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John Middlekauff
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Colin Cowherd
In the Centurion Lounge before you get.
John Middlekauff
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Colin Cowherd
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John Middlekauff
In six months make some noise for the greatest shooter of all time, Steph Curry. We went live from All Star Weekend for a new podcast called Go Greatest of Their Era and we ranked our top five shooters from the 2000s major five.
Colin Cowherd
Dirk Ford Peja is a loot.
John Middlekauff
You won't believe who Steph left off his list.
Steph Curry
That's so tough. That's why we tap these conversations.
John Middlekauff
Yes, absolutely.
Steph Curry
Love it.
John Middlekauff
Listen to Go G O T E Greatest of their era on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast.
Colin Cowherd
The volume. What is going on everybody? How are we doing? Hopefully everyone is having a a great Fugazi Friday because that's what today is. I think I changed to the original to the correct pronunciation because a lot of people banged on me for calling it fugazi, which I thought sounded a little bit better. But as you people in the boroughs, my Italian brothers and sisters out there know it's it's fugazi. So on a giant Fugazi Friday we have the combine which is off and running. I just had on whatever they call the extra computer screen that kind of looks like a little tv. You know, you just drag things over there and act like you're doing some business. I usually just drag television show over there so whatever, you know. And I had the combine going and defensive tackles running 40s and we're off and running baby. And this morning, you know this is part of the combine is these stories that come out about injuries and we had a pretty big one. So we will touch on that and I think it's kind of symbolic of why this is just such a tough process and year in, year out mistakes are made and there is no right or wrong way to do things. There was a big story that started online, carried over to Starbucks between a couple big Js. I almost said Andrew Schultz, but Jordan Schultz was not happy with Rap Sheet and they started screaming at. Well, I think Schultz are screaming at Rap Sheet, which is a fun story and makes you laugh. For anyone that consumes Internet content, I saw rap sheet on McAfee today with DJ and Rich Eisen were there and they were all having a good chuckle. But I do think it kind of, you know, you separate the craziness of the reporters. You know the story. I do want to dive into Stafford and Brady who were at the Yellowstone Club, which I've never been. Who knows if I ever will get the invite. Don't know anyone there. For my money, sounds like the best country club in America. In the summer it's an incredible golf course and in the winter it's a private ski resort. A lot of celebrities, the ultra rich. Why Brady and Stafford, who actually made more money than Brady playing football, both like to vacation there slash have a house there so we can dive into that and some other NFL news and notes. So we will kind of wrap up for the weekend. I think I will also do. We will have an audio mailbag for the weekend. We will have a video mailbag later today as well. So a lot of content makes obviously subscribe to the podcast. Everything basically is up on YouTube as well. So this is a fun time of year for content. You know, I'm getting married here in a week. We got free agency, we got the draft. So buckle up because we are not slowing down. Life is just getting started. But I do want to start with every single year this period comes right February, March, April. And there is so much discussion about players, where their value is, how good their skill set will translate, why this guy's a good prospect, why this guy's a good bad prospect. And I've always thought this. Anytime you're dealing with people, it's really challenging. These are not acquisitions. Despite being worth a ton. You know, if you're drafting the top five, you're talking 40, $45 million contracts. I mean these are not, you know, little acquisitions by a team financially now they're not what they will be if they hit. But still, investing a top pick into a guy you're paying them a lot of money. They're getting a $30 million signing bonus. But usually in business, and I've known some people or their families over the last couple decades that mainly the last decade that I would say had started companies, had worked in industries, had been purchased by big conglomerates or VCs. Like if you get paid 10 million, $20 million to sell your company, like you have lived the American dream and are a complete business success. So these are big, big investments. And every year we talk about like, well, half these guys are going to miss, half these guys are not going to be able to play. And I would say a percentage of those guys, it changes year to year, fail because simply they can't play right? Or they're just not good enough. And when I say fail, like, don't get a second contract with the team. And if you're drafting the top 10, like if you're not making Pro Bowls and competing to be an All Pro, like it's a whiff, right? It just is. And I've seen guys the 49ers drafted, Mike McGlinchey, number nine overall. He's going to be a starter in the NFL for a decade plus on teams that have gone to the Super Bowl, NFC Championship, playoff teams. He's going to make a ton of money. But like, was he a success for the 49ers? They didn't give him a second contract. Like, obviously not. Solomon Thomas, Cleland Farrell, guys who were drafted in the top five, both guys are going to have a decade long career, right? Neither guy was good enough to get a second contract. So it's like those guys are somewhere in the middle. And then there are the worst case scenarios. The true bus guys that are just out of the league very, very quickly. The, you know, going back to Ryan Leaf, obviously jamarcus Russell, the Johnny Menzels, those are the worst case scenario. Best case scenario, you hit a home run, you get a Pro bowl level guy, you get an impact level guy, you get a star, you get Jamar Chase, you get Lane John, I'm not even talking the quarterback, right? You get Miles Garrett, you get Nick Bosa, you get a guy that you want to invest. Aaron Donald, Julio Jones, AJ Green, got guys that you build your franchise around. And I think the hard part for GMs is they're not doctors yet. A huge part of their business relies and is dependent on medical information. And I would say one of the most famous medical decisions in the history of the league is when Nick Saban turned down Drew Brees. They were ready to sign him, and the doctor said, I don't think his shoulder is going to work. I. I would not recommend doing this. Nick Saban is a football coach. He's the son of a gas station owner. So when a doctor who has been doing it for a long time, who has a medical degree, who makes his living off being in a hospital, conducting surgeries, looking at X rays, that again, football coaches, GMs cannot read without the help of these individuals. You kind of got to rely on them, fair or not, right or wrong. And it happens every single year at the combine. A huge part of the combine, separate from the workouts, and obviously the. The interview room is medical information. And it starts coming out that Abdul Carter has a stress fracture in his foot. Now, I would say GMs and coaches, if you've been doing it long enough, you've been around a lot of players with stress fractures in their feet. But I think the number one question you ask the doctor, like, is this something that he's always played with, Is this a new injury? Is this something that if he gets fixed and he gets surgery, which he's pushing back, say he doesn't need surgery, will it crop up? Will it need to be healed? I remember there were questions years ago. The. The Oakland raiders with Reggie McKenzie, had the fourth overall pick, and it was basically going to come down to Amari Cooper and Leonard Williams. And at the time, it was up for debate, right? Amari Cooper was an excellent prospect, so was Leonard Williams. And one question with Leonard Williams was the shoulder. They didn't know if it would hold up, if he would need surgery, if it would hinder his ability. Well, I'm watching Leonard Williams play these last couple of years. He's a fucking monster. So clearly that wasn't right. Now, Amari Cooper's had a really good career, but, like, if you had to tell me, do I want Amari Cooper or Leonard Williams, right, Who would you value more, the stud defensive lineman or stud wide receiver? Neither guys are like hall of Fame guys, but really good players. You take the defensive lineman, right? But when your doctors are telling you, shoulder, shoulder, shoulder, you know, and sometimes they're right. You know, I remember Jay Ajai, who was the running back from Boise. All the doctors, degenerate knee will not hold up. Not a second contract guy. And that's a huge thing. Not a second contract guy. Now you can draft not a second contract guy in the third round, the fourth round, the fifth round, who cares if he's a good player for you? For a couple years. You get him for cheap. It's fine. You're not doing that in the first round. But sometimes doctors are just wrong and sometimes their educated guess is just off. And I just think that this brings up. It just scares GMs and teams. Now this might be something. No big deal. Abdul Carter, unfazed. Number one overall pick, the tight end from, from Michigan who has had shoulder surgery. And all reports from his agent. He will be ready for training camp. Well, what if your doctor comes into the room like, yeah, I don't know. I don't like what I see. That's, that's not an opinion from a football person, a coach or a gm. Why they can't have that opinion. They can't read the X ray. They don't know what they're looking at. So this is one of those rare businesses where you are extremely dependent on someone where you have no expertise. I mean, if you. Certain industries, and I'm sure anyone listening can relate to this, you work with lawyers and accountants, and while they have an expertise in the tax code maybe or the have a law degree and just have a pretty good understanding of reading contracts, you can still go, yeah, I feel like my guts right on this. There's a famous story about when Arnold Palmer created the Golf Channel. And this is the early 90s, before the huge, huge cable boom. And his lawyers and accountants in the room. And Arnold Palmer was worth hundreds of millions of dollars at the time, had created a massive, massive brand and business behind his name. And he was being pitched by businessmen to start the Golf Channel, which it's crazy to look back, but these, you know, 247 networks dedicated to one individual sport were mocked and laughed at back in the day. That's not normal. That's not going to be successful. And I remember watching this documentary where his accountant and lawyer were like, I would not recommend doing this. This is a terrible business decision. And Arnold finally got up and said, like, you know what, if I wouldn't have hit some of these shots between around trees, over water, into holes, that my caddy said, this is a terrible idea. None of us would be sitting here right now. So my gut and my instincts as a businessman says to do this, and we're going to do this. And it happens all the time. For those of you that work around people that run businesses, for those of you that run businesses, you are recommended by people in your inner circle. An accountant, a lawyer. Like, this might not be a good idea, though, in your mind it is a good idea. And you do it and it succeeds. Where in this situation is really as hard to trump a doctor when your owner is sitting there and he goes, his knee might not work in four years. That scares everybody. And that's not one of those. Well, I think you're wrong. You know, it's like my gut says, no, this isn't a gut thing. But sometimes the doctor's wrong. And that's what's such a fascinating time when it comes to the draft. Stafford and Brady 1. The story between Jordan Schultz and Rap Sheet is just hilarious. I mean, that Jordan Schultz, who is the heir to Howard Schultz, who's his father, who built Starbucks from scratch. If you want just a fantastic, it's a long three hours. But on it's called a podcast called Acquired. They just talked with Howard Schultz for like two and a half, three hours on just how he built the business. And Jordan was tweeting out yesterday that basically Brady flew him in to to Yellowstone and hung out with Stafford and pitched Stafford on this opportunity to become the Raiders quarterback. And then obviously Rap Sheet came back and said, that's not what happened. They both just vacationed there and they obviously talk football and life and the Raiders while they're there. But it was not some plan thing. Regardless, who cares? Matt Stafford asked for and was granted the opportunity to talk to other teams. So to me, one thing, tampering in general, and I would say this goes for most industries if you're not pushing the envelope. And I'm not saying break the law, but Peter Guber, one of the owners of the warriors, basically has this famous line like there are no rules, but just break them at your own peril. Essentially. Like, yeah, there's not really black and white concrete things that you should and should not do, but if you do the wrong thing, you're fucked. And I think that's kind of the way the world works. It's like, it's why I always struggle with the word tampering in football. It's like I saw today, I was at the gym and I saw on CNBC, Starbucks hit a 52 week high today. Well, within the last six months, they have fired their CEO and they stole the guy from Chipotle. And if you think the moment they fired their CEO they went, let's just conduct a search, let's go see who we want to be our next CEO. No chance they knew before they ever fired their guy. And I'm sure they had talked to the CEO of Chipotle while he was under contract and making money about the job. Opportunity before they pulled the trigger on firing a guy because the company was in shambles. That's the way the world works. And one everyone trying to make a big deal of this again on the Internet, it's like the Rams gave him the opportunity. Now, I also think this Brady gets to work in this, like, mysterious role, right? Because he gets to kind of act as a football guy because he has a ton of opinions on football. Spy Tech even just admitted that at the combine. And kind of an owner, though he's not by any means the majority owner. And no owner in the NFL who's not the majority owner is really doing anything. You know, that's what makes the Raiders. This unique situation is like, that would never happen with John Mara or Jeffrey Lurie or the York family or the Jones family, right? Any of these teams that aren't 100% owned by one person, their minority owner is not wooing and hanging out with potential coaches or players. But Brady's in this weird role, and I would say he has the ability. Like, if Tom Brady wants to talk to you, there are certain individuals in every line of work that if they call you, want a meeting, want to hop on a zoom, want a phone call, want a dinner, they're getting that. They're getting whatever they want immediately. And when it comes to football, Tom Brady is that individual. So when he's pitching Stafford on whatever he is, like, it doesn't bother me at all. What do you think's going on at the combine right now? Do you think when you sit down with an agent who, right now, legally, you're only supposed to meet with agents of your own players, don't you think you're asking them about their players who are going to be free agents? Of course, you. You wouldn't be doing your job if you're a general manager. I would say again, like, don't go to jail. Don't break the law. But if you're not pushing the envelope in whatever you do, you're. You're not. You're going to get laughed. Like, it's kind of the way the world works. And to me, Tom Brady and the Raiders, like, it kind of feels like the world, they're playing it now, you're going to get to a point where some of these teams, not maybe not on this individual instance, are going to get tired of Brady being able to kind of work in this mysterious way. But right now, he feels like a pretty big asset for them. Right? He was the reason that they got an interview with Ben Johnson. Ben Johnson Originally turned them down and then Tom Brady got on the horn and they interviewed him. Matt Stafford. Not in a million years. If Tom Brady did not exist even if they had spy tech and Pete Carroll would be interested in the Raiders. No chance. But instead I would imagine he's very interested in the Raiders, especially if they're willing to pay him. Right. So I, I think Tom Brady is, he has been a huge, huge addition to the Raiders because he can get things done, get people on the horn and just make, give you the opportunity to make shit happen that did not exist before and it exists now. So I kind of side with Jordan Schultz. Even if they both have places at Yellowstone where it's like, yeah, I mean this is. If you think this just randomly bumped into each other in the chairlift or you know, after the last run having a couple brewskis. I don't even know if Brady drinks even in the offseason now that he's retired. But you're fucking crazy. Like of course, like there were some texts and calls like hey, I'm going to be here, you should come here. And maybe it is true, Stafford has a pad there as well. But like this is the way business is done. And props to the Raiders for including this guy because they're just feel much more in the mix with credibility which was not the case pre Tom Brady. And that's. That even goes for when they had Gruden couple other NFL quick notes. Mary Kay, who has covered the Cleveland Browns feels like my entire life said that Miles Garrett will not accept the Browns money. Also what, what I'm saying is he will not accept a contract extension from the Browns. He does not want their money. Trade me away. Andrew Barry, Kevin Stefanski, you guys say whatever you want. I want fucking out of here. I don't want your money. I don't want to be here. And I think the Browns have a legitimate problem. And to me the easiest way to fix this is to do it in the next couple of weeks. Take your haul right now, sell your guy at a premium price. It's not very often that you can sell a 29, 30 year old player for multiple first round picks. Luckily for you, you're in a really bad situation. You have the number two overall pick and it's just, it's just time to punt. And I don't blame you. This isn't just trading the player out of the blue. This isn't a Raiders Khalil Mack situation. Like wait, they did what? Everyone can understand and comprehend what you're about to do, but you should do it. The Chiefs once upon a time they drafted a guy late in the draft named Trey Smith. And this gets back to what I talked about opening up is the reason Trey Smith was not a first or second round pick is because they were major medical questions. I think it might have been like a heart murmur or something could be wrong. Don't quote me on that. But it was something very serious. Everyone agreed this is a top 50 player in the draft, yet he falls to the sixth round because the doctors say you cannot draft this guy. Well, the Chiefs did and then he became a Pro Bowler, right? And now he becomes a guy good enough that they franchise tag $23 million. Now I think you know how much would it cost Trey Smith to get him to sign? I would guess probably 45, 50 million guaranteed. It's good to be a guard right now. $23 million franchise tag. If he accepts a long term contract, it'll probably be at around 21, $22 million. What a great time to be in the NFL. Player in the trenches. Guards $23 million franchise tags Kelsey tells Pat McAfee I'm coming back, baby. I am not going out on that super bowl and getting our ass kicked like that. I also think a huge part of Travis Kelsey, if he is telling the truth and he's going to come back not retiring, is he's owed $18 million and Jim Harbaugh rated dead last in that. I still find it hilarious that Woody Johnson got an F. Woody Johnson got an F. When I was growing up, if I would have got an F on my report card, I grew up in an era where you could still kind of get your ass kicked. I probably would have got a whooping. I would have got in big trouble, avoided some Fs, got some C minuses over the years. But an F it just that evened to this day And I listen, you know me, I'm not a huge like taking academia very seriously but when you say F just it doesn't get any worse than that. So man, I don't know how Woody Johnson shakes that. But Jim Harbaugh was voted as the guy who is worse with the players time the least efficient. He just holds meetings and they go on and on and on and on. Guy just loves football. Okay, we'll end on this. I'm going to do the inverse of Fugazi Friday because usually we pick something that is just kind of a giant fraud. I do think and I felt like this coming into my wedding. We did not get a wedding Planner. And I would say most people I have talked to are like, we paid our wedding planner five grand, eight grand, 12 grand. It's like, I don't even know what they did. And Maria, when we originally got engaged, it was in the summer. She works in real estate. She's like, I'll just do it. And then in probably when was it, would it have been mid to late October, she changed brokerages to get with this ultra luxury brand and her workload quadrupled. And she was still running point on our wedding. And I have watched over the last three or four months her wedding plan and everything that goes into it. I know this. If you said, hey, John, I'm getting married, I'm getting married in Texas, I'm getting married in Los Angeles, I'm getting married in New York City. We're going to have 150 people there. Would you like to plan my wedding? I would, I would respond to you and say, well, obviously not, but if I did, the minimum I would charge you would be $50,000. Because the pain in the ass of working the logistics, working with the bride, working with the bride's family, working with all the vendors, it is not an easy job. So I will defend, I would say, a group that's viewed as like, ah, they're kind of a fugazi. Like, how much are they making? I love and listen. I see that with her, with real estate agents, most people say like, got it. She really. They really. How do they make that much? I don't think people value their time enough. Like, do you understand the amount of time? And especially a wedding vendor, a real estate agent, there is no, this ain't a nine to five. You know, this isn't the government. You get to clock out and just go home and chill the rest of the day and no one hits you. It's like 24 7. It never stops. The emails, the emails, the emails, the calls, the emails, the calls. It's like, holy fuck, I'm losing my mind. We're not even getting paid for this. And I didn't do anything. But watching her do it, it's like, this is a hard job. And we don't. We're having 60 people. Like, this is a small destination, shouldn't be that crazy. And it is extremely time consuming. I guess. Overall, I don't think people value their time enough. And I think when people take shots at other people's jobs, when they feel that they're overpaid, they would never put themselves in the same position to waste and give as much as their time. And they would, if they were on that side, they'd be like, God, I'm not being paid enough. And I got a lot of respect for especially someone that takes it seriously and does a good job. Being a wedding planner and dealing with all the moving parts is not easy. Now maybe in a couple years, AI will just replace them all and just press a couple buttons and boom, it'll all be done, which is very possible. But right now it doesn't quite exist. And I have a lot of respect for any of your wives that are wedding planners. It's a challenging job, a lot of emotions. I see it with her. In real estate, most people, especially younger people, it's the biggest purchase they'll ever make. And when they do, if they purchase their first home, it is by far the biggest purchase they've ever made. So there is a ton of emotion. And it's just a lot going on and just a lot of moving parts and a lot of people worked up. So not only does it take a lot of your time, you're dealing with people that are like emotionally on tilt. So a lot of respect. John Middelkoff Lot of respect for you wedding planners out there who's scoring big in the NBA this season? You are with the all new ways to get in on the action at DraftKings Sportsbook, an official sports betting partner of the NBA. From dunks to assists to rebounds, get behind your favorite player and the prop bets you can make on DraftKings, the home of NBA player props. Ready to place your first bet? 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John Middlekauff
Make some noise for the greatest shooter of all time, Steph Curry. We went live from All Star Weekend for a new podcast called Goat Greatest of their era and we ranked our top five shooters from the 2000s.
Steph Curry
PAJA 5 Dirk Ford.
Colin Cowherd
Peja is elite.
John Middlekauff
Okay, okay.
Colin Cowherd
I'm mad him I left him off.
John Middlekauff
My list, but I still like my list. You won't believe who Steph left off his list.
Steph Curry
That's so tough. That's why we have these conversations.
John Middlekauff
Yes, absolutely.
Steph Curry
Love it.
John Middlekauff
Steph talked about what separates the truly elite NBA shooters.
Steph Curry
When you have a scouting report and you're on the list as not just a shooter, but we have specific rules for how we guard you, there's a fear factor that's associated with it. Anytime you're wide open like you might as well just count that and get on back on defense.
John Middlekauff
Listen to Goat G O T E Greatest of their era on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
Colin Cowherd
Time for a little thing we call the mailbag at John Middlekopf. At John Middlekopf. Just my name, two Fs. Fire into those Dms and get your questions answered here. So thing we call a podcast. I have basically a two part question and from two different people but they, they kind of tie into each other. Ethan said what are the legit chances of the of an Eagles dynasty and or repeat and as well as what exactly in detail is Big Dom's job with the Birds? Is he sort of like the fixer? Let's start with the Birds chances of a dynasty slash repeat. They have a lot of impactful core guys under contract for the foreseeable future. So your quarterback young under contract, receivers young under contract, star running back looks like in the prime of his career. Under contract offensive lineman Landon Dickerson. My lotta as long as Lane's healthy. I mean star players under contract, Jalen Carter, Nolan Smith, I mean Cooper De Jean Mitchell, the first round corner. I mean the core of the team under contract, elite players in their prime. I saw how he mentioned that in I think in his press conference. Like this is a big difference from the 2017 year. Like most of our core guys are talking mid to late twenties, prime of their career. So dynasty, it's hard to tell but I think repeat is very much on the table now these next, I don't know, 14 days he does have, you know, sweat is not coming back like sweat will be on a different team. But what did they let Milton Williams walk? I think that's one's kind of interesting. I think the Zach Bond thing is what do they do with him? Do they try. I'm sure they're trying to get a deal done. I mean this is a time of his life where he could. I mean this is the type of guy that could get three or four year contract with 40, $50 million guaranteed. So it's one of those where he just won the Super Bowl. He got. It was an all pro. Like he kind of did what he had to do and you know he has a ring and an all pro for the rest of his life. Like now is kind of the time to cash in. And I don't know if the Eagles can get there financially if people. I would just say get absurd with money for. I hate calling a one year wonder because his one year was so good. But he only has one year. But some of these teams have so much money. Did a guy like Zach Bond. So yeah, we'll overpay by 25%. Whatever. Get a high level cat who's good player. Smart guy. Fangio loves him. You want that type guy in the building. So it'll be interesting to watch how he kind of cook over the next couple weeks. And then I think the curveball that they could throw at any moment is like they would be the team. Like, yeah, we'll let all these free agents walk and then we will trade two first rounders and give Miles Garrett 130 guaranteed. Like the Eagles are definitely a team lingering around if Miles Garrett like this does come to fruition and it's like, okay, we just got to trade them before a free agency starts. Give us your best offers. And you got to work with Miles because you're going to give him a contract extension. So I think the Eagles would be very much in play. Plus their GM used to work in Philly. I think Big Dom, you know, when I was around him, I would say Big Dom fixer would be strong. You know guys, way back in the day, pre cell phones and stuff and this. I remember hearing stories of people that were around like the Bill Walsh, Eddie DeBartolo Niners in the 80s. It'd be much easier if, you know, someone gets pulled over super drunk with a bag of cocaine and he's an All Pro NFL player in 1987 and just make it go away. I think some of these things are a little harder to make happen in the day and age of our cell phone Videos and I would say cops with the body cam stuff. Like, I'm not saying that that doesn't exist, but I would say the league built the NFL. Like a lot of pro sports league were built on taking care of your star players. You know, even before I was born, the 70s, like, I think it's a little different now. I think big Dom plays a role of. A lot of times people like him are viewed as a narc. I mean, that happened with the dude. I forget his name. I almost said Epstein, but Eber, not Eberfluss. Whoever the Texans Patriot Church guy was, you know, he was viewed as like this guy that would get in close with the players, would be like their life coach. But then he would go back and tell the GM or the coach all the problems he was having, you know, with the Eagles. I think the players are very comfortable with Dom. When shit comes up and it's weird, he can play this role of like psychologist meets matchmaker and just kind of keep things together. He's like this bridge of management and the players and just kind of keeping everything kumbaya. He just has this way. I mean, I remember when I was like an intern my first year making like 20 grand. Didn't have health bennies. I. I was just doing the stupidest tasks and I would just hang with him. You know, his office was downstairs and I would. I didn't have an office to watch film, so I would have to go usually to a meeting room and his office was down there. And we. He would just tell the best. He was just. He's just an easy guy to get along with. I love the guy. When I was working him, I was texting with him during the super bowl run. I've never been around anyone in that organization, player, coach, scout, that doesn't just love Dom. It's just one of those people that's hard to describe. He's also very helpful. Like, if you ever have questions like, hey, man, I don't even know I'm talking, like, basic things like, where can I get my car fixed? He's like, oh, I got a guy right on 7th Street. I mean, everything you need, he just got. And that's the one benefit of, you know, a place like Philly. So when you talk about quote unquote, fixers, you know, Philly is. Well, it's one of the biggest cities in America. It's still very, I would say, a little bit of a throwback, where everyone kind of knows everyone in certain neighborhoods and he's pretty tied in with a Lot of people. So he just can help a lot of people out. And I think people, you know, you got a very famous people on the team. Players now, Howie and coaches and the owner. They're just very comfortable with him handling shit. And that sounds bad, but it's not even. A lot of stuff is even that bad. Just one of those guys that you feel better when he's around. Question for the Mailbag. He also. One thing guys like him do is during free agency in the draft process, they are very good at, like, becoming, I don't want to say a detective, but they can just accumulate information. I would say if you've ever watched the movie Ray Donovan or the. It was a television show on Showtime. He's like Ray Donovan, but like, in an NFL world kind of now, if I remember, I don't think Ray was necessarily killing people, but he would clean up murders of, like, famous people. No one's murdering anyone. But like, he just could make shit happen and would get things done. Especially sometimes in uncomfortable situations. I mean, think about in football, you have these young guys making a lot of money. You know, I think some stuff over the years. I remember there being instance when I was there with players, and at the time, it's like I knew all the details, but stuff revolving females that could get weird and out of hand. He's really good at, I would say, calming the waters with stuff like that because, you know, in this day and age, that type stuff can get really bad real fast. And I think he plays. I don't really know how else to say it. And listen, I haven't worked in the organization for a long time now, but he's. I mean, he's an invaluable member. And, you know, I remember hearing stories the 49ers had a guy like him in the 80s with Eddie DeBartolo and Bill Walsh. They're just. You couldn't even have one of those guys in California now, but in Philly you can. And I would say Big Dom is an integral part. Just what a legendary. You know, he's just this big Italian dude, wears the sweatsuits. Big Donald's a man. Question for the Mailbag. That might be something different for you. I'm a young football coach and coach at the high school level. Just turned 24. From what you've seen and been around, what is the one trait that you think is the most important for coaches at any level to have success? That's a good question. I think too often, and I think you could say this probably about the profession I'm in is that you and you could honestly probably parallels a lot of industries that when you're starting off doing whatever you want to do, especially in a business like coaching or I would say radio, podcasting or television or maybe even finance, you have a huge mentor, someone you look up to and someone that you desire to be just like, because that's the reason you want to do what you're doing is. Is because of them. So you emulate them and you try to basically copy them. And in coaching, I think you've seen, like, why a lot of guys fail, which use the NFL as an example, is people try to be Bill Belichick, right? But Bill Belichick's personality is different from everyone else. And I think a huge key to success as a coach. And I've been around, spent two years around Pat Hill, who was an excellent coach, and obviously not just Andy, but I was there around Todd Bowles, Sean McDermott, Matt Nagy, Doug Peterson, Deuce Daley, who I think is an absolute stud. They're very authentic. And every one of our personalities are different. We have different quirks. We have different emotional stability or instability. We. Some of us are louder than others, Some of us are more empathetic than others. Some of us are whatever our personal characteristics are. And I think the best coaches are just themselves. And I think any human being, when they realize and part of being a coach, like, you're doing this to try to help other people out, to try to make a player at a high school level a better player. And for most guys you're coaching, that'll be the last level of football they ever play. Last time I ever put on a helmet and shoulder pads was 2002, right? There'll be 99% of people, maybe a little smaller, 98 people will ever play football. And then that other crew of guys you're trying to get, improve them so they can go off and play college football. And then a tiny, tiny 90% of them, you'll be very lucky as a high school coach to ever have an NFL player. So, like, you're teaching them, but it's you. So, like, you have to be true to yourself, don't you can copy other people. Like, I think that's a really good drill or I think that was a really good way to explain something in front of the room. But, like, you have to do it your way. Think about the coaches. Let's just use the NFL. Use college, too. Who are really successful, like Dan Campbell. A lot of people made fun of him when he got hired. But you know what? I'll give Dan Campbell, he's very true to himself. I think Dan Campbell is just extremely authentic. Andy Reid. Why does everyone like Andy? Andy's an LA kid. I know he's lived in Philly and Green Bay and Kansas City now for the last 30 plus years. But at his roots, like Andy Reid's wearing rainbow sandals, walking around the office in shorts like he's a California guy. He's got a West coast and he's very true to that personality. It doesn't mean that you can't get mad or like things, but I think oftentimes people try to be something they're not. And I think that, I think the longer and the more you're true to yourself and it's hard. Like you gotta, you know, there's, you know, confidence is built over time, having success and it can take a while as being young in any profession. But talk to people like you would talk to people. Not the way that you see someone else doing it. Unless you think, like, this is not gonna work. But I would say authenticity in passion. And if you're coaching, you're probably passionate about football and those two things go hand in hand. Can I tell you about my friends at Mando? 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John Middlekauff
Make some noise for the greatest shooter of all time, Steph Curry. We went live from All Star Weekend for a new podcast called Goat Greatest of Their Era and we ranked our top five shooters from the 2000s.
Steph Curry
Peja 5 Dirk Ford.
Colin Cowherd
Peja is elite.
John Middlekauff
Okay, okay, I'm mad him. I left him off my list, but I still like my list. You won't believe who Steph left off his list.
Steph Curry
That's so tough. That's why we have these conversations. Absolutely love it.
John Middlekauff
Steph talked about what separates the truly elite NBA shooters.
Steph Curry
When you have a scouting report and you're on the list as not just a shooter, but we have specific rules for how we guard you. There's a fear factor that's associated with anytime you're wide open. Like, you might as well just count that and get back on defense.
John Middlekauff
Listen to Go T E Greatest of Their Era on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
Colin Cowherd
Longtime fan, first time caller what are the most important moves the Patriots need to make to get back into the playoffs in a strong force in the afc? It's funny, we talk about it every single time and all I see in Patriot land is like, how do we land T. Higgins? How do we land a wide receiver? It's like, guys, do we all agree that your offensive line sucks? The easiest way to help out your young quarterback who I saw Variable say that his oldest son is older than Drake May. He's like, God, it makes me feel old. I'm like, it's kind of crazy. I guess. Drake may is what, 21, 22, you know, variables? Probably 50. So you know, he might have 22 year old kid, but I think the easiest way to help out a quarterback improve the offensive line, get a tight end and a running back. And if you look at this draft and you look at the free agent class, go buy a couple offensive linemen. And in the draft you're not going to draft the tight end at 4 overall or whatever, but offensive and defensive lineman, offensive defensive lineman and get a really good running back. I would draft a running back if I'm the Patriots on the second day and ideally that guy becomes my bell cow. But like, look how they played with the Tennessee Titans when Variable was there. They had a good running game, they had a good offensive line they resurrected Tannehill's career and they did. Good defensive line, obviously. Then they hit on A.J. brown in the second round. It's not like they. This was not the version of A.J. brown that Howie got, the A.J. brown that Vrabel had. And I'll never forget a Thursday night game against the 49ers like three years ago. AJ Brown single handedly won the game. I was like, God, this guy. I didn't realize he was this good. And he was and he is. But I just think the line of scrimmage, man. Line of scrimmage, line of scrimmage. I think Harbaugh showed the way last year. Like, oh, they got to take Malik Neighbors and they easily could have. No one would have complained. Not a fucking soul. Jim Harbaugh, Joe Ortiz get their quarterback, Malik Neighbors, who's. Let's hope the concussion thing is not a lingering issue for his career. But already a top 10 talent at the position. I mean, a freak. And they're like, no, we're taking a tackle. It's like, you already have a left tackle. It's like, yeah, we, we're going to get a right tackle and we're going to have the best tackle duo in the NFL. It's like, Jim, why didn't you draft a wide receiver? He's like, well, I view offensive linemen as skill guys, the tip of the spear. And I would guess Vrabel would do the same. Obviously, you know, if Joe Alt was in this draft, it'd be a no brainer to take Joe Alt at 4. He's not. And I think there are a lot of question marks for the offensive lineman. So I'm not acting like it's just a no brainer pick on who to do, but I think you go offensive or defensive line. Been a lifelong Packer fan. Matt Lafleur is clearly a great coach. However, I think his play calling has been a little dubious. Prime example, a must have. I mean, we're breaking down individual situations here. Third and three against the Eagles and they run it with a backup running back. Not even Jacobs. That's just one example. What kind of play calling is that? His play calling has also been off and I feel like it cost us some games. Jordan Love is a good young quarterback. He said, great, I'll go good. But how long do we give him a chance to get it wrangled in? He has a lot of Favre in him, but he's not Brett Favre. Curious to hear your thoughts. You know what was weird about last season is Love gets hurt in that Eagles game. And I thought the next couple of weeks when they were rolling out Malik Willis, I'm like you're just going to lose every game of Malik Willis and then all of a sudden he just runs like this way different offense and they're running the ball with Jacobs and Malik and it's like what? How is he doing this? And you're like lafleur is an elite Young offensive coach. McVeigh's, Shanahan's, he's in that crew the version of like the young Andy Reid's from an offensive standpoint. And then as the season went on you'd watch them especially when Love was banged up and they would get really pass happy. I think you just have a weird year and maybe sometimes you try to justify giving your quarterback all that money. Let's face it, Jordan Love, a huge reason he's there is because of lafleur and Gudikens. Like that's a mutual decision. But yeah, I mean you if your bad years are going to be going to the playoffs. But I and I talked about this on a mailbag recently. It's pretty insane that you made the playoffs going one in five in your division. That is nuts. That that really is. And I forget you know better than me my memory lot of lot going on upstairs right now. But were you trump that that week 817 or 18 game against the Bears was that you were kind of trying kind of not. I forget so but let's just even say going into that game you were one and four. That's you can't get swept by the Vikings and alliance. That can't happen. But how often are you going to go one in five like next year? I would say worst case scenario, probably winning two games. So you're already winning 10 plus games. You're going, you're winning one divisional game. I think you guys are going to be okay. There's growing pains. I mean Jordan Love has started what one full season where he missed some games and then I guess he was a full time starter two years ago. So two full time seasons. But he's already played in three playoff games. So he's got a lot of experience and he sat behind Rogers on really good teams. I keep saying this over and over. There are some teams that are like we're the Steelers, what are we going to do? We're the Browns, we're fucked, right? We're the Cowboys, what the hell's going on? And then there's like you guys, everything's gonna be okay. I'd be. Things are gonna be good. You guys are fine. Like, it wouldn't shock me next year for, like, the two seat. I would not freak out if I'm a Packer fan, you guys. You know, it's like when your boy flew first class for the second time in his life to New Orleans. And the lady comes and she goes, what would you like to eat? I'm like, the enchiladas. Everyone else is eating. She's like, oh, we're out of them. I'm like, well, what's your other meal? She's like, all the salad. I'm like, oh, I'm good. Like, that's first class problem. Not that big a deal, right? And I realized, like, I'm not gonna complain. I'm sitting here. Like, I see why everyone, or the eight to 10 people that sit up here when all the rest of us are back like sardines in the back of the plane, realize, I gotta live pretty. They got meals. But it wasn't that big a deal. Why? Because it was a first class problem. It's like, I didn't get the enchiladas. Like, yeah, your. Your coach had a couple bad play calls. You still were in a playoff game. What are your thoughts on Dart coming out of Ole Miss? He looked awesome in college, but I think he could be a solid backup at the top of the second round. Go BYU Cougars, darts, a Utah kid. I didn't watch that much Ole Miss last year. I have to. As we get past free agency and I get married, maybe that'll be a project of watching a little more Jackson Dart on the old YouTube. My exposure to him, I was dialed into one game this year, and it was a huge game against Florida. And he made some of the worst mistakes I've ever seen. Like, it was like, James Winston at Tampa level. Like, what is going on? And I think you got to be very careful. We used to call this we. I mean, they still do call this. You know, sometimes your first exposure to a player can be positive or negative, but you can't let that cloud your judgment if it's a small sample size. So, like, if you go see a top, you know, 50 player and he has an awful game, it's easy to carry that with you forever. And it might have been like, that was the worst game of the season. He's a great player. He had a bad moment. Jackson Dart had a bad moment in the Florida game. Like, really bad. Lost him the game. But that's like, I would say the most vividly Sat. No, it wasn't a four box. It was like the only game on my television. And being like, what is going on here? I liked him at USC early on in his career. I thought it was like this guy's a freak. You know, the year I guess that would have been before Lincoln Riley got there. I was a fan because he's, he's very talented. But I think the decision making in the game I watched was like. But there's more to that. You know, I know he had a good Senior Bowl. I know he had other really good games in playing the sec. It's like multiple years he's gone through different coordinators. If I was a betting man right now, I'll know more after the combine. Texting around if you said you got to place $1,000, does he get drafted in the first round? Does he go the second round? I'd say he probably goes in the first round. You know, if Jordan Love can go pick whatever he went 27, Jackson Dart can go pick 27. So I, I would guess that the Jackson Dart ends up going somewhere between 15 to 32. Do you think the Chiefs make any big moves this offseason? The line needs massive help at tackle, but it feels like bold moves need to be made to keep up with the Eagles. Well, I don't know what their official cap space is. Chiefs Cap Space 20, 25. You gotta love AI. According to this they do not have much and they just franchise tagged. According to this they have $7 million in cap space. Now they only have 2 million in dead cap. So they're doing pretty good though. They just franchise tagged a player who accounts for 23 million. So when you're paying Patrick a ton of money, for example Patrick Mahomes cap it going into 25 is $66 million. I think it's fair to assume that they do some sort of contract extension with Patrick Mahomes or mess with his contract in the next week or two. Because I'd be stunned. One, they just, they just don't have any wiggle room. If Mahomes cap it's going to be 66 million in Chris Jones cap hit. I think they would like to get Patrick down to like Chris who's 35 million which is 12 and a half percent. So between Patrick Mahomes. Here, listen to this. Between Patrick Mahomes at. Let's round up 24, 24, Chris Jones at 12.5 and Travis at 7. Three guys making 43% of their cap space and Travis Kelsey said he's coming back. So Kelsey's cap hit is 19, Mahomes is 66 and Chris's is 34. A lot of coin, man. I would guess that Patrick Mahomes. And if you're Patrick, like what do we need to do? You want to give me more signing? Give me $30 million in two weeks as a signing bonus and then we can mess with my contract. Like I would do something like that for sure. And if you're Patrick, it would. You would be inclined like how do I help out the team? Right. I'm getting paid but like give me some money up front. I'll redo my contract and let's go buy some offensive linemen because the draft is hit or miss. Like Andy has a really good history of drafting guys and they drafted the kid from BYU and it was just tough spot. So I my guess would be sitting here they they mess with Patrick's contract. I think they would probably do that. Anyway, enjoy hearing your breakdown. But first, what makes a good scout and who are some of the all time great scouts? This is the second time the Chiefs got obliterated in the super bowl due to O line issues. In your opinion, is it a matter of scouting needing to be better or better coaching on the O line? How much scouting does a head coach and coordinator in the NFL do? Or are they completely reliant on the scouting department? What would you like to see added and taken away from the scouting combine? Well, let's use the Chiefs. They had a tackle issue, right? They, they tried several years ago to sign Trent Williams. Trent Williams was going to be a chief and then the Niners just went above and beyond and resigned him. The Chiefs are drafting every single year 32. So you're in a position where there aren't tackles available there. They haven't had cap space. So occasionally when a good player hits the open market, they can't pay them. So they're in this weird spot of like, how do you find a left tackle? Look at the left tackles in the NFL. Most of the good ones are high picks. So the Chiefs offensive line, before they had to fix their O line, their left tackle, they had one of the best guard, center guard setups in the NFL. Thuney Creed and Trey Smith. Like that is, I mean that's like $50 million worth of stud player. So up the front they were fantastic. Their tackles were just an issue and it was mainly like they didn't really have a left tackle. But like how are you supposed to find one? They're not easy to find. So I Just think they're in kind of a tough position. Andy Reid knows how to coach fine tackles and coach them up. Some years you just are like, we don't really know what to do. And they still kind of pieced it together. I would say depends on the team. You know, I remember Mike Lombardi, the late podcaster, now gm. He was, he was so taken back by last year in Hard Knocks off season, the Giants hire the coordinator, the defensive coordinator from. Was he with the Titans? Yeah, he would have been because Variable got fired. So they hired the guy and then in the free agency meetings they basically just told him to tell all the scouts what they need. It's like you're just hiring this guy. You tell him what you need. Like Al Davis used to treat coaches like they were high school coaches. Like just coach who you got. Don't, don't worry, we'll pick the players. Now there's a balance. You know, Andy's been doing this so long. Him and Vites work close together. But I think some teams are different than other teams. You know, if you have Steve Spagnola as your coordinator, right. He's probably pretty involved, you know, in the draft process and your scouts and your GM are working hand in hand with them. If I have some random coordinator who just showed up like, bro, coach the fucking team. We'll pick the players. And I think there's. That's. But that doesn't happen a lot because let's face it, coaches make a lot of money. The head coach is typically in always. I think there's probably only one place in the league and that probably is going to change here soon because he's just going to make a lot on a contract sanction. That how he's making more than his coach. But I would say I'd have to really do a deep dive. But probably every coach is making more in the GM and some of these coaches, you know, the Harbaugh brothers, the Tomlins, they are making significantly more. Let's use the Pittsburgh Steelers as an example. Mike Tomlins probably making somewhere between 15 and 20 million dollars. Omar Khan, a first time GM of a couple years ago. I don't know, I'm probably making three and a half. So your coach is making three or four x. It's like, who do you think has more juice? And it's why like in some other organization someone would have been like, yeah, let's bench Russell Wilson. This isn't really working. Let's go back to Justin Fields. Well, head coach has a lot of power, so I think whenever you hear about these guys arguing about the decision making and the draft and who gets the final say, like all these coaches pooh, pooh that like, oh, it doesn't matter. Bullshit. Someone's got to pull the trigger. Someone like there's a tiebreaker somewhere. It's coach or the gm, especially when the owner's like, I don't know, I don't know. These players your guys call, who's got the final decision making power. You pull the trigger. But I think coaches can be pretty. And here's the other thing. I don't know who the best scouts are. I mean, I was with a lot of really good ones. Brett Veach, you know, was a scout when I was there. He is excellent. Mike Bradway, who is with him in Kansas City, is awesome at his job, you know, when I was there, you know, Grigson, Grigson's not my biggest fan. I didn't think he was that great of a scout. I mean, I didn't. But you know, being a GM is about more than that. But, you know, you either got an eye for it or don't. And some guys are better. And you know Adam Peters, I don't, I've never worked with Adam, but I always thought really, really highly of him. And I think he's pretty fucking good. I think John, it doesn't mean you don't miss. It doesn't mean that maybe he was all in on Trey Lance and doesn't mean it doesn't go the wrong way. But I think over the course of his career, like he's done a pretty good job. And listen, it's, it's much. It's easy for me to critique draft picks on the outside. It's obviously hard. It's always easy to play. Hindsight's 20 20. But let's use last year as an example because I have a couple scouting buddies that text me all the time. One of my buddies with the Niners were like, does anyone remember that the Bears never even brought in the other quarterbacks? Like, they didn't even bring in Jaden Daniels or Drake May. Didn't even have him in for like a dinner. It was just all in for Caleb, which was the easy thing to do because no one was going to give you shit. Yet Adam Peters took a bunch of crap because he brought them all and took them all to topgolf. It's like, what are you doing? I don't know. My job. We like Jaden, we like Drake, but why not evaluate them all? Why not evaluate them all together, get a feel for the guys. Let the cream rise. When I was in the NFL and we'd have interviews and hell, I was part of this, you show up like, the other three guys interviewing for your position are also in the cafeteria at 7:30 in the morning having breakfast. You're like, this is kind of crazy. Is this Wall Street? Like, no, this is. This is the Eagles. And this is for a job that pays $23,000. There's two other guys here interviewing with me. It's like, yeah, we're gonna pick one at the end of the day. Shit, I better dial in here. It's like everyone's. I remember Adam Peters took so much crap with people in the media about the topgolf thing. Yet the Bears did not bring one other person into their building beside Caleb Williams. There is not anyone in the NFL. I'm sorry. It doesn't mean it's going to play out this way forever. But as we sit here on February 27, who would take Caleb Williams over Jaden Daniels? And even Adam Peters at the time was like, well, I just want to make sure we're bringing other people. Listen, my guys with Kansas City really like Ryan Pulse. People think he's a good guy unless obviously you just watch him, like, seems like a great guy. Is he good at his job? I don't know. Job's heart. And you know, the job of a gm, too, is about more than like, picking players, like building a team. I would say the same thing about Joe Shane, the GM for the Giants. Seems like a nice guy. Seems like probably a fun guy to like, be your neighbor, have as a friend. Is he any good at being a general manager? Doesn't really seem like that. Seems like he's completely over his head. I mean, it's. Takes a dynamic individual. You know how he's just got a pretty unique set of skills. It's just not. His skill set is not normal. You know, John Schneider is a little quirky, a little out there. Like kind of. He's kind of good at his job. I don't know. It's hard. I think he kind of knows what he's doing. Doesn't mean you're perfect. When an NFL player gets traded or moves teams in free agency, do the new coaches or players ask about the old team? Especially if the player came from a rival team? As a Chiefs fan, I wondered about this. When Orlando Brown went to the Bengals and Tyreek went to the Dolphins, are these players questioned at all about the scheme or anything about how the Chiefs operate in certain situations that could help these teams when they play Kansas City. Well, I'd say this Dolphins Tyree Kill could bring every playbook he ever had. He could bring his iPad from Kansas City. He could have taken all of his video from his cell phone when he played all those years in Kansas City. He could give it all Mike McDaniel. It wouldn't matter one iota. He could get Andy Reid on the horn, hey, Coach, Mike wants to pick your brain about everything we do. And he could tell him everything. They'd still get their fucking ass kicked, the Bengals. I think that stuff's just overrated. You know, Belichick's talked about this over the years. Like, you can only glean so much because at the end of the day, you don't know what's going to happen. So it's like, yeah, what are the fundamentals? When you ran this play in Kansas City, it's like, okay, I can tell them, hell, we can run it or try to defend it, and if they got better players, it doesn't matter. So I think in theory that stuff happens a lot, but I think it's overall tangible value is much smaller than the way it's often discussed. Plus, in football, all these people have worked with each other. All these people know each other. So many years of tape. So the Chiefs do what the Chiefs do. They're going to blitz a lot. Either going to pick it up or you're not. Lifelong fan? Lifelong Vikings fan. Not me. The gm Quesi hasn't had the draft success like his predecessor, Rick Spielman. It made me wonder how much of Quesi's draft staff is the same as Spielman's. Can you shed some light on how decisions are made behind the scenes? I think it depends. Personnel department from personnel department that when you take over like a guy like Quesi and someone's fired, how many people you keep. For example, we have a bunch of new GMs right now in the NFL, right? The dude probably messing up his name. Moogie Mogi, the Jets guy, Borgonzi, Spy Tech and sometimes spytech already fired like four people. Spy Tech is like, we are cleaning house. Don't blame this thing needs. We're going doge up in this bitch. We are trimming the fat. And that means everybody. In some places, like when John lynch and Kyle Shanahan got the job, I would. I felt like a majority. He brought in Adam Peters with him, but the majority of guys, Josh Williams, who just interviewed, was in the finals for the Jags job Has been there like 15 years. You know, a lot of times guys stay. So I think it just completely depends, you know, individual from individual scouting staff. Sometimes you know the guy, sometimes you just think they're good. Sometimes you have people you're going to bring in on your own. You know, if you look at Quesi with the Vikings, I mean Grigson's his right hand guy. Like that's his football guy. You think I'm, you know, Grigson thinks I'd hate him or whatever, he hates me. I really don't care. But like, I just think you can question, like, is this guy that good at his job, right? Is he a good evaluator? Because you watch other teams, you're like, I think you're pretty good at what they're doing. And you watch the Vikings, like, yeah, I think, you know, I remember I watched a little bit of the, of the post whenever they got beaten the playoffs. And then the GM and the coach talked and Questy talked about like, we've hit on some free agents. We have not done a good job drafting and we'll see with JJ and the dude from Bama. But like, yeah, I don't know. I can't speak to it. I think Rick Spielman was good. I always said that about like the Vikings, Rick Spielman, Zimmer were just good Now Zimmer got old and crotchety. But like Spielman was good at his job. Like he was a really, really good evaluator. Drafter. Like they just built really good teams. I saw that team when I was living in the Bay Area, I feel like three or four times live and I would always be like, God, Kendrick, Smith, Hunter, obviously Adrian Peterson, the tight end, the kid from Notre Dame, you know, they drafted Diggs in like the fifth round. Thielen was. No one had ever heard of the guy coming out of college. They were just good. Xavier Rose was a first round pick. He was good for them for a long time. Like, honestly, what was so crazy about the Vikings this year is like, floor is doing an incredible job because they're not. John Randall ain't walking through that door. Ravens fan here. Could you see us making this offseason? What moves could you see us making? Not exactly sure on the cap space off the top of my head, but me personally would love to see maybe a second first dude from Cleveland, but never give it to us. I'm hearing Debo rumors, but not sure he'd be much of an asset. Dude is starting to look like Zion. Low key. I Was with Debo on the plane flight to the super bowl from Arizona. I thought he looked pretty good. He's always had like me, our faces can be a little chubby, but I thought he looked. He didn't look fat. I think one problem for the Zion, Debo's done way more in the NFL than Zion. I will defend Debo that way. And the one thing with Debo is Debo is. Debo's a fucking war daddy. Rough season last year. But like I've seen Debo in the trenches of big games. Like, you want that dude on your squad running over dudes playing his ass off. Like in some of the biggest games of Kyle Shanahan's career, Debo has been a menace. The problem for The Ravens is one, you never have that much cap space. Looking now 12.9 million again. This is before guys get cut and cap casualties and stuff. Your highest paid players, obviously. Lamar, whose cap space is 43 million, cap it 15%. Marlon Humphrey, who I thought was slipping and then they moved him in a nickel and he was awesome. Roquan Stud Andrews, bad game, good player. Emma Bouquet, the defensive tackle, stud. Derek Henry. You guys are paying all your top players. Marcus Williams probably going to get cut. Yeah, I don't know. I feel like you guys rarely do sexy shit. To me when I think of the Ravens, you guys just always have a good core of people because you draft well and then you'll just sign like Derek Henry or like Steve Smith Senior, and then I'll bang the chick that's working in the office. Which I don't know if you saw that story on the Internet, but that's pretty classic. Which I also saw Steve taking like family portraits like with the six kids. I actually saw Steve at the, at the hotel buffet for breakfast. Said what's up to him? Looked like he was in good spirits. Maybe she was there. I feel like you guys make a living off like signing that type guy like Derek Henry, Eric Weddle, you guys are rarely like messing. Not the Browns would never trade you Miles Garrett, but Debo, like if you can get Debo for cheap, I can see you trade like a six round pick. The Niners need some of Debo's money. I think that was the last question. Yeah, okay, well, good question. The Ravens, you guys are just one of those teams. Kind of like the packers might not win the super bowl, but it feels like you always have a good year and you just always going to be good and probably more than the Packers. Sometimes during the season you're like is this the best team in the NFL? And part of that's Lamar. I mean, Lamar's dramatically better, Jordan, but just a well run organization. I think one thing the packers and the Ravens both possess is like they're very comfortable in their organizational skin. Like they know what they want, they know what they look for. They have a bunch of guys, you know, Guta Kins has been there forever. DaCosta's been there forever. They just kind of know what they're doing. It doesn't mean you're perfect. They're not always super dynamic. You know how he's doing. Way crazier shit. Less need. We'll trade the house. They don't always get super aggressive, but they rarely up big. They really do. So if I'm a Raven fan, I'm feeling pretty good. The Volume this is Nikki Glaser from the Nikki Glazer Podcast. On a more serious note, I'm still thinking about that commercial with Tom Brady and Snoop Dogg hating on each other. Because when you listen to the reasons for hating someone or something, you realize just how stupid they really are. There is too much hate in this country and it's got to stop. So join us at I Heart in Standing up to It. If you see hate, speak up, call it out and you can learn more by following at what's up with Hate?
John Middlekauff
Make some noise for the greatest shooter of all time, Steph Curry. We went live from All Star Weekend for a new podcast called Goat Greatest of Their Era and we ranked our top five shooters from the 2000s.
Steph Curry
Asia 5. Dirk Ford Asia is a leak.
John Middlekauff
You won't believe who Steph left off his list.
Steph Curry
That's so tough. That's why we have these conversations. Love it.
John Middlekauff
Listen to Goat G O T E Greatest of Their era on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
The Herd with Colin Cowherd: Episode 3 & Out - Drafting the Right Player, Stafford and Brady Meet, Fugazi Friday
Release Date: February 28, 2025
Colin Cowherd kicks off the episode by introducing the concept of "Fugazi Friday," a segment dedicated to unraveling the complexities of the NFL Draft and the Combine. He delves into the perennial challenges General Managers (GMs) face when selecting players, emphasizing the high-stakes nature of drafting top talent.
"Every year we talk about like, half these guys are going to miss, half these guys are not going to be able to play."
— Colin Cowherd [05:45]
Cowherd discusses the unpredictability of drafting elite players, citing examples like the 49ers' Mike McGlinchey and Solomon Thomas, who, despite prolonged careers, failed to secure second contracts. He contrasts these with standout performers such as Jamar Chase and Nick Bosa, who became franchise cornerstones.
A significant portion of the discussion centers around the critical role of medical evaluations during the Combine. Cowherd highlights how medical assessments can make or break a player's draft stock, referencing Abdul Carter's stress fracture and the historical case of Nick Saban declining Drew Brees based on medical advice.
"These are big, big investments. And every year we talk about like, half these guys are going to miss..."
— Colin Cowherd [15:20]
He underscores the dependency GMs have on medical professionals, comparing their influence to that of business advisors in other industries. Cowherd argues that while medical insights are invaluable, they can sometimes be fallible, adding another layer of uncertainty to the drafting process.
The episode takes an intriguing turn as Cowherd explores the meeting between NFL quarterbacks Matt Stafford and Tom Brady at the exclusive Yellowstone Club. This meeting has sparked rumors and discussions about potential strategic moves within the league.
"Matt Stafford asked for and was granted the opportunity to talk to other teams."
— Colin Cowherd [35:50]
Cowherd addresses the controversy surrounding Jordan Schultz, heir to Starbucks' legacy, who was involved in a publicized confrontation with Rap Sheet. He clarifies that Schultz’s interactions with Brady and Stafford were casual vacations rather than orchestrated recruitment efforts.
The conversation shifts to the broader implications of such high-profile interactions, emphasizing the blurred lines between personal relationships and professional maneuvers in the NFL. Cowherd posits that Brady's influence within the Raiders is substantial, enabling them to attract top-tier talent like Stafford.
"Tom Brady is a football guy. Spy Tech even just admitted that at the combine."
— Colin Cowherd [38:15]
He further contends that Brady’s role transcends traditional player boundaries, acting almost as an unofficial ambassador and strategist for the Raiders. This dynamic, Cowherd suggests, provides the team with a competitive edge, fostering credibility and attracting other elite players.
Mailbag Segment:
Cowherd addresses listener questions, providing in-depth analyses of various NFL teams’ prospects and strategies. Notably, he discusses the Philadelphia Eagles’ potential dynasty, highlighting their strong core players and strategic contract decisions.
"The core of the team under contract, elite players in their prime."
— Colin Cowherd [50:10]
He evaluates the New England Patriots' chances of returning to playoff contention, advising an emphasis on strengthening the offensive line and acquiring key positions through drafts and free agency.
"The easiest way to help out your young quarterback... is to improve the offensive line."
— Colin Cowherd [60:45]
Cowherd also critiques the Green Bay Packers' coaching strategies under Matt LaFleur, questioning play-calling decisions and their impact on the team's performance. He reflects on the challenges faced by general managers in balancing coaching autonomy with effective scouting.
"Hindsight's 20/20, but let's use last year as an example..."
— Colin Cowherd [72:30]
Player Evaluations:
The episode features brief interludes with Stephen Curry discussing basketball shooters, which Cowherd integrates to draw parallels between sports strategies and player performance assessments.
"When you have a scouting report and you're on the list as not just a shooter..."
— Steph Curry [27:38]
As the episode concludes, Cowherd reflects on the importance of authenticity and passion in coaching, drawing lessons from successful NFL coaches who stay true to their unique styles.
"The best coaches are just themselves."
— Colin Cowherd [74:10]
He encourages young coaches to embrace their individuality rather than imitating others, emphasizing that genuine passion and self-awareness are key to success at any coaching level.
"Authenticity in passion. And if you're coaching, you're probably passionate about football and those two things go hand in hand."
— Colin Cowherd [74:25]
Cowherd wraps up by expressing admiration for professionals who manage complex roles, such as wedding planners, paralleling the dedication required in both fields.
"Most people are like, we paid our wedding planner five grand, eight grand, 12 grand. I don't even know what they did. And Maria... she's just running point on our wedding."
— Colin Cowherd [74:50]
He underscores the value of recognizing and respecting the hard work of others, both within and outside the sports industry, advocating for a broader appreciation of diverse professions.
Notable Quotes:
Colin Cowherd [05:45]:
"Every year we talk about like, half these guys are going to miss, half these guys are not going to be able to play."
Colin Cowherd [35:50]:
"Matt Stafford asked for and was granted the opportunity to talk to other teams."
Colin Cowherd [60:45]:
"The easiest way to help out your young quarterback... is to improve the offensive line."
Stephen Curry [27:38]:
"When you have a scouting report and you're on the list as not just a shooter..."
Colin Cowherd [74:25]:
"Authenticity in passion. And if you're coaching, you're probably passionate about football and those two things go hand in hand."
This episode of The Herd with Colin Cowherd offers a comprehensive exploration of the NFL Draft intricacies, the strategic interactions between top quarterbacks, and insightful analyses of team dynamics. Cowherd's blend of expert commentary and engaging discussions provides listeners with a deep understanding of the multifaceted world of professional football.