THE HERD - Hour 3 - Aaron Boone's managing style, relying on analytics, the MLB Wild Card round, Ian O'Connor

Summary

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The Herd with Colin Cowherd – Hour 3 (October 2, 2025)

Main Themes:

• Aaron Boone’s managing style and pressures with the Yankees
• The impact and limits of analytics in MLB
• MLB Wild Card and playoff expectations
• Conversation with Ian O’Connor (author, sports journalist)
• Broader look at managing, athlete accountability, and baseball’s changing landscape
• Additional segments on NFL storylines and coaching updates

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Aaron Boone’s Management Style & Leadership

Guest: Ian O’Connor (The Athletic, author of a new Dan Hurley book)

[02:42] Colin Cowherd introduces Ian O’Connor

• Background: Ian has deep experience covering NY sports, written books on Derek Jeter and Dan Hurley.

Boone as “Pro-Player” Manager

• Colin’s View: “He’s very even keel. He’ll never throw players under the bus. He’s very, I would say, Yankee fans will say he’s pro player to a fault, but I think he takes a lot of heat that nobody knows about… Analytics sets the lineup, so there are things that are taken out of his control.” [02:48]
• Colin asks for an inside story on Boone’s handling of criticism.

Notable Boone Story (via Ian O’Connor)

• Ian O’Connor:

  • After the controversial World Series Game 1 pitching change (pulling Garrett Cole):
  • Boone “was willing to absorb so much criticism over that move, even though he had no choice but to make that move and he never said anything about it.”
  • O’Connor recalls telling Boone: Fans/media hammered you for this, why not just say Cole was gassed?
  • Boone’s response:
    “It’s not my job to try to save face. It’s my job to protect my players… That’s not why I took this job.” [03:52]
  • O’Connor paraphrases: Boone prioritizes protecting his players, even at the cost of public perception.

• Fan Perception vs. New York Reality:

  • Fans say Boone doesn’t hold players publicly accountable.
  • O’Connor: “In New York, it’s tough. There’s so much pressure and scrutiny… It’s time for the Yankees to win a World Series again.” [04:13]

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Yankees’ Patience and Success Model

[04:35] Colin Cowherd:

• Yankees are unusually patient (“three managers in 30 years”), unlike Knicks/Jets/Giants.
• But: “When you’re always making the playoffs, what move should you make?”

Ian O’Connor:

• “Brian Cashman… likes his managers at least on a 10 year cycle. It shows continuity and a commitment to a program and I think generally it works.” [05:32]
• 2009 was last championship—a “biblical drought in New York terms.”
• Discusses Aaron Judge’s legacy: risks becoming a “tragic figure” without a ring, despite being one of the great Yankees.

Playoff Outlook:

• “It’s wide open… The Yankees have as much talent as anyone and this is go time for them.” [06:00]
• If Yankees don’t win: “If they don’t win tonight, it’s an unmitigated disaster. In my opinion they are a better team.” [06:45]

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Analytics, Pitching Changes & Playoff Decisions

Game 1: Max Fried’s Early Removal

Colin:

• Critiques the decision to pull Fried, given his laboring but still performing well.
• Notes NY bullpen isn’t elite; if Yankees lose, “people are going to go point at that pulling Max Fried moment.”

[08:02] Ian O’Connor:

• “I thought it was a mistake. And listen, would Joe Torre have made that move after 102 pitches? Absolutely not… It was a mistake.”
• Unlike Cole (admitted being gassed), Fried wanted to keep pitching.
• Yankees’ analytics give Boone some freedom:
  “If he wanted to stay with Fried, he could have. If it doesn't work out...he just has to be willing to defend his position.” [08:35]

Garrett Cole’s Impact

Colin:

• Yankees becoming less of a World Series team without Cole.
• “The two times the Yankees looked like the Dodgers’ equal [last year] was when Garrett Cole pitched.”
• “If they got to the ALCS…without Garrett Cole, isn’t that— it doesn’t feel like a dominant team?” [09:03]

Ian O’Connor:

• There’s no dominant postseason team this year.
• “Aaron Boone went on record the other day and said this is our best team that I've had in my eight years here.” [10:04]
• Yankees went to the World Series last year with an “inferior team.”
• Says this is a wide-open year; if Yankees lose to the Red Sox—given the injury to Roman Anthony—“I think Alex Cora…it just tells you how good Alex Cora is at his job…” [10:59]
• “If I had $100, I’d put it on the Yankees. I think Judge will have a big moment tonight.” [11:07]

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Dan Hurley’s Coaching – Insights from Ian O’Connor

Colin introduces O’Connor’s Dan Hurley Book:

• Dan Hurley, Never Stop Life: Leadership and What It Takes to Be Great

[11:36] Ian O’Connor:

• The biggest surprise: Hurley’s holistic, supportive manner behind the scenes.
  “People see Dan as a monster on the sidelines… But the way he treats his student athletes, he’s a supporter, a cheerleader, a cornerman.”
• Last year Hurley nearly burned out and almost left UConn.
• UConn could be a dynasty if they win again.

Colin (on Hurley’s wife, Andrea):

• “She met him in college and Dan was a wreck in college…I think meeting Andrea Hurley was probably the best thing in his life and still is today.” [12:56]

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Key Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Aaron Boone on criticism:
  “It’s not my job to try to save face. It’s my job to protect my players.” (via Ian O’Connor, [03:52])
• Ian O’Connor on Yankees continuity:
  “It shows continuity and a commitment to a program and I think generally it works.” [05:35]
• On Yankees’ urgency:
  “If they don’t win tonight, it’s an unmitigated disaster.” [06:45]
• Boone’s best Yankees team:
  “This is our best team that I’ve had in my eight years here.” [10:04]
• On Dan Hurley’s intensity:
  “His father’s a high school basketball coach and a legend…not Bob Knight, but he was in that ballpark. And so is Dan without a lot of the negatives.” [11:36]

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MLB Wild Card & Playoff Analysis

• Colin’s perspective on matchups:
  • “Red Sox have been really good at Yankee Stadium this year. Yankees have more good players. I think Dodgers advance. I think Philadelphia…Dodgers Phillies is going to be dramatic. Phillies bullpen’s better than the Dodgers.” [28:48]
  • Speeding up MLB games has helped the sport: “I think the games have been succinct, quick. They’re always going to go a little longer in the postseason.” [29:15]
  • “It kind of feels like Aaron Judge is going to have a moment tonight at Yankee Stadium.” [30:38]

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Other Key Segments & NFL Discussions

• NFL matchups and coaching talk:
  • Colin and co-host riff on Saints-Giants, Brian Schottenheimer’s return to New York, Dallas’ offensive rebound (w/o CeeDee Lamb), and Kyler Murray’s uncertain future with Arizona.
  • Nuggets on the uncertainty and intrigue with young QBs and hot-seat NFL coaches.
  • Discussion of upcoming picks and the unpredictability of both NFL and college football weekends.

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Aaron Boone as a manager – Ian O’Connor story: [03:23 – 04:35]
• Yankees’ organizational patience philosophy: [04:35 – 05:32]
• World Series/playoff urgency for Yankees: [06:00 – 07:24]
• Analytics/pitching changes (Max Fried & Garrett Cole): [07:24 – 09:54]
• Dan Hurley coaching insights: [11:14 – 12:56]
• Colin’s MLB playoff picks & big-picture view: [28:48 – 31:13]

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Summary & Takeaways

1. Aaron Boone is depicted as a selfless, even-keel manager who shoulders media and fan criticism to protect his players—a strategy Ian O’Connor says comes at a cost in New York’s high-pressure market.
2. Yankees’ commitment to continuity and analytics is both a strength and a lightning rod for criticism, especially during controversial playoff decisions.
3. The wide-open 2025 MLB playoffs present a major opportunity—and risk—for both Boone and the Yankees, with the expectation that anything less than a World Series win will be a failure.
4. O’Connor shares new insights into UConn coach Dan Hurley’s approach: intense on the outside, deeply supportive and holistic behind the scenes.
5. Colin and guests mix expert analysis with candid, conversational critique, blending deep sports insight with relatable storytelling.

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This summary covers the substance, tone, and key insights of Hour 3, providing actionable context and notable quotes for listeners who want the essence of the conversation without the ads and filler.

Transcript

[Colin Cowherd]

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[Colin Cowherd]

Life 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 [e-mail] or stream us live every day on.

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[Ian O'Connor]

Now let's get this party started.

[Colin Cowherd]

You're listening to Fox Sports Radio. Well, somebody that's covered the Yankees, written a book about Derek Jeter, New York Post, Daily News, USA Today, espn. Now he's at the Athletic. My buddy Ian o' Connor is joining us. New book as well on Dan Hurley. But it's interesting. I, I've known Aaron for a long time. He's very even keel. He'll never throw players under the bus. He's very, I would say Yankee fans will say he's pro player to a fault, but I think he takes a lot of heat that nobody knows about. And I think analyze, I said in my rant, analytics sets the lineup. So there are things that are taken out of his control. Give me, give me an Aaron Boone story that, you know where he's taken one for the team.

[Ian O'Connor]

Well, last night I had a conversation with him after game two, Colin, where I said to him, listen, I reported that as much heat as you took from Derek Jeter and the national media for taking Garrett Cole out of game one of the World Series last year after 88 pitches and then losing that game and the series, Cole told him that he was gassed. He had no choice but to take him out. But Aaron Boone was willing to absorb so much criticism over that move, even though he had no choice but to make that move and he never said anything about it. So I asked him in the hallway outside the clubhouse last night, why did you do that? Why didn't you tell the truth? And he said, it's not my job to try to save face. It's my job to protect my players. And I'm paraphrasing a bit, but. And to try to give us the best chance to win. And I'm not concerned about saving face. And that's not my job. That's not why I took this job. So that's the way he is now. Fans feel like he doesn't hold his players publicly accountable enough. But in New York, it's tough. There's so much pressure and scrutiny and this is the way Aaron Boone has decided to run his club. He's eight years in. It's time for the Yankees to win a World Series again. They made it last year and lost and got embarrassed to some degree and we'll see if they can pull it off this year.

[Colin Cowherd]

I'm not anti analytics at all at all, but, and I understand lefty, righty, but to me, you're not going to beat Garrett Crochet. In fact, if he had, if he threw an inning tonight in the eighth inning, I wouldn't be shocked if they just put him out there if it's a tie game, but you're not going to beat him. He reminds me, you know, we've had These great pitchers, left or right handers like Justin Verlander, I can remember Jack Morris 30 years ago, like you just knew if they went into a big game, lights out. I look at the Yankees and I say, listen, a lot of New York teams, Ian, the Knicks just fired a coach after their best year in 20 years. The jets, the Giants, Brooklyn, they're always moving parts. You could criticize the Yankees and say, God, they've had three managers in 30 years. Cashman, Randy Levine, it's the same guys, but they're almost never bad. What do you make about the argument? They're too patient, they need to stir things up. And my take is, well, when you're always making the playoffs, what move should you make?

[Ian O'Connor]

No, it's a great point. And I think Brian Cashman and he said this, he likes his managers at least on a 10 year cycle. It shows continuity and a commitment to a program and I think generally it works now again, it's been since 2009, since they've won it all. And that is a biblical drought in New York terms, in Yankee terms anyway. So it's time. I mean there's not a great team in the tournament this year. It's wide open, I think. I think the Yankees have as much talent as anyone and this is go time for them. And for Aaron Judge, already in his 30s, you don't want him to end up like Patrick Ewing with the Knicks where he becomes almost like a tragic figure in the history of the franchise. As great as he is, he's one of the four or five greatest Yankees of all time, without question. And he needs to win a ring, he needs to play better in October. He's so far in this series look good at the plate. He hasn't hit a ball over the wall yet. But this is a great opportunity for the Yankees after seeing the Dodgers firsthand. Look at what it takes to win a World Series, right? And again they were embarrassed to some degree. And I think they should have taken that experience and applied it this year. They lost Soto but have added other pieces. Freed is a huge piece and learning from that experience, applying it and winning the World Series, it's right there in front of them. And if they don't, if they don't win tonight, it's an unmitigated disaster. In my opinion they are a better team. I think if the Red Sox, Colin had Roman Anthony in the series, I think they'd win it. But they don't. And I look at that lineup head to toe, I see one non weapon after Another, I don't even know how they score runs. The Red Sox. I think Alex Cora, it just, it just tells you how good Alex Cora is at his job, that they, they've won a lot of games in that building this year. They are very capable of winning this game tonight. I think, hey, the Yankees have to fear that possibility because if that happens, it's going to be a very difficult couple of weeks in the Bronx.

[Colin Cowherd]

You know, it's interesting. I want to go back to game one when they pulled Max Freed. And my take was he had labored for a couple of innings. He had a 24 pitch inning, a 20 pitch inning, but he was pitching well. And Luke Weaver has been spotty all year. I understand the criticism. Like, I get it, but I also, and it's interesting on this because your bullpen in New York, it's not the Padres, okay? It's, it's not the Padres bullpen, it's not the brewers, it's maybe not the Mariners, but it's not the Dodgers either. If they lose this series, people are going to go point at that pulling Max Freed moment. They're going to go, hey, that was the moment. How did you land on that?

[Ian O'Connor]

I thought it was a mistake. And listen, would Joe Tory have made that move after 102 pitches? Absolutely not. He won four World Series and wasn't really analytics guy. So that was a mistake. And I felt that in the press box at the time. And unlike Garrett Cole, who told Boone in the World Series he was gassed, Max Reid did not say that. He said the opposite. He said he, he still had something left and he was ready to empty the tank and Boone did not give him that opportunity. And yeah, if they lose this series, that's the moment and it was a mistake. And you talk about analytics, Colin, and the Yankees obviously are very, very big into those analytics, but I do think their system gives the manager a little freedom to make a decision there. And if he wanted to stay with Freed, he could have. If it doesn't work out and the numbers said he should have done something else, he just has to be willing to defend his position. So when you go off platform, off script and it doesn't work, you just have to be able to talk your way through that problem with the people upstairs.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, I'll make the argument that when Garrett Cole was out for the season, they, they, you can argue they were not a World Series team. If you go back to last year's World Series, the two times the Yankees looked like the Dodgers equal when Garrett Cole pitched when he didn't. It was so clear. The more athletic roster, the steadier roster, Yankees roster felt uneven. Not as good in, in the field. I, I would argue if they got to the ALCS this year and could take it six or seven without Garrett Cole, isn't that, I mean it's not the Dodgers batting order. It's not, it's not the Padres bullpen. If you look at what the Steinbrenner spend, this is a potential ALCS team, but it doesn't feel like a dominant team. It is not felt like that this year, has it?

[Ian O'Connor]

No, but there isn't a dominant team out there in this postseason, Colin. And listen, they don't have Soto either from last year beyond Cole. But Aaron Boone went on record the other day and said this is our best team that I've had in my eight years here. Going into the postseason, of course, he's made seven trips to the playoffs and one of only three managers in Yankees history to do that. Joe Tory and Casey Stang will be in the other two. But the manager says this is my best team that I've had and it is a wide open field. Everybody agrees with that. And, and you went to the World Series last year with an inferior team by his own account. Then you should win it all. I don't see an opponent out there that they should lose to. I really don't. You look at their lineup tonight, Colin, and compare it to the Red Sox lineup and tell me why they should lose this game. But Alex Cora has Boone's number and the Red Sox have had the Yankees number for a while now and they've won a lot of games as I said earlier in the prox this year. So it's a 50, 50 proposition. If I had 100 bucks, I would put it on the Yankees. I think Judge will have a big moment tonight. He's ready for that. This is his time. But if you told me the Red Sox are going to win this series, I wouldn't be surprised at all. I do think if they just had one more hitter in the middle of that lineup, Roman Anthony, they would win tonight. But they don't have that presence and I think that'll be a factor.

[Colin Cowherd]

Okay. Your latest book is Dan Hurley, Never Stop Life, Leadership and what It Takes to Be Great. He is remarkably intense. I like him. I love UConn basketball. I think between Calhoun and Hurley there's an intensity that may be unrivaled in the history of the sport. Kind of a Krzyzewski level intensity. When you write the book. What was the biggest surprise for you as the author?

[Ian O'Connor]

Dan's Holistic Approach to Coaching. I didn't know about it because I was around his father when Dan was 5 years old. And the intensity, obviously, his father's a high school basketball coach and a legend who's a Hall of Famer and was. He was not Bob Knight, but he was in that ballpark. And so is Dan without a lot of the negatives. But his. The way he loves his players behind the scenes, the way he never yells individually at a player during a game. I wasn't aware of that. People see Dan as a monster on the sidelines with the refs and occasionally maybe with an assistant coach, the adults in the process. But the way he treats his student athletes, he's a supporter, a cheerleader, a cornerman, if you will. And I wasn't aware of that. I assumed he just exploded at everybody. And I think that part of his approach as a coach is underrated, under talked about around the country because of the sideline explosions that drew him a lot of criticism last year. And, you know, at the end of that year, Colin, he was. After 30 consecutive years of high intensity coaching, he was burned out. He thought of walking away from UConn and maybe doing some TV. Gladly, for UConn fans. That didn't happen. He's got a chance to win a third national title this year in four years. That is a dynasty. So they'll have a dynasty if they win it all again this year that he couldn't put in place last year. And I think they have a real shot.

[Colin Cowherd]

What's his wife make of his outbursts?

[Ian O'Connor]

She's his coach. Andrea Hurley. Bad. She. She met him in college and Dan was a wreck in college. I hate to put it that way, but it's the truth. And she in a lot of ways saved his life. And meeting her and meeting a nun at Seton Hall, Sister Catherine Waters and George Blaney, the coach. And Dan was a mess in college. He had some serious mental health issues that he had to get through, and he did. And I think meeting Andrea Hurley was probably the best thing in his life and still is today.

[Colin Cowherd]

Ian o'. Connor, another New York Times bestseller cannot wait for tonight. Ian, as always, it's good, good connecting with you and keep crushing it.

[Ian O'Connor]

You're the best, Colin. Thank you.

[Colin Cowherd]

Ian o'. Connor. So tonight you got yourself a ball game. Got yourself a ball game tonight. One more herd.

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[Colin Cowherd]

He'd also tell you that this podcast.

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[Colin Cowherd]

Rams heavily favored over the perennially injury plagued 49ers Mac Jones, whose quarterback 1A for the Niners tonight we'll have his hands full. He didn't have any of his weapons. McCaffrey's healthy for now, but it's an interesting question. If they got into a 14 nothing hole in mid second quarter, do you shut down McCaffrey? Because I thought it was pretty predictable. I picked the Niners to be third not because I didn't love the coach of the players, but I got five straight years of it looking like this in September and October. They're always banged up and the Seahawks are younger and the Rams are younger and the Arizona is feisty. Arizona should have beaten them. Arizona had them after that safety. They picked up a first down and they blew it. So it could be worse. They're three and one. That's the good news. J Mac with the news. No no no, turn on the news.

This is the Herd line news. Let's get started with the Saints and Giants. I know not really a sexy matchup, but man, I like this. I'm kind of all into this game, Colin, and I didn't realize it was a potential revenge spot for Jackson Dart. Remember the Saints could have taken him in the first round. They passed for Kelvin Banks with the ninth overall pick and then they got Tyler Shook in the second round. Dart has an opportunity to kind of get payback. Here he is talking about the Saints.

[Jackson Dart]

You kind of have thoughts in your head during the draft of, you know, what options are really realistic. And I definitely felt like that was a place that, you know, could have panned out. I love it here.

[Colin Cowherd]

This isn't.

[Jackson Dart]

There's not a place that I'd rather be. I love just, you know, how passionate people are here outside of the facility, within the facility. And I like, kind of just like the attitude, you know, that the East Coasters have. And it's a lot of fun.

[Colin Cowherd]

You know what? That's how I felt when I moved west to East. East Coasters. When I was out west, people said, you're a workaholic. And when I went out east, you know what they said? I'm a worker. They grind out East. East coast people are grinders.

Well, I'm kind of lost. What do you think? Jackson darts a grinder?

No, he's saying, I like the mentality of people.

Okay.

He likes the grind of the East. Your weather's crappier. You're all jammed together in smaller states. It's tough. You get a little tougher out East.

Life is short. Grinding is overrated. Real quick. Kelvin Banks. Colin. I looked into some stats on him. I know they're from pff, but it's just one data point. He's grading out as the 37th best tackle out of 73. Not bad for a rookie. It's given up one sack in 180 pass blocking attempts. I don't think they slighted Jackson Dart by going with Banks. Their offensive line stinks. I just think Dart seems like a nice kid. Right? He's got the floppy hair, the headband. He kind of looks like California cool. I think this is a tough spot for him without Malik Neighbors. I mean, how many touches can you get?

Cam?

Scatter.

Boo. It's one thing when Malik Neighbors gets hurt in a game, but when I can prepare for you knowing Malik Neighbors won't be in the game. That's a different. Yeah, that's a different ball game. I like the Saints and this one close.

I'm with you 100%. Let's go on to Brian Schottenheimer. Listen, I'm a Jets fan and I remember when he was the OC of the Jets, Eric Mangini was the coach. Shotty somehow lasted five seasons there. That was probably three years too long. He called plays for Brett Favre, Mark Sanchez under Mangini, and Rex Ryan. When he left, he was the longest tenured OC in Jets history. Now he heads back to the Meadowlands to face the Jets. Here he is talking about it.

[Brian Schottenheimer]

That'll be good. There's still some people in the organization I'm really close with and you know, shoot. I like to think this way. I spent six years as the OC in New York. I think that's the longest, longest tenured coordinator there since the early 70s. It can feel like dog years at times because they're such great fans and it'd be fun to be back there. So I guess I was the coordinator there for 42 years. But no, we had great success, man. We won a lot of games and I'm proud of, you know, the fact that we, you know, went to back to back AFC championships and things like that. But it's about people for me.

[Colin Cowherd]

You've done a good job. Kind of a, you know, I, I didn't have high hopes, but they've been very good offensively and I think, I think it's a tough spot. The only reason I'm hesitant to take the jets is Dak has had so many snaps in this league and if it comes down to some circumstance late, Dak's just been there, done that. But I, if the number gets to three, I would probably take the Jets.

How, by the way, do the Cowboys look outdoors in Chicago? How'd they look two weeks ago? Not indoors on that fast track in Jerry world. How'd they look outdoors, Colin? Yeah, not great, huh? I'll just say this about Schottenheimer. Your boys of Mark Sanchez, you know, he comes on the show. It was very frustrating as a fan watching how conservative Shotty was with the Jets. They did get to two AFC title games, but then in year three, you're like, all right, let's break through. And he didn't have like that counter punch. It was the same stuff from the last two years and then they, the bottom fell off. So listen, how much credit are you giving him for this hot start for the Dallas offense? A lot or.

Well, I think, I mean, I think there's limitations with the roster. I think the offensive roster is better than the defensive roster and I try to be fair on this. I've always believed when you first get to an organization, I'm going to look at your side of the ball. So remember when McVay came to the Rams, the offense was awful. He got Andrew Whit Worth and change Jared Goff's career. They weren't, they weren't great defensively, but they were tremendous and tremendously improved offensively. So you know, McVeigh's it and that's kind of my take Is there are limitations defensively, but the offense. Pickens has been tremendous. He gets better every week. Dak is tremendous. They're doing this without CD Lamb. So the. The offensive side of the ball, where Shotty's going to have his most influence, I think they've done a really good job. I think there's real limitations, what they can do defensively.

Yeah, I'll admit that. Listen, without CD Lamb, I mean, the world was on the packers, myself included, how are they going to move the football? They scored 40 points. That to me is impressive. But it felt like Dak is just making every freaking throw. I mean, he's just nails. We'll see what the jets have.

They've also. They've hit on a couple of their offensive line picks. Tyler Smith is great.

He's good.

Yeah, Yeah. I mean, he's like a Pro Bowler. So they've hit on a couple picks. They have had some lean drafts, but next year, two first rounders. You can solve a lot of problems defensively. Go get an elite corner and go get an elite pass rusher. Your defense will be better.

Well, I know you like to give me teases. Well, I'm going to just tease this. The Cowboys play some of the most zone coverage in the league. And you know, Justin Fields can't throw guys open, but he does eat up zone. So there are some things. We'll talk about it more tomorrow, but jets for sure. Final story. Colin is the Arizona Cardinals and your buddy who you hang with sometimes in the offseason, KYLER Murray. They're 2 and 2, but the offense is dreadful. Now James Conner's out for the season. Marvin Harrison's dropping passes left and right. However, how about this? The Arizona Cardinals are going to move to a new practice facility in 2028, and the media asked Kyler Murray about it. Take a close listen.

What was your reaction to training facility veterinary? What do you mean, was my reaction? Yeah, it's beautiful. It's beautiful. Beautiful. Yeah. Hope you know. Well, I don't know what's coming out, but hope I'm here to see it. Yeah, people made a lot of that.

People who couldn't really hear him. He basically was like, I hope I'm here to see it in 2028, the new practice facility. And he had like a smile and looked at the media.

Well, what is he supposed to say?

I'm the franchise quarterback, I don't want to go anywhere. What's he saying? That I'm playing like garbage and they're going to dump me.

Well, you Can't. Players aren't perfect. They're not going to have the perfect sound bite.

I think, dude, you watch that. He's like smiling and laughing like, haha, I'm being funny.

Ask yourself this, would he have a market?

Tyler?

Yeah.

Maybe. Maybe a couple teams would be interested.

Maybe.

Wouldn't you rather draft someone than go take a bite of the Kyler Murray apples? He's no Sam Darnold, let's be real.

Well, no, no. Would I rather draft somebody? Yes. If I got the car from Notre Dame or Dante Moore, I would draft them. But Cabe Klubnick or Drew Aller I don't think are nearly as good as Kyler Murray. So I mean, yeah, ideally I'd love to find a guy that Bo Nix who's free for four years, but Kyler Murray is better than. I mean, Dante Moore looks like pretty.

Unique talent, but yes, our staff. Staff has some stuff. Seven seasons for Kyler, one winning season, one playoff appearance.

Well, it's not a well owned team.

Oh, here we go. Excuses, excuses from Mr. Cowherd defending his guy who throws a great ball.

Well, he does throw a great ball. Great slider, great ball. I, I, I, I. You know, it'd be interesting. You and I root for interesting. I'd like to see him on the market. I think he has a market. I do.

Give me two teams. Off the top of your head there, we got to get in the Kyler Murray business. Let's go. Give me two. And don't say jets because they're not doing that well.

It's not going to be Cleveland because they got financial stuff with Desean. It would be a dome team.

Wherever Mike McDaniels goes. Mike McDaniel, when he gets fired by the Dolphins, he likes small, quick, lefty quarterbacks.

Ask yourself this, your Carolina. And you're like, listen, we got the roster.

We just did Bryce Young, he.

Yeah, but he's better than Bryce Young.

Yeah, but he's like the same size. I would give me Drew Aller, you know, I don't know man, I. Listen, I'm not bashing Kyler. I'm just saying the numbers don't add up here. Seven years in Colin.

How about the Raiders? What if the Raiders win seven games?

Does Pete Carroll like him?

The scouting department does not like Cade Glutnick and Drew Aller and they don't get the top two quarterbacks. Are you going to give up all this draft capital? I don't know. It's tough to think about. I.

You actually reminded me that Baker didn't work at his first stop. Sam Darnold didn't work at his first stop. You know, Sam, Sam Darnold, all these guys at the next stop, maybe two or three teams down the road are popping. Maybe Kyler just needs a change of.

Kelly likes athletic guys. Who knows? I just think he has talent. I'm not saying he's up or wrong, but I think he's somewhere between 11 and 15. I do. All right. J. Mac with news.

Well, that's the news and thanks for stopping by the herd lie news.

I think I'm gonna take the Cubs to win game three. I don't know. Red Sox have been really good at Yankee Stadium this year. Yankees have more good players. Two young guys going. You probably take the young guy at home, not the young guy on the road. Although maybe you don't you play more carefree on the road. I think Dodgers advance. I think Philadelphia. You got to get out those seven, eight, nine innings. I'm not sure I'm excited to watch the Mariners and Brewers play. That was my pre playoff World Series choice. So I think, I think we've had, I think we've been lucky. I think we've had really good playoffs and a really two years in Major League Baseball. Rob Manfred Speeding up the game has really helped. I like sports, but I, you know, college football had a real problem a couple years ago. The games were getting like four, four and a half hours. So they would not stop the clock after every first down. Well, the games are now three, three and a half. And you know, college football and I love college football, but I don't want to watch a four and a half hour game. I just went to one this weekend. Like I don't need four and a half hours. So I think the games have been succinct quick. They're always going to go a little longer in the postseason. You're going to have pitching changes. Every at bat, seventh, eighth inning matters a lot. So I will say this on the Dodgers, you know, Mookie Betts was really, really struggling early in the season. Now he's on a heater. Some of these hitters, I mean, Ben Rice now is hot. Mookie Betts is now hot. It's a long season. I mean, San Diego couldn't hit it all until September. So a Dodgers lineup is so fierce. It is so good. But I kind of agree with Ian o'. Connor. It kind of feels like Aaron Judge is going to have, is going to have a moment tonight at Yankee Stadium. And I just think the Cubs have more ways to beat you than the Padres. So I'll take the Cubs to win. How about we go Yankees really close late innings and I think the Dodgers Phillies is going to be dramatic. Incredibly dramatic. You got big sticks. Phillies bullpen's better than the Dodgers. It's not always great. Live in Chicago. It's the thing. Be sure to catch live editions of.

The Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am.

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[Colin Cowherd]

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[Colin Cowherd]

Fdic big noon is back in ann.

Arbor and michigan's own el presidente is leading the charge. The pre game party starts at 10am Eastern. Then it's quarterback Bryce Underwood and the Wolverines going head to head with Wisconsin at noon. Big noon Saturday Only on Fox.

I have two or three game blazing, five tomorrow. We had a winning week last week. I think one of the interesting games like last week, I stayed away from the big favorites. I stayed away from the packers, the Chargers. I stayed away from the Bills and the Saints. I thought Cincinnati, Denver was going to be the blowout. I got that one right. I thought, I thought Denver had a better chance to blow somebody out this week. Philadelphia, I mean they're four no in four one possession games. And you know my take on Philadelphia is trust your eyes. The offense just isn't right and I think some of it's a new coordinator. The offensive line has all sorts of talent but they're not playing well. I think that that's usually a coordinator issue. I had Greg Cosell on earlier and he said they're doing nothing well, here's.

[Greg Cosell]

A team that can't that's not throwing it very well and not running it very well. You'd probably say, well they can't be very good record wise yet they're 4 0. The passing game just is not comfortable to me right now. There's not a lot of clean looks for Jalen hurts. I don't feel like he's comfortable with what he's looking at. Normally they work outside the numbers really effectively. Jalen is phenomenal. Throwing the ball outside the numbers. Other than the Rams game in that second half, you haven't seen much of that at all. So I don't know. To me it's a mystery.

[Colin Cowherd]

It's, it's, it's probably a coordinator. I mean, it's, this has been a very coordinator dependent franchise under Nick Sariani and you know, Kellen Moore worked and I mean, they scored a lot of points in the super bowl in the NFC Championship and Shane Steichen really worked. So, I mean, last time the Philadelphia Eagles lost their offensive coordinator after being in a Super Bowl. Jalen Hurts passer rating dropped to 89. And that's a really low end starter in the NFL. Greg Cosell is the most objective guy that goes on any show. And he said it before, Jalen doesn't throw the ball over the middle very well. He's small. Kyler small. Two is small. I mean, Tua literally came out last year and said, yeah, there are some throws I can't see. So yeah, you want to be in that kind of geno. Smith. You don't have to be as big as Josh Allen, but you'd prefer six two and a half and up. You know, like Aaron Rodgers is about six one and a half, six two. That's where I'd like to start. I'd love six three and a half up. You know, that's the reality of it. So. And you know, the other team that we had all bailed on, so we, we thought, you know, Eagles, it's a force offensively. Nope, here they go again. And the team everybody bailed on was Kansas City, but they have Mahomes and Andy Reid. Andy Reid's a great coach and a great scheme. Coach Sirianni's not. Mahomes can throw it anywhere. Jalen Hurts hasn't. So that's why I'm very reticent to bail on Kansas City. They just had a bad receiving core. Juju Smith Schuster's a three. He was asked to be a one. So all of a sudden now they got Xavier Worthy, who's a two, not a one, but he stretches the field. And here's Greg Cosell on what he's seeing now suddenly with Kansas City's offense.

[Greg Cosell]

The last couple years we talked about the Chiefs as being one of the slowest teams in the league. Now all of a sudden they're one of the fastest. It's not just worthy. Thornton is a burner. Hollywood Brown can run and keep an eye on that back. Rashad Smith, the rookie from SMU they are now again pushing the ball down the field. They did not do that the last couple of years much at all. And when they did, they were not very good at it. Even with Mahomes, who obviously can make any throw at a high level. But now all of a sudden they're one of the fastest wide receiver units in the league.

[Colin Cowherd]

And if you look at the NFL schedule, J. Mac I. There's not a ton of upsets. I think we both think that the jets could beat Dallas and that the Saints could beat the Giants. Those don't feel like huge upsets. Last week I stayed away from potential big lines and routes. I didn't like him at all. I thought Denver had a chance if there was going to be a route. I kind of like Denver. You know what? Game looks like a potential route to me.

A route.

[Ian O'Connor]

Go for it.

[Colin Cowherd]

Kansas City at Jacksonville.

Oh, I'm glad you brought that up. Okay, so I was just taking notes.

Jacksonville is so mistake prone. They won that game. I just don't trust them in a big solo spot.

So here are the quarterbacks they faced so far this season. Bryce Young in the opener, followed by Joe Burrow slash Jake Browning and then it was C.J. stroud and Brock Purdy. So a mixed bag, but this is the number calling this crazy. Last season, 17 games. The Jags defense had nine takeaways. 17 games. Nine. That's it. Lowest in the league this year, four games. They have 13 team takeaways. Now. Is that luck? Is that the new defensive coordinator, this guy Campanil who's just crushing it or.

City doesn't turn it over?

Well, that. Okay, so that's where it gets interesting. The game is in Jacksonville. This was three. It's now three and a half. I'm on Jacksonville here. I know Chiefs fans, you're a hater. I think they're a little undervalued here. I. I'm a. I'm a believer. I'm sorry. I like the Jags this year. They. You don't like what you've seen. And I'm not just looking at that San Fran game. The win over Houston was impressive. They turned over Stroud and Nico Collins in the fourth quarter. And then, you know, the Cincinnati game, they made some plays. As long as Trevor Lawrence doesn't screw it up, I think they're going to be in this. I like Liam Coleman a lot.

Yeah, I also. It's a really interesting week. We thought Rams Niners was going to be a great game because of the injuries. It's not the two games that I look at, really, really interesting. Denver at Philadelphia I think could be really interesting. I think Denver's roster is not quite as good as Philadelphia, but it's not too far down the list. I think it's third, fourth, fifth best. I think Tampa, it's Seattle, Darnold and Baker is fascinating. I like Seattle in that spot.

I like them a lot.

Yeah, I like Seattle in that spot.

Let me ask you one. So there's three winless teams. The jets hosting the Cowboys.

And they've been in games. They've. Jets have been in games.

Yep. The. The Titans at Arizona.

Titans are awful.

They're awful. And Saints, Giants.

Saints are pretty bad.

Can you. I think there's a world where all three of those win this week. All three of the winless teams win. And now we have no. I mean, Tennessee is a big dog on the road, but I don't know that Arizona is that good. Colin.

No, I don't think they're that good. I just think the Titans are bad.

And the Saints are favored over the Giants and the jets lines like two, two and a half. So I would not be surprised if this was a big upset week around the league because you know, those big favorites have been crushing.

Yes.

Colts, Raiders.

Do you have any nervous favorite pack? My favorite pick on the entire board is the Colts at home against the Raiders.

Here's my thing, Colin. It's six and a half, okay? If I had told you before week one that the Colts will be favored by six and a half over the Raiders, you would have slammed the Raiders.

Here's all I know.

All of your money.

When I. I've watched almost every snap of the Colts. They had the Rams beat the Rams off a loss. Where McVeigh's been money. They had them beat. And Stafford's playing out of his mind. Puk is the best receiver in the league. Their defense is unbelievable. Colts had him beat in la. Yeah, Cole. And the Colts offense, you're not going to believe this. Number one in the NFL in yards per play. I don't think people understand this Daniel Jones thing. You got to watch the games. They have that roster. Warren, Taylor, Pierce, Pittman. Dude, they got playmakers.

Well, it's Shane Steichen pushing all the right buttons. Hey, we're going with Daniel Jones, you know, like so.

Yeah, I mean, it's. It's not a huge college football weekend. What I always think is interesting about the NFL, the games you think are going to be absolutely awful end up being fascinating. Like from the outside, you'd be like Dallas jets is a bad watch. That could be the game. That's Fox. That could be one of the best games of the day because I mean Dallas can't defend anybody and Dak is on fire. That game could be 36, 33. Dallas games are all going to look the same. Hey, Dallas is going to win high scoring games if they win. And Dax just so productive and they're doing it without CD Lamb. So I. Dallas games so far this year have been really entertaining.

Yeah, talk me out of betting on Dylan Gabriel. I didn't wake up at 6:30 to watch Aaron Rodgers last week, but I am considering waking up to watch Dylan Gabriel.

Ever bet a game with two backup quarterbacks? I. That, that doesn't make any sense. If you have one, I get it. But I have you.

I know you're not Mr. Injury Report Guy. We learned that today. But the Vikings could be down four offensive linemen this week and Miles Garrett and company should eat that up. And I think this is like a 1310. Dylan Gabriel gets the win and he's.

On people's shoulders walking off the field, not watchable. You know, so here we thought Brian Schottenheimer wasn't going to work, but it's been okay. Mike McDaniels has got a, you know, I mean it's not been a disaster. Is there a coach on the hot seat right now?

Oh, could somebody get fired? Well, if McDaniel loses at Carolina and I'm looking hard at the Panthers here, I mean, remember, no Tyreek Hill. Colin, you've seen that Dolphins office. They only beat the jets because the jets beat themselves with three fumbles.

You know, Mike McDaniel's the coach on the hot seat.

I think he's a favorite to be the first coach fired.

I'm pretty sure he'll be, he'll be unemployed very briefly. He's a great coordinator. I think Brian Callahan in Tennessee, he's.

Yeah. If they get blasted, take. Because Cam Ward did you. I know we're not allowed to talk about the Titans because they stink, but Cam Ward was like cursing in the post game.

Oh no, no, it's bad. And again, you're an offensive coach. You got to do something on your side of the ball. But we knew they weren't going to be a high octane offense. But Cam Ward looked like he's regressing.

Yeah, I thought the Titans. I was way wrong on the Titans. I'll take, take, take that. That was, that was on me. You know, it's a mistake you know what?

They weren't going to win the super bowl anyway. Why not get the number one pick? They don't need a quarterback, so the Titans could have the number one pick. And I mean, honestly, if Dante Moore keeps playing like this, they could get a couple twos, a three out of it. So the good news for the Titans is you got your quarterback and you'll probably have the number one pick. You could, you could stock the shelves for a long time with that pick.

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