THE HERD - Hour 3 - Nick Bosa done for the year, Rams need to make a move, Chiefs have lost their fastball, Albert Breer

Summary

The Herd with Colin Cowherd – Hour 3

Air date: September 22, 2025
Main Theme:
A cutting-edge, opinionated look at the biggest NFL stories, from devastating injuries (Nick Bosa’s torn ACL) and struggling contenders (Chiefs, Cowboys, 49ers), to trade speculation and the rapid evolution of teams like the Rams and Colts. Colin and Albert Breer (of Monday Morning Quarterback) analyze which teams must make moves, which are unraveling, and what’s real versus overreaction, all with trademark candor and layered football insight.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

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1. CD Lamb’s Injury and the Dallas Cowboys’ Challenges

[02:45–03:15]

• Colin opens by stressing how vital CeeDee Lamb is to Dallas’ offense:

  “It was pretty obvious yesterday. Dak wanted to throw the ball down the field... They need CeeDee Lamb to score.” ([02:50])

• Albert Breer provides an update:

  “I don't know that it's going to be the full four to six weeks you've seen out there... it looks very iffy, it being a high ankle sprain for this week against the Packers.” ([03:15])

• Analysis: The Cowboys face defensive issues, but missing Lamb saps their already inconsistent offense ahead of a pivotal matchup with a “ticked off” Packers squad.

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2. Daniel Jones' Surprising Revival with the Indianapolis Colts

[03:49–05:56]

• Colin marvels at Daniel Jones’ resurgence:

  “It's amazing to watch Daniel Jones and Mac Jones resurrect their careers. But I think Daniel looks different… These are big throws... He's throwing the ball down the field.” ([03:49])

• Albert Breer explains internal optimism in Indy:

  “There was a real belief internally that the talent there was better than the rest of the NFL thought. And I think that's showing up.” ([05:35])

  • He notes that the Colts managed 8 wins last year despite being 29th in total defense and 30th in giveaways. With Lou Anarumo’s new aggressive defense and a young, improving O-line, “the difference is showing up.”

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3. Should the Rams Make a Move? O-line and the Trade Deadline

[05:56–07:43]

• Colin sees L.A. as a deadline buyer:

  “The Rams look like a team to me that may make a move at the trade deadline. Am I crazy?” ([05:56])

• Albert weighs in:

  “I think there's definitely a possibility... Corner becomes a little more interesting.” ([06:24])

  • The Rams have focused spending elsewhere and haven’t used a top-100 pick at corner in over five years, believing “that position in today’s NFL is more of a speed bump than a stop sign.”
  • However, against elite receivers (e.g., A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith), this strategy showed its limitations.

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4. Denver Broncos: Bo Nix & Sean Payton’s Offense

[08:08–09:30]

• Colin wonders about Bo Nix’s ceiling and Sean Payton’s possible frustration.
• Albert notes the shifted expectations:

  “These are different types of games than the Broncos were winning last year... The big picture question: Can they still build that way with Bo Nix, or do they have to do a little bit more to put weapons around him?” ([08:30])

  • The Broncos have moved from defense-driven wins to needing higher point totals, and Bo Nix is being asked to keep up in shootouts.

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5. Chiefs’ Super Bowl Hopes & ‘Losing Their Fastball’

[09:30–12:16, 37:14–38:24]

• Colin compares the Chiefs to an “old baseball pitcher who’s lost about five miles an hour off his fastball.” ([09:30])

  • They lack a run game, their O-line is average, and missing Rice and Worthy has hurt.

• Albert on possible trade-deadline action:

  “Tyreek Hill, maybe if he becomes available. I think they do want to see what it looks like when they get their guys back... To me, that's the real litmus test.” ([10:06])

  • He likens the Chiefs to the 2010s Patriots, who figured out their identity midseason and peaked late.

• Inside the Locker Room:

  “At halftime yesterday... the coaches sat down with the players and said, 'We need to stop trying to do too much. Play by play.'”

  “We did see a calmer Patrick Mahomes, a more level offense the rest of the way.” ([11:48], [37:54])

  • Stat focus: Mahomes’ rushing attempts are down, signaling improvement, but overall, KC is “struggling.”

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6. Nick Bosa’s Season-Ending Injury and 49ers' Outlook

[17:06–18:33, 25:35–28:39]

• Breaking News:

  “So this is awful. Nick Bosa, season ending, torn ACL.” (Colin, [17:06])
  “That’s awful.” (Albert, [17:16])

• Long-Term View:

  • 49ers are the fourth-oldest team in the league; repeated major injuries (to stars like Bosa, Kittle, McCaffrey) threaten their staying power.
  • Albert: “There’s belief they’ll get better over the year... but losing Nick Bosa is a massive, massive blow.” ([17:33])
  • Colin: “He’s the kind of guy, an offensive coordinator... spends the whole week saying we’ve got to block him.” ([26:49])

• Possible Response:

  “Do you call the Raiders and say, ‘We’ll give you a first for Maxx Crosby?’... Do you make a move at the deadline?” (Colin, [27:42])

  • They debate Bay Area options (Miles Garrett, Jeffrey Simmons, Maxx Crosby), but agree Bosa’s loss probably knocks the 49ers from the top NFC tier.

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7. Chicago Bears: Growing into Harmony with Caleb Williams

[18:33–21:08, 39:59–40:35]

• Colin: “It looked like a real offense, a layered NFL offense.” ([19:20])

• Albert: “Each week it feels like Caleb is playing on time a little bit more... it shows a little bit more trust from the coaches to the players...” ([19:20])

• Matt Hasselbeck (guest):

  “This was easily Caleb Williams’ best game as a pro... it was an impressive, impressive win for Chicago and equally as embarrassing for Dallas.” ([39:59])

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8. Packers, Browns, and NFL Parity

[21:08–22:45]

• Colin: “This isn’t college football... You’re just going to bake in an upset. That’s how I look at it.” ([21:08])
• Albert: “That’s a damn good Cleveland defense... Long seasons, these things can happen.” ([21:40])

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9. USC’s Football Resurgence: Game Control through the Run Game

[28:43–31:49]

• Colin praises Lincoln Riley’s transfer portal work:

  “They are running the ball as well as they have run it since Bush and LenDale White... Now…they can power run it which they could not do [before].” ([29:06])

• USC can “milk the clock, eat the clock,” which was their undoing last year—a critical development for success in the Big Ten.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

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On the Chiefs:

“They remind me of a pitcher... that's lost about five miles an hour off his fastball.”
— Colin Cowherd ([09:30])

On 49ers’ Injury Woes:

“Has any organization suffered more injuries than San Fran? I don't even know how to explain it...”
— Colin Cowherd ([17:19])

On the Rams’ Personnel Philosophy:

“Their belief is that [corner] in today’s NFL is more of a speed bump than a stop sign.”
— Albert Breer ([07:43])

On Bears QB Caleb Williams:

“Each week it feels like Caleb is playing on time a little bit more...”
— Albert Breer ([19:20])

On Daniel Jones and the Colts:

“There was a real belief internally that the talent there was better than the rest of the NFL thought.”
— Albert Breer ([05:35])

On an Aging Niners Core:

“I love the organization, but I think they're an old team...17 game schedule and their best players, you know, Trent and Bosa and McCaffrey and Kittle…”
— Colin Cowherd ([26:19])

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Important Segment Timestamps

• CD Lamb injury/Cowboys offense: [02:45]–[03:15]
• Daniel Jones Colts surprise: [03:49]–[05:56]
• Rams trade deadline/construction: [05:56]–[07:43]
• Broncos & Bo Nix: [08:08]–[09:30]
• Chiefs ‘lost their fastball’: [09:30]–[12:16], [37:14]–[38:24]
• Nick Bosa injury/49ers survival: [17:06]–[18:33], [25:35]–[28:39]
• Bears’ Offense w/ Caleb Williams: [18:33]–[21:08], [39:59]–[40:35]
• Packers, Browns, NFL volatility: [21:08]–[22:45]
• USC football/transfer portal: [28:43]–[31:49]

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Tone and Style

• Colin Cowherd: Bold, candid, sometimes acerbic, always quick with a contextual comp (“old pitcher,” “speed bump not stop sign”) and vivid narrative.
• Albert Breer: Analytical, plugged-in, with inside info and a knack for translating leaguewide whispers into actionable takes.

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Summary Takeaway

In this episode, Cowherd and Breer dissect the chaos swirling around the NFL’s biggest brands—injuries reshaping the 49ers, the Cowboys and Chiefs showing cracks, the Rams and Colts challenging perceptions, and a league where every week brings shocks and new storylines. The show is a must-listen for nuanced NFL fans, blending inside intel, lively speculation on trade moves, and sharp observations about team philosophy and football reality.

Transcript

[Colin Cowherd]

This is an iHeart podcast.

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[Colin Cowherd]

Thanks for listening to the Herd podcast. Be sure to catch us live every.

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Weekday on Fox Sports radio and noon to 3 Eastern, 9am to noon Pacific.

[Colin Cowherd]

Find your local station for the [e-mail].

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Or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR.

[Colin Cowherd]

Now let's get this party started.

[Albert Breer]

You're listening to Fox Sports Radio.

[Colin Cowherd]

There are so many interesting things to talk about today. Albert Brer is now Monday morning quarterback is now joining us live. Listen, let's get to the CD lamb thing because the Cowboys face a ticked off packers team. I don't know what the line is, I'm taking Green Bay without CD Lamb. It was pretty obvious yesterday. Dak wanted to throw the ball down the field. Pickens is not a separator. He's very good after the catch. They need CD Lamb to score. I mean, to make any big plays. Do we know an update on cd?

[Albert Breer]

Yeah, I don't know that it's going to be the full four to six weeks that you've seen out there. So I think there's. There's a chance that timeline gets shortened by a bit. But obviously it looks very iffy, it being a high ankle sprain for, for, for this week against the Packers. And I'll tell you, the way that defense is playing right now, the Cowboys defense is playing right now, Dallas probably needs all the offense they can get. So not a great spot for, for Dak Prescott to be going up against the packers defense that even though they lost yesterday, still played really well and has played well over the first three weeks this season.

[Colin Cowherd]

It's amazing to watch Daniel Jones and Mac Jones resurrect their careers. But I think Daniel looks different. Daniel's always been bigger and faster. A very good athlete. I wonder. I mean, I, I was on this for a year. I think the Colts roster is actually pretty good. I think their old line's good. Warren's a star. Jonathan Taylor, Pittman, Downs. Like I like their. Is the league surprised at this? Are you getting texts from people around the league on Daniel Jones? Because these are big throws. Albert, he's throwing the ball down the field.

[Albert Breer]

Yeah, I think there is a little bit of surprise over it, but it's the bet the Colts made. And, you know, I, I think I may use this statistic with you, but if I didn't, here it is. And this is one that a couple Colts people gave me over the summer that I thought was really interesting. Last year, they were 29th in the NFL in total defense, and they were 30th in giveaways. And, and they still won eight games. So they bring in Luanno to fix the defense. And then, you know, when I talked to Shane Steichen and some other people there about what was going to win their quarterback competition, it was, we just want somebody who can come in and operate the offense, essentially put their hands at 10 and 2 and run the offense the way it's being drawn up, which, of course, I think is a bit of an indictment on Anthony Richardson. And I think it was also subtly a vote of confidence in what they already had on the offensive side of the ball. In other words, what they're saying is if we could just get competent quarterback play. There are enough guys here. And that's Michael Pittman, that's Josh Downs, that's, you know, A.D. mitchell, and spots. That's Alec Pierce, who's played well through the first month of the season. Yeah, it's Kyler Warren, is Jonathan Taylor. It's an offensive line that's gotten younger and has improved. Got a good left tackle and Bernard Raymond. Yeah, I mean, I'm with you.

[Colin Cowherd]

They.

[Albert Breer]

There was a real belief internally that the talent there was better than the rest of the NFL thought. And I think that's showing up. And then, you know, the, the difference Lu. An Arumo is making on defense is showing up, too, and bringing in guys like Mooney Ward and, and, and, and. And Cam Bynum, and they're playing more aggressive and, and, And I think better ball on that side of the ball, too.

[Colin Cowherd]

Listen, the Rams match up very well with Philadelphia, with two exceptions. Corner, where they don't have a big corner, and the interior of their old line. They're not very good at center, backup, right guard. They can't block Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis, they couldn't block him on the 4th and 12 kicks. They couldn't block him last year in the divisional round. The Rams look like a team to me that may make a move at the trade deadline. Am I crazy? Because I think they. With Stafford, his age, I think they're going to make a move at the trade deadline. What say you?

[Albert Breer]

I think you're right. Like, I think there's definitely a possibility. Now, it's important to remember they've already invested on the interior of the offensive line. They paid Kevin Dodson, they drafted Steve Avila at the top of the second round. So they've already made their investments there. I think corner becomes a little bit more interesting. And I think. I think a lot of this, like these holes, is sort of philosophical for the Rams. If you look back in recent years and last four or five years, they've really focused on investing at the offensive skill positions and along the defensive front, and their belief is they have to enhance their quarterback and affect the other team's quarterback, and it's really worked. When you look at the skill group they have on offense, between Puka Nuku and Devonte Adams and Kyron Williams and Blake Corman, on and on and on, you know, see it there. And then on the defensive front, they've been able to effectively replace the production they lost with Aaron Donald, which might have seemed impossible at the time when Donald retired with guys like Jared Verse and Braden Fisk and Kobe Turner and Byron Young. And the second piece of that, of course, is where you're investing a little bit less. And again, they've invested on the interior, the offensive line, but at corner they haven't. So that'd be the spot I, I, I'd watch, really. Since walking away from Jalen Ramsey, they haven't invested much in that position. I don't, I believe they haven't used a top 100 pick on, on a, on a corner in over five years now.

[Sponsor/Ad Voice]

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[Albert Breer]

And their belief is that that position in today's NFL is more of a speed bump than a stop sign. So you're better off trying to get to the quarterback than you are trying to stop the elite receivers. It will be interesting to see if there's a little bit of a, of a shift when you get closer to the trade deadline, if that opportunity exists for the Rams, because most certainly yesterday it was a huge problem in those key spots. They could not stop A.J. brown and Devonte Smith.

[Colin Cowherd]

So I think the Colts are surprisingly good. I think Denver has really surprised me. Way too many mistakes. And watching Bo Nick so far, he, he played so many college games. He came in ready to play. I think he's hit his ceiling. I do wonder if Sean Payton's a little frustrated. Yesterday it's Herbert making the plays late and not Bo Nix. What do you, what do you think about where Denver's at?

[Albert Breer]

Well, I think the environment's a little bit different than it was last year. I mean, last year that team was winning games on defense. And it's a different thing when you're, you're asking your young quarterback to put up 20 or 24 points rather than getting a shootout. And you know, towards the end of the game yesterday, you saw Justin Herbert take over and Bonitz had to keep up with him. And then the week before against Indianapolis, and they probably should have won that game anyway, but that was a high scoring game. So these are different types of games than the Broncos were winning last year. And so then the next question becomes, can Bonix elevate? And like, this is always the way Sean Payton built in New Orleans. You had guys here and there, they invested in it, the skill positions, Jimmy Graham, Marcus Colston, Alvin Kamara. But most of their investment was in the offensive line and it was Andrew Brees to make the rest work. So I think now the big picture question for the Broncos is can they still build that way with Bonix? As their quarterback or are they going to eventually going to have to do a little bit more to put weapons around them?

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, you know you watched the Chiefs last night and they'll be better when Worthy returns, they'll be better when Rice returns. But they don't run the ball. The offensive lines average, I said they remind me of a pitcher, an old baseball pitcher that's lost about five miles an hour off his fastball. And I, I don't put them in a Super bowl class. I know everybody thinks they're going to get better, but I saw Rice and Worthy together last year for a few games they still couldn't run the ball. I didn't love their offensive line. They're another team. Albert I think could take a swing at the trade deadline to help their offense, could they not?

[Albert Breer]

Tyree Kill, maybe if he becomes available. I could see something like that. I, I, I think they do want to see what it looks like when they get some of their guys back. And I, I, you know, I look back at history Colin, and to me they are what the patriots were for 20 years. And it's interesting if you look at the eight year period that the, the Patriots went to the AFC title game every year right from 2011 to 2018, in four of those eight years the Patriots actually started two and two. And the idea was that they were so good they knew they were going to be there at the end. They spent the first month of the season trying to figure out who they were going to be and then they'd lean into that. And it's taken the Chiefs a little longer to do that this year because of the guys who are out. Like you said, losing Worthy and the opener didn't help. And then Rashi Rice has got the six game suspension, you've got a rookie left tackle. So to me like this really is going to be about what it looks like in week seven, week eight, when you have Rice back, when you have Worthy healthy, when you have Josh Simmons at left tackle with some games under his belt. To me that's the real lipness test is they're looking at it now and saying we, we like we know we're a work in progress. It's going to be about where we can take that work in progress. Over a month, over two months. And it's actually interesting they, at halftime yesterday at the Meadowlands they met as an offense in the locker room and basically I'm not gonna say it was like a come to Jesus meeting but the coaches sat down with the players and said we need to stop trying, trying to do too much. We need to play each play for itself, like play, play by play. That's how we're gonna try, how we're gonna attack the rest of this game. And I think you did see a little bit of a calmer Patrick Mahomes, a little bit of a more level offense the rest of the way. And, and to me, the proof is in the pudding with, with, with how Mahomes played. And I think one stat to look at over the first three, three weeks is, is his rushing attempts because you know things aren't right with Kansas City when Mahomes is running the ball a lot. They really high in week one, really high in week two. This week they got that number down to five. Five rushing attempts for Patrick Mahomes and three of them were kneel down. So I do think they think they're slowly moving in the right direction.

[Colin Cowherd]

Be sure to catch live editions of.

[Albert Breer]

The Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific.

[Covino]

Hey, we're Covino and Rich, Fox Sports radio every day, 5 to 7pm Eastern. But here's the thing. We never have enough time to get to everything we want to get to.

[Rich]

And that's why we have a brand new podcast called Over Promised. You see, we're having so much fun in our two hour show. We never get to everything honestly because this guy is over promising things we never have time for.

[Albert Breer]

Yeah, you blubber lips, blaming me.

[Covino]

Well, you know what it's called? Over Promise. You should be good at it because you've been over Promising.

[Rich]

Well, it's a Covino and Rich after show and we want you to be a part of it. We're gonna be talking sports, of course, but we're also gonna talk life and relationships. And if Rich and I are arguing about something or we didn't have enough time, it will continue on our after show called Over Promised.

[Covino]

Well, if you don't get enough, Cavino and Rich, make sure you check out Over Promise. And also uncensored, by the way. So maybe we'll go at it even a little harder. It's gonna be the best after show podcast of all time.

[Rich]

There you go. Over Promising. And remember, you could see it on YouTube, but definitely join us. Listen Over Promised with Covino and rich on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Colin Cowherd]

Hi, it's Colin.

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[Albert Breer]

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[Colin Cowherd]

So this is awful. Nick Bosa, season ending, torn acl.

[Albert Breer]

Yeah, clear.

[Colin Cowherd]

But that's awful.

[Albert Breer]

Not good. Not good.

[Colin Cowherd]

Boy has any is any organization suffered more injuries than saying I don't even know how to explain it. I, I don't know what that had bad luck. I mean some of their players are older, they've got a lot of mileage on the tires. I oh that is a. Yeah, some.

[Albert Breer]

Of this is that like some of it is, you know you're, you, you are a little bit older and have a little bit of an older core. So yes, you know when you are relying on a bunch of guys that are a little further on. Now Nick is younger than some of them but he does have injury history. Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle are clearly on the back end of their careers. You know if you're relying on guys in key spots like that, these things can happen. I will say like they deserve a lot of credit for getting to 3 and oh, without KD, without Purdy for a couple weeks. Bosa goes down in game yesterday. So there's a belief that they're going to get better over the course of the year. You know just having talked to players and coaches there, the feeling is that because they are playing so many rookies on defense and because they should get some of these guys back on offense, Kittle IUK that they've got a chance to be a much different team come week 16 or week 17 or week 18. But I mean losing Nick Bosa is a massive, massive blow.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, they were the fourth oldest team coming into the season. So that's just awful. Awful. You know, I thought it was mostly Caleb and Ben, but the Cowboys, Cowboys are really bad on the back end. I mean, I don't know how DJ Moore, Cole Comet and Roma Dungeon get that open. So some of it's just Dallas without Micah, not a consistent pass rush. But it did look like Albert there. I thought the drive at the end of the first half and beginning of the third, it, there was a, there was some harmony. Like it was layered. It was screen game, run game, play action. Like. Yeah, I thought it looked like a real offense, a layered NFL offense. Your thoughts?

[Albert Breer]

Yeah, it started to look more coherent and I think slowly but surely you're starting to see Caleb play on time a little bit more now. Yes, to me it was like it goes back to that, that, that I was a Monday night or a Sunday night game in August that they played. It was a preseason game against Buffalo, can't remember which. But it's a primetime game. And to me, the most encouraging thing about that game was how fast the ball was coming out of, of Caleb Williams hands. Like Ben Johnson had really gotten Caleb Williams to trust what he was looking at rather than defaulting to pulling the ball down and running around and trying to make something happen. And you know, I, it was discouraging then to see that kind of disappear in week one, but I think slowly but surely you're starting to see it come back now. There's a lot of volume to Ben Johnson's offense. There's a lot for these guys to learn, and there are going to be some bumps as a result of that, as they figure out what they're really good at, as they figure out what they want to lean into. And I think they're still in the middle of that process. And, you know, I think the best thing you can say is like, each week it feels like Caleb is playing on time a little bit more. Each week it looks like the offense is running according to plan. Each week you're starting to see a little bit more creativity, which to me shows a little bit more trust from the coaches to the players and what they're doing. And so, you know, I, I, I think, I think there's, there's reason for encouragement that the Bears are going to continue to grow this way. But it was always going to take time because of what Ben Johnson's offense is and has been over the years. And, you know, he made the point to me over the summer that nobody was really scrutinizing it that closely when he first became The OC in Det. But it didn't always look right there. And we know what that became. So they have high hopes that they're eventually going to get there with the Bears finally.

[Colin Cowherd]

I don't. You know, it's one of those things, as the season is now 17 games and starters don't play a lot in the preseason. Everybody's going to have a clunker. The Eagles had a clunker in the first half, came back to win. They had a clunker. I would say in the first game against Dallas, they didn't play particularly well. Green Bay yesterday, I'm like, listen, they dug 10, nothing. It was the fourth. They had a really bad pick. I don't make much of it. I just kind of. This is not college football. You're just going to bake in an upset. That's how I look at it. Do you see it differently?

[Albert Breer]

No. I mean, I. You would like to see the offense playing with a little bit more rhythm, but that's a damn good Cleveland defense. Like, I don't know how much people have paid attention to this, but it really looks like they hit on. On. On. On the two defensive players they took in the first two rounds, and Mason Graham as a D lineman, and then Carson Swissinger looks like a star at line stud. Yeah. And so you add those guys to what you've already got in Miles Garrett, Denzel Ward and Jim Schwartz pushing the buttons, and they've been really good through three weeks. And so, you know, I think you. You can chop chalk part of Green Bay struggles on offense yesterday up to that. You know, obviously, you know, the block kick. There's some things down the stretch of the game there that you don't want to see if you're Matt LaFleur. But like you said, like, these are long seasons, and these things can happen. And sometimes you go on the road against a team that. That. That's really desperate and you lay an egg. And I think that's sort of what happened. And there should be plenty of motivation for the packers coming back this week, because you know where they're going on Sunday night.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah.

[Albert Breer]

And you know that their best player is probably gonna. Probably gonna be pretty excited to get back there. I can't wait.

[Colin Cowherd]

I mean, the first half will be interesting, maybe not the third in the fourth quarters. Monday morning. Quarterback, the great Albert Brer is always my man.

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[Albert Breer]

All right. Thanks, Colin.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, I just don't want to get, you know, this is not a. This is not like a college underdog winning or Something, you know, it's like. Yeah, it's like Cleveland's got a defense, they got a really good head coach. You know, Flacco cracks me up like he could just. I feel like Joe Flacco could be taking a nap at 44 years old, get off the couch, warm up the old soup bone, come in and complete 25 passes. I mean, just a guy. Seen every defense in the league. Listen, Green bay was up 10 nothing. I mean, they had it, but they just didn't come in with a lot of juice. And, you know, they're probably looking at that cowboy game. Micah certainly is J. Mack with the news.

[Albert Breer]

No, no, no, no.

[Colin Cowherd]

Turn on the news.

[Albert Breer]

This is the Herd line news.

[Colin Cowherd]

Oh, Colin, I don't know about this segment. I'm very upset about this Niners news. Let's get started with the Monday Night Football matchup. Lions, Ravens. Tonight, both teams went over 40 points last week in their respective blowout wins. We will see how Aiden Hutchinson and company try to contain Lamar Jackson.

[Albert Breer]

Lamar is one of those guys that would be. Be fun to sack. So we're going to, you know, execute the game plan and get after it. But again, that would be the BFM one for sure.

[Colin Cowherd]

Good luck. Not easy.

Lamar Jackson's career. This has to be a misprint. His career on Monday Night football. Forget the 7 and 2, 25 total touchdowns, 0 interceptions. How is that even possible?

That's why I took them. Yeah, all the data tells you take, take Baltimore. But they've got, they've got Kansas City coming up. And I just, I always feel like when Lamar faces an NFC team, he is just a handful. I love watching him play. I love Raven games. I, I think Buffalo and Baltimore are the two best watches in the league.

I love watching offensive machines. Less Aaron Rodgers, please. Colin, let me just put this in perspective. So Lamar, based on those stats, is being called the best quarterback in the history of Monday Night Football.

Yeah.

Who's ever appeared like, you know, I guess there's a minimum of games or whatever.

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[Colin Cowherd]

I'm just trying to wrap my head around this. So, you know, at school, you, you, your kids make friends and then you meet the parents. Can you imagine meeting Lamar Jackson? And he's like, yeah, I had a pretty good run on Monday Night Football. No, you're the greatest quarterback in the history of Monday Night Football. And we get to see him tonight against the Lions. I like Ravens here, big. I'll go by 7 to 10.

Yeah, same here. We feel the same way.

All right, let's get to the crappy news now. 49ers get the dub yesterday improved to three. And oh, they got fortunate to beat Arizona without Brock Purdy. Obviously the big news breaking here in the last like 12 minutes is Nick Bosa, who got destroyed there, is out for the season with a torn acl. You know, he's signaling to his family in the stands. Bad news. He knew it instantly. You see the thumbs down there. It just sucks. I'm sorry to use that word. I'm. I'm looking at the, the defensive front. You know, Robert Sala likes to rotate a lot of guys in, right? They just don't have enough guys. Well, they got like a new defense. This is, you know, I had them tier one in my super bowl list. I don't think they could win a Super bowl without Bosa.

Well, I mean, you hate to say it was predictable, but my big take on San Francisco, I said in the off season, I can think two things. I can love the organization, but I think they're an old team. 17 game schedule and their best players, you know, Trent and Bosa and McCaffrey and Kittle. This is. Fred Warner's now been healthy, but you know, they've got some young guys they hit in a couple draft picks. Ricky Pearsall, wide receiver's been a nice player for him. Yeah, he's. He had.

Ayuk's coming back soon. Like they got guys.

They're gonna be. I think they're gonna be better offensively when Brock Purdy returns and Brandon Ayuk, I think there'll be a really interesting offense. They're gonna have to win with offense, though. I mean, Bosa is a, He's a game wrecker. He's the kind of guy, an offensive coordinator. He's the one guy you spend the whole week saying, we've got to block him. So their defense, I don't know what the splits are, but they've already played games this year in San Francisco without George Kittle, Brock Purdy, Juwan Jennings, Brandon Aiyuk, now Nick Bosa. Like, this is their reality the last four years.

So let me ask you, I don't know if you can get Shanahan or Lynch on the phone, but if they feel this is a Super bowl team when healthy and the schedule is favorable and they can get the number one seed because the schedule is favorable, a lot of bad quarterbacks on that list. Do you make a move at the deadline? Do we add the Niners now and say, hey, Cleveland, you're going nowhere?

Do you get can we, can we get Miles Garrett?

I mean, I don't know.

Do you call the Raiders and say, we'll give you a first for Max Crosby?

Yeah, I listen, all that stuff has to be in play. Jeffrey Simmons of the Detroit Tennessee Titans. Do you make, I mean, I don't know. Like, do you. Are these things you consider if you believe this is a Super bowl team now? I think when Kittle comes back and Iuk and Purdy, all of a sudden the burdens off McCaffrey and they're going to start rolling some folks. But defensively, it's just, I don't know. Are they still in your upper crust in the nfc, Colin?

Yeah, but it's, I don't. I mean, if I had to do a, maybe I'll do a Super bowl bubble tomorrow. I don't. I mean, both the Rams ahead of them. Oh, I think the Rams are a more complete roster. Younger, healthier. Yes, I think the Rams are above. They'll make. The Rams will be in my top.

Five or six, but not the Lion. Well, let's see what the Lions do tonight.

That's right. That's right, man. All right, final story. Oh, go ahead.

We'll just do the final story here. College football, your Trojans, we got to hit them again every hour because, hey, it's your team. You'll be traveling on the team bus to the Illinois game this weekend. USC now four and oh, your guy, Jordan Myabba, five tutties. I saw that play and I was like, oh, this guy's got something. I hit the wide receiver in stride. This is their best start since Lincoln Riley took over in 2022. Well, big game on Foxes.

They went into the transfer portal and they went and found a couple of running backs, Jordan and Sanders. And they weren't high profile guys. One guy was a junior college. They are running the ball as well as they have run it. And I'm not joking. I mean, you'd have to go back to Bush and Lindale White. They're running the ball with Whammon, Jordan and Sanders, they have like four running backs they can play and the offensive lines got size. This offense is interesting because the quarterback moves really well, so it's not an easy. And they have two absolute Sunday players at wide receiver, Lane and Lemon. So they've got, they've got NFL players on the perimeter, but they're really a run team. And the great thing about that is what they weren't last year. Remember, they led all of that, Penn State, Maryland, a lot of the Games they lost last year they led but they could not seal the wins because they couldn't run the ball. This team is getting leads, going to the ground, running out the clock. So they're not very good defensively at corner. Like you can throw the ball in this team. You they have a better D line but they're pretty average at corner. But what they are is what they weren't last year is they can run the ball. So if they get leads they can milk the clock and eat the clock. And that's what they could not do. Remember they beat A and M last year. They beat LSU last year. They should have beaten Penn State last year. This is not a terrible team. But they blew games because they had a lead in the fourth and couldn't run the clock out.

It feels like your transfer portals aspect is interesting because remember two years ago they spent lavishly like drunken sailors and you and I were hanging out at a certain watering hole with someone from USC and I remember hearing the numbers they were spending. Oh yeah, I was like that is unsustainable. And it's. But now they've kind of harnessed it all together. Be like, let's be smarter, let's not.

Just throw my think last year after the season was over, I mean I know this for sure is Lincoln Riley wanted to get bigger and develop a more dependable run game because their take was in the Big Ten. They feel they can score with people but you got to close out these games and in the Big Ten the weather cools, you got to run the football. And they have. Lincoln has done a great job. They have rebuilt this run and I thought when they lost Woody Marks I was like, oh, they're in trouble because Woody was so good for them last year they didn't have a lot behind him. This is a deep, talented running back room and they are, they can power run it which they could not do the first couple years of Lincoln.

Illinois though, coming off what a 40 point loss. Those are always dangerous and you can't expect to go into Champagne Illinois and just get an easy dub, right?

No, no, no, no, no. That's a, that's a touchdown game. Oh yeah.

Hostile territory there, I'm sure.

Oh, that's very cynical. Hey, one of the loudest places in college football. Hopefully they can pull out a win.

USC by 10.

Here's Illinois's problem. USC's pass rush is good and so far this year Illinois O line is not protecting the quarterback. USC is going to look at the film right now and they're going to see very quickly. USC's D line is going to be a problem for Illinois's O line. So Illinois is going to have to run the football to win. If they get into third and long, Illinois is in big trouble. J. Mac with the news.

[Albert Breer]

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

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, my staff just USC has the most sacks of any FBS team. Tied with Oklahoma, Maryland and Buffalo. Oklahoma. You've seen Oklahoma's quarterback, J. Mac Matier?

Yeah, I got a, I got some people telling me he's, he's really worth the price of admission. Like yeah, could be a first round pick here.

Oh no, no. Everybody's been disappointing except the kid at South Carolina and Mater. Those two looked apart. They look Oregon. Dante Moore can spin it. He can spin it. He was a five star recruit, I think out of Michigan. High school in Michigan. All right. Lives in Chicago. It's the Herd.

[Albert Breer]

Be sure to catch live editions of the Herd, weekdays at noon Eastern, 9am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1 and the iHeartRadio app.

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[Colin Cowherd]

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[Colin Cowherd]

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[Albert Breer]

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[Colin Cowherd]

For Life we were talking about the Chiefs last night. It was kind of a dud of a game. But since the start of last season, just, just think about this, about how Kansas City is struggling. Since the start of last season, Mahomes has fewer passing touchdowns than Aaron Rodgers. With the jets and the Steelers, fewer big passing plays than C.J. stroud, who has struggled and in a quarterback rating lower than Tua. So after the first half last night, it was ugly. And Albert Breer said the offense had a little meeting at halftime.

[Albert Breer]

At halftime yesterday at the Meadowlands, they met as an offense in the locker room. And basically I'm not going to say it was like a come to Jesus meeting, but the coaches sat down with the players and said we need to stop trying, trying to do too much. We need to play each play for itself, like play, play by play. That's how we're going to attract, how we're going to attack the rest of this game. And I think you did see a little bit of a calmer Patrick Mahomes, a little bit of a more level offense the rest of the way.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, listen, they won. But the problem being the Chargers are now three and oh, all division wins. The Chargers have beaten the Raiders, now the Broncos and the Chiefs. So as Kansas City struggling to create a run game and protect Patrick Mahomes and waiting for their best two receivers to get healthy, the Chargers keep winning. Now the good news, the Broncos have found ways to lose the last two weekends. But listen, the Chargers feel like they have surpassed, at least for the time being, the Kansas City Chiefs. In an offensive league, they are struggling. 22nd time of possession right now. And with no run game, that means your defense is on the field longer. Your defense statistically gets hurt more than your offensive players. So they need worthy back Rice back. They have got to improve their time of possession and third down efficiency to keep their defense off the field because they are living right now on that defense. Meanwhile, Matt Hasselbeck stopped by. Say what you want. I know nobody wants to give Caleb Williams credit, but I just think sometimes you watch a game and it passes the eye test. And I thought the scream game, the run game, the trick plays, the rhythm, the harmony, I thought it looked good. I think Chicago's got a lot of offensive talent. Their issue is getting all of them the ball. Loveland, Burden, Dunze, DJ Moore kind of disappears. Swift, Cole, Comet, even their backups are capable. So here's what Matt Hasselbeck said he thought about the performance by Caleb.

[G]

This was easily Caleb Williams best game as a pro. Easily. It was fun to watch. If you're a Bears fan, you're like, oh shoot, this is sick. Like this is what we could be. Ben Johnson, I mean he is like, you see why he was so good in this division going up against guys like Matt Eberfluous. Like he knew the Division. I think there is something nice about game that you actually know. Usually touchdown passes are hard to come by. You know, usually guys end up on the ground. A lot of times these were stand up, nobody near me type touchdowns. It was an impressive, impressive win for Chicago and equally as embarrassing for Dallas.

[Colin Cowherd]

Yeah, Dallas is in big trouble. So CD Lamb is out. He will not play against Green Bay. And I don't. Do you, do you know what the number. I would guess the numbers gotta be 15 points for green Bay.

Stop it.

Come on. What is it?

So Todd Archer just announced Lamb could miss three to four weeks. I see packers minus six and a half on the road.

Oh my God. I take green B6 and a half.

You don't like that?

I'm sure it's going to go up.

I mean Lamb, Lamb is. I know the quarterbacks are worth the most points and first of all, it's.

A coaching staff mismatch.

Yes.

Green Bay just played terribly and lost. They're going to be bitter. Mike is going to have the game of his career. CD if you take CD Lamb out, they don't have game breakers. That is a. I can't believe that line.

It's probably going to go up at six and a half seven. I. It's probably going to go up. But again it's a back to back road games for the Packers. Okay, that's never easy. Dallas coming off an embarrassing loss.

No, no, no, no. Dallas lost. Green Bay is coming off the embarrassing loss to Cleveland and they played with no energy.

Jordan Love probably feels like, hey, if I don't throw that pick, we win. We're 3 0. I mean remember the guy on the packers last week we did a segment on it said that they could go undefeated. You remember that? I guess you don't. One of the packers players said, yeah.

If you all lock in the Green Bay right now. Is that the number for your picks?

I see six and a half. Now you got to check with the staff. You know, I don't know if you're where you're going to get your line.

From, but I will lock in Green Bay right now.

Sometimes when my son invests in stocks, I say whatever you do, I'll match it. So I'll match your bet and I will officially put in for headlines. Packers beat the Cowboys six and a half.

I mean, yeah, Green Bay's got the embarrassing loss advantage, quarterback advantage, staff advantage, roster advantage. And CD Lamb, you take him out, they just don't, they don't have any game breakers.

Javante Williams, he's going to suit up in the backfield.

He's fine. He's. He's got a bad fumble on the sideline. First things first is next.

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[Colin Cowherd]

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