Colin Cowherd Podcast - Reaction to Rams-Bears, Texans-Patriots, Bills-Broncos & 49ers-Seahawks

Summary

The Herd with Colin Cowherd — January 19, 2026

Episode: Colin Cowherd Podcast - Reaction to Rams-Bears, Texans-Patriots, Bills-Broncos & 49ers-Seahawks

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Episode Overview

Colin Cowherd is joined by John Middlekauff to break down a packed divisional playoff weekend in the NFL. The show dives deep into four marquee matchups—Rams-Bears, Texans-Patriots, Bills-Broncos, and 49ers-Seahawks—bringing sharp analysis, measured hot takes, and future-facing insights about coaching, rosters, quarterbacks, and franchise trajectories. The episode is a fast-paced journey through key games, pivotal moments, and big-picture implications, all in Cowherd’s signature, opinion-driven style, with Middlekauff’s scouting nuance.

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Game-by-Game Analysis & Key Discussion Points

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1. Rams 20, Bears 17 (OT): Grit, Clean Football, and Quarterback Evolution

Timestamps: 02:55 – 20:26

Discussion Highlights:

• Rams “Organizational Win” in Adverse Weather

  • The Rams, a team based in sunny L.A., had to practice indoors and still went into 7-degree weather and played almost mistake-free football.
  • “There’s no way to prep when you practice in Los Angeles…Sean McVay was asked, ‘I don’t control the weather here. I can’t press a button and have us practice outside...’” —John Middlekauff (04:21)

• Caleb Williams’ Growth, Limitations of Chicago’s Scheme

  • Colin and John agree that while Caleb Williams threw picks, he made throws only a handful of NFL QBs could execute (“outside of Josh Allen, I can’t think of any current player that could make that throw.” —Colin, 06:32).
  • Criticism of Ben Johnson (Bears OC) for not utilizing Caleb’s legs enough: “Why not run a quarterback power for Caleb or at least get him on the move? He’s the best ad libber right now in the league.” —John Middlekauff (08:21)

• Rams' Clean Execution, Staff and Roster Construction

  • The Rams had only one penalty, no turnovers, and no dropped passes (02:55–06:21).
  • “They just don’t get penalized. …It’s not…rigged stuff, I always laugh because the Devonte [Adams play], I was sitting there watching on the couch, I’m like, ‘You can’t take that catch away from him.’” —Colin Cowherd (10:04).

• Chicago’s Defensive Improvement and Future Outlook

  • The Bears, after historically shaky years, now have an enviable offensive personnel and clear path to draft defensive help.
  • “The Bears don’t need a single offensive player…they could take every draft pick and just go, ‘Hey, defensive end, let’s get a younger safety, corner, edge rusher.’” —Colin Cowherd (17:46)

Notable Quotes / Memorable Moments:

• “Caleb's got the picks, and so you would look at the night and go, oh, what a bad night for Caleb. But beyond that one throw he made to send it into overtime…outside of Josh Allen, I can't think of any current player that could make that throw.” —Colin Cowherd (06:21)
• “Stafford, when he has time, is hitting layups with his eyes closed.” —John Middlekauff (09:23)

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2. New England Patriots 28, Houston Texans 16: Culture Reset in Foxboro

Timestamps: 25:15 – 36:07

Discussion Highlights:

• Patriots’ Rebuild and Coaching Shift Yields Immediate Results

  • Mike Vrabel and Josh McDaniels credited for instilling toughness, player development (Bourdet, Drake May).
  • “When you go from a coach who's really not a coach to Mike Vrabel and Josh McDaniels. My take is that's three wins.” —Colin Cowherd (25:29)

• Houston’s C.J. Stroud Falters in the Weather

  • Cold weather and fumble issues derailed Stroud; compared to “touch passers” like Jared Goff (33:15). Houston’s offense undone by mistakes.
  • “There was at one point early in the third quarter there were eight turnovers. I text [a] couple people...Is this a good game or a bad game? Because I'm entertained but I don't know.” —John Middlekauff (29:48)

• Will Anderson and Defensive Dominance

  • Will Anderson’s disruptive play a rare bright spot for Houston: “He's the second best edge rusher in the last seven, eight years...just unblockable.” —Colin Cowherd (27:55)

• Coaching and Quarterback Extensions

  • Debate over when to extend Stroud: “You can't pay because the going rate...guys like CJ Stroud, hang up on that. So they start at like 150, 160. …I think he's playing out next year…” —John Middlekauff (35:20)

Notable Quotes / Memorable Moments:

• “There's a grit and toughness that reminded me of the Patriot teams of the 20-year dynasty. Just the way it looked. Unfazed by anything that happened.” —John Middlekauff (28:32)
• “CJ Stroud...he's a touch passer...it doesn't really work [in the cold].” —John Middlekauff (33:15)

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3. Denver Broncos 33, Buffalo Bills 30 (OT): Controversy, Roster Reality, and Franchise Philosophy

Timestamps: 36:07 – 47:57

Discussion Highlights:

• The Game-Defining Fumble/Catch Controversy

  • Cowherd describes how replay increased confusion on the final play: “Slow motion usually creates clarity. I would argue this is one of the rare instances slow motion created confusion...” (36:07–37:30)
  • Middlekauff: “By the letter of the law, they got it right...It felt very rushed.” (37:30)

• Bills’ Roster Limitations & Coaching Debate

  • “They have three elite players, all on offense...Josh Allen’s best teammate, James Cook, led running backs in fumbles. That’s his best teammate.” —Colin Cowherd (38:47)
  • Debating if McDermott or the GM is most at fault for wasted Allen years, with both expressing the need for a more aggressive front office.

• Bo Nix Shines, Denver’s Rebuild Philosophy

  • “Lost in all of this is that Bo Nix was 2 for 2 on two, big deep ball, home run, touchdown throws. …Bonix was more efficient.” —Colin Cowherd (44:16)
  • “If you make a mistake [at QB], move off it quickly… New England in, I believe a rebuild year, is going to make the AFC championship.” —Colin Cowherd (45:56)

Notable Quotes / Memorable Moments:

• “We were getting into a weird space, John, where it felt like Mahomes, Allen, Lamar, like you were getting into a space where it felt like you had to have a superstar quarterback to get in. The takeaway now is no, get a young, talented quarterback, Caleb Williams...stafford’s now the only expensive guy left.” —Colin Cowherd (47:18)
• “When you pay a lot of money for these quarterbacks...Denver and Kansas City just have less wiggle room to make moves” —John Middlekauff (48:44)

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4. Seattle Seahawks 41, San Francisco 49ers 6: Defensive Masterclass

Timestamps: 53:23 – 60:59

Discussion Highlights:

• Defensive Blueprint, Personnel Home Runs

  • Seattle held a Shanahan team under 7 points for only the fourth time in 163 games—and two of those came at the Seahawks’ hands (53:23).
  • “Seattle’s got great special teams...I don’t see a hole in Seattle, do you?” —Colin Cowherd (54:21)

• Historical Comparison: 2019 49ers

  • John compares this Seahawks squad to Shanahan/Sala’s 2019 Niners, dominant run game, elite defense, limited-pass demand on the QB.

• Roster Construction: Aggressive, Not Rebuilding

  • John Schneider (GM) praised for building through mid-round picks: “Seattle never bottomed out…he just got impact Pro Bowl guys with those couple picks.” —John Middlekauff (58:45)

• Outlook for Sam Darnold and System QBs

  • “If Sam Darnold, which, let’s face it, he led the league in turnovers during the season...If they can play in games where they’re not even throwing it 20 times a game, they might blow out the next two teams they play.” —John Middlekauff (59:37)

Notable Quotes / Memorable Moments:

• “Their quarterback completed 12 passes for 120 yards…as long as you don’t turn the ball over, they’re going to win the Super Bowl. If their defense is going to play like that, they’re going to win the Super Bowl.” —John Middlekauff (54:37)
• “Seattle’s the opposite [of the Steelers]. They hit on their draft picks. It’s young, cheap, flexible, and allows them to, you know, go out and get Rashid Saheed and…probably the best special teams left in the playoffs.” —Colin Cowherd (57:06)

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Coaching Carousel & Franchise Futures

Timestamps: 60:59 – 73:26

• NY Giants Hire John Harbaugh: Perfect Fit?

  • “They don’t need a schematic guy…they need a culture changer. …Harbaugh, to me, is what they needed. Successful culture builder. Good staff builder.” —Colin Cowherd (63:23)

• The Importance of Power Structure

  • John & Colin discuss the risk of coaches having excess personnel power (“be very careful…sometimes they…do something that maybe he would regret in two years that he didn’t have to do in Baltimore…” —John Middlekauff, 67:51)

• NFC East & AFC North Realignment: Coaches’ Impact

  • NFC East could become “the Harbaugh division.” Steelers at risk of being left behind in an arms race for head coaches.

• Prediction: Mike Tomlin to Commanders?

  • “I think what you can see with Washington come from a mile away is Mike Tomlin…” —John Middlekauff (70:38)

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Key Overarching Themes and Insights

• Rosters, Not Just QBs, Win in the Playoffs. The most successful teams aren’t just about star QBs—they’re deep, mistake-free, and “win at the margins.”
• Aggressive GMs Matter. Repeated criticism for Buffalo’s management, praise for John Schneider (Seattle), Les Snead (Rams), Howie Roseman (Eagles).
• Coaching Trees and Staffs Shape Franchises. Consistent note about how defensive-minded or culture-first head coaches (Vrabel, Harbaugh) can reset organizations, if the power balance with GMs is right.
• Quarterback Evolution. Modern young QBs (Caleb Williams, C.J. Stroud, Bo Nix) have game-changing tools but must be used correctly within flexible, adaptive schemes.
• Weather as the Great Equalizer. Games in freezing temperatures truly test physicality and discipline, often favoring teams with a “Patriot-like” old-school DNA.

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Notable Quotes (with Timestamps and Attribution)

• "Caleb's got the picks, and so you would look at the night and go, oh, what a bad night for Caleb. But beyond that one throw he made to send it into overtime…outside of Josh Allen, I can't think of any current player that could make that throw."

  • Colin Cowherd (06:21)

• "Stafford, when he has time, is hitting layups with his eyes closed."

  • John Middlekauff (09:23)

• "Slow motion usually creates clarity. I would argue this is one of the rare instances slow motion created confusion..."

  • Colin Cowherd (36:07)

• "Their quarterback completed 12 passes for 120 yards…as long as you don’t turn the ball over, they’re going to win the Super Bowl."

  • John Middlekauff (54:37)

• "Seattle’s the opposite [of the Steelers]. They hit on their draft picks. It’s young, cheap, flexible, and allows them to...probably the best special teams left in the playoffs.”

  • Colin Cowherd (57:06)

• "They don’t need a schematic guy…they need a culture changer. …Harbaugh, to me, is what they needed."

  • Colin Cowherd (63:23)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Rams-Bears Deep Dive: 02:55 – 20:26
• Patriots-Texans Analysis: 25:15 – 36:07
• Broncos-Bills Drama: 36:07 – 47:57
• Seahawks-49ers Recap: 53:23 – 60:59
• Coaching Carousel / Franchise Futures: 60:59 – 73:26

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This summary captures the sharp, engaging style of the episode while highlighting the standout moments, strategic insights, and quotable lines for listeners who want the essence of The Herd’s playoff week reaction.

Transcript

[John Middlekauff]

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[Colin Cowherd]

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[Colin Cowherd]

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[John Middlekauff]

Yeah. I mean, I thought the Bears, they were pretty good. I mean, their defense was really playing well the second half of last game in the night. I mean, physically they were hitting, they were covering pretty well. They felt for the first time not this great Cinderella team and a real like super bowl contender. I thought if they win this game, obviously you're in the final four. But just the way their defense had played for second half into this game, obviously, you know, the weather benefits them. I also think that for the Rams, what an organizational win. There is no way to prep when you practice in Los Angeles. There's just no. Sean McVay was asked. I don't control the weather here. I can't press a button and have us practice outside. And dropped the, you know, at 75 degrees, it was 7 degrees on the field. I mean, that, that is. But the way less need, like less need has his hands in that. The Landman, the verse, the type Guy Durant tonight made huge plays. Oh, he was great physicality, the mindset, the Kieran Williams, how hard they're. Blake Quorum, who comes from that culture in Harbaugh, Michigan. You know, Stafford's been doing this forever, right? Devonte. Adam's been doing this forever. Puka guy they've had now for how many years? 3. Who just belongs in moments like that, you know, the Bears, you develop calluses. You practice and live in that weather, you become a little more comfortable in it. Caleb. The difference of Caleb and Stafford is, I mean, his legs are, I mean, he could take off. It looked like Lamar Jackson. I, I, we can get into Ben Johnson. I think he doesn't utilize his legs enough. And you know, I thought tonight the toughness and the physicality of the Rams. How about the hit? They ended up turning it over on downs, and then they got the ball back because McVay ended up punting. I think it was like third and two or third and goal and they tackled. I think it was DeAndre Swift, and he got elevated. About three guys hit him. Even my wife's like, holy moly. I mean, it was just these. The one thing you would say now about the last 15 years of the good Rams teams, Seattle, the good 49ers teams, they build their teams to play in environments like this because of the value on toughness, physicality, serious guys. I didn't know much about Landman, honestly. And I text someone, I was like, was he that good in the pack? I wasn't watching Colorado football when they were going 1 and 11. Yeah, most people weren't. And like, yeah, he's one of the best players in the conference. Is no one really paid attention. You watch him. How many plays does that guy make?

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, I mean, you know, it's really interesting tonight. So, you know, Caleb's got the picks, and so you would look at the night and go, oh, what a bad night for Caleb. But beyond that one throw he made to send it into overtime, which, you know, outside of Josh Allen, I can't think of any current player that could make that throw. I mean, the league, Farve, Elway, Favre, Allen. I mean, but Brady and Manning aren't making that throw. And they're.

[John Middlekauff]

They're all Rogers when he was younger.

[Colin Cowherd]

Maybe, Maybe. But it's really. It's funny. I think Caleb is so much better than three months ago. Like, like, like they didn't run him a lot. He's much more comfortable in the pocket. I think some of it is John. He just doesn't. He doesn't want to run. He likes delivering in the pocket. I thought his receivers had multiple drops tonight. I thought DJ Moore, Collinsworth pointed this out, felt like he. He didn't know the route or didn't know it was coming or it was kind of a soft route. On Kobe Durant's interception. It was. It was. You could tell Caleb was bothered by it. I know everybody's going to look at this as a bad Caleb Knight, but I just. I think he's improved so much. I think you take. I mean, listen, here's the good news for the Bears. Dennis Allen had a great last six quarters of defensive coordinator scheming. They. They do not have John. They don't have the Rams Defensive personnel now, they, they, they're healthier in the back end. So Chicago secondary does have some talent. Bayard's been good for a long time, but that front seven Rams is much better than the Bears, much more talented. And I thought Stafford was uncomfortable for big portions of this game. I thought they tackled well. I thought they were physical. I just think the Rams played a cleaner football game. Penalties, didn't have the turnovers. And you know, they had like three really good drives. One in the first quarter, one in the fourth quarter, and then one in overtime. I mean that's just basically they, I mean they were very limited on what they could do.

[John Middlekauff]

I actually think in a weird way they underutilized Caleb. You know, his strength. He had a run earlier in the game that when he hit the jets, it went. I don't know how many guys in the league are faster than him. I mean it's probably like Lamar Jackson and Kyler Murray and who even knows at this point in time both guys are banged up. And Ben Johnson I think really struggles because he's such a. I mean he runs more of an old school timing offense that he doesn't have quarterback run plays in them. And when do the Bears usually thrive? When they let Caleb just kind of cook and use his legs. And I'm not even talking always to run, sometimes to run and throw, to scramble and throw. But clearly Ben's offense, he's not calling those plays. You see the short yardage plays tonight, which failed, going right up against Landman and Verse. Why not run a quarterback power for Caleb or at least get him on the move. He's, he's the best ad libber right now in the league. He's what Lamar was a couple years ago. Get him and crazy things happen. But that's not really how he wants to call plays. And I think there's some give and take. And when do they really thrive? When they don't have a choice, right?

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah.

[John Middlekauff]

17:10, two minutes to go. Caleb save our season, you know, against the 49, against whoever drive us the field to win us the game. And then Ben's play calls like Caleb can kind of throw him out the window after a split second if he doesn't see it and he takes off and he either makes plays run how many, how many first downs the guy run for this year? My guess would be like close to 30, you know, and that's not. I think there's got to be some give and take there. And I think Ben would say for Caleb to be an elite Player. The accuracy does need to improve a little bit on some of just the layup throws. Like Stafford, when he has time, is hitting layups with his eyes closed. Right? Because the big plays we. He's proven to do it immediately at a ultimate level.

[Colin Cowherd]

Roma Dunz has not been impactful in the second half of the season. I mean, obviously Loveland's been huge. Luther Burden tonight didn't do a ton. I mean, listen. So you look at The Bears averaged 5.1 yards of play better than the Rams. The Bears 9 for 19 on third down, better than the Rams. They had seven minutes more time of possession. Again, they had three picks, but the Bears only had three penalties. They had more total plays. The Bears didn't allow a sack while they had four. The Rams were forced to punt eight times, Bears only three. I'm looking at total yards, Bears passing yards, Bears rushing yards, Bears first down, Bears. Like, it's interesting. You look at Caleb and everybody's going to point to the interceptions. But I thought, I mean, they had some drops tonight, but I. The Rams played a cleaner game and that they'd done all year. They've been the least penalized team the last two years. They just don't get penalized. It's not. Listen, when people get into this rig stuff, I always laugh because the devonte I was sitting there watching on the couch, I'm like, you can't take that catch away from him. That's just an insane play. But people are going to look and say the Bears didn't play well. I thought Dennis Allen had a great defensive game. I thought offensively they made mistakes, but they did a lot. They ran the ball at various times. You know, it's time of possession. The. You know, again, Chicago wins. I think people will probably dump on them. They were 2 for 3 in the red zone like the Rams were, You know, I can't.

[John Middlekauff]

I know the Bears, their two most impressive games. Colin, obviously they've had some great wins. I mean, last week was incredible, but they've had these magical comebacks. But in two of their losses against the packers, the first time in Lambeau and tonight, you came away going, God, I got a lot of respect for what they're doing. I mean, they totally played winning football. And one of his interceptions came on fourth down. So it's like, what are you supposed to do? I'd argue I would have a rule if I owned a team. You are not allowed to go for it in short yardage situation. When you can kick a field goal when the score is 00. You know, you have no clue how these games are going to play out. I get you come from Dan Campbell, but when you were with Dan, the majority of your games were indoors. It's frigid conditions. Even with this Rams scoring offense. When it's seven degrees and you got a quarterback who's 38 years old with six kids who's battling injuries, you think they're going to score 30 points in that weather. I mean McVeigh looked like he was a lumberjack in Alaska tonight. When have you ever seen him? He's having that. They are the advantage you have with the weather. The game is not going to be some 35 to 30 shootout. Never plays out that way in these games.

[Colin Cowherd]

You know I'll tell you who really deserves credit. Puka, Nakua and Kyron Williams. Those guys have strong hands. The Bears are great at stripping the ball. The Rams didn't have a fumble. Kyron Williams had multiple guys clinging and trying to strip the ball. Never fumbled. I mean we watched New England Houston today. I mean that thing was a fumble fest. Eight turnovers at one point. The Rams Puka multiple times. Puka had guys on him trying to strip it. Same with Kyron Williams. No fumbles. So I mean again there this, this is a. This Rams team is really well schooled. I would imagine on an extra overtime Seahawks an extra day. Plus the Seahawks are at home. Seattle's probably going to be favored by what about a few two points in that game. Maybe Seattle. Yeah.

[John Middlekauff]

My guess number might be like three. Three and a half. I mean I don't have look pretty shaky over the course of the second.

[Colin Cowherd]

Half of the season and Seahawks big special teams advantage. Although it when that kicker for the Rams was getting ready for that kick, I was. It was coin flip to me. I'm like I don't know. I don't have it. This, this.

[John Middlekauff]

I could have saw a block touchdown the other way.

[Colin Cowherd]

I thought that was a absolutely.

[John Middlekauff]

Even Collins were said when they punted. You know I. I thought McVeigh and I get it. You're. You're in a tough spot. It's easy to judge from the couch but they're getting a timeout because the two minute warning it was third and eight and he chose to run it. I thought you could have passed it there. I mean you're two best. Two of the best players in the league are Puka, Nakua and Devonte. You got the MVP playing quarterback. You're a great play caller. I thought he could have got aggressive there and he didn't and then he punts and Collinsworth like they were clearly rattled from last week because all 10 guys, they didn't even run anyone down there to cover. So you start dictating the way you call some of your plays on special teams based on your scared that. Listen, I think it's easy to bag on a special teams coach. Typically, those are your backups. Clearly they're not as deep as some of these other teams. Their starters are good. But yeah, man, I thought McVeigh was clearly pretty rattled on that special teams moment. That's why I would have played to avoid the punt and go for the first. I was a little. Sean McVeigh loves the pass. I was surprised that he ran it there. And I mean, the Bears got the ball at the 50 yard line. Yeah.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

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[Colin Cowherd]

When I look at the Bears season, one of the things that really jumps out to me is how much everything improved. Even when they were winning, they were beating bad teams barely. If you go look at the last six weeks, I mean, John, they had, you know, they were in this game. I mean, if you didn't know the records, you didn't know anything and just watch this game, your takeaway would be Chicago's every bit as good as the Rams. But, you know, the Rams come in as a four and a half point favorite, don't cover but win. And you know, your takeaway is the Rams were more efficient. They're a cleaner team with an older quarterback, made fewer mistakes. They just don't fumble, they don't throw interceptions. They don't get penalized. They. Again, I don't remember a drop pass. They may have. I don't remember a drop pass. Bears had three or four or five. But. And for the record, that's why the Rams beat the Seahawks in one of their meetings. They played a cleaner game than Seattle. So I think one of the big developments over the course of the weekend, no Bo Nicks, you know, that's. You start looking at Seattle right now and it's like, Seattle's good. I mean, could I make this argument? This is the last team with a chance to beat Seattle. Drake may neutral site that Seahawk defense if he got past him. Because I think New England, you know, is going to be favored over Denver, Louisiana. Is LA special teams worrying me, but.

[John Middlekauff]

I think, I think you're looking at the winner of the NFC Championship Game as a favorite in the super bowl, don't you think?

[Colin Cowherd]

Absolutely. And they should be. Absolutely should be. Man with it.

[John Middlekauff]

Their games were. Their games were theater. This Year I was on my podcast text chain, I said, I think I've watched more Bears football this year than I have in the last 15 years total. I mean, I feel of the. How many games they play, 17 and then a couple playoff games. So you're talking 19 games. I feel like I watched 16 plus start to finish. John, their games have been riveting. I mean, the last stretch of the season, that's as entertaining, which is cool. Like, as a lover of the sport, someone that does this for a living, like see a big city get revitalized, see this brand matter. I was someone that questioned Caleb. Obviously his physical attributes never were a question. Just how he would mix his playmaking is just even people that loved him the most would not imagine. I mean, he's looking like Farver Elway down the stretch of these games in the freezing cold. Right. I mean, the guy played in SC in Oklahoma, and I know he's played in DC in high school, but this is a little different animal here. Yeah.

[Colin Cowherd]

I mean, the good news for the Bears, this draft, you know, John, they don't need a single offensive player. They have their tackles, their interior line, they have two backs, they have two tight ends, they have three receivers. I mean, they could take every draft pick. You see this from time to time and just go, hey, defensive end, let's get a younger safety, corner, edge rusher. I mean, this, this is a big edge draft. They need an edge rusher. So you can tell what Chicago's going to do in this draft. They listen. Ben Johnson came in, solidified the interior O line, goes out and get Luther Burden, Colston Loveland, like, we're going to have a powerhouse offense. I'm going to get my side of the ball. The Bears next year are going to draft five defensive players. A lot of them, to me, in the box. They're going nowhere. I mean, and the other thing we've said, Caleb doesn't throw a lot of picks. He had them tonight. Again, it should be noted, Roma Dunze dropped a touchdown ball on that Bears first drive. So, I mean, they're, they're, you know, this, this, this was not a game in where I didn't think the Bears receivers had as good a game as, you know, a devonte, a Puka. The tight ends for the Rams are so good. They use all of them. They're really, really good. But, I mean, Gardner Johnson knocked that ball away from Terence Ferguson that forced the field goal. That's another great play by the Bears defensive backs tonight. Great game.

[John Middlekauff]

I don't Remember their D, their DBs were really good tonight. I mean, excellent.

[Colin Cowherd]

Healthy too. Healthier.

[John Middlekauff]

Yeah, they, they were just making plays on the ball. They were tackling well in the open field. I actually think they could. Obviously Loveland and Burden were two of his first two draft picks, so those guys are going nowhere. I think you could pick between Roma Dunes A, who was just a top 10 pick a couple of years ago, DJ Moore, who kind of had a weird year, but he has a long resume of being a really good player, and Cole Comet. And take one of those players and use it to get either draft capital. Maybe use it and your first round pick to trade up in the draft because they kind of have. You don't need them all. And they're definitely, as this goes on, they're going to feature Loveland and Luther Burton more. So to me, it's almost between DJ Moore and Rome. Which one do you want to keep? You know, Rome's technically cheaper, but Rome might have more value to some teams that just had them rated really high. Cole Comet is a really solid tight end. You might just. Why would you not just keep him around? He's a versatile player. I think you could take one of those two wide receivers and utilize that to help get defensive help because they probably have an abundance of riches, but they're not. Like you said, Puka, Devonte are just better than those guys. I mean, right. Devonte is a Hall of Famer and Puka is on a track to go there. I mean, they were just a little higher level version of kind of their group.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah. And, you know, let's, let's say this, this is Ben Johnson's first year and Caleb's second year and Stafford's been around forever and Sean McVay's a veteran. And to go on the road in the opposite of the weather you're comfortable in and play that clean a football game, that's really impressive. I mean that. It really is. You know, no drops, no penalties, not turning the ball over. I know I've said that multiple times. That's really hard to do. Go, go back and look at the box score on the Texans Patriots. And those are again, well coached teams. It was a mess. You can't feel your hands at halftime. I stepped outside. I just want to see how cold it was at halftime because I hadn't been outside for several hours. I just went outside for two minutes and I'm like, oh my God, it was windy. I'm like, this is brutal. These, I mean, it's, it's. We Watch the classic classic game today's show brought to you by presenting sponsor Hard Rock Bet. Now with Miami making the national championship, you know Hard Rock Stadium is going to be absolutely fire. If you're going to the game, Hard Rock Bet is giving you a $10 bonus bet to get in on the action. You can turn that free $10 bonus bet into a big win placing a same game parlay. Or even if you're just watching the game at home, there's still no better place to bet the natty than Hard Rock Bet because it's Florida Sportsbook, so they're going crazy with promos for this one. And if you're late to kickoff, don't worry. The Hard Rock Bet has live in game betting so you're never too late to the action. Find a winner Live bet between snaps and a few easy taps. If you haven't tried your first bet on Hard Rock Bet, there's time for you and get 150 bucks in bonus bets. If you win, just place a 5 dol dollar bet. If it hits you, not only get your winnings, but also an extra 150 bucks in bonus bets. Even if your team may be out of the playoffs, doesn't mean you have to sit on the sidelines. Same game parlays Live betting camp Miss Welcome Offer new promos every day. Hard Rock Bet has you covered all playoffs long. That's Hard Rock Bet. Download the Hard Rock Bet app Make your first deposit today. Payable and bonus bets Not a cash offer. Offered by the Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida. Offered by Seminole Hard Rock Digital LLC in Alder States. Must be 21 plus and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio, 10 or Virginia to play. Terms and conditions apply. Concern about gambling in Florida call 1-888- admit it in Indiana. If you or somebody you know has a problem wants help, call 1-800-9 with it gambling problem call 1-800- gambler Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia the new year brings new health goals and wealth goals. Protecting your identity is an important step. Your info is in endless places that could expose you to identity theft leading to lost funds. Lifelock monitors millions of data points per second. If your identity is stolen, LifeLock's restoration specialist will fix it. Guaranteed or your money back. Resolve to make identity, health and wealth part of your New Year's goals. With Lifelock, save up to 40% your first year. Visit lifelock.com sports terms apply everything tastes better after your team wins. Wings, nachos, celery. Seriously, everything similarly, everything also tastes better once you've baptized it with a simple handcrafted flavor of the original Louisiana brand hot sauce. So just imagine how truly tasty something would taste if it was doused in the original Louisiana hot sauce after your team wins. It almost sounds too tasty.

[John Middlekauff]

Almost.

[Colin Cowherd]

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[Colin Cowherd]

You need delivered with UberEats. What do you 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? Very much a yes. An afternoon stroll? Sorry, no. A burrito bowl? Happily, yes. All right, delivery is on its way. I use it regularly. How about the Clear Skies? Can't deliver that. But French fries? Yeah. A Little Escape? No. Delicious bowl of grapes? Yeah. How about a freshly cut lawn? Can't help you there, but barbecued prawns? Order it now. Get almost almost anything delivered with Uber Eats. Order now. Alcohol in select markets. Product availability may vary by region. Seattle for details. Okay, we've talked about bears and Rams. Let's get to New England 28 Houston 16 New England forcing five turnovers in the win. You know I picked New England to be My double your win total team. And as a wild card team I picked Seattle to be my surprise playoff team. So I thought Seattle had a chance to be special. Not maybe this good, but New England I did pick as a playoff team a double your win total. And my takeaway was I don't think people understand when you go from a coach who's really not a coach to Mike frable and Josh McDaniel. My take is that's three wins. Well, they also had a great draft. They also are very good at player development. I mean if you look at a play like Keisha Boudet who just has become a better player under this staff so you get a really great draft. The development of like Budet and Drake May and you spent 250 mil plus plus you have the best coordinator in the league, Josh McDaniels and a head coach. You know I picked him to win 10 games. And my takeaway everybody was like, well I looked at their roster today. It reminds me of the old Belichick rosters except the quarterbacks mobile. You have the same owner. Vrabel's a more current, more player friendly version of Belichick. High iq, same coordinator and May as Tom, but more move. He moves more. He had 27 first downs running this year and. But when I look at their team, there's no real hole. I don't know where New England's great. I think their receivers are undervalued. I think they're a little better at receiver than people think. They have two capable running backs. Hunter Henry's good, solid. But my take on New England is. And Seattle has a little bit of this. John, there's no hole. Where do you now Will Anderson eats Will Campbell for lunch. Okay. He's a rookie left tackle. I'm not sure he's 100%. That was a mismatch. Will Anderson is getting to a point now. Maybe he's not Miles Garrett, but he is. He's the second best edge rusher in the last seven, eight years. I mean it's like he looks pretty good. He's just a blockable, long, instinctive. But I just think New England's talent is better than people understand. They spent a lot of money in free agency, not a lot of flashy stuff. Gonzalez is an elite corner. They get really solid pressure ball hawking corners. I think the Patriots talent's better than people think.

[John Middlekauff]

Remember I think Belichick's last year defensively they weren't terrible. They were actually pretty good. And remember Belichick took some Shots at Gerard Mayo when he was in the media going like our defense was not. Their offense was horrendous. The Patricia, the Jacoby Mac Jones situation. Zappy. Defensively they've had pieces. Even when Belichick handed the thing to. To Jarod and now to. To Vrabel. One note I wrote down is there's a grit and toughness that reminded me of the Patriot teams of the 20 year dynasty. Just the way it looked. Unfazed by anything that happened. I mean they, they. A fumble. Unfazed, right. A crazy play by Will Anderson. An offensive lineman getting smoked, unfazed. A touchdown that they score a big. Unfazed. It's a very kind of old school mentality they have. And to me variable has clearly instilled. I mean I was texting with someone that played for Belichick with Brady in the 2000s and he said it is so hard in those games to feel your hands, how cold it is. And I think that directly impacts C.J. shroud. I know he played at Ohio State, but they don't play in December and January in college.

[Colin Cowherd]

You could tell John, you could tell both quarterbacks with the fumble issues, they couldn't feel their hands.

[John Middlekauff]

Same with, same with the running backs. It was, I mean there was at one point time early in third quarter there were eight turnovers. I was like, I text couple people. Is this a good game or a bad game? Because I'm entertained but I don't know. But I think there's an element of the cold and just how difficult is to play. Honestly, I'm watching this game like incredible how good Tom was in these elements for all those years. I mean the accuracy, the control of the ball. It's their whole team. I mean Belichick had that thing mastered to dominate in those environments. Well, Vrabel's an Ohio guy, played for a decade there. Kind of likes Vrabel to me feels much more cold sleet than he does Nashville on Broadway. You know that's right. So I mean Josh McDaniels, they are very, very lucky. You know, a lot of teams, look, look at Robert Salis, probably going to get a job. Kyle Shanahan would give him a 10 year, $50 million contract right now to be his defensive coordinator. Josh is not going to get a head coaching job because of how bad his second tier. So they're going to have this offensive coordinator who's elite at his job, who I mentioned this. I need to do the study. I mean it's really just a math equation. How many Games is Josh McDaniels coach as an offensive coordinator as the in playoff games? 50. I mean think how many big games he's game plan for practice for adjusted for in the middle of the game. He's been in that exact role for decades. And I mean he was the offensive coordinator when Mac Jones made the playoffs. Like this guy is. He has to be one of the more senior or in terms of experienced coordinator in the history of the NFL.

[Colin Cowherd]

And he hasn't had to switch. He got middle aged Tom, old Tom, young Mac Jones, young. Drake may all kind of the same prototype. You know, obviously Drake's the best athlete in terms of mobility. But all pocket guys, all pocket guys who just like, who don't like stuff at their feet, who like a little protection, who think pretty quick get rid of the ball accurately. Brady Mack. So it's a, he has a, he has an offense, he has an ecosystem the way he does it and they've all kind of, I mean he doesn't have to change rapidly. You know, I mean if you're not giving him hyper athletic guy because Drake may runs for first downs but you can see he wants to sit in the pocket. And you know the other thing that jumped out to me in this game, New England beating Houston is Will Anderson's up for an extension. He's getting it. You pay him whatever you have to pay him. He is right now next to Miles Garrett. Max Crosby's up there. C.J. stroud is going to be very interesting because we've seen over the last couple of weeks, boy he has regressed now is it coaching? You and I both feel strongly about this when it comes to quarterbacks and CJ's still kind of in that Herbert Younger quarterback coaching matters a lot like and by the way it mattered for I mean Aaron Rodgers much better this year with Arthur Smith than he was with the mess in New York. So C.J. stroud, he'll get an extension, right?

[John Middlekauff]

I mean it's not, I could not this offseason give him an extension.

[Colin Cowherd]

Okay, so you wait to the other season. Okay.

[John Middlekauff]

To me Will Anderson, you treat him like Micah Parsons, you know, Aiden Hutchinson. What do you want, big guy? Here's the number. It's huge. You're going to be C.J. stroud. I mean part of winning in that conference. I know he played his year at Ohio State, but he's from Southern California and now he plays in a dome and that field today and again texting this guy that had played there is like, he's like, you can't feel your hands. So he's a touch passer. You know a lot of people comped him coming out of college to Jared Goff.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yes.

[John Middlekauff]

He was struggled in cold weather majority of his career. He's clearly gotten a little bit better as he's gotten older. Maybe just a little more comfortable now he plays in the NFC north playing in more cold weather places like he's a touch passer. Even on the touchdown he threw to Kirk. Kirk had to make a great play and box the guy out. His touch is a. It doesn't really work. And then you know these last couple weeks in the cold weather struggled touching the you got to play cold weather teams in the afc. It's unavoidable unless you're the number one seed every year. And to me they're, they're clearly there's a little. I mean they didn't even win their own division this year so they're a well run team. I think Casario is a student Mass they have the commander second round pick. So they have their own first round pick and they got two twos offensive line, off line, offensive line. So but we've seen you just talked about quarterback thing. We have seen some bad quarterback contracts that you didn't need to pay Kyler Murray you didn't need to pay to it just take another year. CJ hey you're the number two overall pick. You're making millions of dollars. It's not, you're not Brock Purdy pay scale here. But you just had I mean how many turnovers guy have in the last two weeks? 20. I mean it was today was outrageous and I just. You can't pay because the going rate the minimum like Sam Dardle's the minimum and that starts at 100 and guys like CJ Stroud hang up on that. So they start at like 150, 160. You, you, you can't. I think he's playing out next year and that doesn't mean I like him. I'm a fan. He high character guy works hard, loves football. But he's a touch passer that if I got to go on the road Kansas City, Denver, New England, you know Baltimore ain't going to be down long so it's. I got to have Kansas City. I mean they'll, they'll be back. You got to play well November, December outside in the cold weather and today because I talked to someone last week that said his bad plays were atrocious but he made some good plays in Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh's just not that good. Of a team, right. They're just, they're not. New England was a different level and it felt he was. I mean, how often do you see former players, they go to Jason Kelsey, he's like, I think you got to bench him at half.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah. Ryan Clark said that you and I.

[John Middlekauff]

I have no problem saying that, but it's pretty rare for a guy like Kelsey. And they weren't wrong. And I, d', Amico, former player, probably thought like, hey, he's going to be my starting quarterback next year. I can't create a controversy going the off season, which I don't disagree. I understand where he's coming from. But you could have justified benching him because this isn't the NBA. You can't demand a trade and get trade. That's not the way it works. So I'm sure they had a conversation, right? Him and the O.C. like Davis, Mills ready, Because this, this is not going to work. And if you're thinking about benching a guy at half, you can't then give him $150 million. I mean, con you, you would do it potentially in like a month. I mean, this is a lot of guys get extension late February, early March. So that's a no for me. And it's not because I don't like him. But he signed a five year contract, right? Pick up his fifth year option and then go from there.

[Colin Cowherd]

All right, let's go to Denver and overtime, 33 to 30 over Buffalo. You know what, John? Like everybody in America, I have watched every replay and I will say, I think in most instances when fans, you know, it's rigged. If you were going to rig this thing, you'd rig it for Josh Allen and the Bills. Bo Nix in the super bowl is not moving a number. But I will say I talked to a GM today and I looked at several. Let me put it this way. Slow motion usually creates clarity. I would argue this is one of the rare instances slow motion created confusion because slow motion makes it look like it's more of a catch by Brandon Cooks than it is that in fast motion. When I watched it about 30 times after talking to a GM, the GM who is, no, by the way, fan of Denver. I'll just leave it at that. Said, in the end, if you look at it at real speed, the ball's bouncing when he hits the ground and that's not an official cash. Oh, then it's whoever wins the wrestling match. And Denver won the wrestling match. So I thought slow mo as I'm watching it in slow Mo, it actually, in hindsight, did it a disservice because it makes it look like Cooks is more in possession. That was my take anyway. They got it right, but I've never seen anything like that. So I didn't know for about a day how to compute it.

[John Middlekauff]

Yeah, I mean, I think the catch has become such a convoluted situation in the NFL. Like, why do we have to make this so confusing? And by the letter of the law, they got it right. I think you could argue was he officially touched and then he ran out of bounds and dropped the ball. Some people are saying it should have been a safety. Bills win. But I'm with you. I mean, I just think that we've got to this point with instant replay, which does benefit us. Right. Because we can get things right. But also, like, I do feel for Sean McDermott, if you watched his long kind of, you know, he went on this, I wouldn't even call it a rant because he was very under control. And he said, listen, if I take a step back objectively, can't we just try to get it right? And it felt very rushed. Now, I think, you know, being in that spot in the first place, all the turnovers. Right. Obviously, the way the half ended for Buffalo, there's a lot to even get to that point that was avoidable. And I also think it's a reflection of when the season's on the line. He's throwing a jump ball to a very old, I mean, for NFL standards, an older player who is not a jump ball player. I mean, he's made some plays for him and he honestly made a couple. He made a great catch that went out of bounds, but kind of a reflection of their personnel. Isn't that you and I talk about a lot?

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah. Brandon Cooks has always been like a number two or three. He's a speed guy. You run him up, you run him deep. Yeah, I mean, I. This has been my knock, is that they have three elite players, all on offense, you know, and by the way, Josh Allen's best teammate, James Cook, led running backs in fumbles. That's his best teammate. They have a slot receiver, a good left tackle, Josh Allen, and a fumble prone running back who's got jets. That's not great, you know, so my takeaway is it's really not a good enough roster. So you are left to, I mean, they had three active guys. You're left to throwing up a jump ball to a speed guy, not a big receiver. Brandon Cooks is a smaller, smaller speed guy without A huge catching radius. So, you know, I mean, my question, if you're going to run McDermott out of the building, and I think he's a B, B plus coach, I feel like it's always something. Last year, they couldn't get the tush push right. This year it's multiple turnovers. The year before, you know, three years ago or whatever it was, it was the 13 second, you know, years and years and years ago, it was wide right. It's always something for Buffalo. But I do feel like there are certain teams we watch. The Indiana Hoosiers, wow, they're tight. The Belichick Dynasty. Really tight. I just feel. And it usually comes on the offensive side. John, Buffalo's a little loose. They've missed on a lot of picks. They have too many turnovers. I thought Josh was very reckless. Can't you coach some of that out of him? By the way, another defensive coach, D' Amico Ryan, who I think fondly of C.J. stroud, way too loose. You know, it's. Sometimes I look at these defensive coaches and they're so good on the defensive side, elevating and developing that, that the offense just doesn't feel like it's buttoned up. And that's Buffalo again.

[John Middlekauff]

I do think when it comes to Josh and the reckless nature, I mean, that's probably the worst playoff game he's ever had. I mean, statistically, right. You know, I think there's a far view in quality. I don't. I don't think you coach that out. I mean, he had Mike Holmgren, Andy Reid, John Gruden, Steve Mariucci, and you know, in the prime of his care career, and he drove them all nuts. Sean McDermott, on an individual play basis, like the end of half, he's not the offensive coordinator, but that's how you come on the headset. We're kneeling it Tony Romo, you know, best point of the day was like, you could not. It's not worth the risk there when you don't have any timeouts. And then Josh, you know, carries the ball like Shady McCoy and the ball hits the ground. But like on the. The aggregate of his career, they've been really successful. Right up until Yesterday, they were 8 no to non Mahomes Joe Burrow teams. So they had won a lot of playoff games. Look at how many playoff games he's won relative to like Harbaugh and Tomlin. I mean, Harbaugh just got $100 million. If Tomlin chose to coach, he'd probably get $100 million right now. And Sean McDermott I think would say, well we're all defensive CEO types. I actually think the GM and you look around the league, all these GM survived, Joe Shane, the guy in Arizona, the guy in Cleveland. I think the GM relative to having this court, Howie Roseman, would rather get thrown off the Walt Whitman than be to not be aggressive when he had Josh Allen as his quarterback. And I think if you look at him a little far in Ted Thompson or not Rogers, I mean remember it was like God, Ted, be aggressive here you got this guy in the peak of it. And they weren't smaller market. Now they have an owner, but he doesn't feel that aggressive. At least from sitting here three like some of these owners. I think the GM has been dramatically worse than Sean McDermott. Now we feel Sean McDermott more on game day than we do the GM just because on an individual play basis. But I think the GM relative to having this all time great quarterback has been really bad. I mean Keon Coleman, he had a touchdown yesterday but was inactive most of the season. So it's like how many impact one thing. How did the 49ers keep it going all these years? They hit on a lot of like mid round guys to become impact. Like where are those guys in Buffalo? You know, Shakir's been on the team a long time now. It's like, you know, Cook was a second round pick. Where are your big impact guys? And they, they where are your aggressive moves? Like why when how he's making these trades when les knee, when John Schneider why aren't you hand in hand with them? Like hey, I need to outbid this guy. When the 49ers traded for McCaffrey, they had an added extra pick because the Rams were going to get him and put people like God, the Rams and the Niners are crazy here. But they lean aggressiveness. When I look at Buffalo, I was like, yeah, they're just not that aggressive of a front office. And I think it's bit them on the margins when they've had now finally their quarterback played a bad game. But man, that's so to me Sean McDermott by the time people are listening to this Monday he might be done. But the GM to me cannot be one of those that survives. And the coach goes that that would.

[Colin Cowherd]

Be insanity to me now and credit to Denver. They will not have Bo Nix, Jarrett Stidham, because he's been in the program a couple of years, should be a fairly competent. And they also have between Mims, Cortland, Sutton, Harvey they run the ball pretty effectively at times. They did not against buffalo. Credit to McDermott and the defense. They didn't run the ball well. But Stidham should be a capable backup. He won't run like Bo Nix. He's not that athlete. But in the end, could I not argue the Broncos have the better coach, the better roster, the more efficient quarterback for this game, and frankly, huge edge on deep balls at wide receiver. Lost in all of this is that Bo Nix was 2 for 2 on 2, big deep ball, home run, touchdown throws. He did a lot of stuff under 8 yards, a lot of stuff behind the line of scrimmage. The two times he went big, he hit on both of them. So lost in all of this was their corners got beat twice on big plays and Bonix was more efficient.

[John Middlekauff]

Well, think about this one area that he got a lot of credit this year. So did Caleb. Throughout the regular season when it mattered most, they turned into a high level player. Yeah, I mean, both of them played like top five guys on the last couple drives throughout the season when their backs were against the wall. That led them to both winning a bunch of games. Right. And becoming, you know, high seeds. His final drive was fantastic.

[Colin Cowherd]

Fantastic.

[John Middlekauff]

Multiple big shots in zone coverage, a big run for a first down and obviously the game winning touch or game, I guess they took the lead and then Buffalo tied it. But it was just a gorgeous pass. And what was an area that we hammered him on this season was like, ah, the deep ball is a little, it's not great. And I think one thing, if you wanted to be critical of Sean with Bo, like, I think Ben Johnson's a lot like this too. Their favorite plays are timing pass routes. That's what Ben Johnson thrived.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yes.

[John Middlekauff]

Goff and him with Sean Payton. These guys are playmaking athletes. You kind of got to let them. And it's hard, you know, Steve Kerr and I'm not comparing Steph Curry to either one of these guys. But like, listen, sometimes he's got to let him be him. And most coaches struggle with that. And I think he got like, this game's probably not as close if Sean just let him kind of scramble around and make plays. But sometimes in, in the pocket, that's not where Bo, when he gets out of rhythm, it can look a little off. Right. But as he just kind of like, hey, make some plays. We need a touchdown. Run around, let it loose. That's when he's at his best. Which. Do you ever remember a game ending and then all of a sudden the guy Broke his ankle and no one saw it. I mean it's, it feels like an unprecedented an injury when you factor in no one knew even clearly the coach didn't know till he was told. I mean, he walked. The NFL tweeted out a video of him walking off the field high fiving people.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, I mean, I just think it's a bummer that Jared Stidham is playing because I do think Denver, although I don't know if they would win the Super Bowl, I do think they're on a short list of teams that can compete with it. I think they have an excellent roster. And I'll give you, I was thinking about this today, John. Denver and Seattle pivoted off Russell Wilson. Denver really paid both number one seeds. And the, the message to the NFL, if you make a mistake, move off it quickly. Think about this. Gerard Mayo, New England, big mistake. Moved off it there in the AFC championship. Seattle, you know, we got Russell Wilson, we're moving off. It didn't take long. Geno Smith, Darnold, Boom. Number one seed, hit on draft picks. Denver still paying cat room for this year. Bo Nicks draft him playoffs, second year, number one seed now AFC championship. Bad weekend for Russell Wilson. Not the bury him. But the point being between New England and Denver, the message is, guys, don't, don't, don't get out of the rigidity. If you make a mistake with a coach or a quarterback, the rebuilds are a year in the NFL. You get about a crappy year. I mean, Denver in their rebuild year with Bo Nix made the playoffs. New England in, I believe a rebuild year is going to make the AFC championship. So I kept thinking about it this weekend when I looked at Denver, the overarching message is you get the coach right, you get the quarterback mostly right. Bo Nix is hit and miss. You can not only make the playoffs, but you can end up a number one seed. Our number one seeds are Bo Nixon, Sam Darnold. You know, so I. We were getting into a weird space, John, where it felt like Mahomes, Allen, Lamar, like you were getting into a space where it felt like you had to have a superstar quarterback to get in. The takeaway now is no, get. Get a young, talented quarterback, Caleb Williams. I mean, Stafford's now the only expensive guy left. Right.

[John Middlekauff]

Going into this, I also think that a lot of like the Texans are a good example. If CJ Stroud would have taken the approach like, hey, on this team, I'm just going to be Brad Johnson or Trent Dilfer. Call me a game Manager, they could have won the super bowl, but he tried to play like, I'm this number two overall quarterback. Watch me make plays. He's like, bro, do you do not need to do that. So I think there's this fine line of, can you get a guy to play within your system, understand what he is? It's hard. These quarterbacks now are rock stars. They make a ton of money on and off the field and some guys just can't kind of find their lane. And then you're very predicated on the play calling. Also, when you pay a lot of money for these quarterbacks, it does limit. I mean, Buffalo and Kansas City just have less wiggle room to make moves. Look at Denver.

[Colin Cowherd]

That's right.

[John Middlekauff]

I want Hu Funga and I want Greenlaw. Boom. Buy it. Bought McGlinchey a year ago. You just start. You, you, you just can be a little more aggressive once you pivot off and kind of manipulate the cap. Also, it speaks to these owners. What is Denver doing a lot like the Eagles did. They funny money contracts. They pay you more cash up front, push it all down the line, and it's become not only a smart guy, aggressive league, but is your owner willing? Because they all have money. Like if the Browns want to spend money, they can. They just choose not to. In Cincinnati, they'd be cheap. If your owner wants to double down. I mean, that's been the knock on Jerry. It's like, yeah, just I'll pay a couple guys, but like I'm going to, I'm going to be a little cheap on the margins. And I think Denver, clearly, this is only going to solidify they, they might get beat by 20 points in the AFC championship just because this guy doesn't take any reps. Right? So we're in late January. I mean, he's probably gone four months without really taking. Assuming Bo takes them all during practice. He's with the scout team. That's a lot to ask. So even worst case scenario. But big picture now, Sean's kind of, you know, validated. When I tell you when I want something, listen to me. And these owners, I mean, who has more money than Walmart, you know, Steve Ballmer, I mean, it's a very short list. So it's like, hey, let's pay this guy, give him a $80 million signing bonus, we'll do a 10 year contract and we'll manipulate the books. And that's why they were able to kind of maneuver the Russell Wilson disaster. Think about Trey Lance. Niners pivoted in a blink of an eye. Boom. Didn't even think twice. You know, Carson Wentz years ago with the Eagles. It's like, if you're willing to be like, hey, we missed some. We traded first rounders, we paid a bunch of money. Who cares? You're all making so much money you won't even remember it in six months.

[Colin Cowherd]

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[John Middlekauff]

Almost.

[Colin Cowherd]

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[Colin Cowherd]

You need delivered with UberEats. What do you 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? Very much a yes. An afternoon stroll? Sorry, no. A burrito bowl? Happily yes. All right. Delivery is on its way. I use it regularly. How about the Clear Skies? Can't deliver that. But French fries? Yeah. A little escape? No. Delicious bowl of grapes. Yeah. How about a freshly cut lawn? Can't help you there. But barbecued prawns. Order it now. Get almost, almost anything delivered with Uber Eats. Order now. Alcohol in select markets. Product availability may vary by region. See app for details. New year, same extra value meals at McDonald's. So now get two snack wraps plus fries and a medium soft drink for just $8 for a limited time only. Prices and participation may vary. Prices may be higher in Hawaii, Alaska and California.

[John Middlekauff]

And for delivery.

[Colin Cowherd]

Seattle, our final game recap. Hammers San Francisco 41 6. I thought it was going to be really close. Somewhere in the third quarter, Seattle pulls. Instead, they take the opening kickoff and from that point, the floodgates open. You know, I'll say this. Kyle Shanahan has coached 163 games with the Niners. Only four times he's been held under seven points. Two of those are against the Seahawks in January. Listen. One with George Kittle, one without. Listen. I don't know if it's the Legion of Boom, but I will tell you, these corners for Seattle, the linebackers, Ernest Jones, their pass rush is unbelievable. You can't run on them. I mean, and what this really benefits Seattle is that they don't have to take major risks with Sam Darnold. He plays a very conservative game. They run the ball with Walker. I mean, I look at this Seattle defense and they don't need to take a lot of risks. It's a. I mean, you know, Darnold's throwing 18, 20 times a game with that run game with that defense. Also, the difference between the Seahawks and the Rams and Niners in division. Seattle's got great special teams, outstanding special teams. I don't see a hole in Seattle, do you?

[John Middlekauff]

You know, they remind me a lot of the 2019 49ers who were the number one seed and had a 10 point lead with five minutes to go against Kansas City Chiefs in the Super Bowl. And if you remember in that NFC championship game, I think Jimmy Garoppolo threw eight pass attempts and they blew out Aaron Rodgers because their defense was unstoppable. Yeah, and what did they have, Kyle and Sala back then? Well, what does this team have? McDonald and Kubiak, who I've been saying forever, the Kubiax are basically just the cousins of the Shanahans. Right. I mean, the offense was invented with the two of them. So I. When I see a team that they won a game yesterday, 41 to 6, and their quarterback completed 12 passes for 120 yards. So this was the the Jimmy Garoppolo 49ers. As long as you don't turn the ball over, they're going to win the Super Bowl. If their defense is going to play like that, they're going to win the Super Bowl. The only way they will not win the super bowl is if he has a game where he has a fumble and an interception. If he just plays controlled, who cares? To look at CJ Stroud today? Punt is not a bad thing. They're not going to move the ball. At most, they're going to score a couple touchdowns. Who cares? We cannot fumble the ball. We cannot throw interceptions. If Sam Darnold, which, let's face it, he led the league in turnovers during the season. So you were nervous, and then the oblique injury to me scared me because, yeah, a lot of quarter. I remember specifically, I think Derek Carr had this, and he just couldn't throw right. So you just think, how's this going to work? And then you watch that first throw of the game, it was kind of like, hit the ground. You went, well, this might be something Shanahan said after the game. He's like, well, once the torture all really hits in, he ain't going to feel it. So. And then as the game went on, he looked just completely normal, and they didn't even need them. But if your defense, from a scheme standpoint, they're the best scheme defense. And the way I've been described by Niner people, typically, Kyle, he kills you because he's such a good game planner of, like, he knows exactly what you're going to do so he can put his guy in a place that he knows you're not going to be. The problem for McDonald is he's basically a wizard. You think he's going to do something, and then he does the complete opposite. When the ball snapped, no one really plays like that. Belichick used to do this forever, right? Spagnola kind of does this with his blitzes. It's a short list of guys that can really manipulate the defense like offensive coaches manipulate the offense. This guy's. I mean, elite. I mean, there's. There's no way around it. And his. And then the personnel standpoint, we talk about Brand being with Buffalo, they have the opposite with Schneider. I mean, he's. He's going to the hall of Fame. I mean, that's just. That's the case. So he's going right to the hall of Fame.

[Colin Cowherd]

As a gm, my people that I trust think Snyder's the best personnel guy in the league. Howie Roseman is more aggressive and maybe the great manipulator of trades and draft picks. John's the best personnel guy. Just looking at overall personnel. And by the way, in this division, Seattle said, Listen, McVay and Shanahan are in this division. We're not going to have the third best offensive coach. They didn't try to top the Rams and the Niners, like, okay, we got a McVeigh, we got Shanahan. We're not beating that. We're going to go get the McVeigh of the defensive side. So we're going to build this thing on defense because you and I, John, know this. In the history of football, even now's football, in most of the time, if your offense is competent and not turnover prone, a dominating defense. The Seahawks humiliated Peyton Manning in a Super Bowl. The Seahawks should have beaten Tom Brady in the super bowl if not for Malcolm Butler. A great defense with a competent offense, usually. Mahomes has been blown out twice in Super Bowls. He can't get past pro. He can't be protected. So I just, I just. They're the opposite of the Steelers. They're the opposite of the Steelers is that the Seahawks have built a defense that is young and cheap. It's the 23rd most expensive defense. You know, with the Steelers, they spent all this money four years in a row. The most expensive defense. It's old, creaky, a lot of injuries and expensive. Seattle's the opposite. They hit on their draft picks. It's young, cheap, flexible, and allows them to, you know, go out and get Rashid Saheed and you know who, by the way, they already had solid special teams. Now they're probably the best special teams left in the playoffs.

[John Middlekauff]

I think what he did a really good job of, and a lot of people complain go. We're never bad enough to bottom out. Well, Seattle never bottomed out, right? They got the Russell Wilson trade in the one year it netted them, I think the fifth pick and they got Witherspoon, who's a high end player, but a lot of their guys, the guards from North Dakota State, Zable, Byron Murphy, those were teams that went like 9 and 8, were 10 and 7. So he was picking in the teens and he hit home runs. So a lot of GMs, you know him, I know him. And personnel will bitch like, you know, it's hard to find a guy at 16. John. I didn't see John Schneider complaining. He just got impact Pro bowl guys with those couple picks, obviously the Sam Darnold thing, even he admitted, we tried to pay Geno. We kind of lowballed them relative. I mean, they were offering him $35 million. He thought he was with 40. He's like, fine, we're not. We're going to have a number. See you later. We'll go to Sam for basically a cheaper price.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah.

[John Middlekauff]

And it's not like Sam, you know, he was better last year. Right. 35 touchdowns this year. A little. Little up and down with the turnovers, but he's much more seasoned. Like you saw him last night. It felt like a guy under control. He's injured. He understands the circumstance. Just play under control. Play like Jimmy Garoppolo. 2019, which back to CJ Stroud can be hard for guys who are star guys, drafted high. You yourself. And that's why when people make the transition, Rich Gannon's talked about this. You know, it used to happen a lot, like, even before I was born, Jim Plunkett, guys that have been really humbled and then kind of know their role. I think it is very difficult for these guys to be like, hey, JJ McCarthy, you were a top 10 pick, but we need you to play a little different now. And the version they got out of Sam Darnold last night, that will win them the super bowl, if he can just. If they can play in games where they're not even throwing it 20 times a game, they might blow out the next two teams they play. Maybe not 41 to 6. But would it shock you if they won the next two games by double digits? If Sam Darnold is attempting less than 20 balls, they can run the ball in their defense. Like Houston could do that if they just had a normal offense. When you have that level of defense, Houston's defense, Seattle's defense, even Denver, I keep hearing their defense is not as good as it was last year. It's not bad. No, but it's not dominant by any. I mean, they got shredded on the ground. You can't do anything on Seattle.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah. And by the way, the Niners overachieved all season. They had no business beating Philly and Philly. Philly fell apart offensively in coaching. So, I mean, to me, Trent Williams said it after, once you beat Philly and Philly with this roster, you're going up to Seattle, you got no George Kittle. I've always said this. If you speed Brock Purdy up, he becomes pretty normal. I mean, Christian McCaffrey in two games against the Seahawks, couldn't do anything. So, you know, McCaffrey's got Christian's not helping. He's averaging three yards a carry. There's no Kittle. I'm sorry. The secondary for Seattle in the pass rush. This was a roster mismatch and I do think San Francisco hitting a couple of young players, but I felt it was a roster mismatch. All right, John Harbaugh to the New York Giants. Let's finish with this. Stefanski, by the way, gets the Atlanta job. A lot of offensive skill. People not sure what the Steelers are doing. They're going to get the third choice because the Ravens, they're coming in. They're probably. I think you would choose the Ravens over the Steelers. So excuse me. The Steelers will get the fourth choice at best. You know, and this is a. Rooneys not super aggressive in the free agent market, the trade deadline and the coaching market. They're not good at this. So Giants get their guy. Atlanta gets their guy. Baltimore's probably next top of the food chain with Steve Bushotti, Lamar Jackson, good roster. Steelers at best get fourth. Watch out Pittsburgh, John Harbaught in New York. So I text the GM today I said, Joe Shane, I mean Harbaugh. John Harbaugh is making 20 million a year. Joe Shane has no leverage and that's what he said. This is. John is going to go straight to Mara. I have picked four years in a row. My double your win total team. Giants went 4 and 13. I actually think they're going to be a 10 or 11 win team next year. I think Washington's a bit of a mess. Dallas, we don't know what they're doing with the coaching position. I think they're bringing the, you know, they're bringing Brian Schottenheimer back. They still have some real holes defensively. You know, you get to watch Jackson dart. John Harbaugh can watch Jackson dart for a year and say, let's see, I'm going to get. I'm going to start him and see if I like him because it's good. They're going to be going into a great quarterback draft out of college. I think it sets up really well. I think between Andrew Thomas, if they get a right tackle like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers did with Brady. Go get a right tackle. There's three good ones in the first round. I think offensively they're going to be interesting. They've got Abdul Carter, they got Brian Burns. Probably need some secondary help. I strongly believe that this is a. They don't need a schematic guy, John. They don't need a play caller. They need a culture Changer. There's no Shanahans on the market. Right. That's rare. You get the CEO and the play caller. Play designer. Harbaugh, to me, is what they needed. Successful culture builder. Good staff builder.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

I like.

[Colin Cowherd]

I'll be honest. If they get the right tackle and a corner and a tight end in the draft, John. I like their roster.

[John Middlekauff]

Yeah. To me. And it's a great fit for him. When it, when he got fired and then the next day they fired Mike McDaniel and it was like, they're going to go after him. I was like, John Harbaught of Miami. That feels like a weird fit. That feels like where a guy goes to kind of retire in his shoes. To me, he feels New York Giants, you know, since 1998, he got hired with Philadelphia. I think that was the year before Andy Reid even got there. Yeah, Andy kept him. And then so basically from 98 till a couple weeks ago, he's been in Philadelphia and Baltimore.

[Colin Cowherd]

Right.

[John Middlekauff]

Like, he belongs in that area. He's comfortable. He feels like that area.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah. So is variable. Yeah.

[John Middlekauff]

100%. I, I was. I, I don't really remember the, the Walsh Niner era, but there was one team that could handle them, and it was Bill Parcels. And then the one team that could take down Brady and Belichick, it was Tom Coughlin. And I would say that when Bill Parcells and Tom Coughlin. I remember meeting Tom Coughlin one time at the combine. He's not the biggest, most intimidating human. It's not like a variable or a Jim Harbaugh, but when you met him, you felt like, this guy's the boss, you know, just like, stand up straight. And to me, that's what the Harbaughs bring to the table. So the Giants. Now, you could argue this about New York. Think about the successful coaches even remove football. Pat Riley, right. Joe Tory, they've kind of been like, yeah, this guy's the boss. And the last decade since they got rid of Coughlin, which wasn't the wrong move. It was time.

[Colin Cowherd]

Right.

[John Middlekauff]

They got a bunch of guys that like, this guy's a number two, this guy's a number three. This guy is no. In this market, too. You could pull it off in some of these smaller market spots, you have no chance. In New York, you get eaten alive. The jets make that mistake a lot. Right, Right. And John Harbaugh will come in. I mean, look at. They are very, very lucky that this played out the way it did because it gives them a chance to change the franchise.

[Colin Cowherd]

Also, John, when You do the first hire, you get the best staff. So this is why I worry about Pittsburgh. So Atlanta immediately goes and gets Stefanski because they want to get the best. Stefanski wants to get that defensive staff in because Stefanski is going to get a good offensive staff. He's a bright guy. He wants to get special teams and defense taken care of. So, I mean, to me, I think Atlanta is very attractive in terms of offensive skill. Pretty good offensive line. I think there's stability in Arthur Blank. I think people respect Arthur Blank. I think Stevenski is really bright. It's a weaker division. You're playing indoors. You know, to me, I think Stevansky would fit there. But the minute the Giants went, Harbaugh, I think Atlanta looks at that and goes, all right, let's get our guy. That's where I worry about Pittsburgh, because they don't do this. At least Atlanta and the Giants have. They have a history of hiring coaches and the process.

[John Middlekauff]

My only issue with the Giants thing is the Giants had to do whatever it took to get this guy. They gave him $100 million. I mean, great time to be a coach. I mean, how much money is John Harbaugh going to make over the course? By 2030, he'll be worth, like, hundreds of millions of dollars.

[Colin Cowherd]

This guy.

[John Middlekauff]

These guys are crushing it. But I do think you got to be very careful. And Andy's like his mentor, a guy that he looks up to. I think that helped. He talked to a bunch. When Andy went to Kansas City, he said, listen, I do not want to pick the players. Now, I'm not saying John is saying that, but when you put yourself away from the gm, you have all the juice. To me, the Giants, what they should do is, listen, we are going to put you at the top of the food chain, but we want you like your brother with Ortiz, get someone you really respect so you can lean on him. Like, you know what? D' Ameco doesn't have to worry about picking players. Casario does it. All right, you know what? Mike McDonald doesn't have to worry about picking players. John does it all. Focus on coaching, focus on the culture. Obviously, you impact who we draft and sign, but right now, John's kind of. It's kind of gruden, like. And Mark Davis said, I want you to work with Reggie McKenzie for a year.

[Colin Cowherd]

You know why?

[John Middlekauff]

Because I think a lot of these owners, they spend way more time with the gm. They end up liking the guy. I'm sure they like Joe Shane a lot. This is never gonna Joe Shane I would be stunned. Now I said that about Sean Payton with the guy, he's still there, the gm, you know, kind of fall so it's never guaranteed. You know he's got a year to sell himself I think George Pat Payton, Patton. Right. Still Sean's gm, he's respected though.

[Colin Cowherd]

I mean he's pretty good personnel guy.

[John Middlekauff]

Well had turned down GM interviews for like seven years before he got the Denver job. He was kind of like, you know, Chris Ballard, Adam Peters, they're these rare personnel guys that like Casterio was like that have a run where they kind of pick their specific job. This doesn't feel like that with Joe Shane and it almost feels inevitable that he's just going to have a Raven type guy in that spot. Why not do it right now? Why not just start fresh? So John because sometimes coaches, they think a lot different than personnel guys. Yeah, personnel guys can be a little less emotional, can think bigger picture stuff. They understand the marketplace of the draft a little bit better And I just feel now the Giants don't really have a crazy. It's not like there's a Khalil Mack for him to trade or you know something crazy for him but in a year he could do something that maybe he would regret in two years that he didn't have to do that in Baltimore because he had Ozzy and Eric Dacosta and by many considered the best, one of the best staffs in the league. Now he's going, he's you know Vrabel when he went to New England brought one of his guys to Tennessee to work with Elliot Wolf. I have a lot of friends that think you watch John will bring, you know a Baltimore guy with him but then that's what's the point. You know it's. I'd be very careful about that. Totally pro the hire think it's a no brainer but that the coach having too much juice sometimes they can. I think he told Ian o' Connor we plan on making the playoffs next year. I mean this guy's not coming there to rebuild.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah and I think it's hard enough to be a gm. I think you have to be very careful about wanting that power. Sean Payton has had some power but again has a really strong guy, Joe Shane. I don't, I don't think is going to rise to a top five gm the Saquon Barkley move because it was so public and on tv but I mean let's be honest. Abdul Carter was scatter Boo Jackson Dart, Malik Neighbors when he's Healthy. I mean there are some players on this roster that he's done a pretty good job. Joe Shane hasn't. He hasn't whiffed. I mean Brandon Bean with the Buffalo Bills has. I mean there's some big whiffs here. So Joe Shane's done been more than competent for a lot of his draft picks. The Saquon Barkley thing is going to hang over him forever. That's why. That's another reason why you don't want to do one of these HBO Hard Knocks shows. But my argument is that division between Dallas's dysfunction, you know, Dan Quinn, keep your eyes on that. Adam Peters, basically Cliff Kingsbury felt he was bullied. Now you don't have an offensive coordinator, Jaden Daniels, you cross your fingers. Sirianni is going to maintain his job. So my take it this is not one of the stronger coach divisions. This is not McVay Shanahan and Mike McDonald. Okay. This division is a Harbaugh. The minute you hired Vrabel, best coach in the division. The minute you hired John Harbaugh, best coach in the division. That. That usually works out well.

[John Middlekauff]

Well I think what you can see with Washington come from a mile away is Mike Tomlin because pretty sure Mike Tomlin's from that general area.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah.

[John Middlekauff]

And he's going to go on tv. His stock is only going to skyrocket. And who's their owner? An NBA guy. Who has he hired? Doc Rivers, Nick Nurse won an NBA championship in Embiid. Get Paul George, like the NBA is a splashier league and that's. He's kind of used to that. And he goes well, we haven't even won. But we've always been a topic conversation. We can win and be a topic of conversation. To me you can see it coming from a mile away. The Tomlin thing. Who, who's his right hand man now? Bob Myers, NBA guy. They're meant to Bushad is an NFL guy. Thinks big picture, can take a deep breath, doesn't live, you know, on Twitter, like doesn't even care. Right. Most of these NFL owners, they're making so much money, they realize that they've been making the money before social media. They realize how irrelevant is the NBA is a little bit more day to day Internet, all that flashy headlines and Josh Harris like to me, Dan Quinn's a year away. You don't make the playoffs next year. Which listen, the Eagles obviously their coach, but they're going to be good. You know, they got good players.

[Colin Cowherd]

Dallas, feisty. Ben Johnson turned down Washington his takeaway was the Washington guys, the NBA Washington guys thought they knew a little more about football than they really did. Those are NBA guys. Yeah, I think, I think the Tomlin thing, I think you're right about. And Tomlin's not a college or a West coast guy. He wants to stay East. That's his heritage. That's his history. That's what he feels comfortable doing. Again, some of these guys, Belichick, Vrabel, Tomlin, Harbaugh, they just feel like they're at home. They feel comfortable. Where you live dictates a lot of your happiness and comfort and confidence. And I think you're right.

[John Middlekauff]

I give Mike a lot of credit. If truly. And who knows exactly the behind the scenes detail, but if he truly looked in the mirror and he probably would have known this before the day that he announced, like, this thing's over. Right. They're going to be better off. I need to move. Sean Payton did the same thing. Like, guys, this thing's done. We need both pivot. 19, 18 years, you know, John Harbaugh, it's hard. I mean, the reports, Mike, Tom was making $25 million. Most human beings don't walk away from that. But he saw this team a lot like the Saints. It's going to get uglier before it gets better. Yeah. What was the Rooneys quote? We don't plan on rebuilding. Well, bro, you might need to like, yeah, this is 20, 26. Check your roster. You got problems. So I think Mike Tomlin, if Dan Quinn is Dan Quinn, you know, he's a great guy. People love him. Is he missed and he's had a good little run there with McCarthy. They had some really good players there for a couple of years. Like, I don't know. You know, I don't know.

[Colin Cowherd]

I think he's mid. I think that's fair. I think he's a nice guy. I think he's pretty mid. I think coaching is getting better and smarter. And I just. Even defensive coaches, I don't put him in like a Mike McDonald class or a Robert Sala class or a Demico Ryan's class.

[John Middlekauff]

Agreed.

[Colin Cowherd]

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[John Middlekauff]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Colin Cowherd]

Guaranteed Human.