Jason McIntyre (3:26)

I did that last week. It was so therapy.

Colin Cowherd (3:28)

So did I. Yeah. So the story today, Peter Schrager, he works at Fox NFL Network, came out to say that Matt Stafford, we talked about this yesterday. The Rams and Stafford have a fine relationship. They don't love when stuff goes public. A lot of times with Stafford, the Cooper cup stuff. I'm told the Rams don't love that stuff. But Stafford, according to Schrager, wants $50 million a year to play this year for the Rams. So my take is I would give Stafford a two year, hundred million dollar contract. I would make it short and expensive. I would not give him three and four years. So the good news for the Rams is that their defense is the cheapest in the NFL by $20 million. Why? Because they have nailed the last two years, all their defensive draft picks, their defense is great, it's getting better, and it's the cheapest by $20 million. Basically. They don't pay Puka Nakua on offense and Kyron Williams, they're two best offensive players outside of Stafford. They pay Rob Havenstein, a good right tackle, but they don't pay him exorbitantly. And he's always been willing to kind of, you know, on an annual basis, play the game and, you know, manipulate his contract a little to help the team. So the bottom line, they can afford it. The Rams have one bad contract. Cooper cup has aged very quickly. That's not a great contract. Philadelphia's got a bad contract, too. Everybody's got a bad contract. Everybody in the league outside of maybe the packers has a bad contract. They can afford to pay him. What they don't want to do is get trapped. The Cowboys are trapped. The Cleveland Browns are trapped. When you pay a quarterback too much, they get hurt. They're not available. They're not as good as you think because quarterbacks age very quickly. Big Ben after that elbow surgery got old fast. Cam Newton went from MVP to just didn't run very well. Carson Wentz dynamic to doa. Aaron Rodgers, Kirk Cousins last year in three weeks aged overnight. So what the Rams don't want to do because Matt Stafford is one of those guys that will sit in the pocket to the very last second and take a bomb from an edge rusher. Matt Stafford has taken a ton of hits. He's not mobile, he's a pocket guy. He's a tough guy. He's always a little dinged up. By week three on, he's bleeding somewhere. And so they don't want to get trapped. They don't want to be Russell Wilson in Denver and Matt slot better than Russell Wilson or they don't want to be the Cowboys. And Dak Stafford's a lot better than Dak. I would pay him because they've hit on every defensive draft pick and I mean, the last two years, every one of them is better than you thought they would be. And when you do that, they don't pay anything for their defense. I mean, literally, it's like it's the cheapest in the NFL by $20 million. And they don't pay Puka or Kyron Williams. So they can, they can afford to pay him, especially if their first pick is a left tackle. They're looking at the kid from Oregon. If they get him, that means now they're cheap at left tackle. So I think they're going to pay Stafford. I think they're meeting an Indy at the combine. I think they want to make it two years, not five, and that's where they are right now. I think the team is too good. Again, we talked about it yesterday. The Rams were driving in Philadelphia in a snowstorm down to the 15 yard line. If not for Jalen Carter would have beaten the Philadelphia Eagles. So this is a really good team. I wouldn't disrupt it. Stafford's great, but he has taken a ton of hits in his day and they don't want to get trapped. And with that, he's joining us live from the NFL network at his 23rd NFL Combine. Daniel Jeremiah, for the record, take today's combine this week and your first. How is the combine changed in relevance, importance, access, all those things?

Daniel Jeremiah (7:02)

Well, Colin, I remember my first combine. I was a Gopher for the Ravens. It was before I'd even been hired there full time. And I remember walking the halls of the old RCA Dome, walking back to the hotel, and I remember thinking, what in the World are John Clayton and Chris Mortensen doing here? There were two media members here. That was absolutely it. It was just a scouting exercise with no attention. And now today you can't walk five feet without running into another reporter, somebody else from tv. It's just a massive, massive media event. The NFL is, is king of making these events.

Colin Cowherd (7:37)

So there's about four players in this draft. I love, I love Abdul Carter, Mason Graham. I think TMac, the receiver from Arizona is a really special player. It's a small group. I do think it's the best running back group I have seen in recent memory. I mean I the kid from North Carolina maybe better than the kid from Boise State, so. And there are some group, but overall it's just my opinion. I don't see a lot of star power as somebody that's been a scout for multiple teams. How would you view this if you were director of scouting for the Chargers tomorrow? How would you view the draft?

Daniel Jeremiah (8:13)

Yeah, I would say it's a starter's draft, not a star draft. You know, I think Abdul Carter, Travis Hunter, to me up there at the top have some star potential for different reasons but you know, for the most part you're looking at starters and when I evaluated draft when I was with teams and the way I look at it now, if you can find three starters in a draft, Colin, that's a heck of a draft. You mentioned the Rams. Look at how they've kind of rebuilt and remade their team, especially on the defensive side of the ball with back to back drafts where they were rock solid collecting all of these starters. And once you have those position filled with starters now you can go shopping in the free agent market in future years. Now you can invest some high resources elsewhere. But man, this is, there's a lot of holes you can plug in this draft.

Colin Cowherd (8:55)

So I said earlier my favorite part of Shador Sanders and I think Cam Ward is the better prospect because he's more dynamic, bigger arm, moves better, he'll be more of a playmaker. My favorite part of Shadour isn't that he's Deion's kid. It's that he had a terrible run game and a terrible O line for two years. So he knows and this what is what happens when you're a lottery pick, draft pick. You go to bad teams and bad rosters and battle lines. Shedeur has had the worst run game in college football for two years. He's had no help, he's played from behind, he's played with a pass rush. I think that's incredibly important as a prospect. What do you think of him and does he have a comp?

Daniel Jeremiah (9:38)

Yeah, it's a great point. You know, it's, it's something that's. You go back in history now, different style of players. But Josh Allen had that at Wyoming, Patrick Mahomes, you know, he started every game down 40 points. I think at Texas Tech, I think that was a rule in the Big 12 at the time. So, you know, these guys have had to deal with real adversity. And a lot of times you're seeing it with, with Caleb to some degree, like that's, this is real adversity hitting him hard for the first time. So there's going to be an adjustment. I believe he'll get on the other side of that. But there is, there is legitimate value of having had to struggle and not have better players than everyone you play against, which, you know, a lot of the quarterbacks we've ushered into the NFL over the last few years have been, you know, lsu, Ohio State, Alabama, you know, where they're playing with superior players. There can be in a little bit of an adjustment period. He's, he's got his butt kicked. So I think there is value there. The negative side of that is you can get into some bad habits.

Colin Cowherd (10:29)

Yeah.

Daniel Jeremiah (10:30)

With him maybe drifting a little bit in the pocket at times, holding the ball too long, you know, trying to make things happen. And, you know, those are things you kind of navigate and work through in terms of comps. He's a tough one for me, I would say, you know, if Joe Burrow is a tree of quarterbacks of that style, he's not anywhere, you know, near the top of that tree where Joe is. But that's the style, that's the format, it's the processing, it's the anticipation, the accuracy. You know, maybe that over, you know, more overwhelming physical traits. That's the, you know, that's kind of the North Star. That's the high, high, high end. I don't necessarily think he gets there, but that stylistically is a fit.

Colin Cowherd (11:09)

Okay, so Cam Ward's got a big arm. It's a little back yard football for my taste, but I do think some of that you can coach out of it. How do you view him? Cam Ward, who's his comp.

Daniel Jeremiah (11:22)

Yeah, you know, you look, you can see a lot of Caleb in his game, to be honest, from last year. Just, you know, there's, there's the, the tools that jump out at you, you know, the live arm, the ball jumps out of his hand. I think he's got a lot of twitch, not only in his, in his release and the way the ball comes out, but just in his feet. Not in the sense of I'm going to go run for 50 yards, but I've got a free rusher. I'm real twitchy and explosive to be able to sidestep him and then deliver the ball with accuracy. He's still loose. You know, you can watch the cow game and watch him throw across his body and cringe, you know, at a couple of those moments. But if you've tracked him throughout his career, I think he's improved in that area and cleaned it up each and every year. And at a big year last year. Speaking of someone who didn't have a defense, he didn't have one at Miami last year either. So there's a lot to like about him.

Colin Cowherd (12:09)

I'm.

Daniel Jeremiah (12:09)

I'm going to chase the ceiling versus the floor if I'm taking a quarterback high in the draft. I just think when you look around that conference, specifically the AFC and is one cyborg after another, Colin. So you've got to, you've got to go try and get somebody that can go toe to toe with those guys. I don't want to go with a floor pick. And then three years from now realize, okay, he's not good enough to navigate through, you know, the, the Burrow, the Lamar Jacksons, the Josh Allens, the Herberts, and on and on we go in the afc.

Colin Cowherd (12:38)

So you're on. The Chargers broadcast highly respected. His, his account, move the sticks. He's on podcasts everywhere. It didn't surprise me. I had the Chargers making the playoffs. It did not surprise me. They had the decision. They kept Bosa and Khalil Mack and they went Joe Alt. So it's classic Harbaugh. They moved off wide receivers. Now. I argued. I argued. If you go to San Francisco, his best receiver was Michael Crabtree. At Michigan, they rarely threw the ball. It was a run game. So his DNA is. Listen, we're not going to be. We're not Mike Martz's Rams here. We're not the greatest show on turf. That's not what we do. It does feel like the Chargers in this draft have to get more dynamic on the perimeter, does it not? Can you give us a little insight with Harbaugh's second class?

Daniel Jeremiah (13:25)

Yeah, I think that you can look at Detroit as the roadmap. You know, Detroit went and got all the big rocks in the jar. They went and got the offensive lineman, the defensive lineman. They had the quarterback in place, and then they were able to go out and get the explosiveness. And you saw. Once you have that foundation built and you drop in a Jameer Gibbs, Jameson Williams to go along with Amon Ross, St. Brown, and, you know, laporte is an athletic, explosive player, then that thing goes to the next level. So I think that's the next thing to do for this team and for this offense. But, Colin, I've, you know, I think a lot of teams have decisions to make here, and I always advise, you know, hey, don't go to the toy store until you've gone to the hardware store first. So I think the Chargers did some hardware store shopping last year, and this year they get to go across the street and. And go find some toys at the toy store.

Colin Cowherd (14:13)

So I want to talk about the Stafford thing, because in Los Angeles, you know, there's just. We're all kind of interconnected to a lot of the football teams and sourcing. I'm told the Rams love Stafford and Stafford likes the Rams, and I can't see him going to the Giants and playing outdoors with a shaky O line like, it's a really good fit. And because the Rams have hit on so many of their defensive draft picks, they're paying nobody on that side of the ball. They're not paying Puka. They're not paying Kyron Williams. Havenstein's got a realistic deal. He's excellent right tackle. They may draft the left tackle with their first pick. They could pay Stafford. But in your dealings in the NFL, what you don't want is a Cam Newton, a ban of Kirk Cousins. All of a sudden you're at the Thanksgiving and your quarterback looks really old, really fast. What do you think is a reasonable compromise for the Rams and Stafford? What would you believe in all your years? Because I could see two years, 100 million walk away and draft Riley Leonard in the third round. Your guess on what they'll do and what they're looking for. Because reportedly they're gonna. They're gonna sit down at the combine tomorrow and the next day and try to make a deal.

Daniel Jeremiah (15:25)

Yeah, I mean, you mentioned the reason to me, with how close they were in an NFC that's not nearly as stacked as the AFC is right now. They're right there. They're right on the doorstep. They are literally feet away from being in another super bowl last year. It would be hard to turn the page now. The only thing I would say is the Rams have been progressive in a lot of things. They've done they're very well run, they're very smart and how they approach things. And how many times have you heard from well run franchises in different sports, Colin, that we're gonna, we're gonna move on a year too early versus a year too late. So if this, you know, is something that Stafford's camp wants, a longer term commitment, I could see them, you know, literally putting a whiteboard up and saying, matthew Stafford, at this price point for the next several years versus all that we can do with the savings and money over here on the other column. And I guess you have to have some comfort level with who you could have to replace them. You know, is that Sam Darnold? Is that somebody else that's out there? But I think that they'll, you know, they'll explore those two opportunities. The sweet spot to me is right where you are. It's, it's a short term deal. It's two years. More than one, not more than two. To me, that's the, that's. That sweet spot is they're right, they're right there. They're right on the doorstep to get into a Super Bowl.

Colin Cowherd (16:38)

All right, NFL Network, NFL plus, provide live coverage. It's the combine. It's the 23rd. In all your years of covering it, you have Abdul Carter, I think, is your number one player generally. Has there ever been a shock at the combine? Has there ever been a player that you went, oh, my Lord, he is way beyond. I can remember the tight end from Maryland. Is it Vernon?

Daniel Jeremiah (16:59)

Oh, Vernon Davis, yeah.

Colin Cowherd (17:01)

He took his shirt off. I'm like, whoa, what's going on? That was a moment to me that jumped out. Give me a combine moment that you can reflect on. That was a shocker to me.

Daniel Jeremiah (17:11)

A Calvin Johnson borrowing a pair of shoes. And I think he ran in the low four threes. At 6:5,235 pounds or something like that. That one jumps out to me. The other one which took place underneath the stadium is. I had watched, I'd done all the quarterbacks this year and had watched them, and this guy was obviously incredibly talented. I remember walking in the hall and I under, under the stadium. They're getting ready to do the weigh ins. So he had just his, his compression shorts on and that was it. And I walked by and I was walking with a buddy and I said, which what defensive end is that? He goes, that's Cam Newton. I went, oh, my gosh. Yeah, that was, that was eye opening. To see somebody that, as big, as massive as he was, to move around like he did was pretty nuts.

Colin Cowherd (17:56)

Daniel Jeremiah, NFL Network analyst. He's sensational. Good seeing you as always, Daniel.

Daniel Jeremiah (18:02)

Good to see Bud.

Colin Cowherd (18:03)

Yeah. I remember years ago when I worked for the Other Place. I did. I think I may have done the Cam draft. And I remember and it's all fuzzy, but Cam was bigger than the first defensive end taken. And I remember because. And I remember the defensive end was there. I believe in the building and did not perform particularly well in the NFL. And I just remember thinking when I came off that draft coverage on. On the Other Place on the radio network was size really does matter. Like your initial view of something is just. It does matter. Abdul Carter for Penn State. When you see him, you know, and you see him in games and how, how he's cut, he looks like a nine year NFL vet. Miles Garrett out of college, you were just like, okay, that doesn't look like a college athlete. I remember seeing Jamar Chase at LSU and thinking, he's just. He's an NFL player playing on Saturday. Like nobody in the SEC could. Could stay in front of him. His catching radius.

Jason McIntyre (19:02)

Well, you, you got a great memory, Colin. I just looked it up. Cam Newton, first edge rusher was Von Miller went to. He's smaller.

Colin Cowherd (19:09)

No, that wasn't the one, though. It was. It wasn't that. It was so it wasn't the.

Jason McIntyre (19:14)

Alden Smith was also in the top 10.

Colin Cowherd (19:16)

No. Who was? Maybe it was the year before. Maybe it wasn't the Cam Newton draft. I was doing ESPN radio at the time and maybe it wasn't the Cam Newton draft. It was either a year before, after that and it was the first defensive end taken. And I swear he was from Clemson. He was Southern. And I was just so underwhelmed with his size. And, and I. And I just remember thinking he, he just doesn't look like an NFL player and he didn't do a darn thing in the NFL. So it wasn't the Cam Newton draft because Vaughn Miller came out. Von Miller was great. He was big, but he was Texas A and M. He was a dominant player. All right, Chris Finch of the T Wolves Wild win. He's gonna get fined by the NBA. So he's controversial. That's who we bring on. That's last hour live in LA.

Daniel Jeremiah (20:05)

The herd.

Colin Cowherd (20:05)

One more herd. The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week, within the iHeartRadio app. Search her to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. All right, let's get into it. Virgin voyages. This isn't just another cruise line. This is redefining what luxury travel means. First off, all in voyage pricing, over $1,000 in value. Wi fi, tips, entertainment, even dining at specialty restaurants. It's all included. No nickel and diming, no hidden fees. It's clear, simple and honestly how it should have always been done. And the cabins? Let's just say they're not your standard hotel on the water deal. They've got private terraces, virgin red hammocks, views of the open sea. It's a reset button for your brain. Now here's what really sets them apart. No kids. That's right, adults only. Everything. Food, entertainment, activities tailored to what you actually want. And the destinations you're looking at the Caribbean this winter and for 2025, 2026, they're hitting places like North America, Iceland, the Mediterranean. It's top tier travel for people who demand the best. Virgin voyages isn't just a cruise. It's the future of adult vacations. Get on board. Book now@virginvoyages.com or contact your travel advisor. It's the last game of the season and with Amex, you can save time with card member entrances at select venues and go straight to the action so you can catch every moment. That's the powerful backing of American Express. Terms apply. Learn more@american express.com With AmEx, you can count on T Mobile to help keep you connected from big cities to small towns on America's largest 5G network. Switch the T Mobile, keep your phone and they'll pay it off up to 800 bucks per line via prepaid card. Learn more@t mobile.com Keep and switch up to 4 lines via virtual prepaid card. Allow 15 days qualifying unlock device, credit service port in 90 plus with device and eligible carrier and timely redemption required. Card has no cash access and expires in six months. I'm Mark Seal. And I'm Nathan King. This is Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli. The five families did not want us to shoot that picture. Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli is based on my co host Mark's best selling book of the same title. And on this show we call upon his years of research to help unpack the story behind the Godfather's birthday. From start to finish, this is really the first interview I've done in bed. We sift through innumerable accounts. 35 pages isn't very much, many of them conflicting. That's nonsense. There were 60 pages. And try to get to the truth of what really happened. And they said we're finished, this is over. It only is not going to work.

Jason McIntyre (22:55)

You gotta get rid of those guys.

Daniel Jeremiah (22:56)

It's a disaster.

Colin Cowherd (22:57)

Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli features new and archival interviews with Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Evans, James Caan, Talia Shire and many others. Yes, that was a real horse's head. Listen and subscribe to Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. All right. All sorts of good stuff going on. Daniel Jeremiah, his 23rd combine, which. It is interesting to watch how the NFL has grown through the years. They, they moved. They extended their draft. It's now four days. It's, it's. They brought it back. They wanted more tv. They have the combines now. I think they moved their free agency. So again, these leagues, like college football, is making all these moves and people are complaining about the moves. And my take is, do you want to grow or not? Like, what do you want to do as a sports league? Do you want to get better? Baseball took forever. Finally, they put in the pitch clock. Oh, what do you know? Ratings went up 12%. Like, oh, let's get rid of the defensive shift. So when people complain about college football making moves and the nil and the transfer portal, you can sit and gripe about things that are happening or you can move on. Like, stop romanticizing and collecting baseball cards. Like, grow up. Things change. Like, the NBA right now needs some tweaks. I think they have to figure out a way to make the game not quite as monotonous. I also think, and I've been saying this for years, I think the NBA's got. It's not a regular season issue. Because even during Michael Jordan, it wasn't like we all sat around and watched regular season NBA. I think the NBA's got a playoff problem. Is that March Madness, even the WNBA or women's college basketball in March Madness, they feel so urgent and we're becoming more of an event society where ufc, Saturday night, college football, pro football, World Cup, Olympics, they're all doing great NBA playoffs. That's the bigger issue. That's their best numbers, but their numbers should be double what they are because it's ridiculous to have a seven game first round playoff series between a one and an eight seed. To me, it's not a regular season NBA issue. David Stern, the late commissioner, used to tell people privately, the big secret about the NBA is nobody watches our regular season. I got news for you. People weren't watching Michael Jordan play the expansion Toronto Raptors. Nobody was watching that but the ratings for the playoffs were magnificent. The NBA's playoff ratings to me are disappointing. There's no urgency in the society today. We have become much more of an event society. We are incredibly distracted. It's TikTok, it's social media, it's Instagram. There's a billion channels and platforms. You have to create urgency. Three game first round NBA playoff series. From that point forward, five game series max. Well, what about the history? Get over it. The world's changing. J. Mac with the news. No, no, no, no. Turn on the news. This is the Herd line news.

Jason McIntyre (25:51)

Go to the NFL with Josh Allen Cullen. I mean, the MVP of the league. Just a spectacular season was had by the Buffalo Bills quarterback. And yesterday at the combine, Sean McDermott spoke on his quarterback's MVP journey. It validates everything that he's been doing for years. It validates his leadership this year, the way he's played on the field this season, the way he's matured off the field, on the field, his decision making and how that's improved. So all these areas that were perceived, call it gaps. Josh has answered those gaps and he's closed those gaps. And when you do that at the level that he did it at on a consistent basis, the result was the mvp. And so to me, as I said during the year, later in the year in particular, he deserved that.

Colin Cowherd (26:40)

Very rarely do great quarterbacks get trapped. You know, they create so much freedom. I think it's fascinating. How many years in a row is Defensive coach Sean McDermott been unable to stop the Kansas City Chiefs in their last game of the year? And it's amazing. Kansas City could not move the ball against Houston and could not move the ball against Philadelphia. Could not move the ball up and down the field against Sean McDermott's defense.

Jason McIntyre (27:10)

Okay, some referee aided calls, shall we say, in that, in that, in that game.

Colin Cowherd (27:16)

I mean, I feel like, how many more years are we going to run this back?

Jason McIntyre (27:20)

It's tough. I feel bad, a little bad for Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. They got to get over the hump. But we saw the Chiefs in the super bowl look pretty weak. I think Buffalo would have put up a better fight.

Colin Cowherd (27:30)

Would you agree the Raiders gave the Chiefs more problems defensively than the Bills did. Am I wrong?

Jason McIntyre (27:41)

I don't remember many Raiders games. They're too irrelevant. But you could be right. Moving on, let's get to the NBA. Obviously, tonight's big story in sports is Luka Doncic and the Lakers hosting the Mavs. First time since the blockbuster trade. A few weeks ago and Kyrie Irving just discussed his expectations for Luka and the Lakers tonight.

Colin Cowherd (28:01)

You know, outside of just the, the obvious of us being, you know, being in L. A and being a former team, you know, Lucas, obviously the narrative is already written. I don't know what else I could really add to that. I'm pretty much focused and telling my guys just to focus on the high level game that we got to win. You know, I would love to get into the motions after the game with you, but before the game it's just about having fun and making sure that we lock in and have a deep focus. They're going to come in, you know, and be ready to play against us. Luke is obviously going to have a lot of confidence that game. He played well last game, so he's feeling good and we just got to be aware of it. I bet you LeBron has 18 assists. All, all the Luca.

Jason McIntyre (28:39)

So a subplot. I know obviously we're focusing on the Lakers, but the Dallas Mavericks really need this game. Colin. They are falling. They're currently eighth in the west and they're only a game and a half in the play in right now.

Colin Cowherd (28:50)

That's it.

Jason McIntyre (28:51)

Like if they. There's a chance that they missed the playoffs.

Colin Cowherd (28:53)

San Antonio losing Wemby is an opportunity for Dallas to sneak in.

Jason McIntyre (28:57)

Well, that. Who's going to win it? Suns or Mavericks? Who gets in the playoffs? Kevin Durant, Booker or Kyrie Irving? I don't know if the sun's gonna.

Colin Cowherd (29:05)

Get if Dallas was healthy. I think Dallas is actually really good. I know that's they're really good.

Jason McIntyre (29:11)

Anthony Davis.

Colin Cowherd (29:12)

So what's the over under on Lucas points tonight on, on the gambling?

Jason McIntyre (29:15)

I haven't seen one yet. I will continue to look.

Colin Cowherd (29:17)

It's got to be 35.

Jason McIntyre (29:19)

He hasn't gone off really well.

Colin Cowherd (29:21)

Denver. Denver. He did, he did.

Jason McIntyre (29:23)

And then he got to sit a little bit because they were blowing him out. This could be a blowout tonight. You got to bet though. Somebody just sent me. Hey Jay, what about first half bet on the Lakers tonight? It could be too amped. You know, you get too excited. Luka, we got to get you going.

Colin Cowherd (29:36)

All I know is J.J. redick and LeBron are going to make a point. Everybody on that roster is going to make a point to get Lugu the ball.

Jason McIntyre (29:42)

Yeah, that would be smart all the time, not just tonight. Final story, Colin, is your Golden State Warriors. I got to call them yours because you, you like them. Now Jimmy Butler has been added to the team. They're now 5 1. Last week, Draymond Green said ahead of the All Star Game that Golden State will win the championship this season, and he has since doubled down on his podcast.

Colin Cowherd (30:04)

I believe that we got the pieces to do it. And like I said, I know what that look and feel like. You know what I'm saying? So it's a lot of people like, oh, man, how he gonna say that? That ain't done it. What'd they say? How you gonna talk about how to do it? They never did it. Like, you got all these people out here talking about what I said and how I'm gonna do it. But you did it before and over and over. Over and over and over and over. I know what it look and feel like. I 1000% wholeheartedly stand all 10 toes down on everything I said. Over, under, on Luca. The staff told me it's 31 and a half. I'm taking the over. He may drop that in the third quarter.

Jason McIntyre (30:44)

So, hey, real quick on Draymond. I just looked this up. So the warriors are currently in the plan, Colin. If they get to the playoffs, they will either likely face Denver as the 7 seed.

Colin Cowherd (30:53)

Well, Denver, Denver would beat them. It's a bad matchup. But Denver can't defend, so it would be a good series to watch.

Jason McIntyre (30:58)

Okay. And then the other option if they get the eight seed is okay, see, are they beating OKC, Jimmy Butler and Steph Curry. So like this, I'm gonna tell you.

Colin Cowherd (31:08)

That would be the series. That would be the best first round series in the NBA. Oh, I'll be old, veteran, cranky warriors and the new kids on the block. That would be a great series.

Jason McIntyre (31:19)

Be great Warriors.

Colin Cowherd (31:20)

Win this now. And here's. Here's what you worry about if you're sga. So Karl Malone, who lived at the free throw line, didn't quite get the whistle in the playoffs. James Harden, who lived at the free throw line, never quite got the playoff whistle. SGA lives at the free throw line. NBA officials do not give you the regular season whistle, especially once you get to the second round. On. So Oklahoma City, it's just the way it works. Harden and Karl Malone were guys that feasted on sitting at the stripe and you don't get that whistle. I mean, you get to second round, conference, finals, finals, they let you play, referees let you play. So Oklahoma City is not going to get that friendly whistle like they do now.

Jason McIntyre (32:07)

By the way, you think Curry and Draymond are intimidated at all by OKC Jimmy Butler? Do you think they're Afraid or not.

Colin Cowherd (32:13)

You know what's great about.

Jason McIntyre (32:14)

We gotta go to OKC for two.

Colin Cowherd (32:15)

Oh, no.

Jason McIntyre (32:16)

Geez, guys, we gotta focus.

Colin Cowherd (32:18)

You know, it's. It's. We talked about this yesterday. Jimmy Butler gets a lot of pushback because he. He's very old school. He's got a little bit of Kobe's and Michael Jordan sort of mantra, which is practice hard, play hard. I mean, if Jimmy's missing a game, it's because the Heat or suspending him or he's hurt. Like, he. He likes to play, and he likes to practice hard. And he's very intentional the way he plays basketball. Like every possession matters. Very old school. Well, Draymond's old school, and Steph Curry is a workaholic. So he really was, as everybody was worried about, because I read a couple of stories, they said, you know, analytically, he's not a good fit, but emotionally and intellectually, Jimmy Butler is a great fit to the Warriors. And you got to be careful about analytics, like, sometimes. Like, if you go back, I've always said this about the Miami Heels. They didn't fit. First of all, they had no size. They had no true point guard. And d. Wade and LeBron are kind of like different versions of themselves. What happened? They brought in Battier, Ray Allen, D. Wade, Adonis Haslam, Chris Bosh. It was the smartest team in the league, and they just figured out how to play. They just outsmarted people on a nightly basis. Matchup spacing, because they really had no size. They were a bad rebounding team in all four finals. So I think Golden State, Butler, again, Draymond, Curry, That's a team that. Kerr, the coach, they'll figure out ways to manipulate a playoff game and steal a game or two in a series they shouldn't win. OKC has no experience in that space. Are you done?

Jason McIntyre (33:58)

Yeah, I'm done.

Colin Cowherd (33:59)

Done. All right. J. Mac with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by the Herd lie news. No, we're in this. We're in this new studio. How long we gonna be in the studio for, like, three months. And it looks like the old thing, but it's much smaller. I actually. I really like it, but they have a candy cabinet back here, and I'm not. I don't eat candy, per se. At least I. I didn't think. I like candy. I'm. I've gone through 27 Sour Patch Kids in the last two days. I am flying.

Jason McIntyre (34:30)

Did you see they just restocked the Swedish Fish?

Colin Cowherd (34:33)

Oh, no. The Gummy bears. They're coming out of the drawers back here. I didn't even think. I like candy and I'm living on it today. Forget the omelet. I had a. I had a green, orange, yellow gummy bear omelette. That's what I had for breakfast today. God, if they get corn nuts in that place, I'll never do the show again. I mean, I'll be picking stuff out of my teeth. Chris Finch t Wolves coach Last hour live in la. The Herd. 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, it's 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 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 Enrich 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 Kobeno and Rich wherever you get your podcast. And of course, on social media, that's Covino and Rich. All right, let's get into it. Virgin Voyages. This isn't just another cruise line. This is redefining what luxury travel means. First off, all in voyage pricing over $1,000 in value. Wi Fi, tips, entertainment, even dining at specialty restaurants. It's all included. No nickel and diming, no hidden fees. It's clear, simple and honestly how it should have always been been done. And the cabins? Let's just say they're not your standard hotel on the water deal. They've got private terraces, virgin red hammocks, views of the open sea. It's a reset button for your brain. Now, here's what really sets them apart. No kids. That's right. Adults only. Everything. Food, entertainment, activities tailored to what you actually want and the destinations you're looking at. The Caribbean this winter and for 2025, 2026 they're hitting places like North America, Iceland, the Mediterranean. It's top tier travel for people who demand the best. Virgin voyages isn't just a cruise. It's the future of adult vacations. Get on board. Book now@virginvoyages.com or contact your travel advisor. With Amex, there's always a new experience to explore. From curating the perfect vacation and chilling in the Centurion Lounge before you get there, trying out that new trendy restaurant thanks to priority notify with global dining, access by resy and getting straight to the action at the big game. With card member entrances at select venues with AMEX Platinum you can experience it all. That's the powerful backing of American Express. Terms apply. Access to the card member entrance not limited to the American Express Platinum card. Learn more@americanexpress.com with AmEx you can count on T Mobile to help keep you connected from big cities big to small towns on America's largest 5G network. Switch the T Mobile keep your phone and they'll pay it off up to 800 bucks per line via prepaid card. Learn more@t mobile.com Keep and switch up to four lines via virtual prepaid card. Allow 15 days qualifying unlock device credit service port in 90 plus days with device and eligible carrier and timely redemption required. Card has no cash access and expires in six months. I'm Mark Seale. And I'm Nathan King. This is Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli. The five families did not want us to shoot that picture. Leave the Gun Take the Cannoli is based on my co host Mark's best selling book of the same title. And on this show we call upon his years of research to help unpack the story behind the Godfather's birth. From start to finish, this is really the first interview I've done in bed. We sift through innumerable accounts. 35 pages isn't very much. Many of them conflicting. That's nonsense. There were 60 pages and try to get to the truth of what really happened.

Jason McIntyre (38:52)

And they said we're finished.

Colin Cowherd (38:53)

This is over. It only is not going to work.

Jason McIntyre (38:55)

You got to get rid of those guys.

Daniel Jeremiah (38:57)

It's a disaster.

Colin Cowherd (38:58)

Leave the Gun, Take the Cannoli features new and archival interviews with Francis Ford Coppola, Robert Evans, James Caan, Talia Shire and many others. Yes, that was a real horse's head. Listen and subscribe to leave the gun, take the Cannoli on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Jason McIntyre (39:19)

The fastest racing on earth is coming to Fox. The 2025 IndyCar season gets underway in St. Petersburg, the first stop on the Road to the Indy 500 Sunday at noon Eastern, live on Fox.

Colin Cowherd (39:33)

You know, I was thinking about this. People always talk about the bias in, you know, political media and, you know, main media, legacy media. There's so much bias. You know, there's no question to me. In my lifetime, the media has leaned left more than it has moderate to right, you know, and they're paying the price now. A lot of consumers have spotted it and don't like it. But I always felt there was in sports media, there was an east coast bias. It's not a big city bias, it's an east coast bias. In a prime example, and I've been reading stories over the last couple of weeks When I worked at the other place, the off season was dominated by the Red Sox and the Yankees because George Steinbrenner refused to lose. He'd fired Billy Martin eight times. He didn't care. He would pay. His kids don't have his net worth, apparently. Nor do they have his passion for baseball because the Yankees don't have the money of the Mets. Forget the Dodgers. They don't have the money of the Mets and Steve Cohen. So now everybody is complaining that the Dodgers are going out and buying all the best players. Those players are available to every billionaire, number one. And secondly, they're deferring payments, which everybody else could do. So when the Yankees had the advantage with the yes Network and would dominate, I mean, CC Sabathia didn't even want to be a Yankee. He had said, yeah, I don't want to be a Yankee. And then they finally just said, okay, we're going to pay you way more than the rest of the market. That was totally celebrated by the media. Oh, it was unbelievable. Red Sox and Yankees, their dog, Cincinnati Reds, Pirates, Royals couldn't compete. Nobody thought a thing of that in the East Coast. Now the Dodgers dominate because they're deferring payments. And let's be honest, it's a great organization. I looked at a stat yesterday, only 18. Money in baseball only accounted for 18% of the wins. That there was some analytic that, you know, the Dodgers obviously can go buy better players. But Ohtani didn't even pitch last year. He was just a batter. This year he's going back to pitching and hitting. But it is interesting when you Talk about bias in the media. I swear to God, when I worked at the other place, all I heard, my bosses would come bouncing down the hall every time there was a trade or an acquisition that benefited the Yankees or the Red Sox. And now everybody's in a tizzy because the Dodgers have richer owners. But the other thing about the Dodgers is they just care more. Just like George Steinbrenner. Steinbrenner cared more than his kids do. That's a big part of it. And the Dodgers, anybody, all these billionaires could defer payments. They've just figured out, with some risk, a way to do it. It hasn't always panned out. A couple of their, you know, acquisitions have not gone as planned. They didn't turn out to be the human being they thought or the player they thought. But I don't buy all this. Oh, what the Dodgers are doing, it's ruining baseball. The bottom line is baseball, once you got out of the 70s and early 80s, the big markets have always had an advantage. I mean, the Atlanta Braves are well capitalized. They always have good players. Houston Astros, that's a big city with a lot of money. They sell out their stadium. They have unbelievable support. They can go pay for players that maybe an Arizona or a Seattle or an Oakland couldn't. That's baseball. If you want to have a rigid salary cap, owners could do it. They don't want to, but, yeah, this, this. I just, I'm reading stories as we're going. We're in spring training now. Give me a break about lamenting what the Dodgers are doing. Anybody could do it. I was thinking about this this morning. I was listening to Stephen Jones. So the Cowboys obviously have multiple problems. Their roster is not very good. They've overpaid for Dak. All you Dak fanboys in Dallas, how does it feel like now he's going to be a $90 million cap hit next year? Josh Allen is less than half that now. You can manipulate that and work around it, but I don't know how you can get it down. You're not going to get it down to 30 or 40 million. So you wanted him to get paid. Here's what it looks like. But Stephen Jones. The Cowboys don't only have a production problem, they have a messaging problem. Here's Stephen Jones. We're going to look at everything we can. We're going to be selectively aggressive. We obviously, you know, there's things in this league you have to, you know, you have certain amount of resources they allow you to have, and you know, we'll look at that. But we're going to try to improve our football team.

Daniel Jeremiah (43:57)

Not try.

Colin Cowherd (43:57)

We're going to improve our football team and you know, we expect to have success next year. Their messaging is a downer. We're going to be selectively aggressive. How come Philadelphia is just aggressive? Not selectively. They paid their quarterback and A.J. brown and Dallas Goddard and Devonte Smith. They will. And Saquon Barkley and. And they slay in the back end and, and defensive lineman. I mean, what is this selectively aggressive? Philadelphia is just aggressive. I saw a story this morning. Eagles interested in Miles Garrett. Like, and the Cowboys are cutting coupons and groupons. Like, what are we doing here? So it's Dallas right now. And the Lakers were in this space until Luca arrived and they stole him from the Mavericks. The Cowboys are a downer. I mean, there is more hope next year with the Chicago Bears than with the Dallas Cowboys. You know, and a lot of this is, I mean, you know what they've become. The Cowboys have become the classic house poor where you go over your skis a little bit on your mortgage and you have 11 bedrooms and 13 bathrooms, but you can't afford. You know, you got Brian Schottenheimer on the grill for dinner tonight. You don't have much because you can't afford anything else. And that's the DAC contract. But I mean, they just don't have a diversified portfolio. It's CD Lam overpaid dac cross your fingers on Micah. And they're coming off back to back drafts that just didn't relinquish much. So. But I find the Cowboys messaging is how long are they going to be up against it? Like how many years? I mean, the Denver Broncos get really behind the eight ball with Russell Wilson's contract and for a year it's ugly. The following year they're in the playoffs, they get Bo Nicks, they hit on like four draft picks. They're fine. Like they're getting out of the woods. Like a year and a half later, they're getting out of the woods. Now Cleveland's a mess, but if Cleveland gets Shadow or Sanders or Cam Ward, they'll be fine. Like, how many years do you have to hear about the Cowboys? Well, we'll be selectively aggressive. What does that mean? I mean, at one point the Rams were paying Jared Goff's salary in Detroit and Matt Stafford and they were still aggressive. You start examining the Dallas Cowboys and the messaging is bad and it's a downer and it's A bummer. And they don't have any money. Again, again, I'm looking at who the Ravens are paying. They can afford Derrick Henry. I look at Buffalo. They're paying a lot of people. They get a pay. They paid Amari Cooper. Philadelphia is paying everybody. San Francisco is paying a lot of people. I don't know. It's. When I read the Eagles are pursuing Miles Garrett and you're going to be selectively aggressive and Zach Martin just retired. It seems problematic. You know my favorite moment today on the show, J. Mac. And this got J. Mac. J. Mac's been on this now for weeks, which is Channing Frye coming out and I think taking a shot. I do, I do believe it does feel a little bit like a shot at Barkley. And Charles obviously is, is, is. I mean, it's, it's an entertainment vehicle. They do tend to bash more than, certainly more than other NBA.

Jason McIntyre (47:21)

They're a league partner. That needs to be said as a league partner. They're bashing. Right. We're not league partners here at Fox with the NBA. TNT is continue.

Colin Cowherd (47:30)

Well, okay, that's a good, that's a good point. League partner. Should commissioners be telling journalists and opinionists what to say? No, I don't think so either.

Jason McIntyre (47:42)

But when you turn on any, any show that does an NFL pregame show, are they blasting the players and ripping them? Oh, they're not that good. They're not as good as Dan Marino.

Colin Cowherd (47:50)

What are the consumers saying? The consumers are telling you this is the one show we like.

Jason McIntyre (47:55)

Of course, because hate travels much faster than positivity. Look, online, it's all hate. It's a haters ball, a haters cauldron online. So Barkley and Shaq, that's what they do. They just take dumps on every player.

Colin Cowherd (48:05)

Are we haters?

Jason McIntyre (48:06)

We're not haters. I mean, I don't like certain teams, but I'm not a hater.

Colin Cowherd (48:11)

So this is the chanting Fry sound that J. Mack and I think he could be right, is just taking a shot at, at, at Charles Barkley. Nostalgia is killing the NBA. The 90s basketball, Michael Jordan and Kobe was not as clean as y'all think it was. Every great player, whether that's Ant Wy Braun, you know, Steph this, that, this, that. You know, they compare them to a mother. Forty years ago, the rules weren't even the same. Nobody celebrates these new people. So why the would anybody want to be the face of this league? You're going to get on, on every network for not being somebody from 40 years ago. Bron is one of the greatest players ever to play. Stephen Curry is one of the greatest players ever to play. Giannis is one of the great. Jokic. And you know, we do. We talk about Michael Jordan, all this superstar era is over.

Jason McIntyre (49:13)

Hey, by the way, you know Gilbert Arenas, right?

Colin Cowherd (49:15)

Yeah. Former star, talented.

Jason McIntyre (49:17)

He also has taken shots recently. I was on vacation, but somebody sent it to me about the inside the NBA crew and just the constant negativity. So that's now Channing Fry, Gilbert Arenas, Jason McIntyre, Colin Cowherd.

Colin Cowherd (49:29)

No, no.

Jason McIntyre (49:30)

Starting to.

Colin Cowherd (49:30)

No, no, don't.

Jason McIntyre (49:31)

Starting to see.

Colin Cowherd (49:32)

Don't lump me into that. I think it's the best show by far.

Jason McIntyre (49:35)

Far.

Colin Cowherd (49:36)

And I think it's the one NBA show where I get a real honest opinion. I like it. I think guys.

Jason McIntyre (49:42)

You mean from guys protecting their era. Oh, 90s, we were the best ever.

Colin Cowherd (49:45)

No, I, I've said before, I think it's. I mean, that Knicks Pacer series, the Reggie Miller, Spike Lee stuff, you can do documentaries all day long. There were 50, 60 free throws in those games. The games weren't nearly as good as.

Jason McIntyre (49:58)

97, 94, like that 90s.

Colin Cowherd (50:01)

There were scores in the 70s. Yeah. I mean, come on, it was brick. It was masonry. It was bricks everywhere in free throw shooting. So, you know, I don't romanticize the 70s NBA. I love Jordan and I love Magic and Bird. I, I thought the Warriors. Kevin Durant was as much fun as I've had watched in the NBA. LeBron winning at Golden State. LeBron winning a time. I was like emotional watching that. I had more fun watching the heels that I. I'm not one of those.

Jason McIntyre (50:26)

Guys, you know, J.J. redick is in my camp on this. When he was doing his podcast, he. There's some guy, some New York radio host, Mad dog. And Reddick kind of went at him, was like, listen, Bob Cousy couldn't dribble with his left hand. Go find a video of Cousy dribbling with his left hand. And of course, this Mad Dog guy, his head explodes. And Reddick went after him.

Colin Cowherd (50:44)

Well, I think he. Look at the video.

Jason McIntyre (50:45)

He's not dribbling with his head down.

Colin Cowherd (50:47)

He's very much an old. He likes talking, you know, 60s, 70s. That's his style. That's very New York. They love the old days.

Jason McIntyre (50:56)

They don't think anything of Zach Levine, who would have averaged like 97 points a game in the 60s.

Colin Cowherd (51:00)

Well, but I, I'll push back on this. Also, Barkley has hammered the Lakers for years, by the way. He should, by the way, not very well run in Kobe's last five years. Not very well.

Jason McIntyre (51:16)

That's fine. You could bash a Kobe here. LeBron gets there, they win a championship. Now, you know who Barkley's old best friend used to be? Guy named Michael Jordan. So he's protecting Michael Jordan by taking.

Colin Cowherd (51:25)

LeBron talk to Barkley.

Jason McIntyre (51:26)

Well, they're not friends anymore, but Barkley still, obviously, everybody wants to be friends with Jordan. He's Michael Jordan. So Barkley's always bashing LeBron. Remember recently, LeBron had a ridiculous junk. And Barkley goes, why are we showing this for, like, the seventh time? Like, what? You don't hear that? You got me a Josh Allen touchdown pass. I'll watch it 75 times.

Colin Cowherd (51:43)

Like, I don't know. I think. I think ratings are a bit of a true serum. And I think the ratings for that show are very strong. And because people feel they're getting a straight, unbiased, brutally honest, they're saying stuff that everybody says in their living room watching the game. That's what they're doing. And people respond to it. Hey, it's Alec Baldwin. This past season on my podcast, here's the thing, I spoke with more actors, musicians, policy makers, and so many other fascinating people, like writer and actor Dan Aykroyd. I love writing more than anything. You're left alone, you know, you do three hours in the morning, you write three hours in the afternoon. Go pick up a kid from school and write at night. And after nine hours, you come out with seven pages, and then you're moving on. And actor and comedian Jack McBrayer. The most important aspect is the collaboration with people that I like, I trust are talented. That has been the most amazing gift to me about this crazy business that we've chosen. Meeting these people who have such diverse talents and you're able to create something together. Listen to here's the thing on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, everybody, what's up? This is Questlove, and every year we do special programming in February for Black History Month. Now, it's especially important this year as we gear up for some new conversations. So the team and I compiled some clips from the show that are worth revisiting in part one of the celebration of Black History Month, we're listening back to Moments with Chris Rye, Solange Prodigy, Ben Vereen, Jennifer Lewis, Angela Rye, and Gina Yashore. Listen to Questlove supreme on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Catch Jon Stewart back in action on the Daily show and in youn Ears with the Daily Show Ears Edition podcast. From his hilarious satirical takes on today's politics and entertainment to the unique voices.

Daniel Jeremiah (53:47)

Of correspondents and contributors, it's your perfect.

Colin Cowherd (53:50)

Companion to stay on top of what's happening now. Plus, you'll get special content just for.

Daniel Jeremiah (53:56)

Podcast listeners, like in depth interviews and.

Colin Cowherd (53:59)

A roundup of the week's top headlines. Listen on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Are you hungry?

Jason McIntyre (54:10)

Colleen Witt here and Eating While Broke.

Colin Cowherd (54:13)

Is back for Season four every Thursday on the Black Effect Podcast Network. This season we've got a legendary lineup serving up broke dishes and even better stories on the menu. We have Tony Baker, Nick Cannon, Melissa Ford, October London and Carrie Harper. Howie turning Big Macs into big moves. Catch Eating While Broke every Thursday on the Black Effect Podcast Network. IHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts. Wherever you get your favorite shows, Come.

Jason McIntyre (54:40)

Hungry for Season four.