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- [00:00]
Colin Cowherd
You're listening to an iHeart podcast. T Mobile's stats are as impressive as your favorite athlete's highlight reel because T Mobile helps keep you connected from the heart of Portland to right where you are on America's largest 5G network. Switch now keep your phone and T Mobile will pay it off at the $800 per line via prepaid card. Visit your local T Mobile location or learn more@t mobile.com KeepAndSwitch up to 4 lines of your virtual prepaid card. Allow 15 days qualifying unlock device, credit service port in 90 plus days device and eligible carrier and timely redemption. Required card has no cash access and expires in six months. Look around. Every car you see is probably on Autotrader. Like that sleek convertible that turned heads when it picked you up from the airport, or the custom ride from your favorite van. Life couple on social media. Even that vintage sports car that's tailing you a little too closely. New cars, used cars, electric cars, even flying cars. Okay, no flying cars yet, but as soon as those get invented, they'll be on Autotrader. If you see a car you like, it's probably on Auto Trader. That's kind of their thing. AutoTrader Banking with Capital One helps you keep more money in your wallet with no fees or minimums on checking accounts and no overdraft fees. Just ask the Capital One Bank Guy. It's pretty much all he talks about in a good way. He'd also tell you that this podcast is his favorite podcast too. Oh really? Thanks Capital One Bank Guy. What's in your wallet? Terms apply. See CapitalOne.com Bank Capital One NA Member FDIC I'm Colin Coward from the Herd. Are you a small business owner launching a company or dreaming of starting one? Then check out season three Mind the Business small business success stories from iHeart's Ruby Studio and Inuit QuickBooks hosts Austin Henkewicz and Jenice Torres as they talk to small business owners about how they've grown and maintained their businesses. You don't want to miss these inspiring stories of small business journeys. Listen to Mind the Business small business success Stories on the iHeart app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Thanks for listening to the Herd Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports radio at noon to 3 Eastern, 9am to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd@foxsportsradio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Thanks for listening to the Herd Podcast. It is a Monday. Live in Los Angeles. It's the Herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, thanks for making us part of your day. Nice to be in today. J. Mac. The NBA ping pong ball draft lottery tonight. Very exciting. Very exciting. The weather was so amazing out here all weekend. I forgot to ask, you get any sun? Little sun. Sun's out. Guns out for you. I worked out, had a great time. Sad. Watched a lot of NBA stuff, a lot of bad NBA basketball yesterday. Went and had a beer with a buddy. That Celtics Knicks game Saturday was unwatchable. Kind of watchable. Be honest with you. Why? Because I had. You know, I think Boston's gonna win the series. Well, not as the Knicks win tonight. If the Knicks win tonight, I think they got a great chance to win the series. Well, if the Knicks win tonight, they're going to win the series. By the way, Celtics have led every game by 26 of the seven games. This. That's not great. It's their formula. All right, it's a Monday, right? Wrong. As always, plenty of both. Here we go. Where Colin was right. Giannis, according to Shams, is going to explore the best fits outside of Milwaukee. We've been saying this for the last year to year and a half. You got a trophy. You don't control your first picks. You're not close to being in Indiana, a Cleveland, a Boston, an okc. And you're not close to being a San Antonio and Houston potentially. After the draft lottery tonight, it's time to reboot and according to Shams, that's what Milwaukee and Giannis plan to do.
- [04:01]
J. Mac
Where Colin was wrong.
- [04:03]
Colin Cowherd
If you'd have told me the Knicks would beat Boston both times in Boston, I'd have said you're crazy. If it had told me Boston would lead by 20 in both games or more and still lose, I'd have say impossible. But the impossible happened. Hard to explain. What I watched in Boston is the knicks currently lead 2 to 1 again, very clearly. One roster has eight guys who can shoot, pass and handle the ball. New York is not that roster. But if they win tonight, Boston's in big trouble. Where Colin was right. I said teams didn't want to draft Shador Sanders once he got out of the first round because they didn't want a Tim Tebow circus. And sure enough, even though he was the second quarterback taken by the Cleveland Browns, what were the questions about from the Cleveland media at camp? This will probably fall on deaf ears.
- [04:58]
Mike Krzyzewski
But don't look too much into it.
- [04:59]
Colin Cowherd
There's plenty of reps. There's a lot of time between now and September so we'll have a plan. But it's it's an all encompassing evaluation.
- [05:08]
Mike Krzyzewski
It's not something that it's just based.
- [05:10]
Colin Cowherd
On the the practice reps. There's a lot that goes into it. First questions why is Shedeur not getting the starting reps? You knew it was coming. It's Tebow 2.0 where Colin was wrong. Derek Carr retired. I listen. I always liked him a four time all probably during the bad Al Pro Bowler during the Al Davis cruddy years which is hard to do. He was a life preserver for a terribly run franchise. Third season in the league. He was third in the MVP vote second round right of Fresno State. I liked him a lot, but there's not much you can do. The Raiders were a mess when he was there and then Dennis Allen is not a head coach. He's more of a coordinator. I thought he was going to have a Philip Rivers career where you didn't maybe watch a ton of them in college, but you were going to look at the end of his career and there'd be some hall of Fame votes and he retired yesterday and it never transpired where Colin was right. Well, the Athletic is reporting that NFL teams laughed at the Cowboys for giving up a third round pick for George Pickens, the very talented but incredibly volatile wide receiver. And as we said, when Mike Tomlin moves off a drama filled offensive playmaker, they do not recover. I can give you about seven examples. This is also Jerry Jones. Once again as the NFL front offices have gotten younger and shrewder, the Cowboys are giving away draft picks like Skittles. The Cowboys to me have one of the weaker rosters overall in the league.
- [06:46]
J. Mac
Where Colin was wrong.
- [06:48]
Colin Cowherd
Julius Randle. Where did this come from? I always kind of liked him, but his assist totals have gone through the roof. He has led Julius Randle has led the T Wolves in assists and by the way with New York they wanted him to be a one pre Jalen Brunson and that's not what he is. But I never saw him as a 2. I saw him as a 3. He was great against the Lakers. He's been excellent in this series. He had a triple double Saturday and we just got to be honest here. Is it late developing? No, it's probably this staff Chris Finch has assembled knows how to use him. I don't think he's a better player. I think he is used more efficiently in Minnesota and good for Julius Randle.
- [07:30]
J. Mac
Where Colin was right.
- [07:32]
Colin Cowherd
I did not buy the odds makers who had OKC at minus 800 to bury the Nuggets. I said this is gonna be a six or seven game series. Jokic is the best player in the world and even though I love OKC's roster construct and depth, I would take the Nugget starting five if he gave me a quarter to play for the championship again. OKC is built to win the entire thing and maybe Denver with no bench isn't, but it was disrespectful the odds had this thing being a four or five game series and I'm sorry. Denver's got three great playoff veterans who have been in a lot of these close big games where Colin was right. Well, The Steelers enter 2025 as the only team in the league without their top quarterback, running back, wide receiver and left tackle from last year. I have said this for years, they don't take offense seriously. Once again, third year in a row, they are among the league leaders in defensive spending. I'll get to this later, but they become opposite of the Rams with an offensive coach and offensive spending and no drama. But it is remarkable there's only one team in this league. Quarterback, running back, wide receiver, left tackle. Gone, gone, gone, gone in an offensive league. I like Mike Tomlin, respect the Rooneys, but they just feel out of Touch for 2025 NFL Football. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio FS1 and the iHeartRadio app Summer is almost here and you can now get almost anything you need for your sunny days delivered with Uber Eats. Now what do we mean by almost? Well, you can't get a well groomed lawn delivered, but you can get chicken parm delivered. A day at the lake? That's a no. A Philly cheesesteak? That's a yes. A nice tan? Sorry. A box fan? Happily, yes. What about a day of sunshine? Not happening. How about a box of fine wines? Yeah, that's happening. Delivery's on its way. Okay, how about some clear skies? Nope. Well, how about some french fries? Yeah. So how about a freshly cut lawn? Can't help you there. But a barbecued prawn? Order it and it's on its way. Even throw in some paper towels. Clean up after the feast. So while you can't get fun in the sun, deliver. Don't worry because you can get pork buns delivered. Uber Eats can definitely get you that. Get almost almost anything delivered with Uber Eats. Order now. Alcohol in select markets. Product Availability may vary by region. See app for details. At the end of the season, there's only one team that can call themselves NBA champs. Only one player that can call themselves the number one pick in the NFL draft. Well, there's only one electric SUV worthy of the title. The ultimate the all electric BMW ix. What I love about the IX is that it delivers legendary BMW performance while its sleek design exudes innovative style from the inside out, not to mention how much space and utility it provides. 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The Gemini Credit Card is issued by Web bank in order to qualify for the intro $200 crypto bonus, your application must be approved by June 30, 2025 and spend $3,000 in your first 90 days. Terms apply. Some exclusions apply to instant rewards, in which rewards are deposited when the transaction posts this content is not investment advice and Trading Crypto involves risk. For more details on rates, fees and other Gemini Credit Card terms, see Rates and Fees. If you own a home, here's an interesting fact for you. Today. American homeowners are sitting on a record amount of home equity. That's the part of your home you own outright, the value you can tap to fund other life goals. In fact, the average Rocket Mortgage homeowner has about $170,000 in untapped equity available now. Rocket Mortgage can help you understand what home equity is and how to use it wisely for what matters to you. They've made it easier than ever to turn your home equity into cash with Rocket Mortgage. So now the home you work so hard for can work hard for you in plenty of different ways home equity can help you fund a home renovation, pay for your kid's college tuition, or pay off and consolidate high interest debt from credit cards. To learn more, call 804Rocket or visit Rocket.com today. Rocket Mortgage LLC, licensed in 50 states. Nmlsconsumeraccess.org Number 30 30. $178,000. Average equity is based on internal rocket mortgage servicing data. Well, there's no basketball coach ever. Yeah, I'm reading the accolades. The most wins by any head basketball coach in men's basketball history. That's pretty good. That seems like that'd be. That'd be near the top of my resume. Five natties, 42 years at Duke, the gold standard program, 24, 0 as an Olympic coach and now a public speaker with grandkids in the area. What a life for Mike krzyzewski, who's now joining us live. You know, you told me years ago you said, colin, I start recruiting guys six to seven years before you. You see me sign them. So let's talk Cooper flag. Basketball is a very unique sport where you can see it 10, 11, 12, 13. You can see special. Do you remember the first time you saw Cooper flag?
- [13:54]
Mike Krzyzewski
You know, I do not because I'm three years retired. So Shire must have seen him when he was 14, but I did see him when he was at Mount Verde. Like they have actually, they have four from his high school team. They have four kids are going to be first round draft picks. And I knew he was special, but because they had so much talent, I didn't realize how special he is. And this kid plays every play hard. Yes, every play. Every play.
- [14:35]
Colin Cowherd
People have compared him, I think almost favorably to Jayson Tatum. When I watch him, he feels a little more aggressive than Jason and he's an aggressive attacking player. Do you think that comp is fair and realistic?
- [14:51]
Mike Krzyzewski
I don't. I think they're two different players. They're both six, eight. Actually. I think Cooper grew about an inch here. You know, he's still only 18 years old, so he's still growing. He might end up being 6, 10. But I think offensively, you know, Jason really has developed into a great shooter. We're waiting to find out about his injury, but he's really developed differently than I think Cooper will develop. Cooper is just unique, you know, like he, he's, he's so strong. His legs are so strong and athletically he's gifted. But attitudinally he. When you add his athletic ability and his competitive attitude, you have a very special guy and he can really score the ball. I think he's a good shooter, trying to become a really good shooter. Whereas Jason, Jason is that shooter.
- [16:07]
Colin Cowherd
I read Ian o' Connor's book about you, which I thought was fascinating on so many levels and it's so funny. John Wooden and you, you know, you're obviously the all time greats, but John Wooden, it took a long time for him to win at ucla. And as Ian o' Connor pointed out, there was a meeting or two about Mike Krzyzewski and about your fourth year and people are like, we don't know if this kid from army is going to work. You endured for a lot of reasons. You're smart, you're collaborative, you are a grinder. There's a lot of reasons. But when I look at college basketball today, do you like the place we're in? Tom Izzo's a survivor, but a lot of the big ones have left. Sometimes college football, I think is too impatient. Do you think college basketball is good to coaches? Because the NBA, I could argue, is not a great place to coach. Is college basketball today?
- [17:04]
Mike Krzyzewski
Actually, I think the NBA is a better place to coach. I think college basketball now is pretty much like the NBA, except there's no transparency. In other words, you're at one school, I'm at another. I don't know what you're doing for a player. You don't know what I'm doing for a player. And it's really professional right now. Or college basketball. But the product is outstanding and kids are staying longer because of nil. Yeah, you're getting older teams, the influx of international, young, international pro players to college there you can win quicker in college now. And there's like John Shire has done a great job here at Duke replacing me. And I've told him, I said, I think you've done a better job than I would have done in the last three years with all the changes. Because I would have always been saying stuff. Well, it used to be this way, it used to be that way. And for you, you're just starting out. It wasn't used to be. It is. And right now I just think people should put their arms around college sports, especially college basketball, in my opinion, and run it like a business. Because it is a business and the product is great, though there's so much talent out there.
- [18:41]
Colin Cowherd
You know, there's an argument people have made. I don't know if I concur with it, but it's an interesting argument that J.J. redick is smart, he's very Tightly wound that in the NBA and big games, he kind of. He's a teeth clencher a little bit. He's very, very intense. And in the NBA as a coach, he was very intense. And people say, boy, it's not about that. It's. It's more Steve Kerr. You got to be part psychologist, part schematic guy that maybe JJ is. Is just too intense. It. It. When you watch. I mean, I. And listen, that's a good quality to have. What do you make of it? I mean, you were intense. I watched you write officials for several years.
- [19:20]
Mike Krzyzewski
Still intense.
- [19:23]
Colin Cowherd
Is. Is. What do you make of those discussions about JJ that maybe he's wound a little tight?
- [19:30]
Mike Krzyzewski
No, you know, he. He wants to win and his preparation to win is outstanding. You know, there's a learning curve in every profession. I thought he had a great, great season and his players. He won over his players. His players know how hard he works and yeah, he was a terrific player. He, you know, I, I think he's. He's learned a lot from this year. You know, he'll critique himself and have, you know, he has a veteran staff where those guys will take a look at what they did and how they were doing it and make adjustments going into next year. But he had a great. He had a great first year. And they played a team in the first round that was deeper and more athletic.
- [20:25]
Colin Cowherd
Yes.
- [20:27]
Mike Krzyzewski
And the NBA has gotten more physical, which I think is good, but it's really physical in the playoffs. And that lent itself to. Given the Timberwolves a little bit more of an advantage. And they're a good team. You know, they. They're really good team.
- [20:47]
Colin Cowherd
You, Steve Kerr, Mark Few, Bayheim, you guys all have done a very good job coaching professional players as college coaches. Obviously Kerr played at Arizona, but he's a pro coach and is there coaching. Is coaching at Duke because you have so many pro players is a little NBA ish.
- [21:11]
Mike Krzyzewski
Yeah, it is.
- [21:12]
Colin Cowherd
It is, it is. Do you think. Did you ever take anything from the pros and bring it back to Duke to help you?
- [21:20]
Mike Krzyzewski
Oh, yeah. You know, I coached US team for 11 years in three Olympics and two World Championships. And I brought back a lot, you know, you know, sports science, you know, how guys prepared.
- [21:36]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
- [21:36]
Mike Krzyzewski
Language. Not cussing in that, but different. Although probably picked up a few words there too. No, just how their defensive coverages, you know, but they're, you know, one of the main things is how hard they prepared and the excellent shape they kept themselves in. And I brought that back where we really increased our Sports, medicine, science, and, and, but it also helped me X and O wise. You know, I, I had Jim Boeheim was with me all 11 years, but I had Monty Williams and Thibodeau, you know, these guys who are, you know, terrific pro coaches and, and I learned a lot from them, but I learned from the players because they're really, you know, these are great players. Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, all these guys, they, they really understand the game. People don't realize how smart they are and how much preparation that they give. So those were 11amazing years for, for me and I was very lucky to have that opportunity.
- [22:59]
Colin Cowherd
You know, Christian Laettner was so dominant when he played and he was part of that Kentucky win. You, I, you just. Years and years ago, maybe it was. Jay Bilis was sharing a story about the first time you had seen LeBron and he took two steps at half court and dunked it. And you turned to Billis. What in the world am I watching? Go back to your college career. I'm going to test your memory. Was there a moment when you obviously coached your team hard, but you allowed players to go off script, a Grant Hill players? Was there ever a moment in college you went back and you turned to an assistant and you're like, this player is better than I thought he would be. This, like you were actually as a coach, you turn on assistant and said, I never imagined he would be this good, this, this player.
- [23:46]
Mike Krzyzewski
Yeah, no. A number of times I can remember when we had Bobby Hurley and Bobby was as good a point guard that ever played in college. And one practice he's playing defense, and I looked to Tommy Amaker, who was one of my assistants then, and I said, I've never seen anybody play that hard. And then at times with Grand Hill, you know, if Grant Hill had not been injured five years into his pro career, he would have ended up being one of the top 10 players of all time. But he was very humble. And there are times at timeouts I would say, you know, every four minutes, I'd say, okay, every time you touch the ball, I don't want you to pass it. I just want you to do whatever you want with it. He said, what do you mean? I said, no, just do something where someone says, you know, how did Coach K teach you how to do that? No, I'm not lying. I mean, this is true. And because there are players, there's certain players that you, you have to be careful not to over coach. You have to give them the room to become what their talent can, can show and you know, Zion was, was that, you know, really, even though he, he's an outstanding athlete, but he wasn't that like those two guys, Zion and Grant Battier was like that. He was very humble too.
- [25:28]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
- [25:29]
Mike Krzyzewski
And let's say, Come on, man, you know, let it out. You know, let it out. Like we were talking about JJ earlier. JJ did Colin, he did some stuff that I, I could not imagine. You know, in hostel arenas, you know, guys were pulling on his shirt, he was trying to run them into the ground and he enjoyed putting up 40 on the road. Or 38 or 36. He was so damn cocky and good. No, he, he really was. I, I loved my plays. Worked better with my change, I'll tell you that.
- [26:15]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah, that's what Nick Saban says. Yeah, it always plays better when I get a great pass rush from a five star guy. Yes. Finally, I, There's a lot of reasons I like Nil. One of the reasons I like it is because I like kids having a little money and before they have a lot of money because a lot of athletes don't have it. So I like a guy having a couple hundred thousand and maybe blowing it on a, you know, close and before he gets 20 million. And I do think it's instructive that before you get, you know, it used to be no money, college, you make a fortune. And I think that's tough on anybody. Regardless of your background, have you found? There are some things with Nil that I think it's keeping more kids in college. I like college basketball. Over G League. I like that. But are there things about Nil beyond just a kid making money that you think are instructive or you like about it?
- [27:12]
Mike Krzyzewski
Well, it is what it is. And so we should put our arms around it and figure out how to make it the very, very best. I will say that one of the things you just mentioned, it's not right with all these kids where you make a lot of money now and then you're going to make a lot of money later. Most of the kids, remember there's, there's not as many are going to make it into the mba, are going to be making more money in college than they will after college.
- [27:45]
Colin Cowherd
Wow.
- [27:46]
Mike Krzyzewski
And that's the thing, I mean, their kids make. There are a lot of kids making seven figures now. Not all, if you counted all those kids up around the country making a half a million to 3 or 4 million depending on the school. And there are a lot of kids and they're, you know, what's the lottery got 14 guys there. The first round has 30 picks.
- [28:14]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
- [28:14]
Mike Krzyzewski
And so they're going to be guys who. There are kids now. There are kids that have not been invited to the combine who were making seven figures last year in college.
- [28:29]
Colin Cowherd
Wow.
- [28:29]
Mike Krzyzewski
You know, so you're going to have to deal with that. However, if they're smart, they have a right to make that money just so they use it wisely and they're able to transition to the next phase of their playing career. You know, the guys who are lottery picks that they don't. That's the normal thing. Yeah, that's the normal thing. But it's all changed, Colin. It's changed. And it doesn't mean that it's bad. It just means that we have to get better control over it and make sure. Make sure that these kids are well taken care of. You know, right now, if you're a college coach at a high level program, you're dealing more with agents than you are with coaches and that's why you have general managers. And it's run like a professional team, except there are no contracts, which that might change depending on where the hell this all is going. But it's just in a state of flux right now. But God bless, the kids should make as much as they can. They should transfer just like any other student whenever they want. But that's going to run out. And hopefully when it runs out in college, they're able to go to a level of playing basketball that is really good for them.
- [29:59]
Colin Cowherd
Coach K, 42 years Ambassador now in the speaking circuit. Love to hear some of his stories. Nobody's ever won more basketball games in men's basketball and that is saying something. There's been unbelievable coaches. You can turn the TV on every night. It can be Rick Carlisle or Chris Finch. There are great coaches everywhere. My buddy, Tom Izzo, basketball's got great coaches everywhere. And you're at the very top of that coach. And I appreciate you stopping by.
- [30:25]
Mike Krzyzewski
Yeah, no, I've always enjoyed being on and thanks for not. Yeah. Now forgetting me, you know, like, it's just that that was. You know, I don't even know why I said that. I shouldn't have said that.
- [30:42]
Colin Cowherd
I liked it.
- [30:43]
Mike Krzyzewski
Erase that. Erase that. You're. You're capable of doing anything. Erase that.
- [30:48]
Colin Cowherd
It'll just go right into the ether. Nobody heard but you and me. That's it. That's the only people that heard it.
- [30:54]
Mike Krzyzewski
All right.
- [30:54]
Colin Cowherd
All right, Good. See?
- [30:55]
Mike Krzyzewski
Thanks for having me on.
- [30:56]
Colin Cowherd
You bet. The great Mike Krzyzewski. Yeah, it's I mean, like, I, I think what it took Mike a couple years to embrace one and done. But I think with Nil, you can complain about stuff like Rick Carla or Rick Patino said, you can complain about stuff or you can embrace it and try to figure it out. It's like anything. I mean, I almost look at Nil as a new tax code. All right. Got a new tax code. An accountant's job is to figure out how to use it best for his clients. I mean, in the end, you can, you know, I don't like what it is it. By the way, every year the wild, wild west will get a little less wild and everybody will get their arms around it and we're going to be okay. Nick wright, Coach K. Good guest today as I get ready to get on a plane with a few others and head to a beautiful city. Some of us are staying behind. Others are taking the big swing. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app. Hey, Steve Covino. And I'm Rich Davis and together we're Covino and Rich on Fox Sports Radio. You can catch us weekdays from 5 to 7pm Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific, on Fox Sports Radio. And of course, the iHeartRadio app. Why should you listen to Covino and Rich? We talk about, about everything, life, sports, relationships, what's going on in the world. We have a lot of fun talking about the stories behind the stories in the world of sports and pop culture. Stories that, well, other shows don't seem to have the time to discuss. And the fact that we've been friends for the last 20 years and still work together, I mean, that says something, right? So check us out. We like to get you involved, too. Take your phone calls, chop it up, as they say. I'd say the most interactive show on Fox Sports Radio, maybe the most interactive show on planet Earth. Be sure to check out Covino and Rich live on Fox Sports radio and the iHeartradio app from 5 to 7pm Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific. And if you miss any of the live show, just search Covino and Rich wherever you get your podcast. And of course on social media, that's Covino and Rich. Summer is almost here and you can now get almost anything you need for your sunny days delivered with Uber Eats. Now, what do we mean by almost? Well, you can't get a well groomed lawn delivered, but you can get chicken parm delivered a day at the lake. That's a no. A Philly cheesesteak? That's a yes. A nice tan. Sorry. A box fan? Happily, yes. What about a day of sunshine? Not happening. How about a box of fine wines? Yeah, that's happening. Delivery's on its way. Okay. How about some clear skies? Nope. Well, how about some French fries? Yeah. So how about a freshly cut lawn? Can't help you there. But a barbecued prawn? Order it and it's on its way. Even throw in some paper towels. Clean up after the feast. So while you can't get fun in the sun delivered. Don't worry because you can get pork buns delivered. Uber Eats can definitely get you that. Get almost almost anything delivered with Uber Eats. Order now. Alcohol in select markets. Product availability may vary by region. See app for details. At the end of the season, there's only one team that can call themselves NBA champs. Only one player that can call themselves the number one pick in the NFL draft. Well, there's only one electric SUV worthy of the title. The ultimate. The all electric BMW ix. What I love about the IX is that it delivers legendary BMW performance while its sleek design exudes innovative style from the inside out, not to mention how much space and utility it provides. Over 75 cubic feet of cargo space. The IX is completely changing the game with an all electric suv. The greatest legends of sports never compromise any part of the game. So why would you settle for anything less from your suv? 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It's like I'm watching these playoffs. You know who's not involved? LeBron. And I'm glued to the TV set like the NBA needs to next Christmas. I don't need LeBron anymore. And I thought, I thought I'd start the show with that. I think the NFL. And because it's so powerful, the media hates power being concentrated in one business or a few hands. So the media has always been tougher on the NFL and more congratulatory and softer on the NBA or baseball. They're tough on the NFL. Roger Goodell, Roger Goodell is really smart. It's a really well run league. I thought they made a rare scheduling mistake. Cowboys are in the opener at Philly, a game they never win. In fact, if you go look at those games, The Cowboys are 1 and 45 in their last six against Philadelphia. And this is the best Eagles roster in a long time. And it's the worst Cowboys roster in a long time. I don't need to see that game. That feels like November. I do not need to open the NFL. Now there are games you could open with. Then they have the Cowboys against Kansas City on Thanksgiving. I don't need to see that either. Andy Reed and Mahomes against Dak off a second surgery. And Brian Schottenheimer doesn't scream fascinating. Listen, there are traditions like Thanksgiving I'm not going to bail on. And then there are traditions. The Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving we can bail on no more LeBron on Christmas. Frankly, I'd rather watch Tyrese Halliburton OKC Ant. I sorry, I would. The Knicks, Boston, if Tatum comes back, I'd rather watch those teams. I really would. So it's a quarterback league. We all know Buffalo, Cincinnati, Kansas City. You know, the Bills are just more interesting to watch. And not only do the Cowboys have a second tier head coach, maybe third tier. Dak's off a second surgery. And so Dak has become much less dynamic as an athlete. He's a little bit like Aaron Rodgers. Now you know the name, the paycheck is more fascinating than the player. Dax, kind of boring. Great guy, great leader. Dak's kind of boring. The Cowboys are kind of boring. And I was looking at the numbers last year, and I've been saying this now for two years. Kansas City is America's team. Everywhere I go, I see chief stuff. So last year, the most watched team in the NFL was Kansas City. The second most watched team in the NFL was Detroit. And then the Cowboys are now tied for third with San Francisco, Buffalo and Baltimore. Those teams this year will surpass the Cowboys because they'll be in more big games. And so the Cowboys will be the fifth most watched NFL team by the end of this year, maybe sixth. And the only thing keeping the Cowboys TV numbers up is networks putting them on and the NFL putting them on more. It's really the NFL. Well, what's the network going to do? You jam them on Thanksgiving, you jam them in the open or there's nothing NBC can do. So I. This is one of these things. The Cowboys were not a top 20 team last year offensively, and they were 30th defensively. And I think the NFL is usually incredibly proactive, but the opener should have been maybe Detroit and Philadelphia, the two best rosters in the nfc. Get Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen somewhere on that. The idea that Dallas has earned that spot. It's Lakers on Christmas. Who cares? At some point you've got to introduce people because I understand those one o' clock games. There's a lot of games on simultaneously in the NFL. You gotta start introducing people. And not only that, but marketing, pushing and promoting Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen every opportunity. By the way, I'm not even mentioning Jaden Daniels, who I'm fascinated to watch much more than Dak. And you know what this felt like by the NFL. Remember when Apple inserted the U2 album on your ipod and you didn't want it and you couldn't get rid of it and there was a backlash. That's what I feel about the Cowboys. They're going to get beat by Philadelphia. They're going to get beat on Thanksgiving. I went and looked at their Thanksgiving numbers. Of the last 12 games that Dallas Cowboys have played on Thanksgiving, five of them have been double digit losses. Okay? That does not scream get this team on television. Same with the Lakers. There's just, there's just better products out there. One more herd. The herd streams 24 hours a day.
- [42:21]
J. Mac
Seven days a week within the iHeartRadio.
- [42:23]
Colin Cowherd
App search heard to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. Here we go. It is a Thursday. Our post NFL schedule release show. The warrior season is now officially done live. It's the Herd. Wherever you may be, however you may be listening, thanks for making us part of your day. Well, you know J. Mac, there are certain things in spite of sports that I get weird over. Years ago people used to think I was a weirdo 20 years ago because I love the draft so much. But everybody's come around on that. The schedule release is another one of those that I do think it does matter. Especially most teams in this league are playing on the margins. They're not Baltimore or Philadelphia where they've got better personnel and star quarterbacks and they're winning by 10 to 12 points. A lot of teams those, you know, Tua playing up north and decades. December is a disadvantage for the Dolphins. You have to look at that right? Huge. Yeah. And I Gotta thank the NFL for giving my jets a 10 start to the season. We get the Steelers at home to open and Mason Rudolph, not Aaron. Well, let's start with this. So my one takeaway, the NFL schedule and it's a fairly obvious one, Kansas City. That is rough. So Kansas City does not have A great O line. And they're going to try to figure it out. And they're using a backup at left tackle that hasn't really started and been the man from the Niners. So. And it's a hard unit to create cohesion. And if you look at their first 10 games, even the teams that we view as weaker teams like the Giants, good pass rush, Jacksonville pass rush, Raiders, Max Crosby. So even, even the W's could create problems for them. Forget Denver, that led the NFL in sacks. You face them. Conversely, the Chargers, Jim Harbaugh, look at his career in year two. Everywhere he goes. Chargers, revamped run game, high end, left and right tackles. Have a cookie dough soft schedule in the middle of the season to gain momentum. So my prediction that the Chargers win this division with a weaker schedule really plays in the middle of the season. You're starting to get dinged up. You're not playing with full rosters. It is really soft for the Chargers. And I, and I again, we've watched, we've watched the Chiefs and Mahomes get blown out in two Super Bowls. It's always been the same reason. O lines not right. Well, I think they're going into a season where the old line's not right. Add another thing. Kansas City opens in Brazil. They have the most seven prime time games. That's what the NFL does once you're the star attraction. They have the Lions on a short week. Oh, that's not good. They have the Buffalo Bills on a short week. Yeah, that's not good either. Remember that Brazil game last year? Philadelphia went to Brazil and beat Green Bay. The Eagles came back groggy and the next week lost to the Atlanta Falcons. So that'll take some, that'll take some air out of the sales. Here's what we know. Andy Reid and Mahomes are as good as anybody in the world at what they do. But again, this team played on the margins last year, okay? And I think with this O line, the, the kryptonite to Kansas City in their two super bowl blowout losses has been the O line. This going into a season they lost. Joe Tuney is their weakest O line. A little bit of finger crossing here. Last year's was okay going into the season. A bit of a mess at the end of the season. So this is not a team like Baltimore, Detroit, Philadelphia with stacked rosters that are not playing on the margins. They're getting seven or eight blowout games a year. When margins shrink, everything counts. This team had the third lowest point differential in the AFC West. So in their own division, Denver and the Chargers had more blowout wins. And I think Denver and the Chargers will be noticeably better. Bo Nicks, now into a second year with Peyton. They had some interesting draft picks at running back and wide receiver. So the downside to becoming America's team is that the NFL, this is what they do. And I can remember after the Giants would win a Super bowl and Coughlin and Eli, and they'd put them on Sunday night and they'd flex them in and everybody loved it except the Giants and the older players. So here is Travis Kelce on his podcast New Heights, talking about that opener in Brazil.
- [46:59]
J. Mac
I'll be there. Not to do a podcast.
- [47:01]
Colin Cowherd
Not to do a podcast.
- [47:02]
J. Mac
Yeah, I'll be there. Pretty busy in the heat. If it's humid, I'm going to be miserable. I'm going to make. I'm going to prepare to be miserable.
- [47:10]
Mike Krzyzewski
You're surrounded by the Amazon rainforest.
- [47:13]
J. Mac
This is a good point. If it's hot and humid and kind of what I'm expecting, I'm going to be miserable. But we're going to find a way to get a win.
- [47:21]
Colin Cowherd
Hip, hip, hooray. So my number one take, Kansas City, going into a season with an offensive line I don't love. I mean, when you start looking last year at the teams at the end of the season that are really formidable and leaning on people, a lot of them, Washington was an exception, had really, really buttoned up O lines. All right, so the warriors lost. The oldest interesting team in the league is out. Minnesota, that's got some age, but much deeper, bigger roster prevails pretty easily. Jimmy Butler only took 11 shots. Some of that is energy. Some of that was coming. I had a lot of energy. Minnesota got great looks. All you had to do was look at the box score and it tells you Golden State was tired. Minnesota shot 63%, dominated in the paint, had almost double the assists. They were moving very well. Julius Randall, 13 of 18. Bully ball. The three best warriors, Butler, Steph and Draymond, all out of their prime. Two 35 year olds and a 37 year old. And they're only getting older. So all it took was a popped hamstring and the house collapses. It's interesting. Jonathan Kaminga, who just doesn't work with Butler and Steph, he's great. He was great when Steph got hurt. So they'll be able to show that off. And though he raised his market value because everybody has sort of understood that the Steph offense, that ecosystem, it's just not friendly to young players. James Wiseman never got it going. Kaminga can't be on the floor with Butler and Steph. It just doesn't work. But he was the one guy last night that jumped off the tv. He was the one guy you looked at and thought, oh, he can go toe to toe with Minnesota's athletic picks, so they'll have a market for him. And Pods is a guy you have to keep. He's got a market as well, but you're going to have to move off at least one of your really good young players. So the warriors to some degree have become an antique store and OKC is the Apple store right next door. And I think the warriors are going to get worse every year unless they pull off a big, big deal for Kaminga. People are going to want Pods and Kaminga, they'll keep Pods. They view him as sort of a staff, an emerging shooter that works with staff. But I will say this. You know what? It really reminds me of watching last night. So, and I, and I. Belichick took the hit for all of the shortcomings for the New England offense right before Tom left. But just consider New England and Belichick and Brady, the Warriors, Stephen, Steve Kerr, they built a very high intellect, sophisticated offense, both Kerr and Curry and Draymond, it's very sophisticated. Young people struggle. And for years, everybody always said, well, why, why can't New England, why can't they draft the wide receiver? Well, some of it was, most of it was Belichick wasn't a good drafter. Some of it was Tom didn't want to babysit him. And so what you have, you have the benefit of the brilliance of Belichick and the brilliance of Steve Kerr. You have the benefit of Brady and Steph. But these are so high functioning, almost academic offenses. They don't play with kids. Well, New England didn't. That's why New England got old and slow really fast. Brady went young down in Tampa. And that's why it looked. When you watch OKC and you watch Indiana and you watch these young teams, Houston, and then you watch Golden State, some of it is on this offense that just doesn't play well with others under the age of 23 years old. That's what New England became. So I just think they're just getting a year older. I think all these Houstons, Indianas, maybe some degree. New York still got some youth. Cleveland, I think those teams are getting better. I think the warriors are getting older, but Steve Kerr is still a believer.
- [51:36]
Mike Krzyzewski
I know we had a shot, I know we could have gone the distance, maybe we wouldn't have, but it doesn't matter. Again, everything in the playoffs is about.
- [51:47]
Colin Cowherd
Who stays healthy and who gets hot.
- [51:50]
Mike Krzyzewski
You know, are you playing well at the right time time?
- [51:52]
Colin Cowherd
Do you have multiple guys step up.
- [51:54]
Mike Krzyzewski
In key games, make shots and do.
- [51:56]
Colin Cowherd
You have good health?
- [51:57]
Mike Krzyzewski
And you know you see it every year in every series. And so there's a, there's, there's a little bit of luck involved, you know and we, like I said, we've been on both sides of that and that's.
- [52:10]
Colin Cowherd
Just part of it. But I will say this and I love Steve Kerr. Older teams get hurt more often and older teams recover more slowly and the warriors are just getting older. There is a little bit of luck involved. But when you got, when you got Steph Curry running 2 miles per game on that treadmill for that offense and he is so valuable without it they're not even the same looking watching team warriors are a hard watch without Steph. So I, I, you could say there's, there's luck involved but remember we all know this. The NBA and its helped ratings is allowing more physical basketball. What does that mean? More injuries? My guess they will come to the older teams, not the younger ones. And I really do believe the NBA used to be go get three great players. The Heels, kd, Steph Clay. I don't think that's it anymore. I think the new CBA and the new aprons, it's all about roster construction. I mean the Celtics are often weirdly as good or better without Tatum. I mean like, like Oklahoma City's roster, I think San Antonio's is going to get very deep. Houston's already is. They just don't have a second dominant great score. So I just, Steve Kerr still believes it. You can talk yourself it's into luck but the new style of playoff basketball is not going to aid, it's not going to aid the older rickety teams. Two 35 year olds and a 37 year old. So J. Mac it is. I got into this discussion last night. LeBron's out of the playoffs. Steph Curry's out of the playoffs. The Celtics brand I think will lose to New York. They'll be out of the playoffs. Do you think Knicks, Pacers? I do, I think it's compelling. Do you think Oklahoma City, Minnesota? Like I think these are really good series but I'm more NBA diehard than the casuals. I, I, this whole thing about the NBA being rigged. You wouldn't have OKC in Minnesota in and Stefan LeBron out. What do you make of what potentially is our final Four? Yeah, the way I look at is I talk to buddies and they're like, hey, hey, let's go out to hang out. And I'm like, well, there's an NBA finals game and LeBron's in it. I'm not missing that. I would be okay missing a conference, semi, conference, finals matchup between ANT and sga. Like, it's not mandatory viewing. I mean, it's a great matchup. No doubt I'm going to watch the games, but if something comes up, you know, you want to go to a Dodgers game? Sure, I'll go to a Dodgers game.
- [54:47]
Mike Krzyzewski
But, Colin, I.
- [54:47]
Colin Cowherd
It's just. It's not the sexy matchups that we want. Right. If Curry's playing, I'm glued to the TV. LeBron, I'm glued. But. But SGA, I'm just not there yet. I'm sorry. I hope that doesn't make me an elitist. Yeah, no, I think. I think this is the transition. I think when Michael Jordan left, the league lost 50% of its numbers. But I do think. I do think there's a little LeBron fatigue where stylistically, Curry is still a great watch, but I do think LeBron is an older player. I'm more fascinated I am with Luca than LeBron because I've seen all LeBron's game, Luca's growth, his cardio, lack of defense, bit controversial, part of a trade. So I don't think you're going to see a massive drop off. I. I just. I don't think the warriors are what Steve Kerr believes, just bad luck away from advancing. I think they're just going to be a year older and I think Oklahoma City, with all this experience, Indiana, they're just going to be better. Don't forget the love, hate the polarization. What if you really love or hate LeBron and that's what he is, you're gonna watch. I just don't feel like anybody hates sga. Nobody hates it. There's no. They haven't done anything to be hateable. LeBron's won a lot, moved around teams. People just dislike him. But I do believe, you know, maybe there's that element with the Knicks, but they still have to pull it out. Colin, are you sure they're a lock to win this series? All the pressure's on them. Yeah, I'm not. Good points. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio. FS1 and the iHeartRadio app. I thought Chicago's O line would get better. Last year, it got worse. He. He completed 62 and a half percent of his throws running for his life. 20 touchdown passes, only six picks. Now, he was sacked 68 times. But the, the numbers aren't, you know, I mean, only six picks, 62 and a half percent completion percentage, running for his life in a division that had Detroit, Green Bay and Minnesota, all really good teams. So I don't think Minnesota is going to be as good this year, and I think Caleb's got a much better quarterback. Also, the story coming out today, Seth Wickersham had talked to Caleb's father, Carl Williams, and reporting that Carl did not want his son initially to play in Chicago. And Albert Brear addressed that an hour ago. His dad's a very smart and accomplished businessman and, you know, taught his son to think differently. And the reality is, like, this is something that all teams were looking into, and anybody that was going to be in a position to draft him was concerned about this. You can understand his concern, certainly. You know, I think this is something that more and more athletes think about. And, you know, it's something we heard about with Shador a lot, you know, going into his draft a lot of times, you know, I think these guys are able to take a bigger picture view of it, and the bigger picture view of it would show that going to the right place isn't more, is absolutely more important than getting drafted as high as you can. Yeah, I think, listen, I never had a problem. I reported this a year ago. I said, you know, his dad had some misgivings about it, but Caleb's like, you know what? I'm going to go to Chicago. It's a great American city, and I'm going to be their first great quarterback. So I always like Caleb. I got along with him great. He's very respectful. I saw. I went to the Notre Dame USC game and I told the story. I saw his dad said hi to his dad, and Caleb was sitting in the front row with friends, and I came down and just out of respect, I just tapped him on the shoulder. I said, hey, buddy, just great seeing you. He got up, made a point, and I'm like, you don't have to get up. I just want to say, hey, keep kicking butt. You're going to do great. And very respectful. Got up, came up the stairs, Caleb did. And I was like, I just think he's a real. I really like him. And I also think it's sometimes it's unfair that, you know, all these quarterbacks now, the nil, they are stars coming out of college. Bill Parcell is a brilliant guy. Used to say, do not draft a celebrity quarterback. Well, Baker Mayfield was a star. Sam Darnold, you know, he was a star. Caleb's a star. I mean, you know, it's just the reality of it. I mean, Bo Nicks at Oregon, I mean, everybody knew Bo Nix for the last five years. I think we, the world's changed. These kids make money in college. Take a deep breath with that. Ben Johnson now is joining us. The new Bears coach is joining us live. So, you know, it's funny, we forget about this coach, is that, that, you know, I was looking and people forget. Tua came out of college, didn't have a great fit with the staff. You know, he and the Brian Flores struggle, got Mike McDaniels Pro Bowl, Jared Goff, got a defensive coach, get a great start. Boom, here comes McVeigh. Pops. So listen, we, we all said last year, I said it's just easier to get an offensive coach. Go ask Bo Nix and Sean Payton. It just helps. Did you feel when you first sat down with Caleb, I got to build this kid's confidence up like a tool, like a golf. It's rough, it's a hard sport. Did you feel that was part of your process? I want to make sure this kid knows we really believe it.
- [59:42]
J. Mac
Yeah, well, he does know that we believe in him. There's no question about that. But Caleb's deal has never been a confidence issue. He knows he's a high level player. He, he's been that way since middle school, high school, college, and it's going to continue to be that way here in the NFL. But what we're trying to do is we're trying to support him, give him some clarity on what our expectations are on and off the field and help him grow and develop. And so far we've only had, call it six weeks now, the all season program, it's going really well.
- [60:14]
Colin Cowherd
So you got two new coordinators, you're on a first time head coach. Caleb's in year two. Who do you lean on in that locker room, Ben? What player or maybe unit? Is it Tuney? Is it Dolman? Who do you lean on in that offense?
- [60:30]
J. Mac
We've got a number of players offensively and defensively that have pro Bowls under their belt, that have playoff game experience, win experience. And so I think when you look at that, those are the guys not just for Caleb, but for the entire team that we're leaning on to show us what good football looks like, what good teams do, and to establish that standard for the rest of us to fall in the line. And so Tunis, a great name on offense. I mean, I don't know that anybody's had quite the level of success on our entire roster that he's had. Call it six Super Bowls and he's won four of them. I mean, it's outstanding. And then you go over to the phase two drill, work out on the field, and he's busting his rear end. And he just had a Super bowl that he was in a few weeks ago. So, I mean, it's pretty outstanding. And it doesn't take long for somebody that first time. These rookies coming in, they turn and they see how he goes about his business, and pretty quick they understand, well, if I want to last a long time, I need to just do what he does.
- [61:27]
Colin Cowherd
So I asked a gm, a very, very good GM in the NFL recently about you, and he said, you know, he goes, most coaches we hire CEOs now, it's a CEO job. He said, you get occasionally lucky with a Shanahan or an Andy Reid, that they're scheme geniuses and they can do CEO. That's really hard. And he said, Ben has a chance to do that. Ben's excellent on scheme and he has the personality. We, a lot of guys in the league think Ben has the chance to be the CEO, but most, it's a CEO job now more than it is X's and O's. So is the difficulty with you, Ben, you're going to be on that headset. How do you manage yourself to go, no, no, no. I'm the CEO here because there are things that happen on a sideline in game where you got to put the CEO hat on and you can't be a mile deep on calling place. Will that be hard on the first call you disagree with coming through the headset? Well, shoot.
- [62:20]
J. Mac
I mean, yeah, everything that. Everything I'm doing right now, springtime training, it's my first time doing it. So there'll be some things that pop up that I gotta work through and find the best process for not only myself, but what's best for the team. That's the most important thing. And the fortunate thing is the way this staff has been constructed is with that in mind, a lot of my blind spots or the areas that I could use the most help in. And we've got some really good, experienced coaches with Dennis Allen or Richard Hightower on defense and special Teams on offense, we got Eric B. Enemy, that's, that's coordinated in this league. Press Taylor, that's coordinated in this league. So there's, there's a lot of high level experience throughout this coaching staff that they're going to help, help foresee any, any bumps in the road and help me navigate on game day. We got a great game management guy of the name Harry Fried. He's done it for a long time and he's going to be able to help me stay ahead of that. That, because I really haven't. As a play caller you have to be exposed to that and understand those situations. But now it's a little bit different moving over to the defensive side of the ball and being on the headset with them when they're up.
- [63:25]
Colin Cowherd
So one of the things I liked about Jaden Daniels and Caleb Williams coming out of college, they move a lot. You get all the upside. Not a lot of picks, it's a little Mahomes. Aaron Rodgers in his prime didn't throw a lot of picks. Most great quarterbacks, Elway, Manning, Farve, they throw picks. That's Andrew Luck. It's part of the deal. Caleb doesn't now, some have said, well, he holds the ball long, whatever. I mean he's a playmaker. The criticism I heard out of college from GMs with rings was he is so gifted and we saw a little bit of this with Mahomes. Sometimes you gotta just give him layups, just take what the defense gives you. How do you coach that? Because it's a strength, it can be a little bit of a burden. That great athleticism, how do you coach that?
- [64:15]
J. Mac
Well, I think it starts with what we're doing right now in the springtime is establishing the intent of every play call. And that takes time and it takes, it takes a number of reps. But the more time we spend together with, with myself, with Declan Doyle, our offensive coordinator, with J.T. barrett, our quarterback coach, in that room with the quarterbacks, the more it comes to light in why we're calling plays and where that ball should go. And the more the quarterback understands the why, the quicker he is to see the defense and deliver the ball to the primary or the secondary targets. So that's what we're working through right now. At the end of the day though, Caleb was taken as a high draft pick because of that playmaking ability that you're alluding to. And so we don't want to neuter that as well. So there's a fine line of, of understanding what we're doing and how we're doing it. But at the same time, when things don't go maybe to plan, we're not going to discourage his playmaking ability and his ability to create outside of the pocket as well. So that's going to be a fun balance for us to go through both spring and training camp. I mean, we can't get enough reps right now, really, as a team, and so we're looking to maximize those going forward.
- [65:27]
Colin Cowherd
So offensive line is to me, the most underrated unit in the sport, but it's also the hardest to create cohesion. You've got a young guy, you got a rookie, you got Drew Dahlman, you got Joe Tooney, you got a lot of moving parts here. I think potentially it could be great, but I've seen a. I've seen a bit of a trend over the last five to six years that veterans aren't playing preseason football. So you're going to have to September, you're going to get a lot of the work in for the Toonies. You don't want to put him out there and get banged up. What is a. I looked at your schedule and I said, well, the toughest part of their schedule is late. They're going to have until Thanksgiving to get that puppy rolling. You don't want to face the toughest part in the first four weeks. I Not that your early schedule is easy, but at the end you're facing defensive fronts that can be substantially tough. How long? What is realistic to say? Okay, Dolman Tuney, the rookie. What is a realistic time to go? Okay, we are a cohesive top 10 unit.
- [66:22]
J. Mac
Yeah, I think that's going to be the challenge there during training camp is how quickly can we come together. I mean, they're really bonding as a unit right now, communication wise. But we don't have the pads on. I think we need the pads on before we truly start gelling together. So training camp is going to be critical for us. I actually like where that bye week is because it usually takes about four weeks into the season to find out who you are as a team and what you do well and what you don't do well, and then that's at a good time so that we can reflect on that as a coaching staff to really hone in on what we want to be for that the remaining three quarters of the season. I would say my experience has been when you, when you get a new group together, it could take up to half the season before they really start to mesh and come together in terms of the run game more so than pass pro. I think we should be a pretty good pass pro unit right off the jump. But that run game, the communication, the angles with which we're all going trusting each other, particularly in the wide zone scheme that we're installing right now in OTAs, that's something that we want to make sure that we get plenty of time on task on.
- [67:33]
Colin Cowherd
So all human beings are the same in one aspect. If you're afraid of flying and you're on a plane and the minute turbulence hits, where does your mind go? Back to your fears? So I reported a year ago, Seth Wickersham reported it today that Caleb was worried about the history of the Bears offense and so you didn't inherit it. That's not your issue. You don't care about that. But there is a psychology Ben, that's true. He goes into a two week losing streak and it's turbulence on a plane that he was scared to fly anyway. How do you ensure that when there are bumps in this division and there are bumps for him that those fears that are now reported of oh man, this organization and quarterback, he's had those. That's okay. Some installed by his dad, whatever. How do you ensure during the turbulence of this season and there will be your division's too good, there's too many good teams on the schedule. How do you ensure he doesn't lose face faith and belief in your system?
- [68:36]
J. Mac
Well, you talk about fears and I don't see it quite the same way. I see this is what a great opportunity we have to to do something that really has never been done. There hasn't been a 4,000 yard passer here in this franchise and I think Caleb's going to be the first one and one of many years, many seasons to come where he's able to accomplish that feat. So I see a chance for greatness here for him. He's been communicated that way and he feels the same way. I don't know what's gone on prior to him joining the organization, but he is very proud to be a Chicago Bear. That's what our conversations have included and he's really excited to get to work right now and be the best version of himself for 2025. There's no question we're going to face adversity both he will.
- [69:25]
Colin Cowherd
He's not going to.
- [69:26]
J. Mac
We want to see growth from here to here over the course of the season. It's not going to be linear growth. It's going to be a little bit of ups and downs and stair steps along the way. But we want to see from Game 1 to Game 17 that we're getting better as a whole. And that's not just him, that's us as a team as well. So I'm excited. That's what makes coaching fun is when the hiccups occur, when the adversity strikes, how do we respond to it? That's what, that's when you find out who you are as a man.
- [69:54]
Colin Cowherd
Finally. Was there a moment in your practices in seeing Caleb, it could have been a throw, it could have been something that you went, oh, oh, that's pretty good. Like have you had one of those moments yet where you were just like, yeah, no, no. I, I, I, I see it. I see the number one pick.
- [70:15]
J. Mac
That's every day. That's every day we're out there. Routes versus air. We're changing maybe some footwork and some coaching points with what we're working through right now. But today it was a post route that, that he just, he probably threw at 60 yards right on the money. A few days ago it was a, it was a keeper. He's out of the pocket going to the left and he just able to flip his hips and fling that thing right on the money. So he's got, he's got such great God given ability that we're looking to tap into. You see it every day right now and like I said, it's going to be more fun once we get the competitive nature of offense versus defense a.
- [70:51]
Colin Cowherd
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