Colin Cowherd (3:06)

Find your local station for the herd@foxsportsradio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Now let's get this party started. You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Here we go. It's hour two, Greg Cosell in a couple of minutes. That's 15 minutes of getting smarter with Greg Cosell, NFL Films live. It's the Herd, wherever you may be, however you may be listening. Thanks for making us part of your day. J. Mac do you like I watch pff? I've disagreed through the years on pff, but I think by and large Chris Collinsworth's company is pretty accurate. So it's funny. Aaron Rodgers right now the Vikings play the Steelers in Dublin. We both like the Vikings in this game. Carson Wentz, according to pff is kind of middle of the pack grade. Aaron's the second lowest graded quarterback below Spencer Rattler who's never I don't think he's ever won an NFL start. But it's funny. I've watched Aaron. I would have never guessed that he was that lowly graded. He's made, you know, he still does the back shoulder stuff. I thought he got a bad interception. He got a bad break from a teammate that made a mistake against Seattle. That wasn't his fault. I I have not. I when I I've watched almost every snap this year, I would never guess he's the second lowest graded quarterback. I would think middle of the pack now. He's a strictly a pocket quarterback right now. But it's interesting and I and I'm this is not a criticism but I think Aaron and Carson Wentz right now are fairly similar. Past their primes, had some injuries, both more than capable arms. Wentz doesn't move like he used to. He's a pocket guy. Aaron doesn't move like he used to. He's a pocket guy. But PFF has one guy at the bottom of the rung and the other guy is pretty interesting. I don't do you buy it pff, do you do you trust their numbers rankings?

J. Mac (4:55)

Yeah, I think for sure. You know any like anything outside of sports. You take a little of info from pff, you take a little info from here. EPA success rate. You put all of it together. You don't just look at PFF and say Aaron Rodgers stinks but he's not passing the eye test. Colin, let's be real. You know he looked okay against that jets team but they, they've proven to be like a kind of a mid to bad defense so far and Seattle kind of confounded him. So I know I haven't really seen it the eye test, but PFF is confirming what I'm saying.

Colin Cowherd (5:25)

What's interesting about this game is Aaron, there were rumors that the Vikings, Kevin o', Connell, the head coach, there were rumors they were in on Aaron Rodgers. That leaked out. Aaron denied it. Aaron did clarify it yesterday when asked about the team he's facing this weekend in the Vikings.

Player/Coach Interviewee (5:45)

I'll just reiterate that Kevin and I have been friends since 2008. We used to work out together at a little place called Fitness Quest 10.

Greg Cosell (5:54)

Out in North County, San Diego.

Player/Coach Interviewee (5:58)

So I've known him forever. We've been friends forever and we keep in touch. He's one of the guys I keep in touch with. Things never progressed, you know, farther than catch up conversations. I'll just leave it at that.

Greg Cosell (6:12)

All right?

Colin Cowherd (6:13)

Just leave it at that. I don't know what that means, but I'll leave it at that. And we'll start it. Not Leave it with Greg Cosell, 46 years NFL Films we got a lot of ground to cover here and I can't wait for today. So last week when I started to compliment Caleb Williams, I heard this avalanche, this chorus of it was the Cowboys. He hit open receivers. Dallas is a mess. Was there anything you watched or that changed that you looked at Caleb Williams and said, okay, that's a step in the right direction?

Greg Cosell (6:49)

Well, Colin, the way I'd answer that is the litmus test in a Ben Johnson passing game are throws between the numbers at the intermediate level. If you start to see those kinds of throws with more consistency, that will tell you that Caleb Williams is getting a better understanding and figuring out how to run this offense. Because think back to Detroit with Jared Goff. Jared Goff under Ben Johnson was probably the best between the numbers thrower at the intermediate level in football because that's the way Ben Johnson structures many of his route concepts and we saw some of that last week. So for me it wasn't the nature of the opponent that just adds to the numbers and makes the numbers look better. It's whether Williams is seeing it the right way for those difficult window throws between the numbers. That's the best way to look at his development and progress under Ben Johnson.

Colin Cowherd (7:44)

So there was a discussion last week, it was a topic on this show. I said, in the NFL, start the quarterback that helps you win Sunday, don't worry about where you drafted a guy who helps you win Sunday. And I said, in my opinion, I said, as the Vikings face the Steelers over in Dublin, I said, I think Carson Wentz today is better than J.J. mcCarthy today. I was always a Wentz fan. I thought he was reckless.

Greg Cosell (8:10)

I was too.

Colin Cowherd (8:12)

I was a fan, big strong guy, little reckless, had a little Sam Darnold, amazing moments, a little reckless. So what does he bring to the Vikings offense? I think they're so well coached that I think Carson Wentz, it wouldn't shock me if you said in a month, oh, they went in a five game winning streak. What did you see?

Greg Cosell (8:31)

Yeah, last week was a tough way to really evaluate him because of the way the game played out. Obviously he didn't turn it over. The issues that he's always had are still there. He's a wide base thrower. So what happens at times when there is pressure around him, he tends to rush his throws and can become a little scattershot. But he made a couple of great throws last week. The 36 yarder to Jefferson was a short throw and a long run, but it was a phenomenal window throw into a really tight window. So he's capable of those things. And I heard you speaking before, he doesn't move like he used to. So he's essentially a pocket player. So we'll see what happens in tighter games where instead of being ahead and not having to throw very much, he only threw six balls in the second half last week against Cincinnati. If he has to throw 35, 40 times, we'll see. Because sometimes what that does is it makes some of his issues really come to the forefront.

Colin Cowherd (9:28)

So one of the great mysteries to me in the NFL is you got about 13, 12 and a half, 13 minutes to make an adjustment. Guys go to the bathroom, guys grab something to, you know, drink. You don't have a ton of time. You walk in, you walk out. The Philadelphia Eagles trailed 27 to 6 and then won. And we're a different offense entirely. What didn't they do early and what did Jalen Hurts. I mean, obviously A.J. brown was a focal point, but what did the film say on their second half?

Greg Cosell (10:00)

Well, it's funny you say that because I've had coaches tell me that the most important player on the Eagles offense is A.J. brown. Because the reality is if you want to really buck up and stop the run, you can do that with bodies. And in fact, Barkley this year, last year, first contact for Barkley was four yards down the field. So he was getting to the second level clean this year. It's about two yards so he's not getting past the first level. Their old line is not playing playing as well, but what they do really well and have for a number of years is throw outside the numbers to A.J. brown. That's the strength of Jalen Hurts as a thrower. Brown is a really tough cover outside the numbers. He's so strong, he's so physical. That's how their offense got started with a 38 yard fade route against the Rams in the third quarter followed by the touchdown to Goddard, which was the perfect play call against the coverage that they got. But Brown, like I said, there's a lot of coaches who believe he's really the key to that offense because you get so many one on ones outside because of the run game and he's a really difficult cover.

Colin Cowherd (11:07)

Well, I love Justin Herbert out of college. I loved him in Oregon. He's a great kid. He comes on the show. So I've got some confirmation bias here, but it does feel like they are he's leading the way and not the run game. It does feel like they've ramped up. Yeah. Like they're a bit more aggressive down the field. What does the film say on Harbaugh's offense in year two with Justin?

Greg Cosell (11:30)

Well, I guess maybe they've locked Greg Roman in a closet somewhere because this is now a passing football team through three weeks. I mean they are dropping back and throwing the ball and I think one thing that's important if you're going to do that, and I always heard Tom Brady talk this way is if you're going to have your quarterback drop back that many times, then he's got to be more than willing and feel very comfortable taking six yard throws if those are the throws that are there. Brady would talk about that a lot, that hey, if it's first and 10 and they're going to give me a six yard throw, I'm going to take it every time and I think Herbert's got that nice balance right now. Colin, between understanding that there's nothing wrong in a normal down and distance situation with taking the shorter throw, staying ahead of the sticks and we know he's got a big arm and can make big time throws and movement throws obviously when necessary. As we're seeing right here. This I assume is the touchdown Allen. Yes it is and you can, he certainly can do that. But through three games they are a passing offense.

Colin Cowherd (12:29)

So we watched the Ravens kind of shockingly get pushed around for three and a half hours bulldozed by the Lions. And I said, listen, if you're trying to get through Buffalo and Herbert, I don't know if that defense is good enough. You may be a team that needs to make a move on the trade deadline. Now, Kyle Hammond, Hamilton, Roquan Smith, they've got some good players. They spend their money on defense. But when you. Was it a bad matchup with a dominating O line of Detroit, was it a bad matchup? Or when you look at the film on Baltimore, do they just have some realities with personnel?

Greg Cosell (13:05)

Well, in this given game, Matabouque was out and I believe he'll be out again. Kyle Van Noy, who's a really good player, he was out. Surprisingly, Jones, the D tackle, who's a really good player, got moved off the ball a lot. And keep in mind the two guards for Detroit, one's a second year player, Mahogany. The other is Tate Radledge, a rookie from Georgia. So they moved those guys throughout the game. But it's funny, I'm watching the first on tape, I'm talking about the first quarter and a half and I'm thinking, where's this big run game? Because they actually stopped him for a quarter and a half and then everything changed. But they are giving up the most points in the NFL right now and they are really struggling with the run game. And sometimes you're good players. Colin have bad games. Roquan Smith did not have a good game, but you're not expecting that to be the case every game. He's a really good player. He just did not have a very good game.

Colin Cowherd (13:56)

Yeah, so we, we've been joking. J. Mac and I have been joking this league. Darnold Baker, Gino Mac Jones, you give up on them, people give up on them. Then you look up with a new staff and a new offensive coach and you're like, wow.

Greg Cosell (14:13)

Sure.

Colin Cowherd (14:14)

I have been arguing for a year and a half. I like the Colts roster. I think Warren, now Taylor, Pittman, Pierce, I like their, I think their offensive line's good. I thought it really. I kept saying with Anthony Richardson, just get somebody that can complete the layups. They've got really good players. So I. My theory is this is not a mirage. Coaching obviously matters, but like the Colts are, this is a pretty good roster. It's not the Eagles, but it's pretty good. Or is it just amazing coaching by Shane Stocken?

Greg Cosell (14:50)

Well, there's a combination, but think of it this way. How many quarterbacks are Josh Allen, Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, there's very few of those guys. There's not 50 of those guys out there. So what are most quarterbacks, Colin? Most quarterbacks are ball distributors and executors of an offense. That's what you're asking your quarterback to do. That's what you're coaching him to do. And right now, with the talent they have, they have a very good O line. They have four receivers. They've got multiple tight ends, including Tyler Warren, who's a very good player. So what is Jones doing? Exceptionally well. He's distributing the football. He's making the right decision. He's making good location throws. He moves when necessary. He's executing the offense. That's what you want your quarterback to do. Now, you and I both know we have no idea what's going to happen Sunday, next week, three months from now. But all we have is what we have right now. And at this moment in time, he is very efficiently executing a well schemed, well designed offense with a lot of talent.

Colin Cowherd (15:53)

Yeah. So I saw a story this week is C.J. stroud playing himself out of an extension. So I usually look at quarterbacks and I say, do they have a defined elite trait? I think he throws an elite, accurate ball when he's given reasonable time, but they can't run protection. Second year in a row is bad. It's a defensive, defensive head coach, I worry about the O line regression. I, I still think he's a big, accurate distributor of the ball. I don't think there's much around him offensively. But what does the film say with this great rookie who doesn't look the same the last year and a half? No.

Greg Cosell (16:31)

Well, it's funny you say that because it's rookie season and it started early. I saw maybe in the second game of the season just the precise timing and anticipation that he threw with, and he really hasn't looked that way. Last year he didn't and this year up to this time he has not. I think he's not a truly comfortable player. The O line is certainly an issue, but again, it becomes a difficult balancing act, Colin, because you can't, you know, walk into the locker room and say, guys, you know, I'm not playing well because my O line's not very good. You can't say that. So you've got to figure out how to function if within a squeezed and muddied pocket. And I think that's something he's still figuring out. Now, are there some plays where the O line just gives him no time and he doesn't Have a chance. Yes. But at some point you've got to be able to function, otherwise you're not going to have a passing game. And right now their passing game is very inconsistent, very up and down. And he just doesn't look like the same confident thrower that seeing throws, window throws as viable throws the way he did his rookie season.

Colin Cowherd (17:34)

Yeah, sometimes it's upstairs. You lose confidence. You, you know, you lose trust. I, you said that last year with Mahomes, you could tell he didn't trust his offensive line. And in the super bowl, he shouldn't have trusted it.

Greg Cosell (17:44)

Yeah, but at some point you got to play. I mean, you still got to play. That's the thing.

Colin Cowherd (17:49)

Yeah. So I went back and watched the Packers Browns game a second time and I guess my takeaway is Cleveland's defense is really good and I do really good. Really good. And I think the packers are young, young teams kind of get into their fields. They were playing real well. Everybody said they're the best team in the league. They came out without a lot of juice early. They probably should have won 10 to nothing. One bad pick by Jordan Love. I think it's a one off and I think Cleveland's got really good defensive personnel. What did, what did Cleveland do that Jordan Love couldn't figure out? Because it's not like the packers don't have excellent young offensive personnel either.

Greg Cosell (18:31)

No, but I think everything with the Browns starts with their D line. They play, they have a five man rotation at D end. Of course, Garrett plays more snaps than anybody else, but they have a five man rotation. They're really good inside. This was the best game this past week that Mason Graham has played in his first three games in his NFL career. Malik Collins is one of those guys that is seemingly on a different team every year, but is a really good player. So they've got a lot of juice and a lot of talent up front and they play a lot of man coverage and they're very good on the back end. I mean, Denzel Ward is one of the best probably overlooked corners in the league. And I had a former coordinator in the league tell me that the two toughest coordinators that he's ever played against are Vic Fangio and Jim Schwartz. So Jim Schwartz does just enough in terms of rotation and showing you different pictures on the back end at key moments that he confuses quarterbacks. And you know, in this league, when I say confused, all it takes is, is half a beat. And that's long enough for it to be a problem for a quarterback. Yeah.

Colin Cowherd (19:36)

Okay. Now a topic I'm going to like. It took a while for me to win this debate, but I'm a Sam Darnold fan. I always felt that he was always tough, athletic, well liked, incredibly coachable, but I did think he was a reckless player and he had to play within structure. If you gave him structure, throwing 26 to 28 times with a decent run game. If you ask him to throw on third and 12, it can be trouble. Third and four, he can be very, very good because he's a playmaker and he's got a nice arm. So what are you seeing that's clicking in Seattle with Sam Darnold?

Greg Cosell (20:15)

Well, you're starting to see the same thing we saw last year in Minnesota. You're starting to see the Clint Kubiak offense and he basically comes from the same coaching tree to some extent as Kevin o'. Connell. So now you're seeing more under center, more play action, play action, boot things that make Darnold feel very comfortable, that help define the reads, make them cleaner so he knows where to go with the ball so he's not dropping back. And you're asking him to read everything in front of him, which quite frankly is not the strength of his game when he can see it cleanly and it's defined. And as you said, he is very, very talented. And if we can go to our big play, because this play last week against the Saints in the red zone is very, very representative of a Clint Kubiak offense and how Darnold is very efficient within it. And this is play action boot left. And this was such a beautifully designed play. And Darnold can make these throws. He can make any throw. So right now you're going to see Darnold and again, notice that he's under center. So you're going to see Walker's in the backfield and they're going to have three wide receivers on the field. And what they're going to do here, and more and more teams do this, but it's really important to Seattle's offense is motion by Horton, the rookie wide receiver across the formation. So now what you're going to see is inside run action. And I want you to focus on the safety, Justin Reed, a really good player, by the way. There's Walker in the backfield, there's the safety, Justin Reed, because this is a critical piece to this play. Because what's going to happen is when you do run action and you throw it, Colin, very often you're putting one defender in conflict. That's all it takes very often, one defender. Watch Reid's initial reaction. It's going to be inside and he's going to step up. That's the critical defender on this play. You're putting him in conflict. That's a big philosophy of Kyle Shanahan as well. So now what you're going to see after they do that is we're going to go back to the snap and we're going to look at the route concept. You're going to see Kupp run the corner out. The tight end is going to work into the flat. And jsn, who's having a phenomenal season by the way, he's going to run the crosser. That ties in with the boot action by Sam Darnold. So now as we play this, you'll see all the routes work and you can see how they match up to it. The corner is going to match Cobalt. That defender is going to match Bonner into the flat. And remember Reed, he's the one who has to play JSN on the crosser. But look how he gets sucked up by the run action. And then he goes, oh, you know what? And he realizes that he's got to hunt up JSN and he can't do it. So you can really see it clearly from this angle. This is beautiful play design down in the high red zone. And Darnold certainly can make throws rolling to his left. And this is just the design and, and the execution, beating the defense. And Darnold's in a really good situation. And by the way, they have a very good defense that's only going to get better in Seattle.

Colin Cowherd (23:19)

Yeah, they, yeah, we, we just, we were talking today about the Athletic had a. They, they surveyed 29 execs, GMs and coaches on the best front offices. And it might as well have been my herd hierarchy, my top 10 teams. And it's like there's people think the gap in this league is quarterbacks and coaches, but Seattle, John Snyder, when you watch them play, they may not have the Eagle roster. But Greg, Seattle is fast. They don't.

Greg Cosell (23:47)

They've got.

Colin Cowherd (23:48)

Yeah.

Greg Cosell (23:50)

And defensively, Colin, I'm telling you, you look at that roster, defensively, they've got a very good roster.

Colin Cowherd (23:56)

Yeah, great stuff. Greg COsell, as always, NFL Films, 46 years. Great talking to you on a Thursday, Greg.

Greg Cosell (24:04)

Thanks, Colin. Always appreciate it. Thank you.

Colin Cowherd (24:06)

Yeah, it, it's so much of this league is upstairs, but, you know, I mean, you don't know, some guys take a while to develop and draft and Everybody was worried about jsn. Is he going to be, is he going to be a number one receiver for Seattle? And it's like, I just tried John Snyder. He looks like a number one. Then they went and get this kid from Holt from Colorado State in the fifth round and it, it's like, what is it, Horton? My bad. It looks like he's a number two. Like now. It's early, whatever. But Seattle's done a really good job to get 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th round guys who can play. They got a running back from Miami in the seventh round. He hadn't played a ton yet, but I watched him in college, Martinez, and it was like he averaged four and a half yard every time I watched Miami was a good player. It's like, how is he available in the seventh round? So you know what? The guys upstairs have a huge influence in this league. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific, on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.

Jonas Knox (25:03)

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.

Colin Cowherd (25:45)

Show on planet Earth. Be sure to check out Covino and Rich live on Fox Sports radio and.

Jonas Knox (25:48)

The iHeartradio app from 5 to 7pm Eastern, 2 to 4 Pacific. And if you miss any of the live show, just search Covino and Rich wherever you get your podcasts. And of course, on social media, that's Covino and rich.

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Colin Cowherd (28:35)

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Colin Cowherd (29:01)

FDIC Buckeye started as a 10 point favorite. It's come down. There are some Moneyline Husky betters. I'm not one of them, but Jed Fish, coach of Washington, has got himself. Remember Ohio State? He's got a very young quarterback. It is a one of the loudest stadiums. The three loudest stadiums I've ever been in are Gainesville, Florida, Austin and Husky Stadium. It is loud and Washington can score. So that's a tough lift for Ohio State. I'll take the Buckeyes by about a touchdown. Oregon goes to Penn State. I like Oregon in that spot. I. Oregon wins these big games and I, and I frankly, I think Dante Moore, it could be the most underrated player in the country. The Oregon quarterback is a stud also. I like USC Now. Illinois is a heavy blitz, man to man defense, but they're banged up in the secondary. That game I think will be close early because it's an early start time for usc. It's a weird early start time where it starts at 11, which is 9am Los Angeles time. So I think USC is going to look ugly in the first half and really struggle and pull away. But it is a great weekend. I'll take usc by about 10, Ohio State by a touchdown. I think Ole Miss is overrated. LSU wins on the road. I'll take A and M close. Indiana close. Oregon close. One of us likes Bama. It's not me. I'm going to take Georgia. This is what they're prone to do, win at home by a touchdown or more. It is a, it is a slate, man.

J. Mac (30:39)

I can just. You hyping up these guys, the hyperbole. I mean, it's not even October and you're talking about like John T. Moore and the Washington quarterback. Like I, I love the hype and one of the guys just sent me a video of Penn State, the whiteout. How do you leave Beaver Stadium off your list of loudest? Have you just.

Colin Cowherd (30:58)

Well, I've only been there one time. Again, Otson's not big, but it's built into the ground. Watson's insanely loud. It used to be louder before it got a little upscale and bougie. The crowd used to be a little rowdier and more lubricated, but it's still incredibly loud. Husky Stadium is. It shakes. Husky Stadium.

Greg Cosell (31:18)

It.

Colin Cowherd (31:18)

It like one side of the stadium shakes. It's wild.

J. Mac (31:22)

The Gainesville. Listen, I bet you know, I almost went to college here. I got accepted. We went down.

Colin Cowherd (31:28)

No, it's about the structure. It's built straight up. So it's hard that the. The, like Michigan's huge, but the noise escapes Gainesville. It's built straight up and so the noise reverberates back and forth. So I'm just telling you, I've been on sidelines at most of the big Stadiums and it's insane, obviously.

J. Mac (31:47)

Listen, Baton Rouge, where LSU like it registered as an earthquake. You know, by the way, subplot for lsu, Ole Miss, the star linebacker for LSU is now dating Lane Kiffin's daughter. And they posted it on Instagram. And the SEC is like going crazy thinking Lane Kiffin's trying to play mind games. Listen, man. Yeah, he's using his daughter to play mind games with Brian Kelly. Listen, this is a great weekend for football.

Colin Cowherd (32:13)

Oh, it's Saturday is going to be absolutely bonkers. Here's J. Mac with the news.

Greg Cosell (32:18)

No, no, no, turn on the news.

Player/Coach Interviewee (32:21)

This is the Herd line news.

J. Mac (32:23)

All right, let's bust right into it. Jaden Daniels, is he going to play or not? Colin Dan Quinn is listing him as day to day. However, Jaden Daniels talked to reporters yesterday and said whether he plays or not will be up to the doctors. Now that, that is interesting wording. He said he wants to play, but it's up to the doctors. That, to me, is probably why the line, you see it come down, it was three, it's now one and a half. I think that's saying, hey, this is going to be another Mariota game. And just for the record, Atlanta is at home. They do have good edge rushers.

Colin Cowherd (32:57)

Gross. I will say this. The question about Jaden Daniels coming out of college was durability. He got dinged up last year, he's dinged up this year. It's like Brock Purdy. It's not the end of the world, but it should be noted. You know, these players that get dinged up early, like Joe Burrow and Brock Purdy get dinged up often.

J. Mac (33:18)

You're not calling them glass Joe Burrow, though.

Colin Cowherd (33:20)

No, no. I mean, I'm just saying this was the primary concern. It's like Caleb Williams, when he came to the Bears. The primary was concern was he does hero ball. He doesn't play well within structure. And then you see, oh, wait, he doesn't necessarily play well in structure. I'm always worried in the NFL when my number one concern with you is realized your first couple years in the league. For instance, it was Tebow. I, I never was a Tebow guy, but it was like people said, he's got a slow, slow delivery and you saw very early. It's like, yeah, it takes a while to get cranked up. So I, I would just say when you see a problem in college, Anthony Richardson had accuracy issues in college, you're like, he hadn't played the position a lot. He doesn't have a Feel for it. He misses easy stuff. Well, his first 15 starts or 12 starts, you're like, oh, he can't hit the easy stuff. That's a problem. So Jaden's amazing, but now this is the second time he's been banged up and he's played a year in the league.

J. Mac (34:19)

Yeah, it's interesting. So we talk a lot about team building, right? And you know, the Mexican soccer team we have, you need a number 10, which is like a messy Diego Maradona. And we had one last year on our team and then we sold him. Without him, we're struggling. Well, you know what? In the NFL, Colin, it is the offensive line. If you do not protect your investment, he's going to get dinged up. Now, Washington did that, right, With Laramie Tunsells. They went out and got him and he's still banged up. This is not great. I forgot that he was injured last year. You're right, you brought that up. So that's now two seasons. You know, again, I don't want to go back to Tom Brady, but like, he was healthy for like, what, 15 years in a row.

Colin Cowherd (34:57)

And Brett Favre again. Aaron Rodgers has taken shots. He's been hurt once in his career. It just, it, it is. Joe Burrow keeps getting hurt. Well, you know, it's this left tackle for the Giants, Andrew Thomas. Tremendous player, dude. He is hurt every single year. So you do get to a point where you can love a player, but this whole league is. Are you available Sunday? Eli Manning was always available Sunday.

J. Mac (35:21)

The last thing Raheem Morris is shutting down. Reports of a quarterback controversy. Mike Penix is our guy. No, not playing Kirk Cousins. All right, next up is the 49ers. Obviously lost Nick Bosa, but listen, man, Fred Warner, they still have him, the middle linebacker. Colin, if we had a draft of like non edge rushers for defensive players, I would probably go Fred Warner, number one. The guy's incredible. You watch him. He's a machine. Here he is talking about the impact of Nick Bosa.

Player/Coach Interviewee (35:48)

I'm sick. I'm so sick for him, you know, because, you know, he knows what that's like to go through that process. Right. Of a recovery from that injury, which I know he's fully capable of, but that doesn't make it any easier. Obviously it's a huge blow to our team, but we move forward. I hate to say next man up mentality because you can't just replace him with one player, but, you know, the, the mission is still the same. We're going to find A way to make, make just to get one win this week. And we'll figure out the rest later.

Colin Cowherd (36:18)

Hall of famer Fred Warner.

J. Mac (36:20)

So good.

Colin Cowherd (36:20)

Oh, he's so good. You just watch him. He is one of you. If you watch a football player, you can tell how smart they are by their instincts.

J. Mac (36:29)

Instincts.

Colin Cowherd (36:30)

I don't know. Fred Warner, unbelievable instincts. He has got, he has a, an ability to sniff a play out. He gets, it's like a center fielder who gets a good jump on a ball. He gets a jump on play. And you see a lot of guys, they're mostly like, you know, see ball, go attack it. And then there's guys that are ahead of the play. Fred Warner is an unbelievable talent.

J. Mac (36:50)

Quick note, no practice yesterday for Ricky Piersol. We know Jennings didn't go last week. Listen, man, if you don't have kiddings, Piersol, sorry, Kittle, Pearsall and Jennings, that's bad news. So we gotta wait and we don't know if it's going to be Purdy or Mac Jones. I want to fire on the Niners, but I'm holding off. Final story, Colin. College football. Oh, boy. Oregon, number six in the country, heads to Happy Valley to take on Penn State and James Franklin. Penn State obviously has a huge home field advantage. And Dan Lanning talked about the Ducks handling that raucous atmosphere.

Player/Coach Interviewee (37:25)

That's part of what makes college football fun, is it's, it's a real one to get, to get to go play in. Like we've got a great atmosphere here. It's been an asset for us. I'm sure they're counting on it being an asset for them. But again, play the game, not the occasion. Just how much we'd be playing Mo Bamba this week in preparation for what it'll play, it'll play a couple times. We'll, we'll be, you know, do everything we can to be prepared for that environment. For sure. On the left, Eric. I don't love that song.

J. Mac (37:53)

So, so mobile. There's a classic moment, you can look it up on YouTube of where Penn State was playing Michigan and they blast this song, Mo Bamba. On the opening snap of the game, Michigan was penalized because they couldn't even, couldn't get the play in. First play of the game, Colin. So it is a little crazy. Saturday night's gonna be fire. It's a bummer you're not out here, man. We could hang together. I got a hall pass from the wife Saturday night.

Colin Cowherd (38:15)

I, I, I'm going to be broadcasting Saturday. USC the most underrated team in college football. Usc, which is going to go to.

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Let'S see, Purdue, Michigan.

Colin Cowherd (38:29)

It's going to go to potentially 5 and O touchdown favorite. I do think Illinois's O line struggles and the.

Greg Cosell (38:38)

No.

Colin Cowherd (38:39)

You know who else leave the country in sacks?

J. Mac (38:41)

Yeah, James struggling. Look at those numbers, Colin. Top ten opponents. James Franklin. What is that about, by the way? How do you go foreign? What does that mean? Like, try to put that in a context for the audience. Well, I've tried it. It's tough.

Colin Cowherd (38:54)

Okay, so first of all, a lot of those games are against Jim Harbaugh's Wolverines in Ohio State.

J. Mac (39:00)

You got five stars. What's a big deal?

Greg Cosell (39:01)

Come on.

Colin Cowherd (39:02)

Well, those are hard teams to beat. I mean, Ohio State couldn't beat Jim Harbaugh at the end. Penn State's not going to.

J. Mac (39:08)

Yeah, but this is a 24 game sample size, man. This isn't like four straight to Michigan, you know.

Colin Cowherd (39:13)

Well, they've lost a lot of close ones. They've lost often to the best team in the country. They've lost to Ohio State. They've lost to Michigan with hardball. I don't. You know, again, you got to be careful about. I'm not, I'm not killing them.

J. Mac (39:27)

I'm just saying these are numbers that are undeniable. You can't just. It's no big deal. There is some criticism of Franklin and late game strategies. I mean, again, I'm not crushing the guy, but this is a big spot. And I'm not saying you run him out of town, but like, eventually you got to win the big games, don't you?

Colin Cowherd (39:44)

First of all, you run him out of town.

J. Mac (39:46)

I'm not saying they would, but you. I would give him your stuff happen.

Colin Cowherd (39:49)

I would give him a lifetime contract today. I would give him a lifetime contract there.

J. Mac (39:54)

I'll never forget Schottenheimer with the Chargers. They go like. I think it was like 14 and two jets beat him in or they lose in the first round of the play and they just ran them out of town. They're like, you're not winning the big game. It happens, man. SEC people freak out. And the Big Ten, there's big money at stake.

Colin Cowherd (40:09)

There's. There's about eight coaches in college football that they're just going to win games. Some of them are better on schemes, some are better recruiters. I mean, Dabo wins a bunch of games. Kirby Smart's gonna win a bunch of games. I mean, Dan Lanning at Oregon is gonna win a bunch of games.

J. Mac (40:28)

You know how irrational these boosters are. Okay. You know, these crazy rich guys. I'm donating all this money and he killed. It's not about like whether or not he's a good coach. We know he's good. It's the boosters in college football are crazy and they're the ones funding the nil money. And if they're like, listen, I want a new coach, it gets a little. It's like a board overthrowing the CEO.

Colin Cowherd (40:49)

Right? 14. I was right. 14. I think James Franklin's great.

J. Mac (40:54)

He is.

Colin Cowherd (40:55)

14 of the 20 losses for James Franklin came to Jim Harbaugh, Ryan Day and Urban Meyer. Well, okay, that's like Ohio State Buckeye fan for years was banging on Ryan Day and I'm like, yeah, he's losing to Georgia and Jim Harbaugh. Give me a break. Ryan Day was crushing everybody except Jim Harbaugh, whose last two years had a stacked roster with 15 NFL guys. Yeah, James Franklin's losing. Urban Meyer is arguably after saving the best college coach ever. Jim Harbaugh, I think is the best football coach in the world. And Ryan Day is outstanding. And Buckeye fans are weird because he couldn't beat two programs in the country. So he's losing to all the great enemy again, Ohio. Penn State's a top six program right now in America. Undeniable under James Franklin.

Greg Cosell (41:41)

Yeah.

Colin Cowherd (41:42)

J. Mac with the news. Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by. The herd lie news. Yeah, I mean, I mean, listen, if they had some bumps in between, but you go Joe Paterno and eventually James Franklin. You know, programs, listen, it's like people complaining about Sark. At Texas, you've had Mack Brown and now Sark. With both, you win a bunch of games. You know, what are we talking about here? It's like people, if you get like in Philadelphia, I mean they, they got rid of Andy Reid and I wouldn't have done that, but the argument was, hey, it, it had been time. And I get that. And now Philadelphia has done well, but they moved through some different coaches. The Chip thing and the Doug Peterson thing and now the Sirianni thing was a little bumpy and now it's not. But it's. You know, in college there's just a handful of guys that are going to win double digit games every year. They're big time recruiters. They build good staffs, give them lifetime contracts. Like the idea that I'm going to get rid of Dabo Swinney. What are you talking about? You know, I got that super bowl bubble. I haven't unleashed a Super bowl bubble yet. I always have seven teams. That's it. I think I'll unveil my first super bowl bubble heading into week four.

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Colin Cowherd (43:02)

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

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Colin Cowherd (45:59)

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Colin Cowherd (46:20)

All right. I do it about every month. Maybe I do it four times during the NFL season. I, I save my super bowl bubble. There's always about six teams, seven teams that I think can win the Super Bowl. It's roster, quarterback, coaching, momentum. And then there's another three or four that I think can win multiple playoff games. But I don't think they're a team that can, that can really threaten to get to a conference championship. So let's unveil it right now. J. Mac. And you can take your wax at the pinata here. So the teams I think are in the super bowl bubble and I feel very strongly Rams, Chargers, Eagles, Bills, packers and Seattle. I am high on Seattle's roster. We just heard from Greg Cosell who said on film they are really good. I think Baltimore can win a couple playoff games. I don't trust their defense. I think Detroit, in the end, do I worry that the quarterback is a strictly pocket quarterback. They tend to be very good at home. Not as good in cold weather, not as good late in the season. On the road. I think Tampa, you gotta trust they're gonna win their division. But I think there's a little fool's gold winning over bad teams late. But I respect Baker and Todd Bowles. They have a great front office in San Francisco. Believe it or not, winning with Mac Jones is impressive. Bose's injury will be a problem late in the season when they face elite quarterbacks again. Could they get to the playoffs and win a playoff game? I love their coach. I think when Kittle's healthy, Trent Williams, McCaffrey absolutely can win multiple playoff games. But I think no Bosa is an issue late. Anything you see here. Seattle now tonight for the record, Green Bay lost. So what? They lost to Cleveland. I think to trap game tonight for Seattle, it's a stay away game. Arizona at home, division rival, short week. They play everybody in that division. Tough. Your thoughts on it?

J. Mac (48:22)

Okay, so for starters, one thing is not like the other in that super bowl bubble. I'll just say the quarterback names you tell Me, which pops out at you. Stafford hurts. Herbert, Allen, Love, Darnold. Anything mildly different than the others there?

Greg Cosell (48:39)

No.

J. Mac (48:39)

I hear, I know BFF has him number one.

Colin Cowherd (48:41)

But I have a bunch of elite names. That's all I heard.

J. Mac (48:43)

Okay, so I just went to the super bowl futures odds. Okay. This is a prominent sports book. I don't know if we use them, but whatever. Buffalo is number one. Okay. Number two is Baltimore, which you have. Number three is Philadelphia. Green Bay. Where's Seattle? Oh, 15 Colin. 15th. Best Super bowl odds for Seattle, plus 6,000. So I need you to go to the ATM right now, pull some money out and it puts your money where your mouth is it back. Seattle and Darnold at +6000. They're currently behind the Vikings, the Colts and oh, by the way, where's Bo Nixon? Sean Payton in your bubble? Did the bubble burst?

Colin Cowherd (49:21)

Right now, right now, Denver's not there. That, by the way, I like the Colts. I don't think Daniel Jones is winning two playoff games. I like Denver. They're not playing well. They're not getting the pass rush. They're making too many mistakes. They're a bad first and second down offense. I can't put them there right now. How about the roster? But I don't like the team.

J. Mac (49:42)

The Washington commanders, I believe they were in the NFC title game and have Jaden Daniels and they're nowhere to be.

Colin Cowherd (49:48)

Found again right now. Their quarterback is not healthy.

Greg Cosell (49:53)

Healthy.

Colin Cowherd (49:54)

So I, I, I've said this. Seattle is a weird fumble from being 3 0. Seattle's really good. They had the, the blowout of the year. They hammered a Pittsburgh team in. Pittsburgh dominated them physically in the second half. So I, I think by the way, Seattle special teams are great. That's indisputable. Their defense is great. That is indisputable. And now that JSN is a number one receiver, their running game is great. Our only question was, do they have a number one receiver?

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Colin Cowherd (52:10)

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