← The Herd with Colin Cowherd
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This is an iHeart podcast.
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Guaranteed Human. Thanks for listening to the Herd podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio at noon to 3 Eastern, 9am to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the herd@foxsportsradio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Now, let's get this party started.
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You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.
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Here we go. It's hour two and a Wednesday. Albert Breer in a couple of minutes. Top Brooks Koepka. My guy going back to the tour. Not going to be eligible for some of the money, but he can still take all of it at the Masters, the US Open, in the British Open. So I didn't have a problem when he left for Liv. I don't have a problem him coming back. I like watching him play. The more he's on my tv, the happier I am, the way I feel about Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy. Tiger woods in his prime. You're on my TV. I'm happy. I don't care who you play for. I mean, the PGA doesn't control my three favorite tournaments. My three favorite tournaments. Masters, US Open, British Open, FedEx Cup's fine. But I'm glad he's back and I'm okay with that. He left. All right, I do this, this will be. I always have about five or six teams in my super bowl bubble. A lot of those teams like Kansas City or in New England in their dynasty that we don't have that this year. In fact, maybe the best teams, Buffalo, we don't know. And are they a Super bowl bowl team? So eight teams left. I'm going to tell you how many teams I think are capable of winning the Super Bowl. That's a lot of wins from today. So we'll start with the Rams. Number one scoring offense, number one total offense in the NFL. And they are healthy. Okay? They're healthy and that offense is lethal. Matt Stafford's always been good in the playoffs. 6 and 2 with the Rams. 107 passer rating. I don't love their special teams, but one of the teams that matched up very well against them, Philadelphia with AJ Brown a problem for their corners. They're out. By the way, Carolina matched up well with them twice. Two big boundary receivers. The Rams are a Super bowl bubble team. The second one I would put in New England, folks. They've won 14 of the last 15 games. Top five, coach. They also lead the NFL in yards per play, including the playoffs. That is a. That's what the wise guys like. And I said this yesterday. Here's where they remind me of the old Patriots. A mature, tall, accurate quarterback. A defense tough guy at coach Josh McDaniel, coordinator Robert Kraft, owner. And those Patriot teams didn't have any major holes. They weren't the best at a lot of things other than quarterback, but they didn't have a lot of holes. I don't know what the hole on the Patriots is. I do think they have to continue to modify the O line, but they don't have a lot of holes. They may not be great at anything. Are they terrible at anything? I have New England capable of getting and winning a Super Bowl. The third team I think can get in is the Seahawks again. They've won 11 of 12. Only lost two points in a turnover play game against the Rams number four scoring offense. You can't run the football on them so they force you to throw. Well, that can be problematic if you're playing in Seattle and it's raining in January sideways. I think their coach is the defensive version of Sean McVay. They can score early, they can score late. Sometimes they're a little dependent on JS Senate wide receiver. Okay, but again, I, I don't know where their hole is. Well, Darnold throws picks. So does Brock Purdy and Matt Stafford, folks. So did Peyton Manning. I think the Seahawks are an obvious choice capable of getting to and winning the Super Bowl. And my fourth and final team maybe is the Buffalo Bills. Best second half team in the league. Josh Allen has twice as many wins 8 as the remaining AFC quarterbacks combined. 4. Their offensive personnel is very good. Deon Dawkins, James Cook, excellent tight ends, Kincaid, Dawson, Knox. Offensive line is good. Defense worries me a little, but I think they can go and win the Super Bowl. I've changed my mind on this impressive win at Jacksonville. How about the Chicago Bears? I can't put them in worst scoring defense, worst total defense of the remaining playoff teams. They just give up too many big plays. Niners now that Kittle's out, Bosa Warner out. I can't put the Niners in second worst scoring defense. Sal is doing it with smoke and mirrors. Okay, now my Denver Broncos. I can't hell the 20 points or fewer three straight games. I think they're the best team potentially because they get a play at home. So I think they're keep your eye on Denver against Buffalo, but they've played a very easy schedule. The Jacksonville loss was kind of a whoa moment and they are struggling offensively. People got a lot of film now in Bo Nix and the Houston Texans. I have changed my mind. Oh and six divisional round all time. J. Mac said it earlier this week, something's not quite right with CJ Stroud missing one of their best receivers. They are, this is a knock 24th yards per play. I honestly, if Woody Marks is out, I don't feel like they're viable. They're 30th in the red zone. That was my knock on them Monday night. They settled for field goals, not touchdowns. Rams, Seahawks, Bills, Patriots, in. By the way, it's, it's, it's feet, not even yards. Denver. I mean the coaching in San Francisco, the pass rush in Denver, the defense in Houston and the explosive late game heroics of Caleb Williams. We're not saying they can't win another game, but I think only four of eight can get to and win the Super Bowl. With that. Albert Breer is now joining us live. You're a reporter. Not that you care any of those rankle. Any of those you would strongly disagree with.
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I mean Houston's defense is starting to feel to me like 2015 Broncos, 2013 Seahawks, 2002 Buccaneers, I just 2000 Ravens. I like just watching them close on the ball. That was the big thing because I think we all know like how they can cover on the backhand with the corners they have, how they can get after the passer with, with Anderson and Hunter and then the depth that they have on the defensive line. You know one thing that really stuck out to me, Colin was watching when Aaron Rodgers checked the ball down and threw it over the middle on Monday night.
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Yeah.
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And how it seemed like there were three hats on the ball like instantly on every single play. And it's just I, I, I, I saw what they did to the Bills and Josh Allen earlier in the year and the Rams and the, I mean like it is just, I mean it legitimately looks like there are 13 guys.
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Out there, you know, said that when you see a great defense it is as if they're playing with another man either in the pass rush or in the linebacking court. Houston feels like they got an extra guy out there.
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Right. So like my question is, and, and here's what's so interesting about Houston to me. Right. So you got C.J. stroud and I think we've seen it at times this year. It just hasn't been consistent. Right. Like what he was as a rookie. So you saw it against San Francisco, for example. I think he threw for 350 yards against them. And that's a good team. Like, I know they've had their injuries, but that's obviously a really good team. I just like, to me it's like, what do their first year guys do? So especially if Nico Collins is out this week, right? Like, and we'll see on the concussion protocol. But their rookie receivers, Jaden Higgins and Jalen Noel, the rookie running back, Woody Marks, the rookie left tackle, Ariante Ursary, the rookie offensive coordinator, Nick Cayley, who knows New England inside now because he came up there. Like, I, I just, I look at the amount of young people and first year people, you know, not, not necessarily all rookies, but the amount of young people they're relying on, on offense and the quarterback's part of that equation too. And can they give them enough where that defense can, can really turn it on? And I think you saw flashes of it again on, on, on Monday night. Like there was the deep ball to Jalen Noel that was right on his numbers and he dropped it, you know, so they're just little things that you see with them offensively where it's like, God, they're right there. And this team could be even better next year, you know. And I just think the historic nature of the defense, we've seen it before, right? Like so. And, and we've seen it in this era. Like we saw it with the 2015 Broncos where they didn't have a lot offensively. So I, I'm really interested to see what happens when they come up to Foxboro and play on Sunday.
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We know the Ravens is the best job for a lot of reasons. Great owner, nice roster, a mix of young, experienced Pro Bowlers. Lamar Jackson. Okay, let's start with the number two job. I'm going to argue that we. I think the Giant is the second best job. I go in with left tackle, by the way, great offensive tackle, draft my first pick. I can go get the best tackle, so I can solve. That's like when Brady went to Tampa and they got Tristan worse. That was their big issue. Good roster, bad at right tack. So the Giants can solve that right out of the chute. I think the Giants over the Steelers. Steelers don't have a quarterback. Steelers spend a lot of money on defense. They have a lot of draft picks. But you'll be very, very young defensively next year. I now I know the stability thing. We all know that goes without saying in Pittsburgh. I think the Giants is a better job today to me than Pittsburgh. They got Lamar in that division. Burrows coming back in that division next year, they could get an arch Manning. Do you think the Giants is better than the Steelers as a second best gig?
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I would, I would agree. And I think what's so interesting about this year's market, Colin, is so many of the jobs depend on your individual evaluation of the quarterback. Right. Because we know how important having the right quarterback is. So the Giants job, how attractive it is, is largely dependent on what you think of Jackson Dart. Same thing with Cam Ward in Tennessee, same thing with Michael Penix in Atlanta. I mean, heck, you can say the same thing about Vegas. Like what do you think of Fernando Mendoza and Dante Moore? Right. So I think the attractiveness of this job is kind of a moving target with some of these teams based on your own evaluation of the quarterback position. That said, they have a lot of other things with the Giants, like you said, franchise left tackle and Andrew Thomas, franchise receiver in, in, in, in. Malik Neighbors on the defensive front. I mean, my goodness. Brian Burns, Abdul Carter, Dexter Lawrence, you have a chance to be dominant up front right out of the chute as a first year head coach, they've invested in their secondary, bringing in Paulson Adibo and Javon Holland last off season. So they have pieces. And I, this is why like the last couple of years I felt like they were the team right on the edge. So I think I, I would agree with you. I think a lot of it depends on what your evaluation of Dart is. It's just as to, just how attractive the job is. But if you love Dart, I think it's got everything that you'd want. Stable ownership, all of that. The Steelers, I mean, I, I would just say this with the Steelers. I, I, I think it's an attractive job because it's the Steelers. Yeah, it's a, it's a, it's, it's, it's a flagship franchise. Patient ownership, they're going to give you time to build, but man, you got a lot of work to do on that roster. They got eight guys and they're starting 22 right now that are 30 or older.
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Wow.
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So what do you do with TJ Watt? What do you do with Cam Hayward? Does he retire? What do you do with Jalen Ramsey, Aaron Rodgers? Is he in or out? You don't have a lot of guys in that roster where you look and say, yeah, that guy's going to be here three years from now. Got a couple offensive linemen, maybe a defensive lineman or two and that's it. And so you're, you're You've got, I think, what. What. What looks like a relatively lengthy rebuild there. That isn't the case with the Giants.
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For the. For the record, the heavy job openings are fascinating. There are nine openings and. Guys, put the graphic up. I said, I think there's better candidates than we think. I think Tomlin's going to do a reset. I think he's going to take a year off, do TV. He's not a TV guy. He's like Vrabel. He could do TV. He's not a tv guy. I think Harbaugh, Stefanski, Tomlin, McCarthy, those are very good options. I think Sala, Flores and Dabel deserve a second chance. If I had to, I'd hire all of them. I think mentor, Kubiak and Halfley are certainly worthy of an opportunity. I think Kingsbury is an oc. I don't think he likes conflict. That's why he's bailing on D.C. he felt bullied by Adam Peters, I was told. I also think Mike McDaniel's brilliant. I think he's a vice president, not a president. I'd hired him in one second to be my coordinator. Anything there? When you look at this tearing, am I missing something? Is Halfley considered?
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Yeah.
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I mean, you tell me what you make of that.
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Yeah. Okay. So, like, the first thing I would say is, like, I'm looking at your second chance, guys. I think Robert Saleh has a chance because of his ability to put together a staff. His ties are all to the Shanahan tree. Could he bring Mike McDaniel, who he's very close with.
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Right.
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Right to Tennessee with him? Or could he bring Mike LaFleur for the opportunity to call plays? If Sean McVeigh would let him leave to call place, could he bring him to Tennessee with him? And, you know, Robert's not only going to have that guy, he's also going to know who the next guy is. So he can go to an owner and say, look, this is our. Mike McDaniel's, our coordinator this year, next year, and if he leaves, I got this other guy coming with me from San Francisco who I think is going to be the next coordinator. Right. So I think Robert gives you the chance to do that. His ability to build a staff is really, really solid. I. I look at the first time, guys, and I think what's fascinating about this year is that the best ones are on defense, Right. Jesse Minter got requested by every single team with an opening. Save for Pittsburgh. We'll see if that one comes. Jeff Hathley has been a head coach before, has done a fantastic job in Green Bay. Really good reaching people. Anthony Campanelli in jacksonvill. Things are going to pick up on him a little bit. Matt Burke in, in, in Houston. We see what he's been able to build there. Eo Evero you've got all these young guys. There's almost like this backlog of young defensive coaches because everybody's been mining the offensive pipeline for so long. So I think there are a lot of good young defensive coaches there. And then on the offensive side, if you're dead set on getting one, it's just me. You're going to be rolling the dice a little. Right. Like so. Clint Kubiak, I think is a really good young coach. Is he ready? We'll see. He comes off a lot like his dad. Right. Like, which is a good thing. But you have to be comfortable with like kind of that level, quiet, calm personality. Yeah. Davis Webb's another one. Davis Webb's fantastic and is going to be a head coach. Play quarterback in the league.
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Yeah.
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He's 30 years old. Is he ready? So on the offensive side, I think you'd be looking at guys that are just dice rolls, you know, Whereas on the defensive side of the ball, I think you got more guys who are ready.
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Aaron Rodgers, I thought, I said, I thought he should retire or go to the Vikings. I think he made the most of it. I nominate him for comeback player of the year. I think the Steelers offense, I mean like I said this earlier, Mike Tomlin doesn't have a coaching tree. It's a cactus. Like the O.C. since Aryans just, they don't, they don't, they don't do anything. So.
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Never heard that one before. A cactus. So I think coaching cactus.
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So he basically, Aaron did the best of what you can do with a kind of a tone deaf offensive. I mean last seven years the Steelers have been bottom 10 in offensive spending. It's a tough lift and I think Aaron did a great job. I think Aaron steps away and does traveling. I think he would listen and go to Minnesota for a Viking. I think he would listen, but my guess is like he doesn't want to bounce around. What do you think his future is?
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I, I know the people who are there with him in Pittsburgh think that this is going to be it for him. And like, so I, I know like people that were operating under the impression that he was going to retire after this year. Doesn't mean, and I'm not saying he's told anybody that but like they Were under the impression that this was going to be it for him, regardless of whether Mike Tomlin comes back or not. I also think, like, just what I know about Aaron, I do think that this year gave him some closure, you know, because I, I think what he was looking for in New York at the end, he wanted to fall in love with football again. Right. Like, and, and really like so much about him had become about everything off the field. Right. And all the stuff that, that he does with the ayahuasca and everything else. And I think by the end in New York, he was kind of like, I want to just be a football player again. And because of the circumstances in that organization, he wasn't really allowed to do that. And going to Pittsburgh gave him that. And I think he truly did love being there this year. He loved playing for Tomlin and I think he fell in love with playing football again. So the question becomes, and I think most people who know him would say, well, that gave him closure. Does it make him want to play again? I can't answer that, but I think he's probably done. But if the perfect situation came along, if Kevin o' Connell picks up the phone and says, look, like, you know, we talked about this last year, would you want to come and do it now? Maybe he would jump at something like that. But I, I get the feeling that this is it for him.
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Okay, I got to address Buffalo and this happens all the time where I see something and I can't unsee it. And Buffalo going to Jacksonville, a red hot Jaguars team with a sharp offensive coach. And really I felt like most of that game, it was Buffalo's game and I was like, wow, I think they're going to go to Denver and win. And I did not feel that I, in some time, you know, this, this, this league will give you these moments and you're like, oh, wow. Like when I'm watching Caleb Williams against the Niners late in the year and I mean just, it's volleyball, it's just one great play, one back and against Salah and I'm like, man, Caleb is, he's graduated to a different class, whatever the class is. And then he does it again against the packers and Halfley, I mean, I, I don't know what, Take it from here. What, what, what do you make about Buffalo?
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I, I think I'm going to steal Kirby smarts line. I think Buffalo is hard to kill. Like, I think that's what they've become now. And like, I think you can see it like that was a Pressure pack situation, gigantic pressure. I mean, like, if you go to Jacksonville and lose, and that's a really good Jacksonville team, right? A really good Jackson Field team that kicked Denver's ass. Like, I. Like, if you lose that game, there are tons of big picture questions that are on the table. Right. That's fair. Yeah. So. So in that pressurized environment, look at Sean McDermott's decision making. And I thought this was so interesting, and this is the day and age when everybody's got to go for it. I'm fourth down all the time and everybody's herky, jerky and panicky. Right towards the end of the second half on a fourth and four, he goes out, sends Matt Prater out there to kick a 45 yard field goal. They get penalized, kicks it from 50 yards. Anyway, end of the half, they punt on a fourth and four from the Jacksonville side of the 50. And then on the first drive of the second half, they again were in position to go for it on 4th and less than 5 and send Prater out there for a 47 yard field goal. Those were little things, Colin, that told me Sean McDermott has the utmost confidence that his team is going to pull this out. In the end, he didn't need to feel the need to build a big lead. He felt like if he just played the game out, his team would be able to get to the end of the game and put its trump card, which is Josh Allen, on the table. Right. And so this isn't the best Bills team of the last five years, but I think it's the hardest one to kill, you know, And I just think that this is the. This is the Bills team where you look at it and there's just a belief in what they're doing. And if we can get to the end of the game and put the ball in the hands of our quarterback, we are going to win the game. And you see it over the last two months of the season, the way they fell behind against the Bucks, against the Steelers, against the Bengals, against the Patriots, and roared back in the second half of all of those games. I just. It just feels like this, and maybe it sounds corny, but it does feel like there's a little bit of an intangible quality with this Buffalo team that didn't exist before.
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Okay, we'll do. I'm going to give you a team and you just give me a name, a leading candidate in a sentence. We won't go too long. I'm going to say Tennessee. What happens?
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I think of cannabis. Stefanski doesn't wind up in New York. I could see him winding up in Tennessee if it's not Kevin Stefanski, maybe Robert Sala.
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Raiders.
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So I think it's either a conventional hire like one like Jesse Minter makes sense there with the Michigan connections with Brady and John Spytek.
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I.
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Do they take a swing on Davis Webb? Like, do they take a swing on somebody like that? I don't think that that's impossible.
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Dolphins.
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That Clint Kubiak. Yeah. Clint Kubiak. Yeah. There's some carryover system wise with Clint and Matt LaFleur and John Eric Sullivan came from, came from Green Bay and had been with lafleur and is going to be comfortable with Clint Kubiak's vision and be able to carry out Clint Kubia exposition. I know one of the things they're really looking for there is a collaborative environment, you know, in their new structure. And so Clint would make some sense for them.
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One more.
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Steelers Chris Shula.
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Wow.
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Yeah. So I'm tempted to say Marcus Freeman, by the way, but his, by the.
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Way, his camp says he's not interested. You don't buy that?
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Yeah, I just think it's the one. I think it's the one of all these, like his, like, so the Giants and Titans did pursue him, you know, and did gauge interest and talk to them and everything else, and that was right when he agreed to stay at Notre Dame. I do think he has designs on coaching in the NFL. And let me ask you this, Colin. If Marcus Freeman right now were the defensive coordinator of say, the Chargers, wouldn't he check every box as far as like a Steelers head coach? Like what they generally look for?
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Absolutely.
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Like he carries himself like a Steelers head coach. I, I think Chris Shul is the same, by the way. But, but Marcus Freeman would check a lot of boxes for the Steelers, just kind of that battleship commander that they've always had. I think Chris Shula, if you look at his background, right, and despite his last name, he's had to work his way up, right. And check boxes along the way. And Sean McVeigh, despite their relationship, really made Chris earn it there. And I, I can remember like when, when they promoted him like that was not about like, oh yeah, like, you know, he's just been here long enough. We ought to give it to him. Like he really had to earn that job. I heard Shula's name commit connected to this deals before any of this happened, like two, three weeks ago. And if you think about like kind of what they've looked for in Head coaches, maybe not the guy everybody's looking at, but somebody with a defensive background who's got real presence, who carries himself like a battleship commander, who can handle the pressure. Being in Pittsburgh, I think Chris Shula, to me, would check a lot of those boxes. And again, like, I think this is somewhere too, that having that last name probably doesn't hurt. And not that it, like you think he's going to be the next Don Shula, but this is a guy who's dealt with expectations his entire life, you know, because of that last name. So I think he would be a really interesting fit in Pittsburgh.
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Albert Brer, Monday morning quarterback. Great seeing you, buddy.
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All right, thanks, Colin.
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Yeah, there's some interesting candidates for sure, huh?
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Colin, he dropped like seven bombs there in that. I'm over here. Like what? Marcus Freeman, Come on. You think? The only scary thing, and I just texted my two Notre Dame people who are close to the program, is that the Steelers would give Marcus Freeman a huge Runway, right? Who cares? Old roster, no quarterback.
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B
Here's the other talent. Here's the other great thing about Marcus Freeman. They have a first, a second, three thirds, two fourths. Who knows college personnel? Marcus Freeman, just like Harbaugh goes to the Chargers, back to back drafts. He knows, he's, he's recruited all these top guys. You get a huge. I mean, if you go pure NFL guy, you. You don't get that when you hire Harbaugh. You kind of get that. You hire Marcus Freeman. I guarantee you for the next two drafts, Marcus Freeman's gonna ace it. He know. He knows the odometer on guys, not just the Senior Bowl.
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C
That would be a bigger shock to me than Tom, Len and Harbaugh leaving combined. If Marcus Freeman left Notre Dame, would you take?
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You tell me, Notre Dame or the Steelers?
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I mean, Notre Dame's gonna be stacked next year. Their quarterback could be a top five pick. I would stay Notre Dame, but the Steelers, they're going to be okay being terrible for three years because the ownership.
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They'Re not going to be terrible.
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Their roster is garbage.
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Dude, dude, dude. A first, a second. Three threes, two, four. With Marcus Freeman, all you have to go. Look who's QB1, by the way? New England. 300 million in cap space, seven draft picks. Shocking.
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If they had Drake May. Well, come on, you don't Drake May on this one.
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You're not going to be. I mean, I bet you everything I've earned, you're not going to be terrible for three years with Marcus Freeman. That roster is going to turn over by the la. But the last weekend of April you're going to have seven new guys who can play. And then, and then, by the way, now that you don't pay the quarterback, they're going to have the most money in the league. They're not paying. They're going to have what New England did to their roster. Forget Drake May look at their roster. Last year the Patriots had the worst receiving core in the league. Now it's like number three in big plays. Why they had money and draft picks.
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The other thing Brer said By the way, he he said Davis Webb as a head coach, I almost fell out of my chair. I had to look up where Davis Webb, he's like a passing game coordinator for the Broncos. What he was in the league like seven minutes ago. So Bre's on top. I love that stuff. I I love the rumors and the scuttlebutt.
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B
Oh juicy in Chicago, it's the Herd. One more Herd. The herd streams 24 hours a day, seven days a week within the iHeartRadio app. Search herd to listen live or on.
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Hit that subscribe button and smash that notification notification bell and catch all the.
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Videos from your favorite shows. Two pros and a cup of Joe.
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That thumbs up icon and comment away. Ring Central knows that businesses run on communication and juggling separate systems for team collaboration and customer service creates confusion, missed opportunities and frustrated customers. RingCentral everything with RingEx and Ring CX one powerful platform that connects your entire organization. RingEx keeps your team connected with seamless calling, messaging and video meetings, whether they're in the office or working remotely. Meanwhile, Ring CX transforms your customer experience with AI powered contact center capabilities that route calls intelligently and provide real time insights. The magic happens when they work together. Your customer service agents can instantly collaborate with experts across your company to solve problems faster. No more transferring customers between systems or losing context. With over 500,000 businesses trusting RingCentral and 99.999% uptime reliability, you're in good company. Visit RingCentral.com that's RingCentral.com RingCentral Voice of your business. So Pittsburgh Steelers got a Bunch of draft picks. I would imagine they're going to have some cap space as they move off their old expensive defense. Here's Art Rooney this morning on how he looks at the roster and the new head coach.
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A
I don't know. It's a rebuild. I mean, it's a new coach. So there will be changes and, you know, we'll have to all get comfortable with kind of the plan. So, you know, whether you call it a rebuild or not, I, you know, I, I don't like, like that word that much. You know, we'll, we'll try to compete day one if we can.
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B
And you won't, probably. Again, I think, I think an interesting part of this, it's a, it's not a very good quarterback class. And you don't. Here's the thing. You think it's crazy, but if the Raiders weren't owned by Brady, I think they'd abs. You know, Tom's going to make sure they take Mendoza. That's my, that's my prediction. You can't get the number one spot. If Dante Moore came out. You, I mean, listen, if you're the New York Jets. I mean, what if the Steelers came to you and said, we'll give you all three of our threes to get Dante Moore? If I was Dante Moore, I'd be like, I'll sign up for that jets or Steelers. So Ty Simpson's viewed as. From the calls I've made, like late first, I, I don't think he's a top 10 guy. But again, if you have to reach in a quarterback, that's the position you reach at. Yeah, I think that the Steelers have to get comfortable with just being awful. Awful. Get you, Drake May. Okay, mid. Get you, Kenny Pickett. So I, I can't wait. Here was Albert Breer a second ago in the Cedars opening.
- [31:10]
A
It's a flagship franchise. Patient ownership. They're going to give you time to build. But, man, you got a lot of work to do on that roster. They got eight guys in their starting 22 right now that are 30 or older. So what do you do with TJ Watt? What do you do with Cam Hayward? Does he retire? What do you do with Jalen Ramsey? Aaron Rodgers, is he in or out? You don't have a lot of guys in that roster where you look and say, yeah, that guy's going to be here three years from now. Got a couple offensive linemen, maybe a defensive lineman or two, and that's it. And so you're, you're, you've Got, I think what, what looks like a relatively lengthy rebuild there.
- [31:46]
B
My guess is Harbaugh to the New York Giants. I mean Stefanski to the Steelers makes a lot of sense to me. That makes a lot of sense to me. I could see Brian Dabel to the Titans. He's interviewing Friday. And there's, there's just. Don't forget about Stefanski, two time coach of the year in Cleveland.
- [32:15]
A
All right.
- [32:18]
B
I think, I think almost all of these jobs, I mean I, I, Arizona and Cleveland don't interest me at all. But this league is, you're so capable, if you have a lot of draft picks, you're so capable of turning things around quickly. I mean a great example of it is if you get the right coach and you got a couple hundred million to spend in free agency. Look at New England, they say, well, they've got Drake May. In one year we got six potential first round quarterbacks, maybe eight. You stink for a year. But this league, there's a pretty common thread. If you get the quarterback right and then eventually get the coach right. Like that's why I think the New York Giants is a really interesting opening. Whatever Jackson Dart is, he looks like a franchise quarterback. Is he going to be the 13th best, the 8th best or the 16th best? I don't know. Keep him out of the blue. 10th, but you got one. And that means you're not paying anything for him. So. Or neighbors or Abdul Carter or Scatter Boo. A lot of the Giants best players, you're not paying anything for them. So to me, the Giants job, I know it's hard to say this when you've been bad forever. I think the New York Giants job, if I was Harbaugh and Kevin Stefanski, that would be really attractive. And here's the other thing. You saw the first year of Jackson Dart better than I thought. Too many blue tent trips. Let's say Stefanski gets the job or Harbaugh, you let him play. And if he, if he can't get out of the blue tent and you look at it and think, we got Arch Manning coming out, Julian Sayin coming out, Dante Moore coming out. We got it. Jaden Myava coming out. That doesn't mean you have to stick with Jackson Dart. You get a nut, you get a Runway for him. So you get a competent, young, inexpensive quarterback for a year. Doesn't mean you can't draft another one. Doesn't mean you will. But it doesn't mean you can't. If you give a young quarterback Jackson Dart two years, that's a lot of Runway. That's a lot of snaps. So the Giant job's pretty good to me. Herdline news around the corner. Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app Fox College Hoops Friday.
- [34:30]
C
Features a primetime Big 12 battle as Baylor looks to take down Bill Self's Kansas Jayhawks. It all tips off Friday night at 8 Eastern on Fox.
- [34:42]
B
Without further ado, J. Mac with the news. No, no, no, turn on the news.
- [34:48]
A
This is the Herdline news.
- [34:51]
C
All right, Colin, let's start with the Ravens. Interesting presser from Steve Bishotti, the Ravens owner, yesterday. Besides the fact that he had too many buttons open on his shirt, he spent a lot of time talking about the role Lamar Jackson is going to play in the decision making process for finding a head coach. This surprised me.
- [35:10]
A
My decision, I think by Monday was.
- [35:13]
B
Pretty much set.
- [35:17]
A
And I think by.
- [35:19]
B
The time I got off the phone.
- [35:20]
A
With Lamar, I had told him that I think my position was pretty set and that but when I hang up from you, I don't want you to think the decision is ironclad. A lot of say, but he has no power. I have the power. They have opinions and I want them all. I care about my players very much, but I can't give them power.
- [35:48]
B
I like that. Yeah, what's wrong with that? You don't like that?
- [35:52]
C
Lamar has a lot of say in the head coaching job, Lyn.
- [35:56]
B
He didn't give him. You have a say in it, but they can't, that can't be the bl. I think that's a dangerous place to go. And Steve Bashadi is a lot smarter than me. But if you tell people I want you to have a say, they give you an opinion and you don't hire that person. Do you create animosity? So you're better off just saying, listen, we hire the coach, you throw the passes. That's a, that's a fine line there that you want to listen to people. But again, who Lamar likes is not, you know, I, I, I just think owners own GMs, GM coaches coach players play. When you cross into that line and you ask a quarterback what you think and you say, okay, we're going to, we're going to put him in up to two or three candidates. But what if you don't choose it?
- [36:38]
C
So I, I largely agree with what you said. I think one of the best examples of this is Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls back in the Day. And I know basketball and football a little different, but Michael Jordan had Doug Collins as his coach. He loved Doug Collins. Why? Doug Collins said, do whatever you want. Score all the points. They didn't win anything. Jordan didn't win a damn thing until the Bulls went and hired Phil Jackson. And many articles at the time said Jordan didn't like Phil Jackson. He was a little prickly, a little different, handing out books and stuff. Phil Jackson instituted the triangle offense with Tex Winter, they made the jump, and Jordan becomes one of the greatest players all time. That's why I don't want to go to my player and say, what would you.
- [37:15]
B
What do you think?
- [37:16]
C
What do you like?
- [37:16]
B
It's interesting because Michael Jordan was also, let's be honest, an awful general manager. And Magic Johnson tried coaching for five minutes. You know, he wasn't good at that. I mean, so. And LeBron James, by the way, you know, his camp will deny this. They're the ones to push Rob Pelinka to get Westbrook. Yeah, that didn't work. Also, Shabazz Napier in Miami. LeBron was all into that. So, you know, I mean, it's. It's hard enough to be a great player. I mean, I. Mike Holmgren is one of the best coaches ever. I remember when he was in Seattle, you know, there was reports he had a little say in personnel. Pete Carroll did as well. Belichick bad at personnel, can't do it. College or pro, we know Belichick knows his stuff. So my take is it's hard to jump over into other sectors and other departments. It's hard enough to be a great GM.
- [38:04]
A
Yeah.
- [38:05]
C
How did Aaron Rodgers do GMing the jets when he said, Can I have this OC and this wide receiver and this player? Like, it was a disaster, all of them. It doesn't work. I think Bishadi needs. I mean, this is not going to be an easy one because, you know, Lamar is kind of. I mean, the stories are out there about his practice habits. Colin, it's a tough job to fill. It's obviously a great job, but we'll. We'll see what happens. Let's move on to the Philadelphia Eagles, who have parted ways with Kevin Patullo, the embattled offensive coordinator. He was on the Colts staff with Sirianni and then joined Sirianni in Philly. Jalen Hurts will now have his fifth offensive coordinator since being drafted. Shane Steichen left for the Colts, has had some success. No playoff trips. Kellen Moore had some success this past year with the Saints at his Quarterback, but Brian Johnson, disaster. Kevin Petullo, a mess. Colin, this should be a coveted job, right?
- [38:55]
A
This.
- [38:55]
C
I mean, you've got a really, really stacked team, amazing defense, a lot of pieces on offense. I think AJ Brown will be gone. What do you think? What direction you think they should go here?
- [39:05]
B
Well, there's. I mean, this is, again, Mike McDaniel. They pay money. They're not cheap in Philly. Mike McDaniel, Cliff Kingsbury could work. I think what we. What we know is Nick Sirianni. Jason is very reliant on his coordinator. McVeigh isn't. Andy's not. Shanahan's not he. Dan Campbell, who's a culture guy. Is Sirianni more of a culture guy? Very reliant on coordinators. And so I think Detroit. I would immediately put Detroit in a Super bowl bubble if they went and got Mike McDaniel. Yeah, if they'd get out. If they. You know, I feel like Detroit and Philadelphia are similar, really like the rosters. The coach is a culture guy, not a scheme guy. I like both quarterbacks. Jalen and Goff don't love either. So I think, you know, listen, it's a good time to be an offensive coordinator in this league. There's going to be some bidding wars for Mike McDaniel and bidding wars for Kliff Kingsbury.
- [39:59]
A
Yeah.
- [39:59]
C
The other problem is, let's say you hire an OC and the Eagles are great again and they go to the Super Bowl. He's leaving for a head coaching job. That's what they do. So, honestly, I know the Eagles won't do this. I'm blowing out Sirianni and I'm bringing in. I think that would be attractive for a Stefanski and McDaniel, etc.
- [40:15]
B
Oh, of course.
- [40:16]
C
I doubt that would happen.
- [40:18]
B
Final story.
- [40:18]
C
Let's go to Minnesota, where J.J. mcCarthy has been a controversial figure on the show. One of us stands by him, the other, the other doesn't think very highly because he can't stay healthy. Here's Kevin OConnell talking to the media and. Oh, sounds like McCarthy is going to have competition soon.
- [40:36]
A
I think there has to be. I think that's what's going to make everybody better in that room. It's going to be what makes our entire offense, you know, thrive through that competition.
- [40:48]
B
I ultimately think that's what will make not only our, you know, the starter.
- [40:53]
A
But the next guy and the next guy.
- [40:55]
B
And we've learned we've got to get a lot of guys ready to play competition.
- [41:03]
C
You're gonna revive your Aaron Rodgers to Minnesota.
- [41:07]
A
Yes.
- [41:07]
C
It's not terrible.
- [41:08]
B
Listen, I say I. I defended Kirk Cousins and Pennix. I would defend Aaron Rodgers. If you had this whole idea of. Well, it didn't work in Atlanta. McCarthy showed glimpses in the last month. Yeah, but he doesn't stay healthy. Aaron showed absolute glimpses, but he's 42 or 43 next year, whatever his birthday is. So I think Minnesota goes into it. I'd have no problem having both McCarthy and Aaron Rodgers. None at all. None at all. You don't have to love it, but I think it's something the one position I'm okay. The room being a bit crowded. Yeah. J Mac with the news.
- [41:48]
A
Well, that's the news.
- [41:49]
B
And thanks for stopping by the Herd lie news nine coaching openings. That is a. That is a lot of coaching openings. I've said before, I think there's some very goods. I think there's nine different people I'd be comfortable hiring. I did not put Marcus Freeman of Notre Dame in there because his camp is saying he's not interested. I think that's a tough call. Notre Dame, Pittsburgh Steelers. That's a tough call. It's very easy to say no to Cleveland and Arizona and Miami. That's easy. Titans, all of a sudden you get off of the Ravens job, the Giants job, the Steelers job. I'm Marcus Freeman. And you sit down with a family. I mean, worse places to live, worse jobs to have than head football coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. That's pretty good job. Hour three Jerome Bettis.
- [42:53]
A
This is an iHeart podcast.
- [42:56]
B
Guaranteed Human.