Nowadays everybody's fast. I think he's really got a tough
challenge ahead. I think eventually he will realize, Man, it's
(30:14):
really really hard to do this at a high level
where every week you're playing a top NFL team. It's
not like college where you know, there is teams on
everyone's roster, where it's like this should be a pretty
easy game, and that's just not the case.
Speaker 5 (30:28):
In the NFL.
Speaker 7 (30:29):
I hope he has success with it, and I hope
he just decides it's just too much for me as
opposed to you know, he kind of struggles with it.
Speaker 3 (30:38):
Yeah, and I totally agree with Marlon Humphrey.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
By the way, I don't know that many other people
are advising him against this. Everybody's endorsing it as being positive,
and I get it, you want to be positive. By
the way, this is how popular Travis Hunter is. After
we had on Marlon Humphrey last week, I said, I
agreed with him. I got a DM from my guy
low Wayne, the rapper who has appeared on this network
plenty of times, and he's like, hey, man, that's my guy.
(31:01):
You gotta stop putting him down. Why you guys hating
on him? And we're not hating on Travis Hunter. He's
a great athlete. But the idea that he's gonna go
out on the first defensive series and try to tackle
running backs in space and then chase wide receivers and
then hey, we're on offense, go out there and run
round that's insane. That's way too much pressure on a
(31:21):
young kid. And I looked at the Jags schedule. Okay,
so you know what's gonna happen. Travis Hunter can play
both ways against the Carolina Panthers in the opener, he.
Speaker 3 (31:31):
Can do that.
Speaker 2 (31:31):
He probably will excel. Carolina's not a great offense. You know,
Bryce Young doesn't have many weapons, they don't have a
running back that scares you.
Speaker 3 (31:40):
He can do that in the.
Speaker 2 (31:41):
Opener and everybody's gonna see I told you guys, he
can do it, and I'd be happy for Week two
Cincinnati Bengals. He's gonna be chasing around Jamar Chase and
or T Higgins.
Speaker 3 (31:58):
That's a tall order. And then he's gonna be running routes.
Speaker 2 (32:01):
Week three, Hello Nico Collins, who emerged last year before
the injury. It's one of the best receivers in the league. Okay,
and CJ. Stroud, you know, likes to chuck and duck.
Week four, San Francisco forty nine Ers, hey man, we
need you to tackle Christian McCaffrey at George Kittle's gonna
be blocking you good looking around him, and then we
(32:22):
need you to chase around I you Cor Jennings or
whoever they got a receiver.
Speaker 3 (32:26):
Not gonna be easy.
Speaker 2 (32:27):
Week five, Kansas City Chiefs, hey man, Isaiah Pacheco.
Speaker 3 (32:33):
A few guys run as hard as him.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
Need you to get him in space, wrap him up,
no pile inspector stuff.
Speaker 3 (32:39):
You got to get in there and wrap.
Speaker 2 (32:41):
And then I need you chasing around Xavier Worthy, one
of the fastest players in the league.
Speaker 3 (32:45):
And Rashid Rice over the middle.
Speaker 2 (32:47):
You just look at the schedule and you're like, Okay,
Travis Hunter makes out for a week and maybe he
has a splash play or two against Jamar Chase or
Xavier Worthy or Rashi Rice, but that schedule is Bruce, Guys,
I just don't like this for Travis Hunter, and I
like the kid.
Speaker 3 (33:05):
He might be rookie the year. I just think it's
too much for a young guy.
Speaker 4 (33:08):
All right.
Speaker 2 (33:09):
Coming up next, former NBA center Ryan Hollins drops by, listen,
this Lebron.
Speaker 3 (33:15):
Stuff is concerning everybody. He's near the end. He's carrying
the league for fifteen years.
Speaker 2 (33:20):
What does Ryan Hollins have to say about the goat
that's next year on the Herd?
Speaker 8 (33:24):
Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays
and noon Easter not a Empacific.
Speaker 10 (33:31):
All right.
Speaker 2 (33:31):
He's spent ten seasons in the NBA with nine different
teams at some clean livin.
Speaker 3 (33:38):
Let's welcome in Ryan Hollins.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
Fox Sports Radio every Sunday, nine am Easter. Look at
my guy sitting in his Elon muskmobile with with the
shades on, looking tough.
Speaker 3 (33:50):
How hot is that Houston heat?
Speaker 7 (33:52):
Was it?
Speaker 3 (33:52):
One? Ten?
Speaker 5 (33:54):
Is burning up?
Speaker 7 (33:55):
Man?
Speaker 10 (33:55):
I'm over in the gym with my guy, Justin Allen
over in Houston, and you are right, man, it is.
Speaker 5 (33:59):
By the humidity is different for this California boy.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
Man.
Speaker 3 (34:02):
Yeah, you got to get back to Cali. Baby.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
A little too hot in Houston, by the way, I
will say, speaking of hot how good did Reed Shepherd
look in Summer League. He's out here frying guys. He's
going to be big in the rotation for the Rockets
this year, right.
Speaker 5 (34:16):
He's gonna be huge. He's right now?
Speaker 10 (34:19):
Is everybody assessus Houston's Rocket roster? You like to say
that he can be the most pivotal piece. You know,
everyone's looking to what he can do. And last season,
the biggest frustration I would say, wasn't you know that
Reid wasn't talented or didn't have the IQ. He knows
everywhere that he's supposed to be on the floor. You know,
it's the other way, you know. I never had these
(34:40):
problems with j Mac. They're like shoot the ball more,
you know, let it rip, let the ball fly. So
at Summer League you can see the big emphasis for
Reid to look for his shot, and he's got a
unique skill set.
Speaker 5 (34:53):
Comparable J Mac.
Speaker 10 (34:55):
Don't go crazy when I say this, Oh go crazy
when I say this, Okay, comparable to have Curry in
the sinse of the smaller guard Jay Man, Come on, bro,
that's not I said comparable. I didn't say he's Curry,
but he can get his shot off off the bounce.
He has a very quick release, and you see why
he's encouraged to shoot the ball more. And that's one
(35:16):
thing that Houston really needed. That you have the defense,
the rebounding, but the three point shooting, which would open
up the four for guys like Durant and Van Vliet
and men Thompson and Shingoon.
Speaker 5 (35:28):
Inside, stop laughing.
Speaker 3 (35:31):
Man, Sorry, sorry for laughing. Obviously that wasn't a comparison.
Speaker 2 (35:34):
I'll say Shepherd's game is clean, smooth, nice. It looks
like he has worked on these moves like Kobe Bryant
over the years, Like Kobe's moves are just so smooth,
it's like it's perfected. Now it is only summer league,
let's seehim do it against elite NBA players.
Speaker 3 (35:49):
But all right, one last thing on summer league before
we move on.
Speaker 2 (35:53):
Cooper Flag looked I thought fine in the opener, A
lot of people were saying more mid five for twenty
one shooting, and then he was off for thirty one
against the Spurs, just dunk after dunk off the dribble bombs,
like that's the real Cooper Flag. How impressed were you?
Speaker 10 (36:11):
I was extremely impressed with Cooper Flag, and I think
it's a great call by Dallas. You know, the one
reason he has one reason to be in Summer League,
not just to show the fans and pay it off
because it's just a part of our game and the
way that it's played, but to have confidence. He is
gaining confidence in that second game where he went off
was great. And then Cooper Flagg being the number one pick,
(36:33):
he's the guy that the media is going.
Speaker 5 (36:34):
To be all over. You know.
Speaker 10 (36:35):
Unfortunately for Sarrow last year and the kid over in Atlanta,
you know, everybody was talking about Bronnie James. He took
that pressure. But this year, Cooper Flag undisputedly is the guy.
So you get him feeling good, he's positive, they're excellent.
Storylines are going to be going around him. And the
one thing that I take away and we saw this
(36:56):
is for Cooper Flag, He's in the perfect situation in Dallas.
He's not going to be great creating off the dribble,
just going one on one, but he excels in the
open floor.
Speaker 5 (37:06):
He brings it out a lot of length and.
Speaker 10 (37:09):
I think for the mistakes or you know, rookie understanding
of where to be on the floor, you know, you
got Anthony Davis behind you, you got Gafford behind you.
Speaker 5 (37:18):
You know you got those Derek Lively behind you, have
those big bodies.
Speaker 10 (37:21):
So I think he's going to be excellent over there
in Dallas, and that if you defend, you can get
out and run.
Speaker 5 (37:26):
And one thing Dallas wants to do is play a
lot faster.
Speaker 3 (37:29):
All right, Ryan, I'm work shopping a take.
Speaker 2 (37:32):
So the Bucks, you know, they probably should trade Giannis,
but they don't want to, right, So let's go over
pay Miles Turner, which is a bad deal. That Damian
low is in disaster. They're not going to be good,
but they're keeping Jannis for now. The Denver Nuggets are
doing the opposite. We got to do everything we can
to keep Yokic, right, Let's get Cam Johnson like Tim
Hardaway Junior. Let's get we actually have a bench this year,
(37:56):
and Jokic said, no, thank you to the extension this year.
Let me see how we do now. Obviously you can
make more money next year. But I'm just curious. Are
we seeing a different approach toward keeping these European stars,
because even the Lakers with Luca Hey.
Speaker 3 (38:09):
We don't want to commit to anybody long term. Lebron.
Speaker 2 (38:12):
Sorry, so we're seeing, like Luka, Jannison, Jokicic, the three
next pillars in the league and how teams are trying
to keep them or build around them. I'm just curious
your thoughts about team building in regards to those three.
Speaker 10 (38:25):
Well, the one thing that you have to understand, j
mac is is you don't want to go back into
the ice ages of development and tanking.
Speaker 5 (38:33):
We'll just call it for what it is.
Speaker 10 (38:35):
And if you're not one of these mega markets, you
can use this JAMC.
Speaker 5 (38:38):
If you're not one of these mega.
Speaker 10 (38:39):
Markets and you have one of these mega stars, you
gotta sign the nassis to keep them. You got to
be aggressive in free agency. You gotta make these moves
because they mean that much. And even more so, you know,
following the heels of Lebron James, these stars know their
value and they're willing to go. So you know, with
(39:00):
the stars of the past would stay put, you can
build around them. You know there wasn't movement gonna be there. Uh,
these guys get it. So I'm all in for Milwaukee. Giannis.
Is that darn good that you go and you make
moves And it was a historical buyout with Damian Lillard.
That's not the best thing obviously for the franchise moving forward,
but for Giannis, you want to stay competitive, and you
(39:21):
look at the injuries in the Eastern Conference. Giannis out
to the Coupo has to be looking over and saying, Okay,
I lose Lopez, but.
Speaker 5 (39:27):
I get I get a guy a.
Speaker 10 (39:28):
Little younger, the guy who can block shots the same,
and I can go pound for pound for the best,
the best of them in the East.
Speaker 5 (39:34):
And now you put a chip on my shoulders.
Speaker 10 (39:36):
So they get a buy out with with Anthony goes
over there from Memphis sou I'm telling you, man, I'm
not completely against it.
Speaker 5 (39:45):
They're settling for the now.
Speaker 2 (39:47):
Wow, col So Cole Anthony could start. I don't know, Ryan,
I like how you're hyping the bus. But hey, how
about this. We didn't even get unto Lebron. You know,
there's just not enough time. Uh yeah, so or anyways,
Ryan Hollins, the former end a Center Fox Sports radio star,
enjoy the summer and the heat, stay cool.
Speaker 3 (40:05):
In Houston, Ryan, I'd rather talk to him.
Speaker 2 (40:09):
Good stuff, Ryan Hans. I was gonna tell him they
could you text Lebron and tell him Lebron just just
just chill like it's gonna be fine. Start talking to
the media, all right. Coming up next, we got kind
of a controversial top ten quarterback NFL list floating around,
so I'm giving you my version of it, obviously more accurate.
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Colin Cowherd
Jason McIntyre
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