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[00:00]
Colin Cowherd
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human this episode brought to you
[00:06]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
by Verizon Business the World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever, it's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. But for Verizon Business, that's another day with private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber, end to end security. Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon Business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFA World cup now to learn more.
[00:36]
Colin Cowherd
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[01:54]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
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[01:55]
Colin Cowherd
Wasabi is the go to provider for
[01:57]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
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[01:59]
Colin Cowherd
Check out Wasabi's AI enabled intelligent media storage. Wasabi Air to the industry's only cloud storage service with triple protection against cybercriminals. Wasabi driving innovation in data storage for up to 80% less than the other guys. Try for free@wasabi.com, wasabi Hot Cloud Storage, proud partner of the Volume Podcast Network. 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 atfox sports radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR.
[02:39]
Rob Parker
Now let's get this party started.
[02:41]
Kelvin Washington
You're listening to FOX Sports Radio.
[02:43]
Colin Cowherd
Well, let's go live to the Pittsburgh Steelers camp with our friend Mike defebo, the beat writer for the Steelers for the Athletic, covering the team for about a half a decade. Okay. So I hear they're not, they're not tackling, which I'm not necessarily opposed to. Tomlin was old school, very physical practices. What have you seen so far, Mike?
[03:03]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah, it's a very different approach to training camp. Mike Tomlin led arguably the most physical training camp in the league a couple years ago at the Athletic. I surveyed my colleagues and I said, how often does a team you cover tackle? And it led me to conclude that Mike Tomlin did have the most physical training camp. Very different approach to tackling. There will be no ball carriers taken to the ground under Mike McCarthy. But what I think that tells you is here you have the third oldest coach in the league, but he's not old school. Okay. You know, he looks at, he talks about things like GPS monitoring, sports science, analytics. And so even though he's advanced in his career and he's established, he continues to look at the trends. And the reason why he's not tackling is because he doesn't want guys to get injured. And you look at Tomlins teams routinely, they fell apart near the end of the season. And in Mike Tomlin's first training camp, the players said themselves. He ran them into the ground, he tried to set a tone, and instead he wore them out. And so I think that while this might rub old school Pittsburgh people the wrong way, they want to see a tough, hard nose, physical camp. And if there's no tackling, they don't think that that's true. I think at the end of the season, when the team is healthy and when the team is fresh, you're going to see the dividends that are paid right here.
[04:16]
Colin Cowherd
What's the, you know, and for the record, added to that is the Steelers have in the last several years melted down. End of the year, you could argue some of that is just fatigue. Now, with 17 games, what is the Aaron Mike dynamic like when you're there at practice?
[04:32]
Mike DeFabo
They have a great relationship right now. I mean, you see them jovial, joking with each other, and, you know, Aaron had a conversation with my colleague Mike Silver, and Aaron said at the time that the heart grows much fonder because of absence. And I think that Aaron Rodgers didn't realize necessarily how good he had it with Mike McCarthy in terms of personality, in terms of play calling, and also just the schematic fit Aaron Rodgers was at his best in Green Bay because of the west coast offense, that the style of offense and the quarterback that Aaron Rodgers is and was fits perfectly with what Mike McCarthy wants to do. So I think that Aaron's really excited to get back to those true west coast roots and thinks that if he's going to play at his best at 42, soon to be 43 years old, it's going to be because of this scheme that he's thrived in for so many years that helps him get there.
[05:26]
Colin Cowherd
I thought, I actually thought Aaron was pretty good last year considering it's a tight end heavy team without a star back. DK Metcalf is not, you know, he's not running the JSN route tree. I think he's a declining but very big physical receiver. But when they lost him for a couple of games, I mean, they just didn't have anything there. They've addressed some of that stuff in the off season. Do you like the roster this year better than last year? I mean, they'll be better. They'll have a more offensive sensibility. That's just a fact. With Mike McCarthy, I mean, he won. With Cooper Rush, I don't doubt that roster wise roster composition, they're still old and expensive on defense a little bit. But do you like the roster more?
[06:05]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah. I mean, last year going into training camp, the Steelers thought that Johnny Smith, who was a tight end and Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson together could a wide receiver too. And ultimately what ended up happening is John Smith got cut at the end of the year and still remains unsigned. Not to criticize him and pick on him, but that just shows the way that the Steelers incorrectly evaluated what they needed at that position. And instead what they did this offseason is they went out and they got Michael Pittman Jr. Who at different points in his career has been a wide receiver one. Now he's willing to be that wide receiver too. You're also seeing Roman Wilson showing some signs of development and more than anything, you're seeing an evolution in the personnel. As you mentioned, Arthur Smith was probably the least wide receiver friendly offensive coordinator in the entire league last year because he was so tight end centric. Now you go to a Mike McCarthy offense that in Green Bay they were near the top of the league in 11 personnel usage. So they're going to, you know, spread it out more. They're going to put wide receivers on the field more and that's going to fit the quarterback position much better.
[07:08]
Colin Cowherd
I think Cleveland's a little better than people think. Still don't buy into Cincinnati yet. Baltimore will be good, but it's a new coach and a first time play caller. If I said, all right, give, give me a, I mean, listen, they're going to be. McCarthy's too good. Aaron gives you a high floor. They've got nice pieces there. I think the roster is pretty solid. If you look at the schedule, it's, it's not that it's easy, but you get, you know, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Cleveland, the Colts, Tampa, the Saints, Cleveland. It's a pretty, I mean, compare that to Kansas City or Denver, some of these early awful NFL schedules, I don't know. And it toughens up in the middle, but I would be shocked if they're not a 9ish win team. How do you feel?
[07:52]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah, that's what I feel. I think that there's somewhere around that 9, 10 win range. And you know, Aaron Rodgers is, you know, talking about potentially playing in the preseason for one of the first times in, in several years. And I think a big part of that has to do with that schedule that you just referenced. It's kind of soft, kind of winnable games at the beginning, but it does toughen up after the bye week. When you look at them turning the corner and playing Cincinnati on the road in Sunday Night Football and then the Eagles and then a number of other playoff teams, including the Houston Texans that beat them last year and ended their season, including the Denver Broncos, who should be improved this year. So if this team is going to get to nine, 10 wins, you know, they're going to have to get off to a fast start. And I think that's a big reason why they've talked about Aaron playing in the preseason.
[08:35]
Colin Cowherd
By the way, if Aaron, let's say Aaron twists an ankle, misses a game or two, they've got a bunch of young quarterback, any of the backup quarterbacks doing anything.
[08:44]
Mike DeFabo
Well, they've actually got a quarterback competition. It's just not for QB1. You know, right now the question is, do the Steelers go into the season with Mason Rudolph as their backup quarterback? He's proven at certain times in his career he can step up and win them a game or two. And if you're sitting here right now as we're having this conversation, he is the quarterback best equipped to do that. But they've got two other guys. They've got Will Howard, they've got Drew Aller. So ultimately, can you fit four quarterbacks on a depth chart and can you fit four quarterbacks on a 53 man roster? And I think that's going to be one of the toughest decisions the Steelers have to make at the end of training camp is do you go with the guy that's the proven veteran behind a 42 year old quarterback or do you go with the youth and have two guys who have never played at this point even in a preseason game in Will Howard and Drew Aller. So it's kind of a tough decision that they're going to have to make and an important one going forward.
[09:41]
Colin Cowherd
By the way, Aaron made news this week with some, you know, Fauci comments and taking shots at networks. How is he like to cover on a local? I mean, you're the athletic, but when you're in these scrums with Aaron talking to the media, how is his personality?
[09:58]
Mike DeFabo
You know, there are times where he definitely takes shots at the media. I remember last year, there was a lot of times I was standing there and he would criticize the media and say they didn't know what they were talking about when it came to Mike Tomlin and those kinds of things. But the bottom line is I think that he has the locker room behind him. I know that he got a bad rap and I think that it was a mischaracterization of him as a teammate because the teammates do buy into his messaging. They do respect him because they acknowledge they're playing with a future hall of Fame quarterback. And I think for those reasons they follow him and they believe in him and they respect and they appreciate what he gives them.
[10:35]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah. Mike is always good to see anybody.
[10:38]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah, absolutely. Thank you so much for having me here.
[10:40]
Colin Cowherd
You bet. Mike DeFebo covers the Steelers. Has for a while. For the Athletic.
[10:44]
Albert Breer
Yeah.
[10:44]
Colin Cowherd
I mean, I think it'd be fun to cover Aaron. I really do. He's feisty, you know, Matt Stafford. Are you going to get the same? You know, he's going to say nice stuff. And Justin Herbert, you know, he likes
[10:55]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
me, so that'd be fun.
[10:56]
Colin Cowherd
Sometimes it's nice to, you know, I, I remember when I covered Charles Barkley in the locker room and he made fun of my shoes. You know, sometimes a feisty guy, Jerry Tarkin. And by the way, we got along very well at the end, but there were years he didn't like me. And you know, Aaron's, you know, Aaron's just not everybody you cover likes to be covered. Right.
[11:17]
Kelvin Washington
Well, Belichick came on, what, a couple weeks ago? Three or four weeks ago. Do you think any chance Aaron, you know, you and Aaron Rodgers.
[11:24]
Colin Cowherd
Oh, God, no.
[11:25]
Kelvin Washington
Yeah.
[11:25]
Colin Cowherd
It didn't ever. And by the way I make this argument, I've said it a hundred times. If you took everything I said about Aaron Rodgers, 85% positive, but I've hammered him a few times because I think sometimes he's high maintenance and I don't love it at that position. But I mean, Belichick, I told the staff before Bill came on, I said, you know, I've been pretty hard on that Carolina. I, I thought that Matt Patricia, OC hire was idiotic. Like I and I said it, I'm like, that doesn't make any sense. What are you doing, Belichick? Honestly, it was just like storytelling. Bill Belichick, he was unbelievable. It's like, oh, yeah, I'd love to come on the show again. So maybe it's my charm. You know, I get these guys live and, you know, they can't help themselves.
[12:05]
Kelvin Washington
I don't know if Belichick's going to be in a great mood after a couple weeks of college football. I think this thing could go the other way. But he was in a good mood that day.
[12:15]
Colin Cowherd
He was.
[12:15]
Kelvin Washington
Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.
[12:25]
Colin Cowherd
Hey, it's Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington from the Odd Couple on Fox Sports Radio.
[12:30]
Rob Parker
And in addition to hearing us live weeknights from 7 to 10pm Eastern on Fox Sports Radio, we are excited to announce brand new YouTube channel for the show.
[12:39]
Kelvin Washington
That's right, you can now watch the
[12:42]
Colin Cowherd
Odd Couple Live on YouTube every day.
[12:45]
Rob Parker
All you gotta do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube again. YouTube. Just search Odd Couple FSR. Check us out on YouTube and subscribe.
[12:55]
Colin Cowherd
For any small business owner, there's a moment when you realize the next hire could be the difference between staying busy and actually growing. The challenge is finding the right person without wasting time sorting through candidates who aren't the right fit. That's where Indeed Sponsored Jobs comes in, where a workplace hits and you need somebody who can step in and make a difference. This is a job for Sponsored Jobs. It helps you put your job in front of candidates who match the criteria that matter most to you, whether it's skills, experience, certifications, or location. And you're certainly not alone in using Indeed. Join the 3.3 million employers worldwide that use Indeed to connect with quality talent that fits their needs. That's millions of businesses turning to Indeed to help solve hiring challenges and find people who can drive results. Spend less time searching, more time actually interviewing candidates who check all the boxes less stress. Less time, more results. Get your $75 sponsored job credit today at Indeed.com podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring now then, this is a job for Indeed. Sponsored Jobs if you're spending time outside, it's important to know the potential risks of skin cancer. Non melanoma skin cancers or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are common in the US and can become advanced and harder to treat if left undetected. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at letsgetrealaboutskincer.com Foodies
[14:32]
Angie Martinez
Unite this is Angie Martinez from IRL podcast here to tell you about something new and delicious from McDonald's. So they just released an all new Caesar sauce that is a creamy blend of rich Parmesan, zesty lemon and bold garlic flavors. The sauce on a Chicken Caesar snack wrap.
[14:50]
Albert Breer
Ooh.
[14:51]
Angie Martinez
Or the McCrispy strips. Delicious. Which, by the way, the crispy strips are even crispier now and that combination is perfect for McDonald's. And for a drink. I'll probably have a nice cold Sprite to go along with that perfectly and I will be a happy girl. Don't take my word for it. Try it out for yourself for a limited time while supplies Last at participating
[15:11]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
McDonald's this episode brought to you by Verizon Business when we watch the World cup, we focus on the stars, the players, the coaches, the matches. But here's what's fascinating.
[15:20]
Colin Cowherd
What does it take to make an
[15:22]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
event this big actually work? The World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever. It's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. Think about that. That's not just a sporting event. That's one of the biggest logistical and technological challenges in the world. And with billions of people watching, there's no room for error. But for Verizon business, that's another day with private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber, end to end security. Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFA World cup now to learn more.
[16:01]
Colin Cowherd
Okay, so I went to the Cubs game last night. I'm going to do this live. I probably shouldn't do this live on the air. My bosses are going to think I'm nuts. So I went to the Cubs game last night and I was walking outside the stadium Wrigley and they have, there's no team that has more cool hats and T shirts. I bought my wife, Irish wife, a Cub shirt, green with a clover. Is it called that, by the way? Okay, okay. So I saw this dark pinstripe blue Cubs jersey. Now I don't know how often they wear it, but it literally clicked a memory in my head. Now I'm, I am going total memory in, in somewhere between 1977 and 1981, 82, the Cubs had a left handed reliever named Willie Hernandez. And it was a Friday night game at Riverfront Stadium. And I know that because the Saturday Cubs Reds game at Riverfront was televised. And they talked about this home run that was hit by George Foster on Friday night or Thursday night. So Willie Hernandez was a left hander for the Cubs and he was pitching to the right handed bat of George Foster who was a great hitter, big power, skinny guy with great power. And it was a upper, upper deck home run. It was a bomb. And I, and I saw that dark blue Cubs jersey and I have no idea why that pitch, why that moment popped into my head. So I told anybody on the staff that can find it on my staff and send it to me. We have a coffee place in our LA studio, Bluestone. It's, it's, it's owned by the, the company. I'll buy a 500 gift certificate to the person on. That's a lot of coffee, bro. That is a lot of smoothies. I'll buy a 500 gift certificate to Bluestone. It's really good by the way. I have every day I'm in la, I go there. There's several of blues. It's called Bluestone lane. All right, $500 for all you guys. Willie Hernandez, George Foster, upper deck home run. That, those blue pinstripe Cub uniforms. I couldn't stop thinking about it last night. And I know I'm. My staff makes fun of me because I go Rain man on all this old baseball, NBA stuff. I'm absolutely sure it happened. It was Willie Hernandez, George Foster, Riverfront Stadium. Somewhere between. I think he, I think he pitched for the Cubs. I used to collect baseball cards like 77 to 81, 82 ish. Middelkoff has no idea what he's in for. John Middelkoff with the news. No, no, no.
[18:44]
Rob Parker
Turn on the news.
[18:45]
Kelvin Washington
This is the herd line news. I get a cold brew and a smoothi every single day from there. They're fantastic fan.
[18:53]
Colin Cowherd
Some of the best smoothies I've ever had in my life.
[18:55]
Kelvin Washington
I had had a power one this morning. Speaking of smoothies, you know, LeBron James had a few of those in his career and he's been heavily criticized. Well, I guess the Internet, I mean, comments have been saying that he's ring chasing and, and, and your guy, Sam Darnold on Hard Knocks had some thoughts on the LeBron James Sixers criticism.
[19:18]
Rob Parker
I love this.
[19:20]
Mike DeFabo
I also hate that people are hating
[19:22]
Kelvin Washington
on him for going to a good
[19:24]
Mike DeFabo
team
[19:27]
Rob Parker
at this point.
[19:28]
Kelvin Washington
Everyone's like, oh, he's going to stack
[19:30]
Mike DeFabo
team like that doesn't that
[19:34]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
he can
[19:34]
Colin Cowherd
go wherever he wants.
[19:35]
Kelvin Washington
Any free agent can do that.
[19:37]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
[19:37]
Kelvin Washington
And any free agent ever would be like, yeah, I want to go play for a championship. That's my last year or two. Yeah. Yeah, for sure.
[19:44]
Colin Cowherd
By the way, another reason to love Darnold. I never understand the ring change in every other sport like Sam Darnold if it doesn't matter if you're traded, acquired. Like we've never beat up on athletes who end up or college kids who choose Ohio State over Purdue. We're like, yeah, he's smart. He wants to play with great players. What are you talking about?
[20:05]
Kelvin Washington
We actually reverse criticized in the NFL. I remember J.J. watt was, you know, going to pick his destination. He took a lot of money from the Cardinals and everyone's like, why didn't he go to the packers for less money to try to win a Super Bowl? You know, in football we, if you go to a bad team for a lot of money, so he just took the cash. He doesn't want to win. And in basketball, LeBron's 40. He's going to be 42 in December. And it's not like the Sixers have been like the, the 80s Lakers here. I mean, what are we talking about?
[20:36]
Colin Cowherd
They probably, relative to their talent, they're probably the most underachieving, underachieving team in the NBA for a decade. So he went to the most weird underachieving team in the NBA for a decade and you're like, oh, ring chasing. No, it sounds like ring chasing because he joined the team. Yeah, now it sounds like ring chasing.
[20:54]
Kelvin Washington
I, I did read an article this morning that the, his potential helicopter ride from New York to Philadelphia might have some issues with the wind, but it goes back to like, you know, Wilt Chamberlain, I guess, used to live in the city, even at a nightclub in Harlem. So it's, it's been done before. But LeBron, I have a theory too on LeBron. I don't think he factored this in But I've lived in Philly. The Eagles, win or lose, they are the story of the fall. He kind of gets to fly under the radar relative to him a little
[21:27]
Colin Cowherd
bit in the fall. He does. He can. Because this team's got some ball usage questions. It. This is going to be like the Miami Heat. It's going to take like 15 to 20 games. You're like, okay, they're really, really good. They're not going to be good week one. Like, they've, they've got a lot of guys that need to eat.
[21:41]
Kelvin Washington
Speaking of a guy that likes to eat, Dexter Lawrence, massive human being. The Cincinnati Bengals got him obviously this offseason to trade for the number 10 overall pick. Jamar Chase recently said he's been terrorizing practice during the break. Colin, I saw on social media there, there was a clip of a. It looked like a run drill, but like 11 on 11. He grabbed Chase Brown, the running back, with like two fingers and he just stopped. You know, like, I, I know yesterday you were pretty hard on the Bengals and their situation, and I agree, historically, you know, going back to Carson Palmer, you know, I, I think it's fair coaching wise. I, they don't exactly swim in the $20 million range for coaches, but this roster, on paper, that, that trade's a big time move.
[22:28]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
[22:28]
Kelvin Washington
They bought some free agents I. Their team that their ceiling this year is definitely super bowl contender. I mean, Colin, they went to the super bowl several years ago, and you'd argue this team's better.
[22:44]
Colin Cowherd
They're older.
[22:45]
Kelvin Washington
Jamar Chase, in the prime of his career. Higgins, excellent. Look at the size of that guy who's blocking him. The Ravens lost their center. The Steelers offensive line is always a question mark. The Browns, I mean, who knows who's playing quarterback there? It's their issue. Last year, Burrow was just. Because of the turf toe, was just gone for three months. So if you tell me Burrow plays, I got this team winning the division. Last but not least, a little breaking news out of the National Football League. The Washington Commanders look like they're going to sign Stefon Diggs. He's got it. He's got a lot going on in his life. It feels like off the football field, but on the football field, been productive. Obviously. Played for the Patriots last year in the Super Bowl.
[23:31]
Colin Cowherd
He's always good for a couple years. I mean, he's. He'll be productive for two years. I mean, he's getting her closer to the end of his career. His private life is a little jumbled, but I mean, he'll. He'll. I don't think he's a bad guy. I just think it seems like everywhere he's at about by year three or four, he makes some noise, but he'll. He'll be productive this year. He's a good player.
[23:48]
Kelvin Washington
Yeah, I guess when you're choosing between Diggs and iuk, it's, you know, you gotta, you know, you go with the. The lesser of the two issues there. And this might end it for IUK and his. His Instagram stories. But, yeah, the commanders, I got no clue. If you told me they win eight, nine games, I believe you've told me they win four, I'd believe you.
[24:07]
Colin Cowherd
Same here.
[24:07]
Kelvin Washington
They are a massive wild card for me this year.
[24:10]
Colin Cowherd
John, with the news.
[24:12]
Kelvin Washington
Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by the herd lie news.
[24:16]
Colin Cowherd
So this is funny. So I told you, the staff, I told you and the staff, I said $500. Bluestone Lane, if you can find the Willie Hernandez dark Cub uniforms. George Foster, home run. Somewhere between 77 and 81. The staff, they already want the money because they found on Google that it actually happened. I know it happened. I watched it. I was like, you know, I was like, I don't know, 15 years old. They're like, hey, where's my money? Where's my smoothies? I could find that. It happened. That's the easy part. This is not like a UFO sighting. Maybe it happened. Maybe it was a small plane. It was a drone. It happened. I want video of it. So it happened. On August 3, 1977, George Foster hit a memorable home run off Willie Hernandez. George had an MVP season, so they're calling it a memorable home run. But it's August 3rd, so why would it be memorable? What home run on August 3rd is memorable? The one that goes 800 yards into Kentucky. I'm telling you, he hit it a mile. It says here on Google he hit a memorable home run off Willie Hernandez. It's August 3rd 3rd. There's never been a memorable home run on August 3rd. So if I can get video of that $500. It's like four bucks for a coffee. You're going to be drinking caffeine for three months. I'm so excited to see this video. And I don't care how you get it. I don't care if, like, somebody watching the show sends it to you on the staff, one of your kids finds it or something. I don't care, AI. I mean, I'd even take that at this point. I'd give you like 250 for an AI version in Chicago, it's the Herd.
[26:18]
Kelvin Washington
Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.
[26:27]
Colin Cowherd
For any small business owner, there's a moment when you realize the next hire could be the difference between staying busy and actually growing. The challenge is finding the right person without wasting time sorting through candidates who aren't the right fit. That's where Indeed Sponsored Jobs comes in, where a workplace chaos hits and you need somebody who can step in and make a difference. This is a job for Sponsored Jobs. It helps you put your job in front of candidates who match the criteria that matter most to you, whether it's skills, experience, certifications or location. And you're certainly not alone in using Indeed. Join the 3.3 million employers worldwide that use Indeed to connect with quality talent that fits their needs. That's millions of businesses turning to Indeed to help solve hiring challenges and find people who can drive results. Spend less time searching, more time actually interviewing candidates who check all the boxes. Less stress, less time, more results. Get your $75 sponsored job credit today@ Indeed.com podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring now then, this is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs. If you're spending time outside, it's important to know the potential risks of skin cancer. Non melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are common in the US and can become advanced and harder to treat if left undetected. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at let'sget realaboutskincancer.com Foodies Unite.
[28:05]
Angie Martinez
This is Angie Martinez from IRL podcast here to tell you about something new and delicious from McDonald's. So they just released an all new Caesar sauce that is a creamy blend of rich Parmesan, zesty lemon and bold garlic flavors. The sauce on a chicken Caesar snack wrap.
[28:23]
Albert Breer
Ooh.
[28:23]
Angie Martinez
Or the McCrispy strips. Delicious. Which by the way, the crispy strips are even crispier now and that combination is perfect for McDonald's and for a drink. I'll probably have a nice cold sprite to go along with that perfectly and I will be a happy girl. Don't take my word for it. Try it out for yourself for a limited time while supplies last at participating McDonald's.
[28:44]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
This episode brought to you by Verizon Business when we watch the World cup. We focus on the stars, the players, the coaches, the matches. But here's what's fascinating.
[28:53]
Colin Cowherd
What does it take to make an
[28:54]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
event this big actually work? The World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever. It's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. Think about that. That's not just a sporting event. That's one of the biggest logistical and technological challenges in the world. And with billions of people watching, there's no room for error. But for Verizon business, that's another day. With private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber, end to end security, Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFA World cup now to learn more.
[29:33]
Kelvin Washington
Sunday on Fox. The stars of IndyCar are going full throttle as they look to chase down Alex Palo in Portland. Sunday at 4 Eastern only on Fox.
[29:42]
Colin Cowherd
Speaking of home runs, there's two pieces of video in America. Everybody searching for an actual first piece of Bigfoot video for the last 50 years. And the George Foster home run in 1977 off the Cubs left handed reliever and dark blue uniform Willie Hernandez. I went to the Cubs game last night. I saw an old blue uniform. I could not get that moment out of my head. I remember as a kid I was watching Saturday baseball. I lived for baseball. And they did the pregame show and George Foster was having a huge year and they said, oh, if you weren't here last night, it was like Thursday or Friday, whatever the day was. And they show this home run with Willie Hernandez. I've never seen a home run like that. Upper, upper diet, I'm not sure. So I was watching a Saturday game. I don't know if it was a Friday. The game before it was sometime during the week. It's probably a Thursday night home run. Cause I don't think there was a lot of people in the upper deck. And at that time, the Reds on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, they drew big crowds. So it's probably a midweek game. I'm just guessing, but if you can find it on my staff. And by the way, these guys are so competitive, they may not go home. They may stay the night in the facility. Also. Ohtani, Shohei Ohtani. We got video of this. The Cubs and the Dodgers. Cubs have won the first two games of the series. Dodgers can't hit 10. 5 in the opener. 5. 1 last night Ohtani hits this home run to tie, actually take a one nothing lead. Pete Crow. Armstrong has since tied it. Cubs, Dodgers now are tied early innings. And that Shohei Ohtani, kind of a line drive home run on a beautiful day in Chicago. It's a day game. Few empty seats in the day game. Right now, I'm told it's 1:1. So any luck on finding that video? We got a few minutes. Not yet. YouTube doesn't have it. I would love that. The trend. That would make my week if it trended. George Foster, homer's off. Willie Hernandez. People will be like, the hell is going on in America? They're watching this show. That's what's going on. Oh, somebody on the staff said we're getting closer on the video. Yeah, they're AI in it to death. I guarantee you. Guarantee you that's what the staff's doing. They want that coffee. Albert Breer was on about 30 minutes ago and 40 minutes ago and we talked, I guess it was an hour ago, we talked about Aaron Donald on a stacked roster. Aaron Donald's returned to the Rams and it sound like it's borderline a done deal.
[32:12]
Albert Breer
What's given them the framework for that is the holdouts in 2017 and 2018. Now, you remember he reported to camp very late both years. Both years he won defensive Player of the Year. So they have a way to do this now. It's not the same. Of course, he's 35 now. He's, you know, obviously spent two years away from football. But they feel like they've got a good plan. They're going to have a way of managing him that isn't going to cost the team. You know, I, I kind of take it back to like the Eric Weddle situation a few years ago. He was there because they needed him to be there. And he played every snap because the Rams needed him to play every snap. I don't think that's going to be the case with Aaron Donald in 2026.
[32:51]
Colin Cowherd
And we talked about how loaded the Rams are. People talk about the stacked Dodgers deck, but it's a lot of guys out of their prime. If you go to the 10 best players for the LA Rams, I don't think there's anybody in the league, maybe Philadelphia, that compares. Miles Garrett, Matt Stafford, Puka Nakua, Trent McDuffie that you can argue those four players are in the top one or two at their position in the league. Devonte Adams, Kevin Dotson was the top rated guard last year. Byron Young, a pro Bowler. Puna Ford Number one rated defensive tackle, Kyron Williams. A thousand yards and ten touchdowns three years in a row. And Kobe Turner, who was rated higher than Chris Jones last year. Six, best interior lineman. It is a completely stacked roster. So if you put, I mean, that defensive line, if you put Aaron Donald in it, that is pretty unblockable. I mean, that, you know, the way to beat the Rams has been kind of going forward. Charlotte gave them all sorts of problems. Attack their corners. Well, you can't do. They went and got. They went and got two corners, including Trent McDuffie from the Chiefs. So those days are done. They're good at safety, they're good at tight end. And neither group has a player in the top 10. But the Rams tight end grouping is top five in the league. Their safeties are excellent. Sean McVay is arguably the best coach in the league. So, I mean, it's just something else. It is something else. Can't wait. All right, John, Yesterday we had our five new teams in the NFL playoffs and we both kind of agreed on Kansas City and New Orleans. Then I think you had the Bengals, Cowboys and somebody else was in there. I had the Giants, Lions, somebody else in there. Who was it?
[34:47]
Kelvin Washington
Ravens?
[34:48]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah, I had the RA Just kind of basically out of respect for the organization. But the one team I said the crazy pick would be Cleveland. So Todd Monken blasted, blasted Cleveland local media today for being negative with Shador Sanders. And in that poll of NFL execs that Mike Sando had, Sanders was dead last behind JJ McCarthy, which is not true, but that's what they put him. So as somebody that was a pro scout in the league, there have been players that have been underdrafted. Brock Purdy was underdrafted. Dak Prescott was underdra. Puka Nakua was underdrafted. I mean, when this happens all the time. George Kittle was massively underdrafted. Juwan Jennings for the Niners, underdrafted. When you look at Shador going in the fifth round, as a scout, when you watch them in, you watch a lot of college football. Where did you have him graded? Where did you see him as a player? Forget all the dad stuff. What did you see?
[35:47]
Kelvin Washington
Yeah, I would say a top 75 player somewhere between middle second round, the third round. You know, I mean, I think the argument sometimes with quarterbacks are if you're going to take a guy in the top 50, you know that that's where Derek Carr went. Will Levis, you expect that guy to be your starter. You know, now some of them don't work Out. But when you draft a guy why wouldn't you just draft him in the first round then? So what happened this year for example, no one went in the second round. Right now it wasn't a great quarterback draft but they started going to the third round which Carson Beck, I think it was announced going to start this hall of Fame game.
[36:25]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah.
[36:25]
Kelvin Washington
There's no pressure to start a third rounder but when you draft a guy in a second round that's where it gets weird I think with Shador in my years, you know I know so many people in the league that go did or sit in on all these meetings at the combine. Sometimes when you get like a top five pick right. They won't meet with teams drafting a pick 20. It happens in the NBA a lot. It happens a little bit in the NFL. Anyone that is not a lock top 10 pick kind of meets with everybody.
[36:55]
Colin Cowherd
Absolutely.
[36:56]
Kelvin Washington
And Shador wouldn't really. He wouldn't even give the time of day. Like the Eagles and the Ravens are two teams. I don't know exactly what round they would have taken him but my guess is third or fourth, definitely not the fifth. And they couldn't even like he wouldn't talk to them and he would go well you got Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson. It's kind of the way football works, you know, unless. Unless you're Fernando. Fernando Mendoza is not even starting like most of these teams. There's a veteran quarterback there. I understand Those guys are $50 million guys but once you go out of the of the first round any team can draft you at any moment. I mean the packers have made a living off Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre and what if Jordan Love had picked up like don't want you. You got Aaron Rodgers. Look how it changes life. So the league changes really quick and I think they regret that. But now the Browns by it sure sounds like Watson's hasn't been great. Why would he just start Shador week one?
[37:52]
Colin Cowherd
Why it feels like I saw a video this week of Shador making a big downfield fourth quarter throw in practice and the teammates reaction to the play and we don't talk a lot about this but a part of what there is a belief. It feels like the Browns players are rooting for Shador Sanders. They like like his vibe and desean Watson's older got some baggage. Some of it weird. That's not to say the players are rooting against DeShawn but when I watch video of Shadour it feels like the because the Browns are young John it's a young team. Miles Garrett, one of their big senior leaders, he's gone now. They replace him with Jared Verse, a younger player. Their top players are a lot of young guys. It's a young locker room. So is New England. And it feels like to me, it feels like Shadour is the locker room favorite. You know, he's the fan favorite. That, that's not even disputable. The question is, with Monken, is he the coaching staff? Because the players and the fans are rooting for Shadour. The question is, what's the coaching staff thing? What is Jimmy Haslam saying? Guys, we got to get one star out of desean. I'm paying him a bloody fortune.
[39:01]
Kelvin Washington
Well, I think if you go back that the Ravens were interested a couple years ago, I think that would be. I'd be stunned if Todd Monkin wasn't part of that conversation of like, yeah, I like him. Let's take him in the third or fourth round especially. Lamar had been banged up a little bit by then. So I think if you're Shador, there's a high likelihood when this guy got hired, he was kind of in your corner as a player coming out of college. So, I mean, Watson hasn't been good. Watson has one of the most precipitous drop offs just on the field I think we've ever seen because he was pretty good player with the Houston Texans and now he's. If he can't win the starting job, I mean, his career is probably over, don't you think?
[39:41]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah, I think between the weirdness, I mean, he and Russell Wilson just got really average to really bad very quick. And you know, they're both athletic guys. You lose some of that athletic ability and it's never the same. But you know, at least, at least
[39:55]
Kelvin Washington
Russell, I mean, you can. Some people think he's cheesy, a little fake or whatever, but there was nothing off the field like Watson. I, I don't think most teams would touch him with a 10 foot pole over the previous baggage.
[40:07]
Colin Cowherd
Oh my God. I can't believe this.
[40:09]
Kelvin Washington
Found it.
[40:11]
Colin Cowherd
I can't believe they found it. We have. Okay, don't, don't show it to anybody. I want to see it live. We have found the George Foster home run video. I don't know. I want to first of all know how they found it because it's not on YouTube. So I, you know what? I bet, I bet you Shanks went upstairs to call the network, called Rob Manfred and got it because Shanks probably wants free coffee too. I can't blame executives. I think it has to be an executive that got this because the average I don't know where our producers found it and they said in my ear we're getting closer. Okay, that somebody called Manfred. He released some video. Okay, America only now needs the Bigfoot video and we're home free. We'll show the video next. If you're spending time outside, it's important to know the potential risks of skin cancer. Non melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are common in the US and can become advanced and harder to treat if left undetected. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about ADV Advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at letsgetrealaboutskincancer.com Foodies
[41:27]
Angie Martinez
Unite this is Angie Martinez from IRL podcast here to tell you about something new and delicious from McDonald's. So they just released an all new Caesar sauce that is a creamy blend of rich Parmesan, zesty lemon and bold garlic flavors. The sauce on a Chicken Caesar snack wrap.
[41:46]
Albert Breer
Ooh.
[41:46]
Angie Martinez
Or the McCrispy strips. Delicious. Which, by the way, the crispy strips are even crispier now and that combination is perfect for McDonald's and for a drink. I'll probably have a nice cold Sprite to go along with that perfectly and I will be a happy girl. Don't take my word for it. Try it out for yourself for a limited time while supplies last at participating McDonald's.
[42:07]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
This episode brought to you by Verizon Business the World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever, it's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. But for Verizon business, that's another day with private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber. End to end security. Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFAWorldCup now to learn more.
[42:39]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
Hey Portlandia fans, Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen here.
[42:42]
Colin Cowherd
The dream of the 90s is alive in podcast form.
[42:45]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
We're launching Podlandia AO Rewatch our brand new podcast where we revisit every episode of Portlandia together, breaking down sketches, going deep on our iconic characters and pulling back the curtain on how it all got made.
[42:57]
Colin Cowherd
And we'll also be joined by the people who helped bring it all to life.
[43:00]
Mike DeFabo
Guest stars, collaborators and friends, including director
[43:03]
Colin Cowherd
Jonathan Krisel, the mayor himself, Kyle McLaughlin, legendary musician Amy Mann, and many more.
[43:09]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
Kyle is going for it.
[43:10]
Mike DeFabo
Here go you.
[43:11]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
You fully improvised. Not just words, but a song.
[43:14]
Colin Cowherd
Well, I thought you were all going to write a song.
[43:16]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
I remember you thinking that. Listen to Podlandia Aao rewatch on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
[43:26]
Colin Cowherd
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.

Summary6 min read

The Herd with Colin Cowherd – Hour 3 (August 5, 2026)

Theme: Aaron Rodgers & Mike McCarthy reunion in Pittsburgh, training camp insights, roster moves, Aaron Donald's Rams return, and major NFL & MLB moments.

Episode Overview

In this hour, Colin Cowherd delves into the evolving dynamics of the Pittsburgh Steelers with Aaron Rodgers and Mike McCarthy reunited, provides an update on Aaron Donald’s likely return to the Rams, debates NFL and NBA player moves, and sprinkles in some classic sports nostalgia. The episode features in-depth analysis with guest Mike DeFabo (Steelers beat writer, The Athletic) and regular co-host banter with Kelvin Washington and Rob Parker.

Steelers Training Camp: New Approach under Mike McCarthy

[02:43–04:16]

Training Camp Philosophy Change:
Mike DeFabo highlights Mike McCarthy’s departure from the physically demanding Steelers camps of old under Mike Tomlin.

“There will be no ball carriers taken to the ground under Mike McCarthy. But... he looks at GPS monitoring, sports science, analytics.... He doesn’t want guys to get injured.” – Mike DeFabo (03:02)
Impact:
The prioritization of longevity and health over “old school” toughness aims to address the team’s late-season fatigue issues, potentially leading to improved performance at the business end of the season.

Aaron Rodgers & Mike McCarthy Reunion

[04:16–06:04]

Quarterback-Coach Chemistry:
DeFabo describes a rejuvenated, positive dynamic between Aaron Rodgers and McCarthy, emphasizing the comfort Rodgers has in the West Coast offensive system.

“Aaron Rodgers didn’t realize... how good he had it with Mike McCarthy in terms of personality, play calling... If he’s going to play at his best at 42, soon to be 43, it’s going to be because of this scheme.” – Mike DeFabo (04:32)
Optimism for Veteran Rodgers:
Reuniting with McCarthy, Rodgers is upbeat about his fit and opportunities late in his career.

Steelers Offseason Roster Improvements

[06:04–07:07]

Key Acquisitions:
High praise for adding Michael Pittman Jr. to the receiver corps, which was found wanting last year.

“They went out and got Michael Pittman Jr…. Now he’s willing to be that wide receiver two.” – Mike DeFabo (06:04)
Strategic Shift:
Moving away from Arthur Smith’s tight end–centric coordination, Steelers will now emphasize WRs, aligning the offense with Rodgers’ historical strengths.

2026 Steelers Outlook: Schedule, Wins, and QB Depth

[07:07–09:40]

2026 Predictions:
Colin and Mike forecast a 9–10 win season for Pittsburgh due to a “soft, winnable” opening schedule, though it turns challenging post–bye week.
Backup QB Situation:
There’s internal debate over retaining veteran Mason Rudolph or keeping rookie QBs Will Howard and Drew Aller on the 53-man roster.

“Do you go with the proven veteran behind a 42-year-old quarterback, or do you go with the youth?” – Mike DeFabo (08:43)

Covering Aaron Rodgers: Media Relations & Locker Room Presence

[09:40–10:34]

Personality with Media:
Rodgers is described as “feisty,” sometimes taking shots at the press, but well-supported by his teammates.

“Teammates do buy into his messaging.... They respect and appreciate what he gives them.” – Mike DeFabo (09:57)
Cowherd Comments:
Colin jokes about having covered challenging star athletes, framing Rodgers as both a great subject and occasionally prickly.

Memorable Quotes & Anecdotes

On “Ring Chasing” in the NBA:

“In football, if you go to a bad team for a lot of money... he doesn't want to win. And in basketball, LeBron’s 40... What are we talking about?” – Kelvin Washington (20:04)
Colin’s Sports Nostalgia Bet:
Detour with the tale of a legendary George Foster home run off Willie Hernandez (16:00–18:43; 24:15–26:18; 29:42–32:12). He offers a $500 coffee gift card to staff if they can find video evidence, paralleling the hunt for Bigfoot footage.

Other Key NFL & NBA Storylines

Commanders to Sign Stefon Diggs:
Diggs, productive but mercurial, is discussed as a two-year impact player for the Commanders (23:31–24:07).
Bengals as Super Bowl Contenders:
Debate over Cincinnati’s roster and playoff ceiling, with a focus on their stellar young core and returns from injury (21:41–22:43).

Aaron Donald’s Return to the Rams

[32:12–34:46]

Albert Breer Update:
The Rams have a battle-tested framework for reintegrating Donald, who’s been away for two years but will be carefully managed.

“They have a way to do this now... It’s not the same... he’s 35 now, but they feel like they’ve got a good plan.” – Albert Breer (32:12)
Rams’ Roster Stacked:
Colin asserts the Rams possess arguably the NFL's best “10-best players” list, especially after adding Trent McDuffie, Devonte Adams, and maintaining pro-bowlers across the board.

"If you put Aaron Donald in it, that is pretty unblockable." – Colin Cowherd (33:30)

Cleveland Browns QB Situation & Shadour Sanders Debate

[34:46–39:54]

Under-drafting of Shadour Sanders:
Panel examines Sanders’ fifth-round selection, noting his college pedigree and suggesting locker room/fan support but questions about coaching staff buy-in and owner pressure due to Deshaun Watson's salary.
Locker Room Dynamics:

“It feels like the Browns players are rooting for Shadour Sanders. They like his vibe... That’s not to say the players are rooting against DeShawn, but... it feels like Shadour is the locker room favorite.” – Colin Cowherd (37:52)
Watson’s Decline:
Both compare the rapid performance drop-off to Russell Wilson, driving home career uncertainty for Watson.

Notable / Entertaining Segments & Quotes

George Foster Home Run Hunt:
Repeated through the episode, Colin’s quest for historic MLB footage brings out playful staff competition and nostalgia.

“Now America only needs the Bigfoot video and we’re home free.” – Colin Cowherd (40:10)
On covering athletes:

“Aaron's just not. Not everybody you cover likes to be covered.” – Colin Cowherd (11:16)
“Sometimes a feisty guy... we got along very well at the end, but there were years he didn’t like me.” – Colin Cowherd (10:56)

Timestamps Guide to Key Segments

| Segment Topic | Timestamp | |---------------|-----------| | Steelers training camp approach | 02:43–04:16 | | Rodgers–McCarthy reunion | 04:16–06:04 | | Roster/offensive changes | 06:04–07:07 | | Season & QB depth outlook | 07:07–09:40 | | Aaron Rodgers’ media dynamics | 09:40–10:34 | | Ring-chasing in NBA/LeBron | 19:18–21:41 | | Bengals & Stefon Diggs | 21:41–24:07 | | Colin’s George Foster home run story | 16:00–18:43, 24:15–26:18, 29:42–32:12 | | Aaron Donald’s Rams return | 32:12–34:46 | | Shadour Sanders in Cleveland | 34:46–39:54 | | Foster HR video found | 40:08–40:10 |

Tone & Style

Informed but conversational, laced with Colin’s signature colorful storytelling and sports nostalgia.
Honest, sometimes irreverent, always topical.
Guest experts offer data-driven and inside perspectives, while co-hosts provide banter and broader context.

Summary Takeaways

Steelers’ new era: Less physical camps, maximizing health and late-season freshness with a Rodgers-McCarthy partnership aiming for a classic West Coast offense.
Roster depth & transitions: Strategic WR additions and a fascinating backup QB battle.
NFL big picture: Rams ready to contend if Donald returns, Browns face a compelling QB dilemma, and perennial questions swirl around declining veteran QBs.
Meta-sports moments: In-depth sports nostalgia demonstrates the enduring connections that personalities like Cowherd bring to both fans and staff.

Notable Quote to Close:

“If you put Aaron Donald in... that defensive line... is pretty unblockable.”
—Colin Cowherd (33:30)

Loading summary

Transcript123 lines

[00:00]
Colin Cowherd
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human this episode brought to you
[00:06]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
by Verizon Business the World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever, it's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. But for Verizon Business, that's another day with private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber, end to end security. Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon Business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFA World cup now to learn more.
[00:36]
Colin Cowherd
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[01:54]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
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[01:55]
Colin Cowherd
Wasabi is the go to provider for
[01:57]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
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[01:59]
Colin Cowherd
Check out Wasabi's AI enabled intelligent media storage. Wasabi Air to the industry's only cloud storage service with triple protection against cybercriminals. Wasabi driving innovation in data storage for up to 80% less than the other guys. Try for free@wasabi.com, wasabi Hot Cloud Storage, proud partner of the Volume Podcast Network. 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 atfox sports radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR.
[02:39]
Rob Parker
Now let's get this party started.
[02:41]
Kelvin Washington
You're listening to FOX Sports Radio.
[02:43]
Colin Cowherd
Well, let's go live to the Pittsburgh Steelers camp with our friend Mike defebo, the beat writer for the Steelers for the Athletic, covering the team for about a half a decade. Okay. So I hear they're not, they're not tackling, which I'm not necessarily opposed to. Tomlin was old school, very physical practices. What have you seen so far, Mike?
[03:03]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah, it's a very different approach to training camp. Mike Tomlin led arguably the most physical training camp in the league a couple years ago at the Athletic. I surveyed my colleagues and I said, how often does a team you cover tackle? And it led me to conclude that Mike Tomlin did have the most physical training camp. Very different approach to tackling. There will be no ball carriers taken to the ground under Mike McCarthy. But what I think that tells you is here you have the third oldest coach in the league, but he's not old school. Okay. You know, he looks at, he talks about things like GPS monitoring, sports science, analytics. And so even though he's advanced in his career and he's established, he continues to look at the trends. And the reason why he's not tackling is because he doesn't want guys to get injured. And you look at Tomlins teams routinely, they fell apart near the end of the season. And in Mike Tomlin's first training camp, the players said themselves. He ran them into the ground, he tried to set a tone, and instead he wore them out. And so I think that while this might rub old school Pittsburgh people the wrong way, they want to see a tough, hard nose, physical camp. And if there's no tackling, they don't think that that's true. I think at the end of the season, when the team is healthy and when the team is fresh, you're going to see the dividends that are paid right here.
[04:16]
Colin Cowherd
What's the, you know, and for the record, added to that is the Steelers have in the last several years melted down. End of the year, you could argue some of that is just fatigue. Now, with 17 games, what is the Aaron Mike dynamic like when you're there at practice?
[04:32]
Mike DeFabo
They have a great relationship right now. I mean, you see them jovial, joking with each other, and, you know, Aaron had a conversation with my colleague Mike Silver, and Aaron said at the time that the heart grows much fonder because of absence. And I think that Aaron Rodgers didn't realize necessarily how good he had it with Mike McCarthy in terms of personality, in terms of play calling, and also just the schematic fit Aaron Rodgers was at his best in Green Bay because of the west coast offense, that the style of offense and the quarterback that Aaron Rodgers is and was fits perfectly with what Mike McCarthy wants to do. So I think that Aaron's really excited to get back to those true west coast roots and thinks that if he's going to play at his best at 42, soon to be 43 years old, it's going to be because of this scheme that he's thrived in for so many years that helps him get there.
[05:26]
Colin Cowherd
I thought, I actually thought Aaron was pretty good last year considering it's a tight end heavy team without a star back. DK Metcalf is not, you know, he's not running the JSN route tree. I think he's a declining but very big physical receiver. But when they lost him for a couple of games, I mean, they just didn't have anything there. They've addressed some of that stuff in the off season. Do you like the roster this year better than last year? I mean, they'll be better. They'll have a more offensive sensibility. That's just a fact. With Mike McCarthy, I mean, he won. With Cooper Rush, I don't doubt that roster wise roster composition, they're still old and expensive on defense a little bit. But do you like the roster more?
[06:05]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah. I mean, last year going into training camp, the Steelers thought that Johnny Smith, who was a tight end and Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson together could a wide receiver too. And ultimately what ended up happening is John Smith got cut at the end of the year and still remains unsigned. Not to criticize him and pick on him, but that just shows the way that the Steelers incorrectly evaluated what they needed at that position. And instead what they did this offseason is they went out and they got Michael Pittman Jr. Who at different points in his career has been a wide receiver one. Now he's willing to be that wide receiver too. You're also seeing Roman Wilson showing some signs of development and more than anything, you're seeing an evolution in the personnel. As you mentioned, Arthur Smith was probably the least wide receiver friendly offensive coordinator in the entire league last year because he was so tight end centric. Now you go to a Mike McCarthy offense that in Green Bay they were near the top of the league in 11 personnel usage. So they're going to, you know, spread it out more. They're going to put wide receivers on the field more and that's going to fit the quarterback position much better.
[07:08]
Colin Cowherd
I think Cleveland's a little better than people think. Still don't buy into Cincinnati yet. Baltimore will be good, but it's a new coach and a first time play caller. If I said, all right, give, give me a, I mean, listen, they're going to be. McCarthy's too good. Aaron gives you a high floor. They've got nice pieces there. I think the roster is pretty solid. If you look at the schedule, it's, it's not that it's easy, but you get, you know, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Cleveland, the Colts, Tampa, the Saints, Cleveland. It's a pretty, I mean, compare that to Kansas City or Denver, some of these early awful NFL schedules, I don't know. And it toughens up in the middle, but I would be shocked if they're not a 9ish win team. How do you feel?
[07:52]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah, that's what I feel. I think that there's somewhere around that 9, 10 win range. And you know, Aaron Rodgers is, you know, talking about potentially playing in the preseason for one of the first times in, in several years. And I think a big part of that has to do with that schedule that you just referenced. It's kind of soft, kind of winnable games at the beginning, but it does toughen up after the bye week. When you look at them turning the corner and playing Cincinnati on the road in Sunday Night Football and then the Eagles and then a number of other playoff teams, including the Houston Texans that beat them last year and ended their season, including the Denver Broncos, who should be improved this year. So if this team is going to get to nine, 10 wins, you know, they're going to have to get off to a fast start. And I think that's a big reason why they've talked about Aaron playing in the preseason.
[08:35]
Colin Cowherd
By the way, if Aaron, let's say Aaron twists an ankle, misses a game or two, they've got a bunch of young quarterback, any of the backup quarterbacks doing anything.
[08:44]
Mike DeFabo
Well, they've actually got a quarterback competition. It's just not for QB1. You know, right now the question is, do the Steelers go into the season with Mason Rudolph as their backup quarterback? He's proven at certain times in his career he can step up and win them a game or two. And if you're sitting here right now as we're having this conversation, he is the quarterback best equipped to do that. But they've got two other guys. They've got Will Howard, they've got Drew Aller. So ultimately, can you fit four quarterbacks on a depth chart and can you fit four quarterbacks on a 53 man roster? And I think that's going to be one of the toughest decisions the Steelers have to make at the end of training camp is do you go with the guy that's the proven veteran behind a 42 year old quarterback or do you go with the youth and have two guys who have never played at this point even in a preseason game in Will Howard and Drew Aller. So it's kind of a tough decision that they're going to have to make and an important one going forward.
[09:41]
Colin Cowherd
By the way, Aaron made news this week with some, you know, Fauci comments and taking shots at networks. How is he like to cover on a local? I mean, you're the athletic, but when you're in these scrums with Aaron talking to the media, how is his personality?
[09:58]
Mike DeFabo
You know, there are times where he definitely takes shots at the media. I remember last year, there was a lot of times I was standing there and he would criticize the media and say they didn't know what they were talking about when it came to Mike Tomlin and those kinds of things. But the bottom line is I think that he has the locker room behind him. I know that he got a bad rap and I think that it was a mischaracterization of him as a teammate because the teammates do buy into his messaging. They do respect him because they acknowledge they're playing with a future hall of Fame quarterback. And I think for those reasons they follow him and they believe in him and they respect and they appreciate what he gives them.
[10:35]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah. Mike is always good to see anybody.
[10:38]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah, absolutely. Thank you so much for having me here.
[10:40]
Colin Cowherd
You bet. Mike DeFebo covers the Steelers. Has for a while. For the Athletic.
[10:44]
Albert Breer
Yeah.
[10:44]
Colin Cowherd
I mean, I think it'd be fun to cover Aaron. I really do. He's feisty, you know, Matt Stafford. Are you going to get the same? You know, he's going to say nice stuff. And Justin Herbert, you know, he likes
[10:55]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
me, so that'd be fun.
[10:56]
Colin Cowherd
Sometimes it's nice to, you know, I, I remember when I covered Charles Barkley in the locker room and he made fun of my shoes. You know, sometimes a feisty guy, Jerry Tarkin. And by the way, we got along very well at the end, but there were years he didn't like me. And you know, Aaron's, you know, Aaron's just not everybody you cover likes to be covered. Right.
[11:17]
Kelvin Washington
Well, Belichick came on, what, a couple weeks ago? Three or four weeks ago. Do you think any chance Aaron, you know, you and Aaron Rodgers.
[11:24]
Colin Cowherd
Oh, God, no.
[11:25]
Kelvin Washington
Yeah.
[11:25]
Colin Cowherd
It didn't ever. And by the way I make this argument, I've said it a hundred times. If you took everything I said about Aaron Rodgers, 85% positive, but I've hammered him a few times because I think sometimes he's high maintenance and I don't love it at that position. But I mean, Belichick, I told the staff before Bill came on, I said, you know, I've been pretty hard on that Carolina. I, I thought that Matt Patricia, OC hire was idiotic. Like I and I said it, I'm like, that doesn't make any sense. What are you doing, Belichick? Honestly, it was just like storytelling. Bill Belichick, he was unbelievable. It's like, oh, yeah, I'd love to come on the show again. So maybe it's my charm. You know, I get these guys live and, you know, they can't help themselves.
[12:05]
Kelvin Washington
I don't know if Belichick's going to be in a great mood after a couple weeks of college football. I think this thing could go the other way. But he was in a good mood that day.
[12:15]
Colin Cowherd
He was.
[12:15]
Kelvin Washington
Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.
[12:25]
Colin Cowherd
Hey, it's Rob Parker and Kelvin Washington from the Odd Couple on Fox Sports Radio.
[12:30]
Rob Parker
And in addition to hearing us live weeknights from 7 to 10pm Eastern on Fox Sports Radio, we are excited to announce brand new YouTube channel for the show.
[12:39]
Kelvin Washington
That's right, you can now watch the
[12:42]
Colin Cowherd
Odd Couple Live on YouTube every day.
[12:45]
Rob Parker
All you gotta do search Odd Couple FSR on YouTube again. YouTube. Just search Odd Couple FSR. Check us out on YouTube and subscribe.
[12:55]
Colin Cowherd
For any small business owner, there's a moment when you realize the next hire could be the difference between staying busy and actually growing. The challenge is finding the right person without wasting time sorting through candidates who aren't the right fit. That's where Indeed Sponsored Jobs comes in, where a workplace hits and you need somebody who can step in and make a difference. This is a job for Sponsored Jobs. It helps you put your job in front of candidates who match the criteria that matter most to you, whether it's skills, experience, certifications, or location. And you're certainly not alone in using Indeed. Join the 3.3 million employers worldwide that use Indeed to connect with quality talent that fits their needs. That's millions of businesses turning to Indeed to help solve hiring challenges and find people who can drive results. Spend less time searching, more time actually interviewing candidates who check all the boxes less stress. Less time, more results. Get your $75 sponsored job credit today at Indeed.com podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring now then, this is a job for Indeed. Sponsored Jobs if you're spending time outside, it's important to know the potential risks of skin cancer. Non melanoma skin cancers or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are common in the US and can become advanced and harder to treat if left undetected. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at letsgetrealaboutskincer.com Foodies
[14:32]
Angie Martinez
Unite this is Angie Martinez from IRL podcast here to tell you about something new and delicious from McDonald's. So they just released an all new Caesar sauce that is a creamy blend of rich Parmesan, zesty lemon and bold garlic flavors. The sauce on a Chicken Caesar snack wrap.
[14:50]
Albert Breer
Ooh.
[14:51]
Angie Martinez
Or the McCrispy strips. Delicious. Which, by the way, the crispy strips are even crispier now and that combination is perfect for McDonald's. And for a drink. I'll probably have a nice cold Sprite to go along with that perfectly and I will be a happy girl. Don't take my word for it. Try it out for yourself for a limited time while supplies Last at participating
[15:11]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
McDonald's this episode brought to you by Verizon Business when we watch the World cup, we focus on the stars, the players, the coaches, the matches. But here's what's fascinating.
[15:20]
Colin Cowherd
What does it take to make an
[15:22]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
event this big actually work? The World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever. It's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. Think about that. That's not just a sporting event. That's one of the biggest logistical and technological challenges in the world. And with billions of people watching, there's no room for error. But for Verizon business, that's another day with private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber, end to end security. Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFA World cup now to learn more.
[16:01]
Colin Cowherd
Okay, so I went to the Cubs game last night. I'm going to do this live. I probably shouldn't do this live on the air. My bosses are going to think I'm nuts. So I went to the Cubs game last night and I was walking outside the stadium Wrigley and they have, there's no team that has more cool hats and T shirts. I bought my wife, Irish wife, a Cub shirt, green with a clover. Is it called that, by the way? Okay, okay. So I saw this dark pinstripe blue Cubs jersey. Now I don't know how often they wear it, but it literally clicked a memory in my head. Now I'm, I am going total memory in, in somewhere between 1977 and 1981, 82, the Cubs had a left handed reliever named Willie Hernandez. And it was a Friday night game at Riverfront Stadium. And I know that because the Saturday Cubs Reds game at Riverfront was televised. And they talked about this home run that was hit by George Foster on Friday night or Thursday night. So Willie Hernandez was a left hander for the Cubs and he was pitching to the right handed bat of George Foster who was a great hitter, big power, skinny guy with great power. And it was a upper, upper deck home run. It was a bomb. And I, and I saw that dark blue Cubs jersey and I have no idea why that pitch, why that moment popped into my head. So I told anybody on the staff that can find it on my staff and send it to me. We have a coffee place in our LA studio, Bluestone. It's, it's, it's owned by the, the company. I'll buy a 500 gift certificate to the person on. That's a lot of coffee, bro. That is a lot of smoothies. I'll buy a 500 gift certificate to Bluestone. It's really good by the way. I have every day I'm in la, I go there. There's several of blues. It's called Bluestone lane. All right, $500 for all you guys. Willie Hernandez, George Foster, upper deck home run. That, those blue pinstripe Cub uniforms. I couldn't stop thinking about it last night. And I know I'm. My staff makes fun of me because I go Rain man on all this old baseball, NBA stuff. I'm absolutely sure it happened. It was Willie Hernandez, George Foster, Riverfront Stadium. Somewhere between. I think he, I think he pitched for the Cubs. I used to collect baseball cards like 77 to 81, 82 ish. Middelkoff has no idea what he's in for. John Middelkoff with the news. No, no, no.
[18:44]
Rob Parker
Turn on the news.
[18:45]
Kelvin Washington
This is the herd line news. I get a cold brew and a smoothi every single day from there. They're fantastic fan.
[18:53]
Colin Cowherd
Some of the best smoothies I've ever had in my life.
[18:55]
Kelvin Washington
I had had a power one this morning. Speaking of smoothies, you know, LeBron James had a few of those in his career and he's been heavily criticized. Well, I guess the Internet, I mean, comments have been saying that he's ring chasing and, and, and your guy, Sam Darnold on Hard Knocks had some thoughts on the LeBron James Sixers criticism.
[19:18]
Rob Parker
I love this.
[19:20]
Mike DeFabo
I also hate that people are hating
[19:22]
Kelvin Washington
on him for going to a good
[19:24]
Mike DeFabo
team
[19:27]
Rob Parker
at this point.
[19:28]
Kelvin Washington
Everyone's like, oh, he's going to stack
[19:30]
Mike DeFabo
team like that doesn't that
[19:34]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
he can
[19:34]
Colin Cowherd
go wherever he wants.
[19:35]
Kelvin Washington
Any free agent can do that.
[19:37]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
[19:37]
Kelvin Washington
And any free agent ever would be like, yeah, I want to go play for a championship. That's my last year or two. Yeah. Yeah, for sure.
[19:44]
Colin Cowherd
By the way, another reason to love Darnold. I never understand the ring change in every other sport like Sam Darnold if it doesn't matter if you're traded, acquired. Like we've never beat up on athletes who end up or college kids who choose Ohio State over Purdue. We're like, yeah, he's smart. He wants to play with great players. What are you talking about?
[20:05]
Kelvin Washington
We actually reverse criticized in the NFL. I remember J.J. watt was, you know, going to pick his destination. He took a lot of money from the Cardinals and everyone's like, why didn't he go to the packers for less money to try to win a Super Bowl? You know, in football we, if you go to a bad team for a lot of money, so he just took the cash. He doesn't want to win. And in basketball, LeBron's 40. He's going to be 42 in December. And it's not like the Sixers have been like the, the 80s Lakers here. I mean, what are we talking about?
[20:36]
Colin Cowherd
They probably, relative to their talent, they're probably the most underachieving, underachieving team in the NBA for a decade. So he went to the most weird underachieving team in the NBA for a decade and you're like, oh, ring chasing. No, it sounds like ring chasing because he joined the team. Yeah, now it sounds like ring chasing.
[20:54]
Kelvin Washington
I, I did read an article this morning that the, his potential helicopter ride from New York to Philadelphia might have some issues with the wind, but it goes back to like, you know, Wilt Chamberlain, I guess, used to live in the city, even at a nightclub in Harlem. So it's, it's been done before. But LeBron, I have a theory too on LeBron. I don't think he factored this in But I've lived in Philly. The Eagles, win or lose, they are the story of the fall. He kind of gets to fly under the radar relative to him a little
[21:27]
Colin Cowherd
bit in the fall. He does. He can. Because this team's got some ball usage questions. It. This is going to be like the Miami Heat. It's going to take like 15 to 20 games. You're like, okay, they're really, really good. They're not going to be good week one. Like, they've, they've got a lot of guys that need to eat.
[21:41]
Kelvin Washington
Speaking of a guy that likes to eat, Dexter Lawrence, massive human being. The Cincinnati Bengals got him obviously this offseason to trade for the number 10 overall pick. Jamar Chase recently said he's been terrorizing practice during the break. Colin, I saw on social media there, there was a clip of a. It looked like a run drill, but like 11 on 11. He grabbed Chase Brown, the running back, with like two fingers and he just stopped. You know, like, I, I know yesterday you were pretty hard on the Bengals and their situation, and I agree, historically, you know, going back to Carson Palmer, you know, I, I think it's fair coaching wise. I, they don't exactly swim in the $20 million range for coaches, but this roster, on paper, that, that trade's a big time move.
[22:28]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah.
[22:28]
Kelvin Washington
They bought some free agents I. Their team that their ceiling this year is definitely super bowl contender. I mean, Colin, they went to the super bowl several years ago, and you'd argue this team's better.
[22:44]
Colin Cowherd
They're older.
[22:45]
Kelvin Washington
Jamar Chase, in the prime of his career. Higgins, excellent. Look at the size of that guy who's blocking him. The Ravens lost their center. The Steelers offensive line is always a question mark. The Browns, I mean, who knows who's playing quarterback there? It's their issue. Last year, Burrow was just. Because of the turf toe, was just gone for three months. So if you tell me Burrow plays, I got this team winning the division. Last but not least, a little breaking news out of the National Football League. The Washington Commanders look like they're going to sign Stefon Diggs. He's got it. He's got a lot going on in his life. It feels like off the football field, but on the football field, been productive. Obviously. Played for the Patriots last year in the Super Bowl.
[23:31]
Colin Cowherd
He's always good for a couple years. I mean, he's. He'll be productive for two years. I mean, he's getting her closer to the end of his career. His private life is a little jumbled, but I mean, he'll. He'll. I don't think he's a bad guy. I just think it seems like everywhere he's at about by year three or four, he makes some noise, but he'll. He'll be productive this year. He's a good player.
[23:48]
Kelvin Washington
Yeah, I guess when you're choosing between Diggs and iuk, it's, you know, you gotta, you know, you go with the. The lesser of the two issues there. And this might end it for IUK and his. His Instagram stories. But, yeah, the commanders, I got no clue. If you told me they win eight, nine games, I believe you've told me they win four, I'd believe you.
[24:07]
Colin Cowherd
Same here.
[24:07]
Kelvin Washington
They are a massive wild card for me this year.
[24:10]
Colin Cowherd
John, with the news.
[24:12]
Kelvin Washington
Well, that's the news. And thanks for stopping by the herd lie news.
[24:16]
Colin Cowherd
So this is funny. So I told you, the staff, I told you and the staff, I said $500. Bluestone Lane, if you can find the Willie Hernandez dark Cub uniforms. George Foster, home run. Somewhere between 77 and 81. The staff, they already want the money because they found on Google that it actually happened. I know it happened. I watched it. I was like, you know, I was like, I don't know, 15 years old. They're like, hey, where's my money? Where's my smoothies? I could find that. It happened. That's the easy part. This is not like a UFO sighting. Maybe it happened. Maybe it was a small plane. It was a drone. It happened. I want video of it. So it happened. On August 3, 1977, George Foster hit a memorable home run off Willie Hernandez. George had an MVP season, so they're calling it a memorable home run. But it's August 3rd, so why would it be memorable? What home run on August 3rd is memorable? The one that goes 800 yards into Kentucky. I'm telling you, he hit it a mile. It says here on Google he hit a memorable home run off Willie Hernandez. It's August 3rd 3rd. There's never been a memorable home run on August 3rd. So if I can get video of that $500. It's like four bucks for a coffee. You're going to be drinking caffeine for three months. I'm so excited to see this video. And I don't care how you get it. I don't care if, like, somebody watching the show sends it to you on the staff, one of your kids finds it or something. I don't care, AI. I mean, I'd even take that at this point. I'd give you like 250 for an AI version in Chicago, it's the Herd.
[26:18]
Kelvin Washington
Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.
[26:27]
Colin Cowherd
For any small business owner, there's a moment when you realize the next hire could be the difference between staying busy and actually growing. The challenge is finding the right person without wasting time sorting through candidates who aren't the right fit. That's where Indeed Sponsored Jobs comes in, where a workplace chaos hits and you need somebody who can step in and make a difference. This is a job for Sponsored Jobs. It helps you put your job in front of candidates who match the criteria that matter most to you, whether it's skills, experience, certifications or location. And you're certainly not alone in using Indeed. Join the 3.3 million employers worldwide that use Indeed to connect with quality talent that fits their needs. That's millions of businesses turning to Indeed to help solve hiring challenges and find people who can drive results. Spend less time searching, more time actually interviewing candidates who check all the boxes. Less stress, less time, more results. Get your $75 sponsored job credit today@ Indeed.com podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring now then, this is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs. If you're spending time outside, it's important to know the potential risks of skin cancer. Non melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are common in the US and can become advanced and harder to treat if left undetected. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at let'sget realaboutskincancer.com Foodies Unite.
[28:05]
Angie Martinez
This is Angie Martinez from IRL podcast here to tell you about something new and delicious from McDonald's. So they just released an all new Caesar sauce that is a creamy blend of rich Parmesan, zesty lemon and bold garlic flavors. The sauce on a chicken Caesar snack wrap.
[28:23]
Albert Breer
Ooh.
[28:23]
Angie Martinez
Or the McCrispy strips. Delicious. Which by the way, the crispy strips are even crispier now and that combination is perfect for McDonald's and for a drink. I'll probably have a nice cold sprite to go along with that perfectly and I will be a happy girl. Don't take my word for it. Try it out for yourself for a limited time while supplies last at participating McDonald's.
[28:44]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
This episode brought to you by Verizon Business when we watch the World cup. We focus on the stars, the players, the coaches, the matches. But here's what's fascinating.
[28:53]
Colin Cowherd
What does it take to make an
[28:54]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
event this big actually work? The World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever. It's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. Think about that. That's not just a sporting event. That's one of the biggest logistical and technological challenges in the world. And with billions of people watching, there's no room for error. But for Verizon business, that's another day. With private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber, end to end security, Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFA World cup now to learn more.
[29:33]
Kelvin Washington
Sunday on Fox. The stars of IndyCar are going full throttle as they look to chase down Alex Palo in Portland. Sunday at 4 Eastern only on Fox.
[29:42]
Colin Cowherd
Speaking of home runs, there's two pieces of video in America. Everybody searching for an actual first piece of Bigfoot video for the last 50 years. And the George Foster home run in 1977 off the Cubs left handed reliever and dark blue uniform Willie Hernandez. I went to the Cubs game last night. I saw an old blue uniform. I could not get that moment out of my head. I remember as a kid I was watching Saturday baseball. I lived for baseball. And they did the pregame show and George Foster was having a huge year and they said, oh, if you weren't here last night, it was like Thursday or Friday, whatever the day was. And they show this home run with Willie Hernandez. I've never seen a home run like that. Upper, upper diet, I'm not sure. So I was watching a Saturday game. I don't know if it was a Friday. The game before it was sometime during the week. It's probably a Thursday night home run. Cause I don't think there was a lot of people in the upper deck. And at that time, the Reds on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, they drew big crowds. So it's probably a midweek game. I'm just guessing, but if you can find it on my staff. And by the way, these guys are so competitive, they may not go home. They may stay the night in the facility. Also. Ohtani, Shohei Ohtani. We got video of this. The Cubs and the Dodgers. Cubs have won the first two games of the series. Dodgers can't hit 10. 5 in the opener. 5. 1 last night Ohtani hits this home run to tie, actually take a one nothing lead. Pete Crow. Armstrong has since tied it. Cubs, Dodgers now are tied early innings. And that Shohei Ohtani, kind of a line drive home run on a beautiful day in Chicago. It's a day game. Few empty seats in the day game. Right now, I'm told it's 1:1. So any luck on finding that video? We got a few minutes. Not yet. YouTube doesn't have it. I would love that. The trend. That would make my week if it trended. George Foster, homer's off. Willie Hernandez. People will be like, the hell is going on in America? They're watching this show. That's what's going on. Oh, somebody on the staff said we're getting closer on the video. Yeah, they're AI in it to death. I guarantee you. Guarantee you that's what the staff's doing. They want that coffee. Albert Breer was on about 30 minutes ago and 40 minutes ago and we talked, I guess it was an hour ago, we talked about Aaron Donald on a stacked roster. Aaron Donald's returned to the Rams and it sound like it's borderline a done deal.
[32:12]
Albert Breer
What's given them the framework for that is the holdouts in 2017 and 2018. Now, you remember he reported to camp very late both years. Both years he won defensive Player of the Year. So they have a way to do this now. It's not the same. Of course, he's 35 now. He's, you know, obviously spent two years away from football. But they feel like they've got a good plan. They're going to have a way of managing him that isn't going to cost the team. You know, I, I kind of take it back to like the Eric Weddle situation a few years ago. He was there because they needed him to be there. And he played every snap because the Rams needed him to play every snap. I don't think that's going to be the case with Aaron Donald in 2026.
[32:51]
Colin Cowherd
And we talked about how loaded the Rams are. People talk about the stacked Dodgers deck, but it's a lot of guys out of their prime. If you go to the 10 best players for the LA Rams, I don't think there's anybody in the league, maybe Philadelphia, that compares. Miles Garrett, Matt Stafford, Puka Nakua, Trent McDuffie that you can argue those four players are in the top one or two at their position in the league. Devonte Adams, Kevin Dotson was the top rated guard last year. Byron Young, a pro Bowler. Puna Ford Number one rated defensive tackle, Kyron Williams. A thousand yards and ten touchdowns three years in a row. And Kobe Turner, who was rated higher than Chris Jones last year. Six, best interior lineman. It is a completely stacked roster. So if you put, I mean, that defensive line, if you put Aaron Donald in it, that is pretty unblockable. I mean, that, you know, the way to beat the Rams has been kind of going forward. Charlotte gave them all sorts of problems. Attack their corners. Well, you can't do. They went and got. They went and got two corners, including Trent McDuffie from the Chiefs. So those days are done. They're good at safety, they're good at tight end. And neither group has a player in the top 10. But the Rams tight end grouping is top five in the league. Their safeties are excellent. Sean McVay is arguably the best coach in the league. So, I mean, it's just something else. It is something else. Can't wait. All right, John, Yesterday we had our five new teams in the NFL playoffs and we both kind of agreed on Kansas City and New Orleans. Then I think you had the Bengals, Cowboys and somebody else was in there. I had the Giants, Lions, somebody else in there. Who was it?
[34:47]
Kelvin Washington
Ravens?
[34:48]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah, I had the RA Just kind of basically out of respect for the organization. But the one team I said the crazy pick would be Cleveland. So Todd Monken blasted, blasted Cleveland local media today for being negative with Shador Sanders. And in that poll of NFL execs that Mike Sando had, Sanders was dead last behind JJ McCarthy, which is not true, but that's what they put him. So as somebody that was a pro scout in the league, there have been players that have been underdrafted. Brock Purdy was underdrafted. Dak Prescott was underdra. Puka Nakua was underdrafted. I mean, when this happens all the time. George Kittle was massively underdrafted. Juwan Jennings for the Niners, underdrafted. When you look at Shador going in the fifth round, as a scout, when you watch them in, you watch a lot of college football. Where did you have him graded? Where did you see him as a player? Forget all the dad stuff. What did you see?
[35:47]
Kelvin Washington
Yeah, I would say a top 75 player somewhere between middle second round, the third round. You know, I mean, I think the argument sometimes with quarterbacks are if you're going to take a guy in the top 50, you know that that's where Derek Carr went. Will Levis, you expect that guy to be your starter. You know, now some of them don't work Out. But when you draft a guy why wouldn't you just draft him in the first round then? So what happened this year for example, no one went in the second round. Right now it wasn't a great quarterback draft but they started going to the third round which Carson Beck, I think it was announced going to start this hall of Fame game.
[36:25]
Mike DeFabo
Yeah.
[36:25]
Kelvin Washington
There's no pressure to start a third rounder but when you draft a guy in a second round that's where it gets weird I think with Shador in my years, you know I know so many people in the league that go did or sit in on all these meetings at the combine. Sometimes when you get like a top five pick right. They won't meet with teams drafting a pick 20. It happens in the NBA a lot. It happens a little bit in the NFL. Anyone that is not a lock top 10 pick kind of meets with everybody.
[36:55]
Colin Cowherd
Absolutely.
[36:56]
Kelvin Washington
And Shador wouldn't really. He wouldn't even give the time of day. Like the Eagles and the Ravens are two teams. I don't know exactly what round they would have taken him but my guess is third or fourth, definitely not the fifth. And they couldn't even like he wouldn't talk to them and he would go well you got Jalen Hurts and Lamar Jackson. It's kind of the way football works, you know, unless. Unless you're Fernando. Fernando Mendoza is not even starting like most of these teams. There's a veteran quarterback there. I understand Those guys are $50 million guys but once you go out of the of the first round any team can draft you at any moment. I mean the packers have made a living off Aaron Rodgers, Brett Favre and what if Jordan Love had picked up like don't want you. You got Aaron Rodgers. Look how it changes life. So the league changes really quick and I think they regret that. But now the Browns by it sure sounds like Watson's hasn't been great. Why would he just start Shador week one?
[37:52]
Colin Cowherd
Why it feels like I saw a video this week of Shador making a big downfield fourth quarter throw in practice and the teammates reaction to the play and we don't talk a lot about this but a part of what there is a belief. It feels like the Browns players are rooting for Shador Sanders. They like like his vibe and desean Watson's older got some baggage. Some of it weird. That's not to say the players are rooting against DeShawn but when I watch video of Shadour it feels like the because the Browns are young John it's a young team. Miles Garrett, one of their big senior leaders, he's gone now. They replace him with Jared Verse, a younger player. Their top players are a lot of young guys. It's a young locker room. So is New England. And it feels like to me, it feels like Shadour is the locker room favorite. You know, he's the fan favorite. That, that's not even disputable. The question is, with Monken, is he the coaching staff? Because the players and the fans are rooting for Shadour. The question is, what's the coaching staff thing? What is Jimmy Haslam saying? Guys, we got to get one star out of desean. I'm paying him a bloody fortune.
[39:01]
Kelvin Washington
Well, I think if you go back that the Ravens were interested a couple years ago, I think that would be. I'd be stunned if Todd Monkin wasn't part of that conversation of like, yeah, I like him. Let's take him in the third or fourth round especially. Lamar had been banged up a little bit by then. So I think if you're Shador, there's a high likelihood when this guy got hired, he was kind of in your corner as a player coming out of college. So, I mean, Watson hasn't been good. Watson has one of the most precipitous drop offs just on the field I think we've ever seen because he was pretty good player with the Houston Texans and now he's. If he can't win the starting job, I mean, his career is probably over, don't you think?
[39:41]
Colin Cowherd
Yeah, I think between the weirdness, I mean, he and Russell Wilson just got really average to really bad very quick. And you know, they're both athletic guys. You lose some of that athletic ability and it's never the same. But you know, at least, at least
[39:55]
Kelvin Washington
Russell, I mean, you can. Some people think he's cheesy, a little fake or whatever, but there was nothing off the field like Watson. I, I don't think most teams would touch him with a 10 foot pole over the previous baggage.
[40:07]
Colin Cowherd
Oh my God. I can't believe this.
[40:09]
Kelvin Washington
Found it.
[40:11]
Colin Cowherd
I can't believe they found it. We have. Okay, don't, don't show it to anybody. I want to see it live. We have found the George Foster home run video. I don't know. I want to first of all know how they found it because it's not on YouTube. So I, you know what? I bet, I bet you Shanks went upstairs to call the network, called Rob Manfred and got it because Shanks probably wants free coffee too. I can't blame executives. I think it has to be an executive that got this because the average I don't know where our producers found it and they said in my ear we're getting closer. Okay, that somebody called Manfred. He released some video. Okay, America only now needs the Bigfoot video and we're home free. We'll show the video next. If you're spending time outside, it's important to know the potential risks of skin cancer. Non melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are common in the US and can become advanced and harder to treat if left undetected. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about ADV Advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at letsgetrealaboutskincancer.com Foodies
[41:27]
Angie Martinez
Unite this is Angie Martinez from IRL podcast here to tell you about something new and delicious from McDonald's. So they just released an all new Caesar sauce that is a creamy blend of rich Parmesan, zesty lemon and bold garlic flavors. The sauce on a Chicken Caesar snack wrap.
[41:46]
Albert Breer
Ooh.
[41:46]
Angie Martinez
Or the McCrispy strips. Delicious. Which, by the way, the crispy strips are even crispier now and that combination is perfect for McDonald's and for a drink. I'll probably have a nice cold Sprite to go along with that perfectly and I will be a happy girl. Don't take my word for it. Try it out for yourself for a limited time while supplies last at participating McDonald's.
[42:07]
Sponsor/Commercial Voice
This episode brought to you by Verizon Business the World cup from FIFA isn't just the biggest ever, it's also the most technologically complex. 104 matches, 16 stadiums, 3 countries. But for Verizon business, that's another day with private 5G networks in every stadium, more than 80,000 miles of fiber. End to end security. Verizon business is powering FIFA's World Cup. If Verizon business can do that, imagine what they can do for your business. Visit verizon.com powering FIFAWorldCup now to learn more.
[42:39]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
Hey Portlandia fans, Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen here.
[42:42]
Colin Cowherd
The dream of the 90s is alive in podcast form.
[42:45]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
We're launching Podlandia AO Rewatch our brand new podcast where we revisit every episode of Portlandia together, breaking down sketches, going deep on our iconic characters and pulling back the curtain on how it all got made.
[42:57]
Colin Cowherd
And we'll also be joined by the people who helped bring it all to life.
[43:00]
Mike DeFabo
Guest stars, collaborators and friends, including director
[43:03]
Colin Cowherd
Jonathan Krisel, the mayor himself, Kyle McLaughlin, legendary musician Amy Mann, and many more.
[43:09]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
Kyle is going for it.
[43:10]
Mike DeFabo
Here go you.
[43:11]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
You fully improvised. Not just words, but a song.
[43:14]
Colin Cowherd
Well, I thought you were all going to write a song.
[43:16]
Carrie Brownstein or Fred Armisen
I remember you thinking that. Listen to Podlandia Aao rewatch on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.
[43:26]
Colin Cowherd
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human.

THE HERD – HOUR 3 – Aaron Rodgers + Mike McCarthy Reunion, Aaron Donald Returning To Rams

THE HERD – HOUR 3 – Aaron Rodgers + Mike McCarthy Reunion, Aaron Donald Returning To Rams

The Herd with Colin Cowherd – Hour 3 (August 5, 2026)

Episode Overview

Steelers Training Camp: New Approach under Mike McCarthy

Aaron Rodgers & Mike McCarthy Reunion

Steelers Offseason Roster Improvements

2026 Steelers Outlook: Schedule, Wins, and QB Depth

Covering Aaron Rodgers: Media Relations & Locker Room Presence

Memorable Quotes & Anecdotes

Other Key NFL & NBA Storylines

Aaron Donald’s Return to the Rams

Cleveland Browns QB Situation & Shadour Sanders Debate

Notable / Entertaining Segments & Quotes

Timestamps Guide to Key Segments

Tone & Style

Summary Takeaways

The Herd with Colin Cowherd – Hour 3 (August 5, 2026)

Episode Overview

Steelers Training Camp: New Approach under Mike McCarthy

Aaron Rodgers & Mike McCarthy Reunion

Steelers Offseason Roster Improvements

2026 Steelers Outlook: Schedule, Wins, and QB Depth

Covering Aaron Rodgers: Media Relations & Locker Room Presence

Memorable Quotes & Anecdotes

Other Key NFL & NBA Storylines

Aaron Donald’s Return to the Rams

Cleveland Browns QB Situation & Shadour Sanders Debate

Notable / Entertaining Segments & Quotes

Timestamps Guide to Key Segments

Tone & Style

Summary Takeaways