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This is the Best of the Herd with Colin Cowher on Fox Sports Radio.

Colin Cowherd (3:45)

It's a Tuesday. We are live in Chicago. Big dominoes fallen yesterday. Few more dominoes and free agency in the NFL falling today. We are live wherever you may be and however you may be listening. Thanks for making us part of your day. Well, here's something I haven't said much in the last 20 years. Man, the Raiders really know what they're doing is why the NFL is great. You don't need tanking. You can get better through trades. The draft, free agency. The NFL gives you so many avenues to get good overnight. Tyler Linderbaum, great center from Baltimore, is now a Raider. My favorite signing of free agency. A plus plus. Get to that in a second. I absolutely love that signing. Jalen Naylor, the receiver, a number three receiver from Minnesota, not much of a paycheck. Way underrated signing. Eric Stokes, resigning him at corner outstanding. Ideally in the NFL you'd love to have great ownership at the top, but the Bears and the Raiders don't. But both have really really ascending general managers. John Spytak for the Raiders to get two firsts for Max Crosby in a year in which he was banged up is a haul. And remember that Ravens pick to the Raiders that that picks 14. So they have the number one pick, Fernando Mendoza and the 14th pick. So they're going to get two absolute if they want day one starters. Not to mention and it just this is what's great. Pathetic. The playoffs in the NFL is a regular occurrence. Four of the last seven Super Bowls four of the last seven featured a team that didn't even make the playoffs the previous year. Last year Seattle and New England 2 for 2. No other league can do that. If you are lousy perpetually in this league like Cleveland and the Jets. It is all self inflicted. Like the 230 million guaranteed due to Sean Watson. And all of you knew the the minute the ink was dry. That was a terrible deal. Have you also noticed what the Raiders are doing? And this is not a coincidence. They are signing players from winning organizations like the Eagles and the Ravens and the Bills and the Packers. They're taking people from winning cultures. Okay, now there is some dumb money in free agency. You can kind of see it and it's obvious. I think Zion Johnson From Cleveland getting 50 million chargers just let him walk. That was the worst guard, center, guard experience in the entire league. And gosh, what a shock. Cleveland overpaid for it so. Or the jets last season given a couple of years and 40 million to Justin Fields probably wasn't going to work out. But I feel like when I'm watching the Raiders this offseason, I am watching what the Bears did last offseason. Go get a sharp, respected young offensive coach for your young quarterback. Get a Pro bowl level center to call the audibles, most underrated position in the sport. Go grab a receiver or two if you can find them in the league or draft them. Give give your young quarterback a complement of receivers or tight ends. And I'm telling you, since the Max Crosby deal on Friday, the Raiders have had the most positive, uplifting five days that I can remember in forever 20 plus years. When Fernando Mendoza, a month and a half, two months ago, you're thinking, oh, that poor kid's going to the Raiders. Now I've got Brock Bowers, best young tight end in football, Tyler Lindebaum, probably the second best center in the league after Creed Humphrey in Kansas City. I've got an offensive coach and I'm looking at Fernando Mendoza thinking oh, this could work. I honestly feel the Raiders feel like that buddy you have that's like 37 years old and finally has his act together. He's no longer sleeping on people's couches. He has a job, a girlfriend and a 401k and can buy his own airline tickets. His parents don't have to do it for him. It's like buddy, you finally got it together. It took a while. I mean I've been waiting for it. I'm not going to let you sleep my couch for another week. But Albert Breer talked about the Tyler Linderbaum signing. I think it is an A plus plus gap. Let's say the value for Tyler Linderbaum is 23 or 24 million. And what you get to me is in that offense, they put a lot mentally on the center, right? The center is a huge part of the pre snap operation when it comes to setting protections and all of that stuff. So that's going to take stuff off the plate of Fernando Mendoza. So by investing in Linderbaum, I think you're investing in Mendoza. Okay, here's something else I don't say very often. Here's something else I don't say very often. Yeah, I love what the Dolphins did. Raiders and the Dolphins, what's happening. Malik Willis at only $22 million. Here's why I love it. Because the new coach of Miami, Jeff Halfley, watched the last two years, Malik Willis at practice around teammates in camp being inserted in the games. And the new GM of the Dolphins also comes from Green Bay. So this is not buying something off a used car lot where you don't know if they messed around with the odometer. They have watched him in games, at practice with teammates, his work ethic and Half Lee, the new coach and the new gm, Green Bay to Miami Bull said, yeah, we got to go get that guy. And at 22 million, it's a bargain. People say, well, I mean, he's only had a handful of starts, folks. How many starts did you need to know that Zach Wilson wasn't going to work by the end of his second game in which he had four picks. I'm like, didn't like him coming in, not going to work. It doesn't take that. How long did it take to watch Justin Herbert first NFL game? The doctor for the Chargers makes a mistake. Tyrod Taylor can't play. They insert Justin Herbert in the game. Rookie, first game, over 300 yards, 67% completion percentage against the Chiefs. Steve Spagnola, big, strong, mobile. You're like, yeah, that works. That's a franchise quarterback. I needed one Justin Herbert start. So when they signed two or two, an extension years ago, I said it on the air. I said, the GM doesn't know what he's doing. Probably the nicest guy in the world. That's. You got to be kidding me. A small, marginally athletic, concussion prone at the time, Injury prone, absolutely. Quarterback in the afc, where all the good teams playing windy, cold weather in January and you resign into a massive deal. How are you doing? Malik Willis is not this. I've seen enough of Malik Willis. Okay. Really good arm for his size. Very, very athletic. Looks like he's durable, accurate. And again, the coach and the GM of Miami were in Green Bay and They're like, get him. So I think this is a really good signing. And, you know, people can just keep. Well, I mean, you haven't seen that. I was first date with my wife seven, eight minutes in. I'm like, yeah, that's the one. It just doesn't take that. I've been saying this about those music shows. I don't know anything about music. I can watch the Voice or America's Got Talent. You can tell two lyrics in. You're like, that is a hack. Or oh, that's somebody that could get a record deal. And I don't know anything about music. So all I know when I see Malik Willis, arm athleticism, you know, he's got a good work ethic or Halfley's not bringing him down. Here's Matt Hasselbeck.

Matt Hasselbeck (11:54)

I remember when he came out, a lot of people liked him. Some people didn't. And you know, I remember he was the third string quarterback in Tennessee and he was an afterthought. And it was about Will Levis and Mason Rudolph and these guys and, you know, clearly your environment does matter. And I think Malik is a great example of a guy that plays within the system, has great coaching around him and clearly is a problem for defenses.

Colin Cowherd (12:17)

Yeah, I got six starts. I think you saw him get inserted into a game, which means that week he's getting no reps with the number one offense. Gets inserted into a game, and you're like, wow, he's good. You saw him get moved from Tennessee to Green Bay in August and they inserted him immediately into the offense and he was really good in one games. And you say, well, Green Bay's got good coaching. You kidding me? Every time I bring up Matt LaFleur, everybody wants him fired. In Wisconsin, you tell me you don't like the coaching in Green Bay and now you tell me you don't like Malik Willis. Well, why is he so good? He's either good or the coaching's great in Green Bay. So I think, I think both are true. I think Matt LaFleur is a good coach and I think Malik Willis is really talented and I do not think you need that much time. They're paying him 22 million. I mean, they're, they're. Here's all you need to know about the Dolphins. Look at the, the dead money for the next two years they have to incur moving off tua. So anybody that says, well, they're both a little undersized. This kid's the opposite of tua. He's wildly dynamic athletically. He's got a big, big arm and plays without any fear. As far as I can tell, sometimes the smaller quarterbacks they play, they don't want to get hit. I don't see it with this kid. So, I mean, he was the number two quarterback last season according to pff, only behind Matt Stafford. So, you know when and when people say, well, I haven't seen a lot of him. If you only draft and develop or acquire quarterbacks that everybody's seen a lot of you get into, you get into bidding wars, right? Like, it's like nil. If you want the best quarterback in college football and everybody else knows he's great, you gotta spend $7 million. You do what the Indiana Hoosiers did, and you go get Fernando Mendoza from Cal, and there's no bidding war, and you get them for a reasonable price. So if you're only gonna invest in obvious stuff like when the Denver Broncos went and got Peyton Manning, you know, John Elway knew I'm replacing Tim Tebow. They're like, seven teams wanted Peyton Manning. That's what's going to cost you. But to get a Darnold from Minnesota, Baker Mayfield down in Tampa, great success stories. Malik Willis to Miami, I mean, if you want to get into bidding wars for every quarterback, good luck. But I think the price tag, the player, the fit, Raiders, Dolphins, it is a new day in the NFL. J Mac all fight now, we got going to have some more signings. Diana Rossini In 40 minutes from now, 45 minutes. But it now that doesn't mean there are teams that overspent. Alec Pierce is a good receiver. The Colts are going to pay him almost 30 million a year. That is more than I'd want to pay Alec Pierce, who I like, who I think is a really good player. They moved off Pittman. Pittman goes to the Steelers. You know, Aaron Rodgers doesn't like young receivers. So, you know, DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman in Pittsburgh. Feels like to me, Aaron Rodgers looks at that and goes, okay, these are guys that have been around the league. I, I, when I look at the Pittman signing, that felt like Mike McCarthy saying, hey, Aaron, we got you two veteran guys. You don't have to teach somebody you know from college how to be a wide receiver. That felt like a little inducement of Aaron Rodgers back to the Steelers.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (15:43)

It's not a bad take. Or they just trust Will Howard. They just need to put good players around him. Colin, I'll say this, I was surprised yesterday by the amount of movement. It feels like there's some kind of sea change going on in the league. Did you see the teams who. Two of the top four teams last year in spending in free agency, Patriots and Seahawks, they were 1 and 4. They ended up in the Super Bowl. I just, I'm not saying the Raiders are going anywhere and the Dolphins are certainly not. Sorry about Malik Willis. I can't rock with you on that. But it feels like teams are getting smarter and cutting guys sooner. Just getting off the money earlier. Also something's going on.

Colin Cowherd (16:18)

Also it tells you people don't love the draft. So if Kansas City thought there were four, five good backs, Kansas City doesn't pay for Kenneth Walker, but there's one star back and then Penn State, Notre Dame have other backs that are solid guys but maybe like number two backs or low end ones. So I think it also tells you at the key. It's a very good offensive tackle draft, it's a bad quarterback draft, it's a bad running back draft, it's not even a great wide receiver draft. It's a bad tight end draft. It's an edge rusher draft, a corner draft and an offensive tackle draft.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (16:52)

And so I've got to ask about the Kenneth Walker thing. They gave him the most guaranteed money, I believe, in free agency to a running back ever. You like that move by the Chiefs, Kenneth Walker?

Colin Cowherd (17:03)

Well, they have no juice in the backfield, like none. So now this allows Kansas City to go out and get their right tackle, maybe Spencer Fanell, the kid from Utah, the right tax. So I mean, to me the reason they did it is because one, it's a bad running back draft. And if I think if Kansas City had multiple picks, they don't have a ton of picks. If Kansas City like the Raiders had like 11 or 12 picks, I don't think they would have paid Kenneth Walker. I think they would have used fours and fives to move up three or four spots. You know, give up a four and a five and get Jeremiah Love. So right now Kansas City's at nine. You, you could probably get Jeremiah Love at six or seven. Give, give up a couple of fives to do it. Mackenzie just doesn't have the draft capital this year. So I think they're saying let's just go get Kenneth Walker and, and solve right tackle, corner and edge rusher and

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (17:56)

they got Kelsey coming back. This is kind of good news.

Colin Cowherd (17:59)

Well, yeah, I mean, I think ideally a 37 year old tight end, you know, you'd move off him. But they're not in a situation to do that. Yep. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am

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Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and

Colin Cowherd (18:14)

the iHeartRadio app

Stugotz (18:17)

Stigatz here. I have a podcast empire. It continues to grow and I have brought it here to iHeart. I'm also doing a live radio show from 3 to 5pm Eastern because my wife wanted to kick me out of the house. It's called Stugatsi company Live, which is available in podcast form right when the show finishes every single day. Some of the biggest names in sports, a lot of phone calls.

Colin Cowherd (18:42)

I love you guys show. It's one of my favorites.

Stugotz (18:44)

A lot of interaction, guys not taking themselves too seriously. Those are just some of the things that you can expect from Stugots Co. And Stugots Co. Live. So listen to Stugots Co. Live and our original podcast. Please subscribe, rate and review Stugats Co. And God bless football. Taylor's livelihood depends on it. Do it today and you can check all of those out on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast.

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Colin Cowherd (20:17)

All right, two truths and a lie. Here we go. I went to college with college football coach Jim McElwain, I began my broadcasting career doing play by play for the Las Vegas Stars and I've been a Verizon customer for 15 years. Okay, I lied. All three are true. Verizon isn't as expensive as you think. In fact, if you bring in your ATT or T mobile bill to a Verizon store, they'll give you a better deal. That's right, a better deal on the best network with the most ways to save on plans, streaming and phone deals. So take that AT and T or T Mobile Bill to your local Verizon store today. Get a better deal and start saving based on root metrics. Best Overall Mobile Network Performance U.S. 2nd Half 2025 All Rights Reserve must provide recent Consumer Mobile Bill in the name of the person redeeming the deal. Additional terms, conditions and restrictions apply.

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Colin Cowherd (21:36)

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J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (23:09)

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Colin Cowherd (23:24)

So and I don't know why baseball fans understand this, hockey fans understand this. I think football fans understand NBA fans struggle with something. They always think the better the player, just get him on your team. And basketball there's one ball, it's about fit. So let me give an example. I think LeBron James is better than Jaden McDaniels of Minnesota. But if you just flipped them and you gave the Lakers Jaden McDaniels a plus defender on the wing and a great catch and shoot three ball guy, the Lakers would be a much more dangerous playoff team. I don't think Jaden McDaniels is better than LeBron, but the numbers don't lie. I watched the Lakers beat the Knicks on Sunday and it was one of their best defensive efforts of the season. They're 9 and 2 when LeBron doesn't play. And I was reading this this morning, the lakers improved the 9 and 2 this year when Austin Reaves and Doncic played together without LeBron. LeBron is the second slowest player in the league right now. He is not a plus defender. He is not having a great jump shooting year. So Jaden Daniels McDaniels just on the ability to catch and shoot and not have the ball in his hands, that's just one player. And the Lakers will have the money to go buy two or three players this off season. Give up picks. So having Luke is a little bit like having the coolest convertible sports car in the neighborhood. It's awesome. But you're going to have to have a second means of transportation unless you live in like Miami. And I think when you have Luca, you have to have other components on your team. Catch and shoot shooters, elite wing defenders. And so it's not a knock on LeBron, it's LeBron is a really, really still high end player. This doesn't work. And so I'm watching that game against the Knicks and I'm like between Rui and Luca and Austin Reaves, it's like, oh, that's young guy energy. And they're not great defenders but the Lakers really had a nice defensive effort because they had great energy. So. And it goes Back to Jaden McDaniels. LeBron's averaging more points, more rebounds and assists, but that doesn't make him a better fit. And I've said this for years, Russell Westbrook was better than 90% of the NBA in his prime. But he didn't necessarily, he would not have fit on the warriors when you had Steph and Clay and Durant in elite shooters that needed shots. Westbrook was as talented as almost anybody in the league for like eight years. How do you fit with one ball? And so I thought, I thought that Laker Nick game was a real eye opener. It's like, wow. Oh, oh, that's interesting. Here was Luka on Austin Reaves. Sounds like he's almost talking LeBron Luka on Austin Reaves after the win over the Knicks. He's just great being his teammate, you know, and obviously he needs to be aggressive like this. But just, you know, play with him is so easy because he draws so much attention, you know, helps others too. So. So just playing with him, it makes my life easier. The other thing I saw, the Chiefs are going to sign Travis Kelce to about a one year $12 million deal. And it feels a little bit Mahomes and Travis Kelce, like when Gronk went to Tampa, he was retired. And then Brady called him and said, get down here, I need my security blanket. So number one, Travis Kelsey had over 800 yards. He's still really valuable. No other Chiefs Target had over 600. So secondly, he's durable. He's going to give you 15 plus games a year. He doesn't run like he used to. He's had eight or nine or 10 surgeries. But here's the thing. What, what Signing. And I think it's a smart move. I would have understood it if they moved off him, but for 12 million I totally get it because he's productive and he's durable and he's a team leader. He's kind of the soul of this organization. But the other thing it illustrates is the Chiefs have a very good gm, Brett Veach, very good. But it just shows you the number one position in the NFL, the number one most difficult position to draft in the first round is wide receiver. And so I mean it's just Hart, Xavier Worthy. The Chiefs go out and get Xavier Worthy. He's a gadget player. They probably should have taken lad McConkey. He was available, Chargers got him. And then there's Rasheed Rice who just you can't depend on maturity wise. There's Hollywood Brown who's smallish and had injuries and you'd ideally you're probably saying, yeah, I'd rather not have to resign a 37, 38 year old tight end. But it, he's your cornerstone and you've missed on other. I mean Sky Moore was a miss, Xavier Worthy is not a miss. But he feels like a gadget guy for a first round guy. And it feels a little bit like the Lakers pre Luca. That's what the Chiefs feel like now the Lakers pre Luca you're like, yeah, LeBron's great, but the west is young and a 39 year old probably shouldn't be my star. And I kind of feel like you'd hope you could eventually move off Travis Kelce, but. And people are kind of banging on the move. My take is, well, he's still productive, he's durable, he's a team leader. He's not going to get in trouble off the field. He may get engaged and married off the field to his pop superstar, but I like, I get it. I'd bring him back too. So I think wide receiver and weapons, they're never been more valuable, but they're hard to find. And I mean, listen, Travis Kelsey not only was the oldest player to catch a touchdown last year, he was the oldest player to catch touchdown the year before. So. And scoff at it. It's the cat's 22. You'd ideally hope. I mean the Lakers would ideally hope. It's. We've had a great time with LeBron. We're going to move off, but he's still really, really productive. And so they've needed him until this year where it feels like LeBron's kind of reached a point where they've got their offense without him, certainly their defense. I think Travis Kelsey is something. You have to sign him because they just. And again, it's not a great wide receiver year. That's why they went and got Kenneth walk J. Mac thinks they're a bunch of old geezers and they're done. And my take is they don't have a lot of draft capital. They have got to help Travis Kelsey so they've got to get a right tackle and you know, again, as well run as they are, they've had enough draft misses. I wouldn't say Xavier Worthy is a bus. Sky Moore was a miss. McCall Hardman was a miss. Worthy's not a miss. But lad McConkey is a different level player. He was available. I, I mean Xavier worthy has had one game in his career over 100 scrimmage yards. He's a gadget guy. So I think they're kind of, I think they're a little bit trapped and. But I mean, there's worse things in the world being trapped with a Hall of Fame tight end who's still durable and productive, but you don't love it.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (30:49)

I mean, listen, it's. I'm sure Mahomes is thrilled and the locker room's thrilled and the stadium and the league, you know, the league loves. Hey look, the newlyweds, we've got them on on Monday night, on Thursday night, on Saturday, they're going to be force fed to the league. But if you look at the roster, Colin, I mean they lost two starting cornerbacks to the Rams. Two starters, including their best guy McDuffie. Go look at that secondary. They got nobody. The linebackers are weak. I'm just again, I thought the Raiders had an awesome day. I like what you said at the outset. Did the Chiefs have a good day getting Travis Kelce back and paying Kenneth Walker the highest guaranteed money for any free agent running back ever?

Colin Cowherd (31:27)

By the way, this is, this is what happens when you pay Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes. I mean we just had a Super bowl with Sam Darnold on a team friendly deal and Drake May rookie contract. So I mean it's, it's not hard to figure out. Bo Nix should have made the Super Bowl. Drake May did the year before it was Josh McDaniel in the conference championship. Why? Because he's on the rookie contract. So you know, when you pay Mahomes or any quarterback that kind of money, what like Dak Prescott, you have to hit, you have to do a John Snyder with a Seahawks, you have to hit on every pick at the top of your board. Not only do they have to be good players, they have to be stars. You have to get Devin Witherspoon, you have to get elite players, Gray Zabel, you have to hit on star players who can play immediately. And Kansas City's well run smartly GM but they've missed on just enough, you know, wide receiver, the running back at LSU, late first round Ms. Edwards.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (32:27)

Hilarious.

Colin Cowherd (32:28)

Yep, that, that was a miss. So they've just, it feels a little bit, correct me if I'm wrong, J. Mac. It feels like the Niners, John lynch has missed on just enough wide receiver talent and Kansas City and they're both well run organizations. But what happens is you get older and you have to resign old players because you're trying to keep this super bowl window open. And I don't see it with San Francisco in their division. I don't. And by the way, Niners and Chiefs arguably the two best divisions. So I, I think the Niners and the Chiefs to me feel like they're, they've kind of, they. And it's not a good draft for what the Chiefs need outside of right tackle. It's a good right tackle.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (33:11)

I like your Warriors 2 timelines analogy with the Niners.

Matt Hasselbeck (33:14)

That's good.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (33:15)

Only problem is Brock Purdy. He's my guy. He's no Steph Curry, okay? He's not going to bring him to the to the Super Bowl. That's a tough one.

Colin Cowherd (33:22)

Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific.

Novartis Advertiser (33:28)

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Colin Cowherd (34:27)

All right, two truths and a Lie. Here we go. I went to college with college football coach Jim McElwaine. I began my broadcasting career doing play by play for the Las Vegas Stars, and I've been a Verizon customer for 15 years. Okay, I lied. All three are true. Verizon isn't as expensive as you think. In fact, if you bring in your ATT or T mobile bill to a Verizon store, they'll give you a better deal. That's right, a better deal on the best network with the most ways to save on plans, streaming and phone deals. So take that AT and T or T Mobile. Build to your local Verizon store today. Get a better deal and start saving based on root metrics. Best Overall Mobile Network Performance U.S. 2nd Half 2025 All Rights Reserve must provide recent Consumer Mobile Bill in the name of the person redeeming the deal. Additional terms, conditions and restrictions apply.

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Colin Cowherd (35:46)

Here's something that'll freak you out. Most people think their insurance will cover them if disaster strikes. But here's the truth. Many are wrong. You pay your premiums, you assume you're protected. Then the fine print hits. Exclusions, loopholes, limits. Suddenly that coverage you counted on isn't really coverage at all. It's not your agent's fault. Their job is to sell policies. You need somebody in your corner who protects you, not the insurance company. That's why I like my policy advocate. I like what they're doing. They take your actual policies. Home, life, auto, break them down in plain English. They show you what's really covered and what isn't. Here's the best part. Cost 27 cents a day. That's it. Less than a cup of coffee for peace of mind to make sure your family's protected when it matters most. When disaster hits, you don't want surprises. You want certainty. Before you assume you're covered, go to mypolicyadvocate.com let them review your policy. You might be shocked at what you'll find. MyPolicyAdvocate.com this time of year, the action

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Colin Cowherd (37:19)

in a move that is sending fear throughout the NFL, the jets just signed Geno Smith back where it all started.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (37:32)

Hey, Geno Smith just helped the Raiders get Fernando Mendoza, all right. He's going to help the jets get Archbanning.

Colin Cowherd (37:38)

All right? Let's not listen, I wish him well. All these guys that it's a full. It's a flat circle. All these guys that are moving around the league and they go back to where they started. I'm happy for him. Good for him. All right. Matt Hasselbeck, 18 NFL seasons. I got so many questions to ask him. So I have, for years and years I have argued with, not argued, but debated with NFL people that the center is the most underrated position in football. It's. First of all, it's academic and physical. It's calling your audibles. And if you have an inexperienced quarterback, Ben Johnson in Chicago got this. Nothing can be a better friend to Caleb than you Know Drew Dolman. So to me, my favorite pick, trade, free agent signing is Tyler Linderbaum, who after Creed Humphreys, may be the best center in football. So you tell me, what does a center, a veteran center, I think he is now, he counts as a veteran four or five years in the league. What does that do for a rookie quarterback like Mendoza?

Matt Hasselbeck (38:42)

Yeah, you nailed it, Colin. And it's not only a veteran center, it's a veteran center that's played it with a great program, with an elite MVP caliber quarterback. Like he gets it. You know, just speaking from experience as a young quarterback, some of the hardest things to do are in pass protection, in audibles, at the line of scrimmage, third down. And you rely so much on the guy in front of you, the guy snapping you the ball. He's not only the leader of the offensive line, he's the leader of the huddle before you step into the huddle. You know, I remember when I first got traded to Seattle, we had a veteran center there named Robbie Toback. He was the leader of our team. Not a household name, but he was the leader of our team. And when I stepped into that huddle, every. Shut up. And they were listening to me because he got him ready for me stepping into that huddle. Like I'm grateful for, for that. Saw what the New England Patriots did with Garrett Bradbury last year. You know, Drake May's first year starting, they give him a, you know, maybe not as physically talented as a blocker, but a leader up there. So Drake can focus on kind of growing and learning as a quarterback. Now in year two, they don't need him. They trade him and they're going to move a young player into center. But I, I think it's, it's, it's very, very underrated.

Colin Cowherd (39:48)

So I, I understood the same Ravens going after Max Crosby because nobody the last five years had blown more fourth quarter leads. And I, and I've said this about Max Crosby, Matt, is that with the Raiders, they trail in the fourth quarter, so Max Crosby doesn't get that many sack opportunities. The Ravens lead in the fourth quarter. The Bills lead in the fourth quarter. The Rams lead. So spending money, even overspending a little bit on a rush end for a team that leads 80% of the time late in games. I'm going to, I, I'm all for that. I think Max Crosby was wasted. Still highly productive, but kind of wasted in Vegas last two years. Now there are those that think that's too much. First round picks, kind of expensive. Where are you on Max to the Ravens.

Matt Hasselbeck (40:37)

Well, look at what the market said. I mean, there were other teams in play for this. I think the Seattle Seahawks would have done this deal. They just didn't have as sexy round picks to give away because they're such a good team. No, I think, listen, Max Crosby has the respect of the NFL players, teammates, opponents, coaches, scouts, everybody. And he's not a one trick pony. A lot of these guys that come up with all these sacks, they're, they're great at rushing the passer, they're not great against the run. This dude's the real deal in every way. I mean, he's always at the top of the list. Tfls tackles for loss in the run game. You know, when we would play against a guy that was just trying to get sacks, you'd run right at him. You know, it's kind of a liability to the team defense. There's nothing like that with Max Crosby. He's, he's, he's the real deal in the run game, the past game, on the field, off the field, an identity setter. You know, he's a dog. That, that's a, that's a big get. I don't think it's too much compensation at all.

Colin Cowherd (41:30)

Okay. J. Mac disagrees with me. I don't think you need to see any more with Malik Willis. I mean, Jeff Halfley's practiced against him for two years and he's like, get me that guy. I think that stuff matters. I know he's only got six starts, but every time I've watched him, I feel like I get the same guy. Athletic, composed. I mean, he obviously Halfley practiced again. He saw his work ethic. Your thoughts on that move?

Matt Hasselbeck (42:00)

Well, it's a big deal. I mean, who your quarterback is, is a big deal. Jeff Halfley learned that the hard way when he was a head coach at Boston College. Never quite got the quarterback right. And it's a thing so he knows how important it is getting the quarterback right. With, with that being said, you mentioned it, only six games, but Jeff Halfley got to see him every single day, every single day, pretending to be the opponent's starting quarterback. You know, I spent three years backing up Brett Favre in Green Bay and you know, while I was in that offense, that Mike Holmgren offense that, you know, was carried, you know, from coach to coach. Similar here with the LaFleur offense. The defensive coaches, I feel like I won them over before I won the offensive coaches over because they saw me every day. And so I think it's a similar situation with Malik. I think Malik is a guy that scouts have kind of, you know, not been in love with. Maybe offensive coaches in his career have been like, slow to love. His college coach, you know, threw him under the bus pre draft. You know, there's, there's some of that kind of stuff. But these defensive coaches, they say, hey, you know what, this guy's humble, he's hardworking on game day. He plays the way that I see him play every day in practice and he's coachable and I'll take that. And I think that's what Jeff Halfley and company see in Malik. And, you know, he also comes at the right price. So put, put me on in the group of people that thinks this is another young quarterback that was developed in green bay. He's 26 years old. His best football is in front of him.

Colin Cowherd (43:23)

Okay, I'll tell you a move that I like the player, but I don't get the move. The Niners are old in division. The Rams and Seahawks have better rosters and are much younger. And we've seen the Rams in recent years. And the Seahawks play the Niners and they look younger. So I like Mike Evans, but you got Trent Williams and KD and McAffrey and Bosa and there's some injuries and Mike Evans, who was dinged up last year, I can like the player, but question the move. What do you make of it?

Matt Hasselbeck (43:59)

I think the 49ers are probably surprised that Mike Evans wants to go there as well a little bit. I mean, he's probably taking less money to leave Florida to go play in California on a team. Like you said, that's a tough division, but he's a dog and he produces. And I think if you look in that division in this kind of Kyle Shanahan offense, what, you know, he, you know, think back to what he did with Julio Jones when he was the offensive coordinator in Atlanta. Like that's the vision for it. Kind of what McVeigh has done with Devonte Adams in the red zone with Seattle, Seattle Seahawks have done with jsn. We can make you a part of this system that helps us with our running back Christian McCaffrey with our tight end game. And then in the red zone, you can be a thousand yard receiver with a, you know, a ton of double digit touchdowns. Like, I think it fits. And I think for Mike Evans, he's probably like, hey, I'm chasing a ring here. It's not so much about the money. I'm chasing a ring and relevance Sometimes when you play on one of these teams like Tampa, it's not a huge market, you kind of feel a little bit forgotten. And, you know, now here you are in San Fran, kind of one of the premier organizations in the NFL. Prime time quite a bit. I think there's just an excitement as a player there. I get the age thing, but it's a good quarterback, a good team, and I. I think there's a lot of guys out there that would just love to play for Kyle Shanahan. Seems like Mike Evans is one of them.

Colin Cowherd (45:17)

So a lot of people push back on Travis Kelsey, but my take is he had over 800 yards. Nobody else in the team had over 600. And they've made missed on a lot of receivers. Sky Moore, Nicole Hardman, Hollywood Brown gets dinged up. Rasheed Rice is talented, but kind of immature. Xavier Worthy's talented, but he's a gadget guy. Take me to your career. The comfort level with the oldest receiver or skill player you ever played with. And I feel like when Brady went down to Tampa, he got on the phone with Gron. He's like, dude, I. I just. I. Like there's a comfort level with quarterbacks. And take me to it. Why you think Mahomes probably pounded the table for Travis Kelsey? I don't.

Matt Hasselbeck (45:56)

And I don't think it's just Mahomes. I mean, for sure it is. I mean, you see what Aaron Rodgers does every year, trying to get his buddies back together because he understands them, they understand each other. There's like a. There's a. There's a chemistry there that just can't be built overnight, especially with these offseasons. But, no, he's a Hall of Fame player who didn't have a Hall of Fame year last year. And so I think if there's a, you know, that look you in the eye kind of thing, like, hey, are you willing to put everything on the line for one more run at this? Like, one more job? Kind of like, I don't want to say Ocean's eleven because I don't think they're that old, but, like, let's get to. Let's get the band back together for one more run. Last job we did last year, that wasn't. It missed the mark, you know, but, like, there's so much more that Travis Kelce brings to the table that you're not going to find in the box score, in the stat sheet, you know, on the field, off the field. But I dare you, go try to watch the Kansas City Chiefs offense And watch their cutups and try to tell me like what the tight end was supposed to do on that play. Because Kelsey does whatever he wants to do and within the framework of the offense and Mahomes is with him. But to think that this is going to be the same exact looking offense. You got Eric B enemy back, I think it's going to be. You got the big running back and Kenneth Walker, I think it's going to be a run first team and using Travis Kelce situationally in the third downs in the red zone and being a little bit smarter about it so that he is a little bit more productive than he was last year.

Colin Cowherd (47:22)

You were at the combine, did you hear some of these rumors that have transpired?

Matt Hasselbeck (47:29)

Of course. I mean people think the combine is for workouts, like no, it's for pre agency. It's like the pre free agency, like all the talks. Who's going to go where, what's the money going to be, you know, who are you going to franchise? Who are you not going to franchise? Who's. Who's getting a transition tag. It kind of sets the table for the real meal that is free agency. That ends up being, you know, what happens in the draft, you know, all that kind of stuff. So it's, I think it's a really important time, you know, whether the guys work out or not.

Colin Cowherd (48:01)

I saw a story that the Raiders, not necessarily they may not start. Fernando Mendoza, you know, like Flacco's name was out there and could you bring in a veteran just for a year? How does that land for you?

Matt Hasselbeck (48:16)

I'm fine with that. I'm absolutely fine with that. Look at the quarterbacks that have had just incredible careers. Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes. They did not start their first year. You know, I certainly did not. I started my fourth year, backed up Brett Favre for three years. I would have failed if I had. I had to play earlier than that. Fernando Mendoza, he was at combine, not throwing. Spent a lot of time with him, loved everything about him. But at the same time, if I, if you were to say to me what would be the best thing for his career? Yeah, listen, maybe watching Joe Flacco start for the Raiders for an entire season might be the best thing for the Raiders. It might be the best thing for his career and that, you know, you've heard Tom Brady talk a lot about it, talk about it a lot about what Drew Bledsoe meant to his career. Watching Drew be a pro, watching Drew's process of leadership and how he prepared, how he dealt with injury, injuries, how he dealt with the media, you know, all that kind of stuff. So I would not be against that at all.

Colin Cowherd (49:14)

Matt Hasselbeck, 18 NFL seasons. Love having him on the show. Good seeing you buddy.

Matt Hasselbeck (49:19)

All right, Colin, See you buddy.

Colin Cowherd (49:22)

I love this stuff. Diana Rossini Matt Hasselbeck stopped by the show today for some contextualization of what we've seen. Philadelphia Eagles have had a weird last several months. Coaching hires, defensive players, leaving a coach, retiring. Howie Roseman has gone Bermuda Triangle. He just disappeared. I have no idea where he's at. But the good news for the Jets, Gino is coming back. Can can't come home again. Maybe with the jets you can.

Verizon Advertiser (49:54)

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Colin Cowherd (50:25)

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Arby's Advertiser (52:20)

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J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (52:24)

They've got this new meat in three box for 7.99 and honestly, it's stacked with Arby's quality favorites in a way

Colin Cowherd (52:29)

that feels kind of ridiculous.

Arby's Advertiser (52:30)

For that price, here's what you're getting inside you pick one sandwich, the classic roast beef, the crispy chicken sandwich, or the crispy fish sandwich.

J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (52:37)

Then it just keeps going because also comes with melty mozzarella sticks, crispy curly

Colin Cowherd (52:42)

fries, and a peach cobbler roll, which is a little sweet treat and so good.

Arby's Advertiser (52:46)

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J Mac (Jason McIntyre) (52:53)

Pick the sandwich you want, make it

Colin Cowherd (52:54)

your own, and get it your way.

Arby's Advertiser (52:56)

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Matt Hasselbeck (53:04)

This is an I Heart podcast.

Colin Cowherd (53:07)

Guaranteed human.