The Herd with Colin Cowherd — "What’s Wright - Best Of" (Dec 27, 2025)

Host: Nick Wright
Guest: Damanze
Episode Focus: Chiefs Leaving Kansas City, Lamar Jackson Concerns, NFL Week 17 Picks

Overview

This "Best Of" episode of What’s Wright with Nick Wright on The Herd dives deep into three major topics:

• The Kansas City Chiefs’ impending move to Kansas (but not out of the Kansas City metro),
• Ongoing questions and frustrations around Lamar Jackson’s health and leadership in Baltimore, and
• Nick Wright’s fast-paced Week 17 NFL picks.

Nick, along with Damanze, brings his trademark blend of personal storytelling, civic pride, sharp sports analysis, and candid takes, making for an episode that’s rich in context and highly opinionated.

Chiefs Leaving Kansas City: Breaking Down the Move

[02:25–18:09]

The Realities of the Move

• The franchise is moving roughly 20 minutes west, still in the Kansas City metropolitan area, but technically across the state line into Kansas.
• Nick clarifies confusion about Kansas City’s geography, explaining the Missouri/Kansas border (State Line Road) for listeners.

  "The Chiefs are moving about 20 minutes west of where they currently play. This has no impact on them being the Kansas City Chiefs... They are still in the greater Kansas City area." — Nick Wright [03:46]

Civic and Economic Impacts

• The deal is the largest public subsidy for a stadium in American history: $1.8 billion from the state of Kansas.
• Nick laments the escalation of taxpayer spending on stadiums but notes that, for mid-market cities, keeping teams matters for civic pride and economic reasons.

  "I hate that the Chiefs are leaving. I don't hate that Missouri was not held hostage by pro sports owners... There is real economic and civic pride benefit to [having teams]." — Nick Wright [06:55]

• He compares Kansas City’s situation to major markets (New York, LA) where public funding isn’t as justified, but acknowledges the stakes for smaller markets threatened by team relocations:

  "Losing that team can be devastating to the community. I do think you have to weigh that." — Nick Wright [08:27]

Border Politics & Stadium Subsidy Game

• Nick details a “border war” dynamic: teams and businesses leveraging state competition for better deals, resulting in tax games that benefit corporations with little net local benefit.

  "You’re not adding jobs to your community—you’re just stealing them off the books of Kansas to add them in Missouri, or vice versa." — Nick Wright [10:31]

Impact on Football: The New Chiefs Dome

[12:21–15:41]

• The Chiefs will play in a closed dome stadium by 2031; Nick shares mixed feelings:
  • Pro: Patrick Mahomes’ late-career stats may benefit playing indoors.
  • Con: It further erodes the NFL’s elemental tradition; weather becomes less of a factor.

  "Having his age 35 and older seasons in a dome is probably good... But that to me is not worth the trade off of football slowly but surely eliminating weather as a component." — Nick Wright [13:04] "I think football is a game made to be played in the elements." — Nick Wright [13:41]

• Nick foresees fewer iconic “weather games” (e.g., Kansas City/Buffalo playoff cold) as the league transitions to domed stadiums, apart from a few outliers (e.g., Buffalo, Green Bay).
• He also doubts that Kansas City will regularly host Super Bowls, even with a dome:

  "The idea that Kansas City... is going to be part of a Super Bowl rotation—that's not going to happen." — Nick Wright [15:23]

Arrowhead’s Legacy and Fan Experience

• The move reduces stadium capacity from ~80,000 to ~68,000; Nick hopes the tradition of raucous tailgating survives.

• Nick questions whether the new dome can replicate Arrowhead’s legendary noise.

  "Arrowhead has been the loudest open-air stadium in the country forever. I just hope they are able to recreate that." — Nick Wright [17:54]

• Damanze provides a light moment by googling the current stadium naming sponsor (GEHA) and Nick jokes about never knowing what it stands for.

  "It's always Arrowhead to me." — Nick Wright [18:14]

Lamar Jackson & Ravens Frustration

[29:11–39:48]

The Latest Setback

• Baltimore’s playoff hopes hang by a thread after a loss; Lamar Jackson left the game with what is now called a “bad contusion” (not broken ribs).
• Damanze (a dedicated Ravens fan) and Nick scrutinize Lamar’s absence in the game.

  "I do feel strongly that he could have came back in the game... I felt like he could have kept playing, especially in that situation." — Damanze [33:40]

The Ongoing ‘Weird Lamar Injury Thing’

• Nick walks through Lamar’s history of mysterious or nagging injuries and the perception that he doesn’t always “gut it out,” especially compared to elite peers:

  "It's just another weird injury thing with Lamar... It's very, very hard not to go to the other quarterbacks in Lamar's tax bracket and not ask you something: Do we think they would have an injury that the next day their coach calls day-to-day and expects them to play next week—that we wouldn't have seen them back on the field at least trying?" — Nick Wright [35:25]

Reflection on Ravens’ Window

• Nick expands beyond just this season, arguing that Baltimore has missed its best chances at a Super Bowl during Lamar’s recent prime.

  "I am not saying Lamar will never make or win a Super Bowl. What I'm saying is I think when his career is over, we will look at the best chances he had were these past three years... To come out of these three years with two total playoff victories... is stunning." — Nick Wright [37:40]

• The pair touch on team dynamics, suggesting perhaps Lamar has “run his course” with Coach Harbaugh.

• Celebrations and concerns: Nick reports WR Zay Flowers making the Pro Bowl, Damanze calls for him to secure the football in crucial moments.

NFL Week 17 Picks: Nick’s Rapid Fire Bets

[45:50–49:17]

Nick fires off his five favorite picks for the week (lines from Hard Rock Bet):

1. Dallas -6.5 at Washington
   • “Dallas is going to blow out the Commanders... Dak owns the Commanders in his career, 12–2 straight up.” [46:01]
2. Jacksonville -6.5 at Indianapolis
   • Jags have the motivation; Colts’ season is done. “Jags have been crushing against the AFC South.” [46:46]
3. Pittsburgh -4 at Cleveland
   • “It’s fine for a fifth round rookie but for a Pittsburgh team that knows, ‘We take care of business here, we get ourselves a bye...’” [47:38]
4. Buffalo -2.5 vs Philadelphia
   • “I think Buffalo’s better. Buffalo needs the game. Buffalo’s at home. I’ll take Buffalo.” [48:11]
5. Chicago +3 at San Francisco
   • “I think the Bears can win that game outright.” [49:12]

“If you’re going to bet favorites, bet them early. We are doing this on Tuesday. We are betting them early.” — Nick Wright [49:17]

Notable Quotes & Moments

• On Weather in Football:
  “To me, it’s a bit of a bummer... the last quarter of Patrick’s career... but I like that weather matters.” — Nick Wright [15:23]
• On Stadium Funding:
  “We need to have an agreement amongst ourselves: we are not going to pay for pro sports team stadiums because they want to be in our cities.” — Nick Wright [05:32]
• On Lamar Jackson’s Injuries:
  “I'm not trying to hint at anything, but I'm also not going to act like it's not weird.” — Nick Wright [35:25]
• On Arrowhead's name:
  “It's always Arrowhead to me.” — Nick Wright [18:14]

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamps | |--------------------------------------------|-------------------| | Chiefs leaving Kansas City (overview) | 02:25–18:09 | | The Dome debate & stadium tradition | 12:21–15:41 | | Arrowhead’s legacy, fan atmosphere | 17:54–19:31 | | Lamar Jackson's injury & Ravens’ collapse | 29:11–39:48 | | NFL Week 17 picks (fast segment) | 45:50–49:17 |

Tone & Style

Nick’s tone is conversational, passionate, opinionated, self-aware, and sometimes nostalgic. He moves easily between civic analysis, strategic football talk, and joking with Damanze. The episode keeps a brisk pace, especially during picks, and is heavy on original insight and context, especially for listeners outside the Kansas City region.

Conclusion

This episode is quintessential Nick Wright—emotionally invested in his roots, keen on larger economic/political contexts, and never shying away from strong opinions on football culture and individual stars. It’s essential listening for listeners curious about the cultural and gridiron implications of the Chiefs’ move, the ongoing Lamar Jackson debates, and sharp NFL betting advice.