3 & Out - CFP REACTION: Ohio State Beats Texas in 28-14 Semifinal Battle to advance to the Natty

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Herd with Colin Cowherd Episode: 3 & Out - CFP REACTION: Ohio State Beats Texas in 28-14 Semifinal Battle to Advance to the Natty
Release Date: January 11, 2025
Host/Author: iHeartPodcasts and The Volume

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Introduction

In this episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd, host John Middlekauff provides an in-depth reaction to Ohio State's decisive 28-14 victory over Texas in the College Football Playoff (CFP) semifinal. As Ohio State advances to the national championship game, Middlekauff delves into the game's pivotal moments, coaching decisions, player performances, and the broader implications for both teams heading into the finals.

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Game Overview

John Middlekauff opens his analysis by setting the stage for the Ohio State vs. Texas semifinal clash, highlighting Ohio State's position as the favored team both publicly and in the betting lines.

[03:02] John Middlekauff: “Ohio State just looked excellent. You're like this is the best team in the country they're going to roll.”

Ohio State dominated the first half, maintaining a seven-point lead while Texas showcased formidable defensive strategies. The game intensified in the second half, with Texas mounting a comeback to tie the game at 14-14 before Ohio State ultimately secured the win.

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Coaching Analysis

A significant portion of the discussion focuses on the contrasting coaching styles of Ohio State's Chip Kelly and Texas's Steve Sarkisian. Middlekauff praises Kelly's strategic play-calling, especially in critical moments, while critiquing Sarkisian's decisions that ultimately led to Texas's downfall.

[05:45] John Middlekauff: “Chip Kelly got it done. Sark did not.”

He highlights key play calls, such as Kelly's effective screen pass leading to a crucial touchdown and Sarkisian's risky lateral play that resulted in a loss of seven yards.

[10:30] John Middlekauff: “On fourth and two, Chip Kelly just leaves the ball in the hands of his quarterback. If the quarterback doesn't trip himself, I don't know if he scores, but he definitely gains an extra six, seven yards.” (10:30)

Middlekauff underscores that coaching decisions were paramount in determining the game's outcome, emphasizing Kelly's adaptability and Sarkisian's missteps under pressure.

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Player Performances

Middlekauff provides detailed evaluations of standout players from both teams, noting Ohio State's explosive running back Henderson and wide receiver Tate's dominance.

[08:15] John Middlekauff: “Henderson is such an explosive running back. Their third wide receiver, Tate, was dominating tonight.” (08:15)

He also discusses Texas's defensive prowess, particularly praising their coordinators and linebackers who effectively neutralized key Ohio State offensive threats.

[12:50] John Middlekauff: “Texas has one of the best defensive coordinators in the country. They treated Jeremiah Smith like Jerry Rice.” (12:50)

However, Middlekauff expresses reservations about Texas's quarterback Quinn Ewers, questioning his decision-making and ability to handle high-pressure situations.

[20:40] John Middlekauff: “Quinn Ewers... his feel for playing the position is not great. He took some awful sacks tonight.” (20:40)

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Strategic Decisions

Delving deeper into the game's pivotal moments, Middlekauff analyzes Ohio State's strategic use of the passing game and running plays to exploit Texas's defense. He praises Ohio State's ability to adjust their game plan mid-game, particularly in the second half where they regained control after Texas's brief resurgence.

[16:25] John Middlekauff: “Chip Kelly's play-calling on fourth and two with Will Howard was a gut punch from Texas. He ran quarterback sweep effectively.” (16:25)

Middlekauff also critiques Texas's red-zone inefficiency, attributing some of their struggles to poor play-calling and execution in critical areas.

[18:10] John Middlekauff: “Texas's red zone offense is 108th among Division 1 programs. On that specific play from the one-yard line, you couldn't have run it smarter.” (18:10)

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Coaching and Team Dynamics

The episode explores the broader themes of coaching tenure and team dynamics, comparing Ryan Day of Ohio State and Steve Sarkisian of Texas. Middlekauff highlights Day's consistent performance and ability to build a resilient team culture, contrasting it with Sarkisian's fluctuating career trajectory.

[24:00] John Middlekauff: “Ryan Day has the boys in the natty. He's one of the best coaches in the country, and he becomes legendary.” *(24:00)

[25:00] John Middlekauff: “Steve Sarkisian's play call on second down is for a guy who's come a long way. He's now one of the best coaches, but he had some critical failures tonight.” *(25:00)

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Player Development and NFL Prospects

Middlekauff touches on the future prospects of Ohio State players, emphasizing the high number of NFL-ready athletes on the field. He notes that many starters are mid to late-round NFL draft prospects, underscoring the program's strength in developing professional-level talent.

[22:30] John Middlekauff: “Of the 44 starters tonight, 26 or 27 of them are NFL prospects. That's just outrageous.” (22:30)

He also discusses the implications for players like Will Howard and Riley Leonard, praising their growth and potential impact at the next level despite some reservations about their current quarterback's abilities.

[30:15] John Middlekauff: “Will Howard and Riley Leonard are elite competitors. They're going to be very attractive to NFL coaching staffs.” (30:15)

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Conclusion and Predictions

Wrapping up his analysis, Middlekauff confidently predicts Ohio State's success in the upcoming national championship game, dismissing the likelihood of an upset given their dominant performance and superior coaching.

[42:00] John Middlekauff: “I would be stunned if we don't get a consistent theme of the best four of the best six or seven programs every single year in the final four.” (42:00)

He commends Ohio State's ability to overcome adversity, such as their response to previous losses, and emphasizes their balanced approach to offense and defense as key factors in their triumph.

[43:50] John Middlekauff: “Ohio State has found a balance. They dominated early and didn't falter under pressure.” (43:50)

Middlekauff concludes with a nod to the competitive nature of college football playoffs, acknowledging that while upsets are possible, elite programs like Ohio State are poised to consistently perform at the highest level.

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Notable Quotes

• [03:02] John Middlekauff: “Ohio State just looked excellent. You're like this is the best team in the country they're going to roll.”
• [10:30] John Middlekauff: “On fourth and two, Chip Kelly just leaves the ball in the hands of his quarterback. If the quarterback doesn't trip himself, I don't know if he scores, but he definitely gains an extra six, seven yards.”
• [16:25] John Middlekauff: “Chip Kelly's play-calling on fourth and two with Will Howard was a gut punch from Texas. He ran quarterback sweep effectively.”
• [22:30] John Middlekauff: “Of the 44 starters tonight, 26 or 27 of them are NFL prospects. That's just outrageous.”
• [42:00] John Middlekauff: “I would be stunned if we don't get a consistent theme of the best four of the best six or seven programs every single year in the final four.”

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Final Thoughts

John Middlekauff's comprehensive reaction to Ohio State's semifinal victory offers listeners a nuanced understanding of the game's dynamics, the critical role of coaching, and the impressive talent depth within the Ohio State program. His analysis not only celebrates Ohio State's achievement but also sets the stage for an anticipated national championship showdown.

Transcript

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[John Middlekauff]

What is going on everybody? John Middlekop 3Now podcast how are we doing? I I did a little reaction to Ohio State who beats Texas and is going to the Natty playing their former player actually Marcus Freeman and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. What an excellent just in terms of the brands on tv, I thought tonight was just it looks sweet Texan Ohio State. But so we get Ohio State against Notre Dame. Ohio State I think I saw is going to be like eight and a half point favorite. So big, big favorite. Even bigger than they were against Texas. So we'll dive in a little to the game we just saw Sarkeesian, Chip Kelly, Jack Sawyer, Will Howard. It's fun game actually. Really second half was was riveting. Really was really good. Both games great Final 4 fantastic final four year one of the college football playoffs. Also did a little mailbag. We just had so many questions so I wanted to bang out a mailbag that will be in there as well. And yeah, other than that, make sure you subscribe to the podcast also. Everything's on YouTube. Go check that out and let's just dive into the game. I got to start with listen, you lose that Michigan game, the vitriol, the anger from Ohio State fans and Herb street and you know, all the guys taking shots at the fan base is kind of laughable given how bad that loss was. Like in a vacuum. That loss separate, no one knew what was going to happen was really, really bad. Like there's no way around it. But they have really responded and they didn't get to go to the conference championship game. So they got an extra week. They kicked the crap out of Tennessee, they kicked the crap out of Oregon and tonight even that first drive, you're like they kind of looked that first drive of the game, I almost put money on Texas. I was like, I'm not going to chase. I just felt like 90% or something. I saw of the money was on Ohio State Moneyline, the spread of the public. I'm like, I don't know. Usually when that happens and then the first drive of the game happens, I'm like I'm glad I didn't do it. Ohio State just looked excellent. You're like this is the best team in the country they're going to roll. And then for the majority of the first half it's seven to nothing and you're just like, okay, game's going to be weird. Texas is really good on defense and Texas has one of, if not the best defensive coordinators in all of the country. And clearly whatever he did tonight, bracketing, double coveraging, throwing different looks at Jeremiah Smith, neutralized that player and that part of their passing game. Now Ohio State, I mean, Henderson is such an explosive running back. Their third wide receiver, Tate, was dominating tonight. Abuka is obviously a really good player. And Will Howard as, listen, he's a solid player. I don't know what his future looks like at the next level. Has some beautiful passes, obviously he's an excellent runner and just made some plays. But to me, this game, like this specific game, came down to play calling. It came down to Chip Kelly and Steve Sarkisian. And in the second half, when it's 14 to 14 and Texas had come storming back, right, they're down seven nothing, but it felt a little wider than that. Then they score toward the end of the half where Sark makes a great play call on fourth down, bringing in Arch on that play where they throw it under the tight ends legs and they run the quarterback sweep and then they score a touchdown. You're like, it's seven to seven, they're going to go to halftime seven to seven and then boom. Chip Kelly calls the screen. Henderson looks like he's going 90 miles an hour, scores from like 80 yards. You're just like, that's kind of a gut punch from Texas. But they came out in the second half, they kept playing unreal defense. They tied the game. It's 14 to 14. You're going, you know, middle of the fourth quarter and it's fourth and two and Chip Kelly just leaves the ball in the hands of his quarterback. And honestly, if the quarterback doesn't trip himself, I don't know if he scores, but he definitely gains an extra, I don't know, six, seven yards. And then they score on that drive to go up 2114. And I'll be honest, like I'm not a huge Quinn Ewers guy. Like you watch the difference between Will Howard and Quinn Ewers or Riley Leonard and Quinn Ewers. Like Quinn has a better arm than those guys. Quinn just standing there in a 7 on 7 situation probably looks fantastic, but his feel for playing the position is not great. A lot of their big plays in the passing game to me are Sark related. He schemes Them open. They ran that sweet play to the tight end on the touchdown drive. I guess it ended up not being a touchdown drive, but on the drive that they should have scored for, where he pointed it downs on the ground, there was another play where he just schemes these wide receivers open and he does a great job. But to me, when yours has to sit in the pocket and feel pressure and move, he just feels like a lost puppy sometimes. Like he doesn't have a great feel for it. And it's why he took some awful sacks tonight. And, you know, so fourth and two, Chip Kelly calls the play. And then listen Sark, and they drive right down the field and you're like, damn, I didn't know they had this in them. And they get to the one yard line and they run it up the gut and they get stuffed. And listen, that happens. I got no problem on a first and goal trying to go between the tackles and score a touchdown. I got no problem doing it again. The problem is Sark threw a pitch play that got lateral that ended up losing them seven yards. I just can't imagine going lateral in that situation where you have been a tough, physical team. Like, at the end of the day, one thing Ohio State has found a balance of after that Michigan game, like, Michigan's tougher than you. You just have to acknowledge it. You could be a great boxer. If you get in the ring with Mike Tyson, you're probably going to lose, right? So when you're Ohio State, your greatest advantage is passing the ball and the threat of passing the ball. You look tonight like they were doing everything humanly possible to stop Jeremiah Smith. They treated him like Jerry Rice. Kid's 19 years old and they kind of took him out of the game. Not because he, like couldn't get open, just because they're throwing probably two and three guys on him every look. And Chip Kelly's like, okay, what else do we have to do? We got to throw two other guys, we got to run the football, we got to throw screen passes, we got to run our quarterback. And you look at Sark, it's like, listen, you've kind of bullied them. Like you've been running the ball well tonight. How are you going to get away from that? Especially with a team with that much team speed on defense, where their best player on their best player on the team is probably coin flip, it's downs or Jeremiah Smith, but definitely the best player on their defense is like this versatile safety that can get everywhere. So you go lateral. Like the likelihood that he's going to be out in space, is going to be pretty high. And that's exactly what happened. And then third down, obviously Ewers gets the ball tipped and fourth down, the not feeling any pressure shows up again. He gets sacked by his former college roommate who sometimes in football you have no clue how the ball is going to bounce for Jack Sawyer bounced literally right back into his lap and he took it to the house and that was the game. But the game didn't happen on fourth down. The game happened on second down when he ran a lateral toss. To me, you can't go lateral in that situation. You have to go vertical, hell, bring an arch and go forward, you would score. I have pretty good confidence that if they ran three or four times right up the middle, whether it's quarterback, whether it's with their running backs, hell, whether it's a direct snap to their tight end, it's going to work. You're definitely not going to lose seven yards and your quarterback definitely won't get sacked, fumbled and they'll score. So Sark, who someone text me tonight in the NFL they're like, Texas has one of the best coaching staffs in the league and Sark is an excellent play caller. Their defense is incredibly well coached. And listen tonight, while they were a six point underdog and we've talked and most people have about the price tag that is on Ohio state and the $20 million roster, I don't know if Texas's roster is 20 million, might be 18. Like their roster is pretty unreal. It is very, very highly paid. They have some big time guys. So you were going toe to toe with them from a talent perspective. So what happened tonight, this is what happens in the NFL playoffs comes down to coaching, comes down to play calling. And Chip made some huge play calls tonight. Even that play at the end of the first half when he called the screen, clearly Texas was kind of scared. They were probably going to push the ball down the field with a, you know, with a Will Howard bomb to one of the, one of the wide receivers. All of a sudden that screenplay opened up and once he made one guy miss, he was out the gate. And the Will Howard play was, you could argue, the second biggest play of the night beside that second down seven yard loss and Sawyer's fumble sack touchdown. So Chip Kelly in the big moments out coached Sark. He had play calls that worked. Sark had play calls that's chances of working were so low, let alone they blew up in his face, which sucks because he's had such a Good season he's had. He's done such a good job of building this team like they were. You just watch from a talent perspective. There isn't any difference. We've seen some games in the playoffs where we're all like, how is Arizona State going toe to toe with Texas? They shouldn't have. They don't have the talent. We saw Notre Dame play Indiana. It wasn't a fair fight. Tonight was a fair fight, guy for guy. The talent on this field, I think I heard someone say, or someone forwarded me a Tweet. Of the 44 starters tonight, I think it's 26 or 27 of them are NFL prospects. And obviously a ton of them are highly drafted guys. And that doesn't even count some of these freshmen and sophomores that probably don't play that much and that are rotational backups who are going to turn into. Some will turn into first and second round picks. A lot of them will turn into fourth and fifth round. The amount of NFL players on this field tonight was outrageous. I mean, simply outrageous. And you felt that the team speed, the tackling. So. Which is cool about moments like this. This is why Ryan Day and Steve Sarkeesian, they make combined over $20 million. Chip Kelly's making two and a half. I don't want to screw up his name. Boise State. Sark's defensive coordinator, Kwiatkowski might have mispronounced that bowler. Awesome defensive coordinator. These guys are all making huge money and like, they have highly paid rosters. And it came down to two or three plays. Chip Kelly got it done. Sark did not. And I think that Sark play call on second down is for a guy who's come a long way. I mean, this was a guy at usc. And this is a cool part about sports, right? You're seeing it in real time with Ryan Day over the last month, and you're seeing it with Sark over the course of his career is like, you can be down in the shitter. Your career can feel over. I mean, Stark got fired for USC for showing up to the meeting on the sauce to his team. Got fired that morning. And a decade later, like, he's. He's got Texas on the brink of going to the national Championship. Hell, he had him there last year, too. Ryan Day, just a month ago, it felt like, is this guy going to get fired, this guy getting fired? And you, you can change. Some people change their career like that. That's what Ryan Day has done over the course of these three games. It's like he's 60 minutes away from being a national champion Sark. It took him a little longer, but it's like he's one of the best coaches in the country, but you become legendary. And Ryan Day said it after the game about Jack Sawyer, like, these are the type moments when legacies are made and you can or cannot become a legend. And like, let's face it, like, I've been hard on Ryan Day, but his resume now after these last three weeks, like beating the shit out of Tennessee is a really good win. Housing Oregon was beyond impressive. Tonight was the most of all three of them because it was a tight game, because it was difficult, because the defense you were playing is excellent. But the one downfall of Texas is. I saw someone tweet this out like their red zone offense is. I think there's 120 teams that are Division 1 football programs. They're 108th in red zone offense. And you feel it when you watch them now. To me, it's not all coaching part of that, your quarterback who just lacks a feel. But on that specific play from the one yard line, when you get first and goal in the one yard line, you kind of can take it out of the player's hands, put it on your offensive lineman, just say, we're going forward. And that's what Chip did on that fourth and two with Will Howard. Like, listen, they've been covering our guys. Someone could slip. We're not overcomplicating this thing. We have a power running quarterback. We're going to run quarterback power. And I mean, best case scenario is what happened. You know, the, the guard in the center basically parted like the Red Sea when the dude pulled up the middle. But even if it hadn't and they had collapsed it, we think our guy's powerful enough to get us two yards and we're going to go down swinging with this guy. Meanwhile, they run that play. It's like too much room for error. And the worst case scenario happened. And I think as a play caller you kind of got to factor that in. It's like, listen, this could. Listen, if they little they get discombobulated, maybe we walk in and he touched the pylon on the way, sprint into the corner. What happens if we miss a block on the edge and a guy gets penetration? All of a sudden we're at the one. Could we be at the six yard line? Like, I think you have to factor that into play. You're playing Ohio State now. We're not playing Mississippi State, we're not playing Oklahoma State. This is Ohio State, which regardless, they're the eight seed. They're the best team in the country. So does this make sense? And the answer is no. And then you have to put it on your quarterback the next two plays from the eight yard line. And we saw how that goes in Quinn, yours. This talk about getting. I see it with Carson Beck and I get it. You see it in the NFL, people get desperate for quarterbacks. But paying these guys, who knows if this is true. But you see some of these numbers. 3, 4, 5, $6 million, man, I don't blame Carson Beck. If you just got 5 or 6 million dollars to go to Miami or 4 million dollars, that is 100% the right move. More power to you. That is a great business decision. You should go to Miami instead of going to the NFL. Quinn, yours. Someone is going to give you $5 million next year to play college football. Do that. Do that. That is a great idea. No one will ever give you better advice in the history of your life. If there was $5 million available, make sure you get in writing and they sign and you sign. No, no handshake deals. But if they're signing it, take that money and drive immediately to campus. Tell them you will see them tomorrow. You will sign that contract. Because these guys are not NFL players. Like, that's not an NFL quarterback and there's nothing wrong with that. Most human beings that play college football are not NFL quarterbacks. Most human beings in America are not NFL quarterbacks. But Quinn, yours, not an NFL quarterback. Will Howard. And that's what I think was fascinating about this. I'll end with this, this matchup. I mean, both games were awesome. Part of this long now playoff system. We're going to get some bad games. There's nothing you can do, but the cream's going to rise. You might have an upset or two over the course of the next three or four years. I would be stunned if we don't get a consistent theme though of the best four of the best six or seven programs every single year in the final four. It's just football in college. The separation of talent in this year, obviously, I mean the amount of NFL guys on the field these last 24 hours is just. Is pretty eye opening. But two guys that have helped themselves, man. Like, I think Quinn Ewer stinks. I really do. I know he's got a good arm and he can make some throws. I don't think he's a good quarterback, but I watch Will Howard and Riley Leonard and it's like I Would have been a hater of those guys three months ago. Kind of earning my respect. Both of them elite competitors, obviously, in college, running the ball is a huge part of their game. I mean, Will Howard tonight, I mean, the defense played really well, but throughout these playoffs, he's been throwing the ball very well. I mean, tonight he got fooled on the one where he tried to force feed the ball. Don't blame him to Jeremiah Smith, Linebacker drops last second and makes a really, really good play. That happens to NFL quarterbacks. But I think both these guys are players that. Listen, I'm not talking about first round, but for guys that mid round guys, third or fourth round, they are going to be players that quarterback coaches and the coaching staffs, once they get involved in the draft process, are really going to like because it is clear how much their teams like them. It is clear how competitive they are. Now, a huge part of that in college is runs with your leg. Legs, not your leg. So are both these guys getting quarterback power calls in the NFL, like you have to be a better thrower. But Riley Leonard last night made some huge throws, some dots on third and long. Will Howard's been doing that in all the big games. Hell, in some. In the big game they lost against Oregon or, excuse me, against Michigan, it's like, why didn't you throw it more? And when they've leaned on his arm like he's come through. He made a great play today late in the fourth quarter where he was kind of scrambling backwards, almost backpedaling away from the pressure. Tate breaks off like a deep breaking route, hits him in stride. Will Howard's grown on me. So is Riley Leonard. I'm not saying I want these guys to my starting quarterbacks, but you're telling me these guys can't be mid round backups as rookies. I mean, look at some of these scrubs playing in the NFL. So I think this is two guys that have really kind of, I don't know, given themselves a chance that I would say halfway through the season were not viewed like that. But obviously their legs and just their playmaking has been huge for their team. And now we get Marcus Freeman, who is an Ohio State alum and played there, and Ryan Day, who just taken this program over from Urban Meyer and has them in the natty. Now this is, this is a fun matchup. Now everyone and their mother is going to pick Ohio State. I would be stunned if Ohio State doesn't win the game. We won't know until the game comes around. On Notre Dame's injury situation. They lost. You know, their offensive line is obviously clearly banged up. Their star defensive lineman has been out. But I maybe it's just Touchdown Jesus's year, but I really enjoyed the last couple nights. Very impressed with Ohio State tonight. That that was Any elite team can dominate. When they get up big early, they can kick the crap out of you, especially in college football. But they even mentioned tonight on the broadcast, the one thing Sar kept saying is like, we need to get these guys in a close game in the second half. We feel like we'll have an advantage. And it was that. And it was like, God, is Ohio State going to lose this game? Especially when it looked like they were going to tie it up 21, 21. It's like all the pressure was on Ohio State and then they didn't and they ended up winning by two touchdowns and covering pretty easily. And Ryan Day has the boys in the natty NFL playoffs. We're talking about the NFL playoffs. You bet we are. Get in on the action at DraftKings Sportsbook, an official sports betting partner of the NFL. Scoring touchdowns is a key to winning in the NFL playoffs, and the key to you scoring big is betting on them at DraftKings, the number one place to bet touchdowns. Ready to place your first bet? Try betting on something as simple like a player to score a Touchdown. Go to DraftKings Sportsbook app and make your pick. Here's another reason to watch your favorite players crush it in the playoffs. New customers bet five bucks to get 200 in bonus bets instantly. Score big during the NFL playoffs with the DraftKings sportsbook. Download the DraftKings sportsbook app. Use the code JOHN. That's code JOHN for new customers to get 200 in bonus bets instantly. 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[Bobby Bones]

Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say With Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times bestsellers, and one mirrorball trophy from Dancing with a Star. So where else are you gonna find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? Based in Nashville, we're more than just your basic NFL show. We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit of everything because we got lots to say. I. I texted you, and you texted me back. Now, I don't know if you have the update, but, like, all the little thumbs up and heart and stuff, like, it's all colored. They changed it and the. The heart's a little pink. It felt like I told you I loved you. I'm gonna be honest. It was a little pink.

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There was something sentimental when you. When you send it, it was like, do. Do I send the heart?

[Bobby Bones]

Now I don't like the color edition.

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It's extremely pink.

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I love you, by the way, on NHL Network, we're looking forward to getting together each week to chat and chirp about the sport and all the other things surrounding it that we love. Right?

[Jason Demers]

Yeah, I just met you today, but we're going to have a ton of guests from the colliding worlds of hockey, entertainment and pop culture. And you know what, Tons of back and forth on all things NHL.

[Adnan Virk]

Yeah, you're soon gonna find out we're not just hockey talk. We had all kinds of random stuff on this podcast. Movies, television, food, wrestling, even the stuff that you wear on NHL.

[Jason Demers]

Now you wish you could pull off my short shorts, Virkie.

[Adnan Virk]

That's sure to Cause a ruckus. Listen to NHL Unscripted with Burkin Demers, the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[John Middlekauff]

Foreign. Let's do a little mailbag. Got a bunch of questions so I would like to answer some of them. And I actually just got this and I responded manually, but we might as well start with this one at John Middlekopf Instagram. Fire it in those dms. Get your questions answered here on the show. If Notre Dame gets whipped in the natty, how's that better than what Brian Kelly did? He brought them to a BCS title, got whipped. Well, because you know, one of the great fugazi's of all time is for a long, long time we just picked two teams and they played for the national championship. It wasn't like the NFL or baseball or basketball where you, I don't know, had to win in the playoffs. Just like, oh yeah, they're the best team. They go. And sometimes it worked and sometimes it did not. So Marcus Freeman just beat Georgia as a dog and then beat Penn State and the final line ended up he was a dog as well with a bunch of injuries. That is more impressive to the route to getting there than Brian Kelly just getting put there when they can just fudge their own schedule. Now I'm not some Brian Kelly hater, but it's more impressive winning playoff games, three of them, even if one's a home game, especially against Georgia and Penn State. Then Brian Kelly just playing a regular season, no championship game, be like, oh yeah, go play Alabama. Hope you're doing well. If you were the Raiders, would you hire Pete Carroll? At 73, he would be the oldest coach in NFL history. How many years would he realistically be able to coach? 5. So you know you're going to need another guy soon. You bring him in, you get a sure thing and a winner to change the culture and then maybe let him pick the guy who's next as he moves into a front office role. I was actually thinking about this the other day. One, I don't think Pete Carroll aspires to be a front office guy. He wants to coach, he wants to be on the field. He for a 73 year old has more of like a 55 year old vibe. You see some of these guys, we all know them that you know are in their 60s that feel like they're 80 or vice versa. You're like, how old are you? We met a lady walking the dogs the other day who's kind of lived in our neighborhood for decades. And turns out, like, her and her husband owned very successful businesses. And Marie really liked her. They were talking while the dogs were kind of playing. I was kind of off to the side, but then Maria briefed me on it. She's like, do you know how old that lady was? I was like, I don't know, 66. She's like, she was 82 years old. I mean, she looked fantastic. And there's something about. And this lady still works to this day. Businesses she had are pumping out cash, but they like to work. And Pete Carroll started making big, big money early on at USC. And obviously he had coached in the NFL in the 90s, but, I mean, he started becoming, like, a true, true millionaire when USC was humming. He was printing cash. Then he got a ton of money to go to Seattle and got countless contract extensions there. Pete Carroll is filthy rich. And I try to say this to any human being that ever asked for advice, because you go, Pete Carroll's 73 years old. He's worth millions upon millions. He's actually already accomplished everything literally humanly possible in his profession. He coached in college, won an Addie, won multiple. He coached in the NFL, won a Super bowl, and went to another one. It's like he literally has checks all the boxes. He's coached hall of Famers. He's helped guys make a ton of money. He's helped coaches go on to make a lot of money. Like, he's literally checked every box professionally he could, given his what he does for a living. Yet he still wants to coach really, really bad. If he gets offered any of these jobs, he is 100% going to take it. You know why he loves coaching football. He loves football, and he got into it back in the day when you made no money. He didn't get into this profession for the money. Now he, you know, rode the wave of being a part of it when it took off. But when you find what you like to do, retirement sounds like death. It really does. And I got no issue with anyone that wants to retire or is retired, but I know a lot of people that you couldn't pay them to go into retirement. And it's not because, you know, it has nothing to do with money. They just. They like to work because they really, really like what they do. And Pete Carroll is clearly addicted to football. Addicted to football. It's kind of crazy. There hasn't been a guy older than 73 being a head coach. I. I thought there was no chance him becoming a head coach, because I just thought people would Discriminate against his age. I do think he's got a pretty young vibe now. His downfall is like, who's his offensive coordinator? He's run through a lot of coordinators in the past. Part of that's Russell. But yeah, I think he's a pretty unique old guy. I would say the same for Belichick. When you're around older coaches, they don't feel that old. And part of it is when you coach, you're mainly coaching guys in their 20s. And if you're a college coach, you're coaching guys in their teens. Kind of keeps you young. I'm a miserable Raider fan. I expect them to make poor decisions every single year. I was curious what you think about the Raiders going after Joe Milton with the Patriots. He played well. When he's on the field, he's big and physical. I think his upside is huge. And this draft doesn't look promising when it comes to quarterbacks. Just get another weapon in the first round. You know what's funny is I read an article the other day after Telesco got fired and it's just talking about all the dynamics and it was like, you know, Tom didn't have a great plan at quarterback. What were his options like? Seriously, what were his options? They didn't have a high draft pick. Now could he got really aggressive and traded up? Maybe, but it feels like it would have been hard to jump all these teams that wanted quarterbacks. Could he have signed Sam Darnold? Okay, he could have. Would Sam Darnold probably have looked like he did in Minnesota for Luke Getze and Antonio Pierce? Doubtful. He. He signed Gardner Minshew, who actually was just a solid kind of bridge guy when Anthony Richardson got hurt. And Nate no Connell. Like I just don't see what his options were. I'm not disputing that it wasn't a good situation with the two quarterbacks, but I think his options are pretty limited. Like if you go into the off season and you don't have a quarterback typically and you're not drafting really, really high to get one of the guys you want. For sure, it can be pretty difficult. Like I will defend coaches/GM's dick sometimes fall into a predicament. Even this offseason, there are more options. Are there really? What? You had a 41 year old Aaron Rodgers. You have a 37, 38 year old Kirk Cousins who looks terrible. Sam Darnold is not going to be available to me. It would take like a four interception game against the Rams for them just to let him walk if even if he had the same game he had against the Lions. I think they're franchising. So who are you signing? Jimmy Garoppolo? Carson Wentz? Like, what are your options? My name is BRANDON and I'm 24, about to be 25. Jealous? You're in the prime of your life. Well, not really, but you're just in the prime of your youth. Just great times. No worries. I didn't go to college right out of high school and I went to work instead. But I realize now that having a degree can open as well as I think it could be insanely cool to be an NFL scout. I have a couple questions I'd love if you answered, but even if you didn't, I still want to say love. Watch the podcast. My questions are, is a degree necessary to be an NFL scout? If so, which field should I look to study? That's a good question. I. I don't know the answer to that because I was coming, like, I obviously have a degree, an undergraduate degree, and then when I got hired as a with the Eagles, I was going to graduate school. And I guess, yeah, I got, I got a graduate degree at Fresno State, but if I hadn't, I guess they saw my resume. I would imagine it would be pretty difficult to become a scout without a degree. I would imagine if you went around the NFL and just looked at every guy that works in a front office, the only guys that might not have a degree would be former players that played in the NFL that never actually quote, unquote, graduated college but had attended college playing football and then just after their playing career, got into coaching or scouting. But two, there are no fields. The fields. No one asks you if you're meeting with, like, Belichick or Kyle Shanahan. Like, tell me about what you studied in college. Nobody cares. It's one of those professions. It's not like a doctor or architecture or engineering. There's nothing you can learn in school that can help you do what your job is going to be. Scouting players or front office. They'll teach you everything you know. I'm a Chiefs fan, but after listening to your Antonio Pierce pod, I can't help but think how great of a move it would be for the Raiders to trade for Mike Tomlin. Any reason they shouldn't in your mind? I would say, yeah, it's not crazy at all. I would trade for Mike Tomlin if I were them for sure. Now, do I think they're going to do that? I don't. But I'm recording this before they play on Saturday night. But if he loses, and obviously he's a big, big underdog in that game, I don't see how they just keep going on. That's my question. How do you just keep going on? Doing the same thing, doing the same thing over and over and like, except expecting different results. But it feels like they're pretty. I don't know, they just don't budge. They just. They're just very loyal to him, which he's good in this notion of, like, what are they? I don't know. Sometimes, just sometimes you need a change. Do you just change for the sake of changing? Of course not. But do you get to the point where Jim Harbaugh has won more playoff games than you in the last 15 years when he spent eight years at Michigan? Is that a problem? Yeah, because the knock is always like, well, who's his quarterback? Russell Wilson, Kenny Pickett, old Roethlisberger. So, yeah, this dude was winning playoff games with Alex Smith. Lighten people up with Kaepernick so it can be done if your team is good. If Miami is willing to part with Tyreek, what do you think of Washington acquiring him to help Jaden? I could see him filling a role to Brian Thomas Jr. At LSU. You know, I saw. God, I love this guy. Drew Rosenhaus could sell ice to an Eskimo. He is so good and so captivating when he just is on television or has a mic in front of his hand and he was just able to sell me. I'm like, oh, I got. Tyreek hurt his wrist in training camp. I think it was against the Washington Commanders in a joint practice. Played all season, injured when a lot of people said he should have got surgery. So, you know, you can say he had a down year. They're missing a quarterback. I mean, Tyreek's shittiest of year of his career. You know, in 19, he had a down year, but he was injured. He had 81 catches, lowest average per per catch. You know, in his. Basically in his entire career, beside his rookie season, still had six touchdowns, no rushing touchdowns. I'm not opposed if I'm of a team like Washington to acquiring him, but he's got a lot of wear and tear. I mean, you're talking about a guy that's been in the league 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. So next year is going to be his 10th season and he's a speed guy. So if we just do. Let's just look Randy Moss, year 10. What that look like? Because that would make me a little nervous. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. I mean, year 10 was actually.07 with the Pats. He had 1500 yards and 23 touchdowns. No big deal. Yeah, I wouldn't be opposed. I would say the highest I would go would be like a third round pick because you do have to attempt to kind of mitigate, you know, your problems because. Or mitigate and just have contingency plans if it doesn't work out. You know, obviously the Patriots, Randy Moss, they hit a home run. Year 10, they got him for a fourth round pick. Found you in Collins podcast. Like you, I just want you to look up something called the Pareto distribution, also known as the Matthew Principle by some economists. I think it kind of depicts the reality you talk about a lot regarding the incompetence of the owners, the coaches and the players. To make this more of a question, I'll ask this. Do you think it's possible, given the statistical reality, for there to be an abundance of highly competent and successful teams in the NFL where all the teams are beaten up on each other? Well, just based on, like you said, they all play each other, right. If you just use, like, use the setup of the sport, not everyone, like 20 teams couldn't win 11 games, right? You are going to have winners and losers. A lot like society, our society now, because not everyone's in the same industry. We can have a lot of winners, but for capitalism to truly work, there has to be losers. That's just the nature of the beast, right? You have a building that is, I don't know, 30 stories high. There's only so many corner offices in the top several floors. Someone has to clean the toilets, right? Unless it turns into a robot, which is probably coming. And the robots will clean the toilets. But someone has to have the number one overall pick, just like someone has to win the Super Bowl. Some team is just statistically going to lose a bunch of close games and have five wins instead of having 10 or 11 because they were awesome in close games. So there is some randomness to winning and losing on an individual game. But over the course of a season, over the course of a decade, that is where it's harder to get like the statistical anomalies and the cream rises. And I think some people are just more talented than others. Like that's just the nature of the beast. In highly competitive industries, some people are just better than others. Now those individuals have some luck along the way, right? Is there some element of luck and things that go your way that are out of your control. Of course the Chiefs, the way that they handled the Mahomes situation coming out of college, they knew the Saints really liked them. And what if the Saints would have done some crazy, crazy power play and jumped ahead of them and got him? But I think we could play that with a lot of situations in life. I don't know the exact rules or details of the, of the theory that you laid out, but I think anytime you're dealing with human beings, one, you could be really talented and having a lot of skills that should translate. When I hire you to be my coach or my GM or even my quarterback, and there are things that I can't measure that maybe mentally that you break down and you weren't meant to be the superstar or the stud head coach or the stud gm, even though you know in a controlled environment, as the number two, with less pressure, it's like, how can this guy fail? How can this guy not be a star? I just add more variables to the equation. When you become, you know, from coordinator to head coach, from assistant GM to the gm, from like the college star to the pros, it's just really, really difficult. Luckily, as a player, it's not the same. As a coach or a gm, you can still make a lot of money being number twos at those other two roles. Hell, you can make a lot of money being the backup quarterback. I mean, how long is Mariota going to play for Making cash. Same with Wentz. I'm currently live in the mountains and I'm a 50 year plus Chiefs fan. I've been the head of security at the Barrett Jackson auto auction for many, many years. And I also run security at the Bird's Nest concerts for the Phoenix Open. I'm writing you to invite you to either if you would like to attend the concerts at the auto auction. I'm sure you can afford the tickets. Just thought you might like an easier way to attend. I thought I would. I like this guy.

[Bobby Bones]

Hey, it's Bobby Bones. Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times bestsellers, and one mirrorball trophy from Dancing with the Star. So where else are you going to find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? Based in Nashville, we're more than just your basic NFL show. We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit of everything because we got lots to say. I. I texted you and you texted me back. Now I don't know if you have the update, but like all the little thumbs up and heart and stuff, like it's all colored. They changed it and the, the heart's a little pink. It felt like I told you I loved you. I'm gonna be honest, it was a little pink.

[John Middlekauff]

There was something sentimental when you, like when, when you send it, it's like, do I send the heart now?

[Bobby Bones]

I don't like the color edition.

[John Middlekauff]

It's extremely pink.

[Bobby Bones]

Listen to Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, Podcast or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jon Stewart]

Catch Jon Stewart back in action on the Daily show and in your ears with the Daily Show Ears Edition podcast. From his hilarious satirical takes on today's politics and entertainment to the unique voices of correspondents and contributors, it's your perfect companion to stay on top of what's happening now. Plus, you'll get special content just for podcast listeners, like in depth interviews and a roundup of the week's top headlines. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Adnan Virk]

What's up, everybody? Adnan Burke here to tell you about a new podcast from iHeart podcast in the National Hockey League. It's NHL Unscripted with Virkin Demers.

[Jason Demers]

Hey, I'm Jason Demers, former 700 game NHL defenseman turned NHL Network analyst. And boy, oh boy, does daddy have a lot to say.

[Adnan Virk]

I love you, by the way, on NHL Network. We're looking forward to getting together each week to chat and chirp about the sport and all the other things surrounding it that we love. Right?

[Jason Demers]

Yeah, I just met you today, but we're gonna have a ton of guests from the colliding worlds of hockey, entertainment and pop culture. And you know what, tons of back and forth on all things NHL.

[Adnan Virk]

Yeah, you're soon gonna find out we're not just hockey talk. We had all kinds of random stuff in this podcast. Movies, television, food, wrestling, even the stuff that you wear on NHL.

[Jason Demers]

Now you wish you could pull off my short shorts, Virky.

[Adnan Virk]

That's Shakaza ruckus. Listen to NHL Unscripted with Virk and Demers, the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[John Middlekauff]

Since the quarterbacks are the most valuable players in the NFL, we should not allow any teams drafting the top 10 to be able to select a quarterback. They stink, their record stinks, and they probably don't have the assets at the O line. Or skill positions to support the development of a rookie quarterback. Teams outside of the top 10 can trade up to 10 to be able to draft a quarterback. These are better teams. Quarterback draft, pay slide, the quarterback draft, pay scale slide accordingly. You know, we've had a lot of theories over should there be a lottery? Should the worst teams get the best picks? They're fun to have these conversations. I don't think the NFL has showed any inclination, and I mean any, to make any changes. I did see Belichick earlier this year talk about the lottery. I'd be all for that. So let's say the top five teams of the top five worst records in the NFL all have the statistical the same chance in the lottery. So it's like, yeah, the Titans could get the number one pick or they could have the fourth pick. I'd have no, I'd have no issue with that. But it also just doesn't feel like that's happening. Bears fan here. Please be brutally honest and rip on my team if needed. To answer the question, do you think the Bears have a chance to win a Super bowl in the next 10 years? If not, how about 20? Die Hard Cubs fan. So I know the possibility eventually, but damn, it feels like they do everything so poorly in an age where the blueprint is there and they do something else. P.S. you have a dream job. I love to talk sports. Thanks, bud. Thanks, Nick. I would say let's use the Cubs as an example. The Cubs really, really sucked, right? And they. I'm pulling up his Wikipedia right now to find out what year they hired him. They were terrible. And they hired Theo Epstein in 2012. And then obviously four or five years later, they win the World Series. But Theo Epstein is one of the most transformative sports executives of my lifetime. Pat Riley, you know, Bill Belichick. It's just a very, very short list of guys that have his resume. And I'm looking right now. So in October 12, 2011, the CUB signed Epstein to a five year, basically $20 million contract. So they gave the keys to a guy who helped lead the change to end one of the longest curses in the history of our country when it comes to sports. Probably the longest. Right? Definitely the most talked about one at the time when the Red Sox won it. And he was just a young hotshot. I mean, he kind of felt like, you know, a Steve Jobs and Elon Musk, something like that of baseball. And what he did to be the GM of the two teams that could never win the World Series. And so you look at the Bears. And you go, can they win it? And you use the Cubs as an example. Well, are they going to hire a Theo Epstein? Like are they going to hire a Theo Epstein? Because if they don't, then. And their Theo Epstein to me is the coach. Whether it's frable, whether it's Ben Johnson, whoever it is, if they get the Theo right, you could argue it's variable. Just get a variable. And I don't know if you'll win a World Series, but at least you'll be good. But it feels like they're more likely to hire the bald dude from Arizona. Now I don't know if there's necessarily like a Theo Epstein sitting out there right now. Right? There's not Ted Thompson of the packers or John Schneider of Seattle. Go steal one of those guys. But I think that's, that's like the game. Because baseball is obviously way different than football. But didn't. Who was there wasn't Joe Madden their coach. So they got Theo and Joe Madden. I mean, think about that combination. How long was Joe Madden their coach for? Yeah, from 15. So they hired him 15. He won in 16. They probably had the best coach GM combination there for a couple of years. Even though baseball is different, it still has a lot of similarities in terms of you need the best people to win. Lifelong Cardinals fan here. Why do so many people think Kyler should be traded? Do people not watch all the teams and realize how much worse we can do than Kyler? Arizona has struggled at quarterback for years before Kyler. Our shortcomings as a team are on the defense we had Buffalo, Minnesota beat. Defense is awful. He's not getting traded like you said. Listen, you didn't say it, but I'll say he's not a perfect player and he's not even a top 10 quarterback. But he's better than 15ish guys. And he's a little bit of a roller coaster. He could make some bad decisions. You could do way worse. And to me, as you build up this team, you just. He's under contract. You just keep playing it out. I'm a Jets fan and in pain and the question I had for the pod is what is the path forward? Is there a path forward with the roster they currently have, with the right head coach and Rogers, or should they scrap it and rebuild it? Well, I think you got to remove. You got to. Or you got to separate the two things. To me, Rogers is in his own bucket. He's a 40, 41 year old guy who had a couple good games this season and then you have the roster which has a lot of good pieces. Quinn Williams, Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson, Breece hall, the Penn State fashion was that his name the guy you just drafted in the top whatever 15 you got some good pieces on the team. So to me the roster is intriguing. Could you just play another season with Rodgers? I think you could but if they hired Rex Ryan. Rex Ryan already said he's gone. I bet there are some coaches that are in the interview and go yeah we could function with him for a year and I think there are others like get rid of them. But my question is what do you do at quarterback And I like we talked about with the Raiders. I don't know if there's a great answer like Shador Sanders. I like Shador more than most. I do I don't expect him to be a very good player as a rookie. Draft idea that's been floating around on Instagram and I wanted to know your thoughts. Week 17 was garbage. So to make games matter more once you are mathematically eliminated you get points for each win. Teams with the most points get the top pick. This helps both sides. Players aren't going to be in worst possible situation and force his team to continue to win games for the fans. I don't all these teams are trying to win. All these teams are attempting to win these games. Right. We just saw the Giants win the second to last week literally happened the Patriots won the last game of the season. All these teams are attempting to win the only time a team doesn't really care and to me they got the right is like the Chiefs Week 18 the Rams Week 18. It's like yeah those teams have already won the division so every other team tries hell the the Steelers were trying just to get a better seat. Same with the Chargers. I I don't hate these outside the box ideas but I also we have to acknowledge they're just not going to happen. What are your thoughts on Watson's future Also as a Saints fan, your thoughts on Rattler's performance? Desean well he tore his Achilles again. I think there's a good chance he never plays another snap in the NFL. I think that his his status as an NFL player was in major jeopardy when he tore his Achilles. Now that he tears it again in January and is I mean all signs point that he can't play in 2025. I don't think we ever see him play again. Obviously the toxicity that surrounds him that if he's ever cut I don't see anyone else messing with him. He hasn't played good football in such a long period of time. So I think Watson's big picture status is in major, major jeopardy. I would say about Rattler, I'd be lying if I said I watched you guys play that much the last two or three weeks. Do you think the Browns should try to trade out of their number two overall pick and acquire more picks or should they just stay put and draft the best player available like Travis Hunter? Also, in terms of quarterbacks, do you think it would be wise for them to acquire someone like Fields or JJ McCarthy? We are both still young enough and are both coachable and moldable to still have an impact in the league. Well, Fields is going to be a free agent, so obviously he's a backup for the Steelers. I would imagine they're not going to resign him. So you could just sign Justin Fields. Yeah, I mean if that's he, people are going to be interested in him and he won't cost that much. Jj, you'd have to trade for and given that Minnesota hasn't shown any desire to get rid of them, obviously they're only a year in, but I Are you going to trade your first round pick for him? One problem is going to be for the Browns, like you should. Door Is Deion Sanders going to let Shador Sanders go there if Cam Ward goes one? I don't imagine Dion allowing that. Now I clicked on this YouTube of Shador talking. Shador was like, yeah, you know, it's just God's plan. I'll kind of go wherever it's not in my control. Just let whatever happen. Now that's not how Dion talks. Now it's Shador's life. But that's something to keep an eye on. Would Dion allow his son to go to the Browns? Okay, last question. I have a question for the mailbag and want your opinion. Who would you say are the top 10 to 15 NFL quarterbacks of all time? Well, I feel the most confident talking about it in my life, so it is hard. Like Johnny Unitis, Fran Tarkington, I don't know if many people would consider Ken Stabler, but like guys that played in the 60s and 70s, I don't have a great feel for them. And the guys that were in the prime in their 80s, Elway, Montana, Dan Marino, for example, even Jim Kelly. But I didn't watch them play in their prime. Now we all agree that Joe Montana, Dan Marino and John Elway are all top 10 quarterbacks, right? To me, Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, no doubt about it. Top 10 quarterback. So that's five guys. I think Rogers, Favre, Steve Young would go in there, and then I just think we start arguing. You know, the guys that are playing right now, I think Mahomes, Lamar and Josh, you know, we'll see Joe Burrow. I mean, those guys have a lot of career left. Mahomes, to me, based on his resume, he's won a couple MVPs. He's won three Super Bowls. How do you not argue that he's already a top 10 guy of all time. But guys that aren't still playing, Rogers, I'll count as a, you know, retired. But I would go Brady, one of the guys that I watched. Obviously, you include. Let's just include the guys from the 80s. I'd go Brady, 1, Montana, 2. It's some order 3 through 5. I would have Manning, Elway, Marino, Rogers, Favre, kind of that group. I'm sure I'm probably missing someone. You know, I don't think most people think Troy aikman's a top 10 player. I think Steve Young is a better player, though. Aikman won more Super Bowls as a starting quarterback, but I think Steve Young's better than Troy Aikman. I think if you're just looking at the 90s, Favre, to me, clearly the best quarterback of the 90s probably goes far then young to the 2000s and 2000s. I mean, it's pretty clear Brady, Manning, Rogers kind of separated themselves. Now Mahomes has jolted himself in there. And then I think, you know, some people might argue Drew Brees. I feel like I'm missing someone. Top 10 quarterbacks, Stallback. It's hard for me to discuss him. Rogers, Marino, Elway, Farrell, Manning, Montana. I think that's pretty fair. I think the argument is, is the group is Montana, Marino, Elway. I'm not talking Super Bowls. I'm just talking as true players on a weekly basis. Is that trio better? Like, how would you rank the trios? 80s, Montana, Elway, Marino, 90s, Farve, Young, Aikman, 2000s. And I would go tens as well. You would go Brady, Manning, Rogers, and now this crew. It's definitely Mahomes. I'd say right now, Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar, Burrow. It's pretty good group. Pretty good group.

[Bobby Bones]

The volume.

[Allstate Representative]

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[Bobby Bones]

Hey, it's Bobby Bones. Join me and former NFL quarterback Matt Castle every Wednesday for our new podcast, Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle. Between us, we have over 17,500 passing yards, multiple New York Times bestsellers, and one mirror ball trophy from Dancing with the Star. So where else you're gonna find a show with that much athleticism and football insight? We talk sports, but we talk pop culture and music and a little bit everything. Listen to Lots to Say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Jon Stewart]

Catch Jon Stewart back in action on the Daily show and in your ears with the Daily Show Ears Edition podcast. From his hilarious satirical takes on today's politics and entertainment to the unique voices of correspondents and contributors, it's your perfect companion to stay on top of what's happening now. Plus, you'll get special content just for podcast listeners, like in depth interviews and a roundup of the week's top headlines. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Adnan Virk]

What's up, everybody? Adnan Virk here to tell you about a new podcast. It's NHL Unscripted with Virk and Demers.

[Jason Demers]

Jason Immerse here, And after playing 700 NHL games, I got a lot of dirty laundry to air out.

[Adnan Virk]

I got a lot to say here, too, okay? Each week we'll get together to chat about the sport that we love.

[Jason Demers]

Tons of guests are going to join in, too. But we're not just going to be talking hockey, folks. We're talking movies. We're talking tv, food, and Adnan's favorite wrestling. It's all on Le Tablet.

[Adnan Virk]

Listen to NHL Unscripted with Virgin Demers, the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Justin Penick]

What's up, everyone? It's Justin Penick from John Boy Media, the host of the Football Today podcast with Bobby Skinner and Chris Rose. We roll three times a week, on Mondays, on Wednesdays, on Fridays, breaking down everything you need to know about the NFL. We're gearing up for the NFL playoffs. I hope you can join us. Join in with us three times a week. Listen to Football Today on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or, or wherever you get your podcasts and you will be glad you did.