Best of The Herd

Summary

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The Herd with Colin Cowherd – “Best of The Herd” – May 15, 2026

Episode Theme:
A Deep Dive into the 2026 NFL Schedule Release: Intentionality, High-profile Matchups, and Scheduling Winners & Losers

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Overview

Colin Cowherd, joined by Jason McIntyre and Matt Hasselbeck, dissects the NFL’s just-released 2026 schedule, focusing on how the league deliberately crafts storylines, spotlights star power, and tilts the holiday and international games toward marquee matchups. The conversation covers which teams benefit from favorable scheduling, who gets “punished,” and why strength of schedule isn’t just about opponents but also timing, travel, bye weeks, and quarterback matchups.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. NFL’s Intentional Shift Toward Stars and Offense

• Colin notes the NFL’s evolution, especially on holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas where star quarterbacks, dynamic offenses, and headline teams now dominate.
• “These are great. I mean, Packers, Rams, that's best game of the weekend. Oh, wait. Or is it Eagles at Cowboys?” (04:54)
• Colin points out that only a decade ago, defense and less marketable teams got these spots; now it’s all about offensive firepower and big brands.

2. Holiday & International Game Lineup—Best Ever

• Thanksgiving and Christmas feature elite teams and quarterbacks, with barely a “boring” game on the slate.
• International games, once reserved for so-so matchups (“Jacksonville and another team slightly less boring than Jacksonville”), are now top-tier: Niners-Rams in Melbourne, Ravens-Cowboys in Brazil. (06:30)
  • “Look at these games now. These would be the best game of their weekend.” (07:07)
• NBA’s Christmas Day games can’t compete in star-power or intrigue.

3. Goodbye to the One-Primetime-Game Rule

• NFL dropped its rule that guaranteed every franchise at least one primetime matchup.
  • Teams like the Titans, Jets, Browns, and Cardinals were left out because “they haven't earned the right.” (08:54)
• “This is not a participation trophy league. Get out of here.” (09:08)

4. NFL Scheduling: Not Random, Extremely Deliberate

• No “ping pong balls” or even-handed randomness; the league spotlights (or hides) teams by design.
• Cowherd uses the Chargers as an example:
  • Early easy wins (Cardinals, Raiders at home) set them up for confidence before a brutal midseason gauntlet (Seahawks, Broncos, Chiefs, Rams, Texans, Ravens, Bills). (10:20)
• Contrasts this with how big brands (Packers, Lions) get softer landings or back-loaded tough games.

5. Who Gets Punished (and Why): The Denver/Broncos Case

• Colin floats a “semi-conspiracy” theory: Denver’s front-loaded, brutal six-game start may be punishment for Sean Payton’s public jabs at the league and at Russell Wilson.
  • “That's the toughest six game schedule I have ever seen in my life. And I'm a geek on this stuff.” (11:45)
  • “NFL does not like friendly fire. Zip it.” (11:20)
• Contrasts with the Packers and Lions, who get more favorable layouts due to being big TV draws.

6. Older Teams and Injury Risk: The 49ers’ Late-Season Gauntlet

• The 49ers, who feature a host of veterans (Evans, Greenlaw, Bosa, McCaffrey, Trent Williams), face “a rough eight game stretch for an old team that's going to get banged up” late in 2026. (12:43, 30:54)
  • “Cowboys, Vikings in Mexico, Seahawks at New York, cross country... That's a rough eight game stretch for an old team.” (12:54)

7. Fan, Owner, and Coach Perspectives on Scheduling

• Jason McIntyre and Colin agree: coaches and players dread too many primetime games (short weeks, disruption), though owners love the exposure. (13:39)
  • “You don't want a million primetime games, Colin.” – Jason McIntyre (13:45)
  • “It's not great.” – Colin Cowherd (13:46)

8. Packers, Lions, and Bengals: The Big Winners

• Packers: Minimal tough stretches, winnable early games, and star opponents at the right times.
  • “I thought they were the big winners in the schedule.” – Jason McIntyre (13:51)
• Bengals: Face only four teams from previous year with winning records—a significant postseason advantage. (13:55)

9. The Bears’ Schedule: Not Actually the League’s Hardest

• Pre-season speculation labeled Chicago’s 2026 schedule as brutal. Colin pushes back:
  • Bears face no opponents coming off a bye, start with three home games, and their “toughest games are at the end, when you’ve got momentum.” (17:09)
  • “They want Chicago to be captivating the entire way.” (18:24)
  • “I thought Chicago got a scheduling break.” (21:29)
• Contrasted with the Chiefs, who get a fierce mid-to-late season stretch with several road games against top QBs.

10. Player Insight: Matt Hasselbeck on the Player Experience

• Hasselbeck weighs in on international games, grounding concerns in logistics, field surfaces (“the fields weren’t up to par”), and recovery for older teams. (26:50, 27:53)
  • “The league says it's important…they need to make sure these playing surfaces are right.” (28:00)
• On what players look for in a schedule release:
  • "Who's my week one opponent, who's my week 18 opponent, when are my bye weeks? ... Are they coming off a bye week? Do they have two weeks to prepare for us?" (29:29)
  • Emphasizes wanting home games late against tough divisional opponents to leverage weather advantage. (30:42)
• On the 49ers (older roster): Physical teams must “look at how you practice” to avoid injury pile-up. (31:40–32:53)

11. Starting Rookies: Raiders Situation

• Colin floats if rookie Fernando Mendoza should start early, given a favorable opening matchup; Hasselbeck argues the team will let Cousins start and develop Mendoza behind the scenes, favoring a “Brady/Bledsoe” model. (32:53–34:45)

12. Holiday Playing Preferences

• Hasselbeck likes Thanksgiving Eve (Wednesday) best:
  • “I love a short week as a quarterback because … the [opposing] defensive coordinator doesn't have enough time to put in new blitzes and new coverages.” (35:20)
  • “You always want to weigh in before Thanksgiving, no doubt about that.” (35:24)

13. Seahawks and the Weight of Divisional Showdowns

• Matt Hasselbeck notes the Seahawks’ end-of-year schedule is loaded with high-stakes divisional games, likely deciding playoff spots:
  • "Your whole season's coming down to those last three weeks and probably those last two games against the Rams." (36:47)
  • Recalls playing Rams multiple times in a row during his own playing days.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Offense is easier to sell. … it’s where our imagination gravitates to.” – Colin Cowherd (05:20)
• “This is not a participation trophy league. Get out of here.” – Colin Cowherd (09:08)
• “That's the toughest six game schedule I have ever seen in my life. And I'm a geek on this stuff.” – Colin Cowherd (11:45)
• “I thought Chicago got a scheduling break. We were told it was going to be the toughest schedule in the league. … Go look at the schedule: beginning, middle, end—a lot of workable, winnable games.” – Colin Cowherd (21:29)
• “The league says it’s important. … they need to make sure these playing surfaces are right [in international games].” – Matt Hasselbeck (28:00)
• “When the player sees the schedule ... what you care about is who's my week one opponent, who's my week 18 opponent, when are my bye weeks?” – Matt Hasselbeck (29:29)
• “Give me that short week for a lot of reasons. I also think it's super fun to be off on Thanksgiving and to get to sit there and watch a ton of football.” – Matt Hasselbeck (36:01)

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Key Timestamps

• NFL holiday & international schedule analysis – 04:00–09:00
• NFL intentional favoritism, Chargers/Broncos/Packers/Lions schedules dissected – 09:30–13:30
• Coaches’/players’ view (Jason McIntyre), Bengals & Packers as “winners” – 13:39–14:15
• Why Bears’ schedule isn’t as scary as billed, Chiefs’ gauntlet – 17:05–22:51
• Player perspective on international games (Matt Hasselbeck) – 26:50–28:16
• Schedule factors players really focus on (Hasselbeck) – 29:23–30:42
• Old teams and late-season injuries, 49ers case (Colin & Hasselbeck) – 30:54–32:53
• Rookie QB starting situation, Raiders (Colin & Hasselbeck) – 32:53–35:01
• Hasselbeck on best holiday slot to play, and why – 35:01–36:21
• Seahawks’ schedule, NFC West finale showdowns – 36:21–37:57
• Returning to Denver’s front-loaded schedule as possible punishment for Payton – 37:57–40:13

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Tone & Style

• Colin: Opinionated, conversational, leans into “conspiracy” themes but backs up points with detailed schedule analysis; always about the big-picture narrative and business side of the NFL.
• Matt Hasselbeck: Analytical former-player perspective, with stories and insights on how schedules affect teams in the locker room and on the field.
• Jason McIntyre: Stats-driven, focused on practical schedule winners and how schedule strength actually impacts playoff races.

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Summary Takeaway

This episode expertly spotlights the NFL’s ever-increasing emphasis on high-profile matchups and intentional schedule construction to maximize fan engagement and TV ratings. The hosts break down how the league rewards and challenges teams through scheduling nuances: protecting big brands, challenging outspoken coaches, and carefully staging international and holiday games. Most notably: schedule strength isn’t just who's on your calendar, but when and where you play them, what streaks look like, and how it all shapes each team’s narrative throughout the season.

Transcript

[Matt Hasselbeck]

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[Colin Cowherd]

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If you're looking for the best blend of durability and affordability in decking, Trust Summit Decking from Deckorators Summit features Deckorators patented Surestone technology so the boards won't splinter, sag, chalk, whip or crack over time and the colors three great options that really capture the rich textures of natural wood. Honestly, it's the best decking you didn't know you could afford. Order a sample before peak build season. Order a sample today. Visit decorators.com herd to get your free sample. That's Decorators with A K. Again, decorators.com herd thanks for listening to the Best of the Herd podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio and noon to 3 Eastern, 9am to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the [e-mail] or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. This is the Best of the Herd with Colin Cowher on Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. Friday Schedule Release Friday Very Few things I dork out to, I geek out to more than the schedule release for a day. Anyway, I'm in la. So is J. Mac. It's the herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be watching or listening, thanks for making us part of your day. So the NFL made a decision over a decade ago, do a better job at protecting the quarterback and tweak the rules to help offense. So the offense now is the cool side of the ball. Offensive coordinators can make more than defensive coordinators. Wide receivers now can make more than your corners. Like it's the cool side of the ball. So when I looked at the Thanksgiving and the Christmas schedules, which are the best I've ever seen, it's taken the NFL a while to figure out the holidays and the international stuff. What jumped out to me was Thanksgiving Eve, Packers, Rams, Thanksgiving, Bears, Lions, Eagles, Cowboys, Chiefs, Bills, Black Friday, Broncos, Steelers, one of those teams, I think about defense, Pittsburgh. And that's only because they overspend on it. Aaron Rodgers is the biggest star on the team. He's the quarterback. Then you go to the Christmas Eve games. Texans, Eagles, Packers, Bears, Bills, Broncos, Rams, Seahawks. I'm sorry, it's a lot of star quarterbacks. Only the Texans, I would say, I think of defense first. You could really see the change. Its star quarterbacks, its star offensive coaches. It is. You could say, well, the Seahawks, JSN and Sam Darnold are moving a lot of jerseys. Not the defensive ends. Offense is easier to sell. It's where our imagination gravitates to. And so for me, when I looked at these Christmas and Thanksgiving schedules, knock on wood. Everybody stays healthy for Fox. Those, those are great schedules. Those are unbelievable schedules. Star coaches, star quarterbacks, not going to be a lot of, you know, field goals my entire life. And just because the NFL is well run doesn't mean they got the schedules figured out years ago. The Thanksgiving slate. My entire life, there's been that one game you nap to. You're not really a fan. You're more tryptophan. You know, you're just. You're trying to figure out, yeah, I got a little. I'm gonna. I'm gonna sleep through the Lions game. The NFL has really evolved on these holiday schedules, is that they don't just put games on. It is star quarterbacks. It is the biggest games. It's the best games. These are great. I mean, Packers, Rams, that's best game of the weekend. Oh, oh, wait. Or is it Eagles at Cowboys is best game of the weekend. I mean, the Black Friday game. That would be second or third best game of the weekend. So. And look at the international games. Nine of them. Now remember when international games were Jacksonville and another team that was slightly less boring than Jacksonville. Look at these games. Now these would be the best game of their weekend. Niners, Rams, Melbourne, Australia, Ravens, Cowboys, Brazil. Those would be the best games of the weekend. I mean even, you know, Patriots, Lions on Fox. That's first or second best game of a weekend. Those games are now international. The other thing the NFL has done, thank God, is they got rid of that silly. We've got to give every team one prime time game. You know who didn't get a prime time game? Titans, Jets, Cleveland, Arizona. Why? They're not, they're not smartly run. Although I think the, the, the Browns GM is brilliant, Andrew Barry. But they're not necessarily well run. They're not necessarily smartly capitalized. They, they sign dumb contracts with quarterbacks. They're revolving doors for coaches. Well, you haven't earned the right to get a game. It's not a, this is not a participation trophy league. Get out of here. So I think the NFL smartly bailed on that old rule. So now they got Sunday covered, Monday covered, Thursday covered. Holidays. I mean, NBA won't sniff a number on, on Christmas. That, that, that, that schedule is unbelievable. Now they got the international thing figured out. And I remember telling a story years ago that Major League Baseball, the NFL has always been super intentional with their scheduling much more than other leagues. Although I think this is the first time they've ever gotten it right. Christmas, Thanksgiving, holiday, first time I've ever looked at all of it and thought, okay, that's how you do it. Don't just put a game, put arguably the best game of the weekend in these spots. But for years and years like Major League Baseball couldn't figure this out, they would, you know, they'd have the Red Sox, Yankees or the Cards, Cubs, the Giants, Dodgers playing a series like Monday through Thursday. Like, what are you doing? Those are always weekend series. Create some events, make the regular season matter. Be intentional with your schedule. Baseball's gotten much better at that. Okay, so now we've talked about kind of the macro on the holidays international. So this is not the NBA lottery. The NFL doesn't use ping pong balls for their schedule. They are intentional. I absolutely believe the NFL is intentional. And I'll give you an example. Look at the Charger schedule. They're not trying to punish them, but they know the Chargers are going to be good. So they Give them a couple of wins early, Cardinals, Raiders, right? They get them at home. They're going to be favored in those games, but they know they're going to be good late. Look at the next seven games. High profile star quarterbacks, late game windows. Seahawks, Broncos, Chiefs, rams, Texans, Ravens, 4 o' clock starts, 8 o' clock starts. Now the Bills is 1 o' clock, but it'll be the 1 o' clock game of the day. So they don't necessarily punish them at the end. They don't punish him at the beginning. And even with this schedule, they give him a Raiders game before the gauntlet and a Jets game after it. They're not trying to punish the Chargers, but they know they're going to be good. So they put him early in the season in high profile late games. Now, now it's interesting. Who are they punishing? And I believe this. I'm not a conspiracy guy, but I believe this. I think Sean Payton has a mixed relationship with a league office. He's taken, he's taking shots at quarterbacks. He's taken Russell Wills, he's taking shots at coaches. NFL does not like friendly fire. Zip it. Look at Denver schedule. They're punishing them the first six games. That's the toughest six game schedule I have ever seen in my life. And I'm a geek on this stuff. I am a nerd on schedules. I've never seen anything like that at Chiefs, Jags, Rams at Niners, at Chargers, at Seahawks. They could have thrown an Arizona game in there, a Panthers game in there. They could have thrown that Steeler game in there, the Raider game in there. Nope. Front heavy with Bo Nix coming off a surgery, I believe. And I again, I'm not a conspiracy guy, but I think Sean Payton has irked a few people. He's been outspoken, a little friendly fire. Sometimes in the league they that feels like they're trying to punish him. Now you could say column Denver and the Chargers, I mean they're in the division. It's the division. No, it's not. Because the best division in football statistically J. Mack and I have talked about this is the NFC north eight games better. Look at the packers and Lions schedules, big brands, unlike the Chargers, a smaller brand where the NFL wants to introduce them in big games. The packers schedule. The only part of the packers schedule, the toughest two game slate is week 16 and 17 at the Bears and the Texans. They don't need to advertise the packers. They're going to protect the Packers. They'll put some Tougher games late. They don't need to advertise. Chargers second biggest team in la, Harbaugh, Herbert O. Lineback. They want to put the Chargers up front, not punish them because they give them easy landings after it. Easy tarmac before it. Look at the Lions schedule again. Big brand in the NFL. Deep down I think they want the Bills and the Lions in the Super Bowl. I think it would get it because it's like the two teams in America it'd be impossible not to root for. Look at the Lions schedule. Where are their two toughest games? Week 16 or 17 and 18 at the Bears and at the Packers. Very workable games. I mean they, they give them the Bills early to. They surround them with the Saints and Jets at home. That is a. The NFL doesn't just do ping pong balls. Oh, the games landed where they landed. It doesn't work that way. So schedules matter. And let me throw one more at you. I don't, I don't know what this says. I don't think the NFL is punishing anybody. But we've talked about this on the air. The older your team is, the more they get hurt and the longer it takes for older players to recover from injuries. When a young guy gets hurt, remember when ant got hurt in the NBA, they're like, oh, he's going to be out the entire series. Game one, I'm ready. Jayson Tatum, he'll be out the whole year. It doesn't work. Young athletes heal much faster. Check out the Niner schedule. Look at this eight game stretch starting mid November. This is an old team with players. Evans, Greenlaw, Bosa McCaffrey, Trent Williams. Older players who have had injuries. That is a rough schedule. Cowboys, Vikings in Mexico, Seahawks at New York, cross country. I mean look at, look at all the trips. Mexico, New York, Midwest. That is a rough eight game stretch for an old team that's going to get banged up. I mean it's been like a six year trend in San Francisco the way they play physically. So I think that San Francisco schedule, I think the Niners will end up, we'll get all excited. Maybe the NFL knows like we don't, we don't, we don't know how this is going to work out, but we want to keep them in the, in the discussion early. But I thought the Niners late schedule for an old team is rough. So there you go. J. Mac. I've got nine different takes, only nine on the schedule. I did think the Christmas, Thanksgiving and international games by, by a considerable margin. It's the best the league has ever done with high profile quarterbacks, teams and games.

[Jason McIntyre]

Well, I, you and I agree. The viewers agree. I'm curious if the coaches agree. You know, you don't want a million primetime games, Colin.

[Colin Cowherd]

It's not great.

[Jason McIntyre]

Owners love that stuff. But the coaches and the players, they don't. Ask Kirk Cousins, I think you have a great take on the Packers. I thought they were the big winners in the schedule. I mean, goodness gracious, look at the quarterbacks they face. It is like, ooh, and the Bengals for me in the afc. I know your boy Ryan over there, he's very excited. They face four teams that had winning records last year.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, that's it.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Yeah.

[Colin Cowherd]

And I think Green Bay and I do think there is the Denver schedule.

[Jason McIntyre]

Oh, that's for six games. It's over. I don't think they're making the playoffs.

[Colin Cowherd]

They could do well. I will tell you this. I felt after watching Denver and Charger schedule release, I have the Chargers winning their division. Denver is a wild card team, will battle Kansas City. I, I thought it meant that much. Is that, I mean, again, it's not like the Chargers is easy, but look at the games they put in front of their gauntlet and behind it. Yeah, they're looking. Listen, if they go. 500.

[Jason McIntyre]

No, no way. They're facing Patrick Mahomes in five playoff teams from last year. Look at the win totals on those teams. It's some of the teams that people expect to contend for the Super Bowl. Yeah, if they win three of them, that would be a miracle. Sean Payton's a magical.

[Colin Cowherd]

Okay, so I'll tell you what I do think is the toughest schedule. And I was told the Bears schedule. Oh, they may not win four games. I thought Chicago got a huge break. I'll talk about that coming up. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific, on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.

[Jason McIntyre]

Hey, this is Jason McIntyre. Join me every weekday morning on my podcast, Straight fire with Jason McIntyre. This isn't your typical sports pod, pushing the same tired narratives down your throat every day. Straight Fire gives you honest opinions on all the biggest sports headlines, accurate stats to help you win big at the sportsbook and all the best guests. Do yourself a favor and listen to Straight fire with Jason McIntyre on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts

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[Colin Cowherd]

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It feels good when the story ends with savings. It feels good to Geico. Hi, it's Colin Coward. If you want your outdoor space to really stand out deckorators, surestone technology is where you should start when you build your deck. With Deckorators decking made with surestone technology, you're getting something totally different from the typical wood fiber composites out there. Decking with surestone technology is made through a patented process that uses crushed rock, which gives every board incredible strength and durability. And Deckorators engineered it with a unique surface design that increases traction in wet conditions. So if you live in a rainy area or you've got kids running around outside, it's a safer, more comfortable surface. Plus, there are more than 40 different color and size combos so you can design a customized outdoor space that actually fits your home and your style. It's durable, it's safe, it looks great, and it's going to stand out. Build seasons right around the corner. Order a sample today. Visit decorators.com herd to get your free Sample. That's decorators with A K again. Decorators.com Herd so I was told the toughest schedule in the NFL was going to be the Chicago Bears. I don't see it. So first of all, the Bears do not face any team off a bye, not once. Secondly, their five toughest games are arguably the Eagles on Monday Night Football, at Green Bay, at Seattle, at Detroit and at Buffalo. Look at the games before their toughest games. They'll either be a game before or after. Well, where they will be a significant favorite. I mean the first month alone they get three home games in the first month. That's a nice start, right? Get some momentum, get some belief. First three home games in the first month they only face one star quarterback. And of the star quarterbacks, he may be the least intimidating. Jalen hurts. Then you go do weeks 9, 10 and 11. The middle of the schedule. Well, they get a warm weather team and a dome team at home. Bucks and Saints in Chicago as it's getting cold. Oh yeah. Their toughest game is the game in Seattle against the Seahawks. But they even get a break there. They get extra rest Thursday to Monday. So I mean their toughest games are to me, Lions, Packers. You know, you start looking at the at the very end of the season they get the packers and the lions in week 16, 17 they're both at home. So it starts soft. Home games, the middle home games against warm weather and dome teams in a buy and then it ends. Packers and Lions at home. The NFL wants Chicago. They want a Chicago Bears team that is in the news. That's what it feels like to me is they understand that the power of Ben Johnson, the power of the brand, third biggest TV market in America. It's no gauntlet. They want Chicago to be captivating the entire way. This to me is a tough schedule. The Kansas City Chiefs Mahomes is coming off an injury. First game, best pass rush in the NFL. Denver. That's a tough opener. Could have given them the Dolphins, the Raiders. Nope. Also week six, seven and eight, Justin Herbert at Sam Darnold, at Denver and Bo Knicks. Rivalry game. That's pretty tough. Weeks 12 through 17 is ludicrous. They face in succession on the road at Josh Allen, at Matt Stafford, at Joe Burrow. Oh, and then they get a break. Drake May, Brock Purdy at home and then at Justin Herbert. There is no six game stretch that you face more top quarterbacks. And yes, Brock Purdy with Shanahan is a good quarterback. I don't think he's Herbert. I don't think he's Stafford. I don't think he's Josh Allen. I don't think he's Mahomes. But that to me is a really, I mean, three straight roadies. Josh Allen, Stafford, Joe Burrow. That's rough. They face really tough quarterbacks week after week after week, and especially tough because it's mid later in the year when injuries pile up. They already moved off McDuffie. Now you may be down your new number one corner pass rusher. So late in the season, everybody's dinged up. You're just trying to get guys back and they're facing the best quarterbacks as the weather gets cold. Right? They're facing the best quarterbacks in the league. I thought Kansas City schedule would be a big pass for me. Bear schedule I thought beginning middle end plays to your favor. A couple tough games late. It's already been established. Your culture, your momentum. I thought, I thought Chicago got a scheduling break. We were told it was going to be the toughest schedule in the league. And we were told that about New England last year. And it was true. We were told that about San Francisco last year. It was true. I was told that about Chicago. Go look at the schedule, beginning, middle end. A lot of workable, winnable games. They'll be favored sometimes heavily. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific.

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[Colin Cowherd]

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[Colin Cowherd]

well, there's ways I view a schedule release and then there's ways coach coaches and players view it. You know, executives and owners love these international games. I don't think players and coaches necessarily. Let's start. Let's bring on Matt Hasselbeck and talk about that. The rams and the 49ers are over in Australia to start it. And the Niners don't like the fact that the Rams then come back and don't play till the following Monday. The Niners have to play on Sunday. I would imagine, as a player, you're not as enamored playing in Brazil or overseas.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

There's something psychological about this, Colin. This reminds me, and I think all the parents whose kids play club sports can relate to this. You know, my kids played hockey here in Boston, okay? We played for the Boston Junior Eagles, Boston College, and we played the Boston Junior Terriers, bu. And we'd go play a tournament in, like, Toronto, like, for three. For the whole weekend. Like, what are we doing? You know, so you get two California teams going all the way down there, and just psychologically it's like, man, really. So you've heard Kyle Shanahan kind of complain about it and kind of say, hey, we're getting the short end of the stick here. And the league said, no, you're not. No, you're not. And then the schedule came out and they said, yeah, yeah, you did. You got the short end of the stick. Well, but I do think it's fun. I actually do think it's a cool thing. My first ever game in the NFL was in Tokyo. Green Bay packers versus the Kansas City Chiefs. And, you know, there's one major concern, I think, from the player side. You know, you think it might be rest and travel and all that. It's the field surface. Like, if we played in the Tokyo Dome. Quite honestly, it wasn't up to the standard of what an NFL game should have been played on. And I've covered games that were in Mexico City and other places, and the fields, truthfully, weren't up to par. And so that's the part I think that the players need to be loudest about with the league. The league says it's important. I believe them, but they need to make sure that those playing surfaces are right.

[Colin Cowherd]

The. You know, I've said this for years. I do think the NFL is very intentional with their schedule. For instance, Chicago is a huge market. They get big ratings. I look at their schedule and everybody said it's the toughest in the league, but they don't play a single team off a bye. Starts pretty early, and toughest games are late, middle of the season. They get a buy, and then they get a dome and a warm weather team in Chicago. I think the league want they. Chicago's been dormant forever, and I think they can feel it. And I think Caleb Williams is a complete rock star. On stage. And I looked at this schedule. I mean, look at it. You get a couple of. It's almost like you get, you know, before the big Eagle game, it's couple of games you'll be favored in. And then the middle of the season, that feels like the league is doing them kind of a solid. Despite the fact they know they've got to play the Lions and the. And the packers and the Bills. That's a workable schedule to me. Do you. Do players think they're. The league does know what they're doing with schedules.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Yeah. And listen. No doubt. And when a player gets the schedule, when the player sees the schedule. I mean, I kind of got down a rabbit's hole watching all the schedule releases that the social media teams put out. They're actually fascinating. If you want to waste like two and a half hours of your life, go watch them all. You can find them on a. Some of them are awesome. Really good. Some of them, you know, not so much. Usually the teams that have the best ones usually don't do as well on the football field. So, you know, it doesn't go hand in hand, but it is entertaining. I'll say this, though. As a player, what you care about is who's my week one opponent, who's my week 18 opponent, when are my bye weeks? And. And I think, like you mentioned it there, it's not so much strength of schedule. It's the teams that I'm playing. Are they coming off a bye week? Do they have two weeks to prepare for us?

[Colin Cowherd]

Right.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Like that to me, like, especially in this day and age of analytics and all that kind of stuff, do they have two weeks to invent all the craziness on third down and red zone and blitzes for. Especially for a young quarterback. And you know, what I hear you saying is the Bears don't have that. Yeah, I'll take that all day, you know, all day long. You know, the other thing that does come up in this. In this division is when you're playing like you're the Chicago Bears, you're the Green Bay Packers. You're one of those teams, you want to play some of your toughest opponents at your place late in the year.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yes.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Make them come up and play in the elements. Yep. And. And so I think that's a real thing. I felt that when I was with the Packers. 100%. Tampa was really good at the time. We wanted Warren Sapp and company to have to come play in Green Bay late, late in the year.

[Colin Cowherd]

So it's interesting I looked at the Niner schedule, and this is an old team that brought in Mike Evans, Dre Greenlaw, Christian Kirk. Older players who have been banged up before. It's the reality. And I looked at the Niner schedule, and we'll put it on here. I said, man, when players get older, they get hurt more and they more slowly heal. And if you look at the Niner schedule starting in, like, week 12, it's pretty rough. I mean, it's. It's Seahawks and Rams and Chargers and Eagles, and some of these teams are physical, physical teams. And I thought for an old Niner team, that is a rough, rough way to end a season. Do you buy that?

[Matt Hasselbeck]

I do, but I also would just. Just, I would think I would add. Played for a lot of different head coaches. I played for four different teams. And it's not just the games that take the toll on your body. It's how you choose to practice. And I remember, you know, with Mike Holmgren, compared to, like, the other coaches that I had, and this is now. Now it's kind of mandated. You can have 14 padded. I think it's like 14 padded practices during the season. Everything else has to be like shells and essentially not full pads. But Mike Holmgren, the way that those teams practiced, we knew how to practice fast and still protect each other. You know, guys weren't on the ground, you weren't pulling on jerseys. It wasn't any of that stuff. So I do think there's some of these teams that get banged up more than other teams. The Detroit Lions, maybe it's the 49ers. Like some of these teams. I just wonder what their practices are like. I know you want to be the more physical team. I know you want to be the hammer, not the nail. But maybe you need to look at how you practice and so that you have this mindset where we're going to be feeling our best and playing our best late in the season, not ending the year with a record number of guys on ir because that's what happens sometimes when you push too hard during the season.

[Colin Cowherd]

So I want to throw the Raiders schedule up, and this, to me, matters. There's a question. Do you start Fernando Mendoza. So I look at this schedule, and this is the best game for a rookie to start. You don't want to start rookies if they didn't play much in college, like 20 starts. He's got almost 40. So you play a Miami team, new quarterback, new staff, traveling across the country, probably going to start seven to eight of their rookies. In the draft they've got, outside of quarterback and running back, they are bereft of talent. And I look at that and go, I think I'd like Fernando Mendoza. That that's a pretty, a pretty fate. I mean, they don't have a big pass rush. You're not going to get into a track meet with Miami's offense. I look at that and I think, oh, I thought I was a coach. I'd like Fernando. They got Tyler Linderbaum now at center, Colton Miller left tackle. He's going to be protected. Would that make you want to play Mendoza?

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Yeah, it would make me want to play Mendoza. But I believe that the Raiders are an organization of conviction. I was there Monday of this week, spent time there in that building, they're trying to build something major. They're trying to get back on top. You walk into that facility, you see those three Lombardi's, they stare at you in the face. They're not trying to be a three win team. They're not trying to be a mediocre team. I believe Kirk Cousins is going to be their starting quarterback this year until he can't be. I believe that they're trying to build something with a foundation and really invest in Fernando Mendoza. I think Clint Kubiak believes that. I know he believes that. I think when you think about Tom Brady and all the things that he's ever said about, about how much it helped him to sit back and watch Drew Bledsoe be the quarterback and then when it was time for him to come in and relieve the injured Drew Bledsoe, he took the job. Fan favorite, never looked back. I believe that's kind of what they would love to do. Let Kirk Cousins go out there and be the guy and let Fernando earn it. And I do believe he will earn it. But this is a team in a tough division and I think they've got a lot of room to go in terms of being ready for to hand the keys of the car over to Fernando. That's my opinion on this one.

[Colin Cowherd]

So I'm going to show you the Thanksgiving slate. Would you rather play the day before Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving, Black Friday, after Thanksgiving, as a family guy? And let's be honest, a lot of the best teams in the NFL, you got some 28, 29, 30 year old guys. Of those three days, what would you prefer and why?

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Not even a question. Thanksgiving Eve? For a couple of reasons. Number one, there's usually a weigh in before the games. Okay, so you always want to weigh in before Thanksgiving, no doubt about that. But, but for me as a quarterback, I know it's probably different for linemen. They want the more rest and all that stuff. I love a short week as a quarterback because I know that the defensive coordinator that I'm going up against doesn't have enough time to put in new blitzes and new coverages that we haven't seen on film. He doesn't have the time to do it. I mean, I remember was with the Tennessee Titans. We played Dick LeBeau and the Pittsburgh Steelers on a Thursday night short week. It was the best I ever felt going into a game against Dick LeBeau. He didn't have the time to put in all the new stuff. So give me that short week for a lot of reasons. I also think it's super fun to be off on Thanksgiving and to get to sit there and watch a ton of football. That's why I'd go with the Wednesday game.

[Colin Cowherd]

The Seahawks are the defending champs. Let's put the Seahawks schedule up. I, it didn't jump out to me is. And there was nothing about the Seahawks schedule that I thought was overbearing. I, I looked at it and I thought, first of all, you're going to be favored. You get, you get New England at home, then a couple of games you'll be favored in. I, I thought this was a pretty soft landing for a Super bowl champ.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Well, you know, I don't know, Colin. I think look at the end of that schedule, you're going to play a Rams Friday, Christmas game. Friday, Christmas game, the Rams. And then you play them again. Week 18. Your whole season's coming down to those last three weeks and probably that, those, those last two games against the Rams right there. And you know, oh, by the way, you get the Eagles right before that. So you go Eagles, short week, Rams. Like, you know, I don't know. I think that's going to be similar to what it was this year. You know, the season was going on, the Niners were decent, the Rams were great, the Seahawks were right it. And we all knew it was going to come down to that Week 18 matchup. I think it was a rematch with the Niners and the Rams before that. So it's. I think that's what it's going to be and everyone knows it. And it almost feels like the NBA. You got to just get through the entire season and just know at the end of the year, these are the games that are going to matter. And then, and then what happens also is, and I've had this happen to me when I was Playing quarterback. When I was the quarterback of the Seahawks, we played the Rams three times in a row and they were the greatest, the greatest show on turf. It felt like we played him regular season, end of the season and then bam, wild card game and we had won the division and lost to him as a wild card team. I mean that's, that's how close these two teams are. And they know each other so well.

[Colin Cowherd]

Denver's got the worst, toughest first six games in the history of the league. Bo Nicks off an injury. I don't even know. I said I felt like they were trying to punish Sean Payton for being outspoken and take it taking shots at Russell Wilson. And the NFL does not like friendly fire at all. They don't like Shanahan talking about we'll probably get punished when we get back from Australia. Look at the first six games for Denver. That is almost intentional. Really. You couldn't sneak a Raider game in there.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

Yeah. And you know, they get the short week Seattle game, which a lot of people thought should have been the super bowl matchup had Bo Nix gotten hurt. That's a big game. Also like what I talked about earlier, I think you always like as a team, if you have a huge opponent, you like having your buy the week before you play that huge opponent. Yeah, not a three win Raiders team that probably, you know, they probably love to have that, that buy before. Maybe a bigger game, maybe a bigger rivalry game for them, matchup wise, a team that's maybe a Super bowl contender. But I can't, I can't speak to the conspiracy theory that you have there with Sean Payton. I'm sure he's got an opinion about that. But, but I don't. That's, that's, that's a good one though. I don't know, maybe.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah. All right. My man, Matt Hasselbeck. Great seeing you. All right.

[Matt Hasselbeck]

See Colin.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, I mean, I just, I got, you know, I go over the schedules last night and I try to just be, just go in, canvas, nothing on it. I'm like, okay, Denver, six weeks. What. What is that? You couldn't sneak a go look at their schedule. There's some, there's some games that they would overwhelm young quarterbacks. You couldn't sneak one in there. That, that is, you know, I'm just saying everybody in this country's got conspiracy theories. Political UAPs. I don't have any of them. I don't have conspiracy theories. But NFL schedule. I don't know. Like, look at the Bears schedule. Look at Green Bay schedule. They want them to be around. They want them. They gave them really soft landings. Why did Denver get such a brutal kicking the groin to start the season? That's weird to me.

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[Colin Cowherd]

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[Matt Hasselbeck]

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