THE HERD – HOUR 1 – Chiefs Offense Exposed? | Another Cowboys COLLAPSE

0:00 Thanks for listening to the Herd Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday on Fox Sports Radio and noon to 3 Eastern, 9 a.m. to noon Pacific. Find your local station for the Herd at foxsportsradio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Fox Sports Radio or FSR. Thanks for listening to the Herd Podcast. We are live in Chicago. Bears-Seahawks Monday night football game of the year tonight. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, thanks for making us part of your day. You know, whenever I talk about the Kansas City Chiefs, they're the closest thing. to the Brady-Belichick dynasty, which, you know, lasted the better part of 20 years. But during that Brady-Belichick dynasty, they were never

0:47 bad on special teams. They never had multiple bad contracts. They were never shaky on the offensive line. They rarely beat themselves. Kansas City beat itself last night. 11 penalties, lost a double-digit lead in the fourth quarter. O-line's a mess. Special teams, get out of here. Kansas City just took too many chances on character-slash-red-flag guys, and they haven't panned out, and the roster is really, really thin, and you're putting all of it on Mahomes to figure it out. They needed a fifth-round running back, Emmitt Johnson, to play like Barry Sanders last night to take a lead. Seattle's roster last weekend and Denver's roster last night, they're just deeper and more athletic with superior all-line play. It's the fourth

1:36 season in a row Kansas City doesn't have a top-10 offense. I mean, they haven't completed a ball down the field post-20 yards in two weeks. So the verdict's in. Seahawks and Broncos figured it out. Go all out to stop Kenneth Walker. Take your chances with Mahomes going downfield. There's nobody open. And it takes the league a while to figure some stuff out. I mean, you don't have to like Bo Nix, but wide receiver, tight end running back.

2:03 Denver's got dudes. Denver's got dudes. And Andy Reid and Mahomes, you just keep piling things on them. And I mean, the trade deadline's a week away. They got to go get a wide receiver. They have to go get a wide receiver. And by the way, the last two weeks, this O-line has allowed the second most pressures in the league.

2:25 So they have a major deficiency on the O-line. They benched a guard. With all their problems, they benched a guard before the game. And you know they didn't want to do that. So you can take an occasional red flag guy, character issue guy. You can't take multiple guys like that unless your core is amazing. Well, let's talk Kansas City's core. Trent McDuffie traded him away. Travis Kelsey, 37.

2:53 Chris Jones, dude didn't have a tackle last night. And he hadn't done much in two weeks. So again, when your core is compromised, when your core is aging, when your core is expensive, Chris Jones, and it's not delivering, you start relying on fifth round running backs to carry your offense. And so it took a while for the verdict to be in, but people have figured them out.

3:18 The Seahawks and Denver, both well-coached defenses with a lot of dudes are like, All right, we're going to take out Kenneth Walker, see what you can do downfield. And they don't have anything. So, listen, even a great samurai can't win a sword fight with a plastic knife. Patrick Mahomes, it's the trading deadline in a week. You have got to get him help. You had the game. You were somehow in the lead with 11 penalties and bad special teams and a thin roster. And don't even get me going on– why you tried a 50 plus yard kick in a rainstorm with a, with a kicker that's been on a cold streak for the season. Here's Travis Kelsey after, you.

4:06 Know, obviously in our hearts, we feel like we should have came out with a victory, but at the same time, you know, that's not the reality of things, reality of things that we got to fix a lot. And, and the little things, mistakes, and it starts with the person that you're looking in the mirror. And I'm one of them.

4:21 I've been, I've been frustrated with myself on how long I've been in the league and the procedural stuff that's happened for the past three games, really.

4:34 All right. You know, I thought the Cowboys had bottomed out, but they grabbed a shovel and they continue to dig, which is great when you're searching for oil, Jerry, but not for football teams. I think this was like a five-year low. At home, 24-10 lead in the fourth, a backup quarterback, Gardner Minshew, bottom three roster, comes back and beats you. You can't stop him, and they stop you.

5:01 I mean, I had no idea Tyler Algier was like the second greatest running back in the history of the sport. Like, what is happening here? I mean, Gardner Minshew became the only quarterback in the NFL this year to throw for three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. And I'm not nitpicking. I can do that with Kansas City's field goal decision.

5:20 I mean, Dallas has played the fourth easiest schedule. They're three and five. The Giants are on a third quarterback. They lead the division. This isn't nitpicking. This is like way out in front of you. And most alarming, they lose different ways. The Cowboys have become those two robbers in Home Alone. They're falling down the stairs. They're tripping over paint cans. They're stepping on toys. It's a different way to be ridiculous throughout. And you were playing at home.

5:46 At least those guys were on the road. I mean, I I'm watching Dallas that week one against the giants. Remember they couldn't get the ball back. Only two possessions. Remember that they couldn't stop the giants with Jackson dart. And then in week three, they faced the Ravens. And remember the Ravens game. It was that overseas botched clock management, special teams decision. And then they face in week five, Tampa with an undrafted rookie quarterback. Couldn't get him off the field. And then in week six, they had extra time.

6:14 They go to Green Bay with Dak Prescott, Pickens, Lamb, Javante Williams, good old line, get five first downs in the first half, playing from behind. Yesterday, yeah, it's one thing that the defense, last in the league in anything, gave up six yards of play. We know it's not good. It's supposed to be better than that, but we know it's not great. And we know Jerry went cheap on coaching, but the offense had two big possessions, fourth quarter and a regulation, and they went backwards with both. Backwards. So, again, it'd be one thing if Josh Allen and James Cook and DJ Moore are lighting you up, but Gardner Minshew?

6:53 I like Michael Wilson. I like Elger. He's a good running back. But this is the worst coached team in the NFL, and it is a wide margin. And I'm watching yesterday. The Dolphins are not great. They play hard. Jeff Halfley is doing a lot with nothing. They play hard. That defense is pretty good. The Titans aren't very good.

7:15 They need about eight more players. But every time I watched the Titans the last three or four weeks, they get better. They're improving. Dallas is going backwards. And Dallas has at least 10 to 12, like legitimate players with all these trades and acquisitions and draft capital and money. I mean, Caleb downs in the right hands would be a stud. He's getting bulldozed last couple of weeks. So to me, I was thinking about this yesterday, watching Dallas deck, all quarterbacks to some degree. put their career in the hands of their GM owner and coach Dak deserves better.

7:51 And he's not the kind of guy that would ever demand a trade or call out teammates, but he's coming off the field yesterday. And I'm looking at him. This, this is, this is bad. And again, not all teams with losing records, the dolphins are playing their butt off. The Titans are getting better every week. Some teams have personnel deficiencies. That is not, that is not Dallas's problem here.

8:13 They got dudes there. They're not that far off Denver. They got players everywhere. Two star receivers. I mean, I'm getting to a point now, one more bad week. I mean, if they're bad next week, do you move off George Pickens and get a pick? I mean, I mean, seriously, I was starting to think about them like the Colts.

8:31 Let's just start moving guys. Cause this isn't working. And, and, and, you know, and Dak, cause he's classy and always in crisis, he says the right thing. He could point a lot of fingers, but afterwards he didn't. It's all of us. It's all of us.

8:48 Don't, don't, don't put the blame on one person. Simple as that. I think that's weak. I think that's cowardly. This game is About all, as I said, all 11 that touch the field and every person that has a part in it, coaches and support staff. And so it's never just one person's fault. Even if I go out there and throw a bunch of interceptions, it's never just truly one person's fault.

9:10 And so, yeah, don't take the easy and cheap way out.

9:14 This is about us and it's about us backing him up and backing one another up.

9:17 And we'll have to show it. I'm not blaming one person. I'm blaming Jerry Jones and Steven Jones and Brian Schottenheimer. I'm blaming several people, none of them DAC. But this is not a team that has a talent deficiency. You know, in New York with the Jets, you've got a quarterback head coaching issue. Dolphins, you just need another 10 players.

9:40 You need another draft and free agency. Titans, Cam Ward's playing better, but you may have to move off the quarterback. And again, Sala and the guys need another seven players in the draft. That's not Dallas's issue. They're well capitalized. They spend a lot of money. They got a lot of guys. That is bad. Oh, J Mac. tonight bears at Seattle. I mean, you talk about talent.

10:08 I like your Pickens trade. I haven't heard that anywhere because they want to be a run first team now, right? It's not the game plan.

10:14 If they go three and six next week, next Monday, Tuesday, what are we doing here? Yeah, well, I don't know.

10:22 Somebody said the over-under trades on this week at one and a half. I would keep an eye on my guy, Brees Hall, with the Jets.

10:28 How about, let me just tell you this. If the Seahawks struggle to run the ball tonight, keep your eye on Jonathan Taylor in Seattle.

10:38 Well, Zach Sharman, he's coming back.

10:40 He's going to be on the field. He's good near the goal line. He's a two, but I wouldn't be surprised if Seattle doesn't, doesn't just say, Ken, they don't have needs on the roster outside of running back. I wouldn't be surprised if Seattle's like, here's our late first round pick. Give us Jonathan Taylor. I think that's in play.

10:58 Listen, Tony Pollard has flashed for Tennessee. He's looked real good jacking his value up. Breeze Hall from the Jets.

11:04 Remember, Chiefs wanted him last year. I wouldn't take any offensive players away from Cam Ward. I want to see Cam play another seven or eight weeks. You've got to make a decision on Cam Ward. Are we keeping him or moving off him? You can trade Jeffrey Simmons, but it looks like Cam Ward's kind of found himself the last couple of weeks. I'm not going to take anything from him. I've got to watch him for another seven weeks to make a determination. Is he the guy?

11:27 And he looked good without Tate, their first-round pick yesterday. I mean, threw a big scare into my Bengals. Yes, my Bengals and Survivor.

11:35 Needed overtime. Okay. By the way, Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, top of next hour. I don't know if you noticed. USC is back in the top 25.

11:45 Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays at noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the iHeartRadio app.

11:58 Hey, it's Clay Travis. Animal Thunderdome is back, and now it's a weekly podcast. What started as a fan favorite on Fox Sports Radio, now available as its own show. From vicious animal attacks to humans getting too close to wildlife to wild encounters caught on video, we're bringing you the craziest.

12:16 Stories from the animal kingdom. Join me.

12:19 And Danny G, every week as we break down the madness, the mayhem, the moments you have to hear to believe, listen to Animal Thunderdome with Clay Travis and Danny G on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

12:35 I have a rule in life. Don't make decisions to validate previous choices just to protect your arse. Do what's right. The GM of the Pittsburgh Steelers had the job for a few years. Omar Khan needs to cut bait with DK Metcalf. The cap hit triples next year. He's washed. It's over. Can't play. And he's driving Aaron Rodgers nuts.

13:03 Now he's getting in the way. Can't catch. Bobbled interception. Yeah, you got worked by John Snyder, the Seattle GM, bro. You got worked. Don't make decisions to validate choices. I don't know how in the world the Steelers had 21 first downs with one player on offense that's special, Jalen Warren. I don't know how they got that many first downs.

13:27 Aaron Rodgers' number one target yesterday was a 300-pound tight end that used to be an O-lineman. He's got one guy he can depend on. Michael Pittman aged much faster than I thought. He's injured now. DK Metcalf's done. Can't catch. Never been a route runner. Mike McCarthy and Aaron Rodgers... How they are in first place right now in a decent division. Bengals and Browns can play. They win by blowout yesterday. They control that game beginning to end. And they're bottom 10 in offensive spending the last two seasons.

13:57 So I don't know what you got to do. Take the dead cap hit this year. But this cap hit for DK Metcalf gets worse. And what's funny about Mike McCarthy is Mike Tomlin and John Harbaugh are respected. They have identical resumes. Identical resumes to Mike McCarthy. But we love Tomlin and should, and we love Harbaugh and should.

14:17 Everybody with Mike McCarthy's like, eh. He's got a 42-year-old quarterback that no longer moves at an elite level. He bailed on Jerry Jones. Jerry's team circling the drain. McCarthy's in first. He's 4-0 at home. Again, with an older, smart quarterback. But there's limitations of what Eric can do now moving in the pocket. So, I mean, just listen to Aaron Rodgers' tone. Aaron is now in first place.

14:42 They beat a rival 27-6. Aaron again should be in a great mood, but just listen to how he answers the questions. He knows this there, the ceiling on this team is so low. There's just nothing outside of Jalen Warren. He and McCarthy deserve a ton of credit. Listen to Aaron's tone after.

15:05 Well, not very complete defense played. Excellent. Uh, special teams, uh, did fine, but offense, uh, should have been a lot more points. We'd like to play our best and still win. We also like to win. So we're six and two going to buy first in the division. So right where we want to be.

15:26 And he was very, very short for about a five minute period. And again, he, he, he he's done that before off a loss or he plays poorly. They just hammered a pretty decent team 27 to six. And he, I know you have to eat like 36 million bucks, dead cat money, but I'm going to sound like the guy at the haunted house. Get out now. You got to get out of that contract with DK Metcalf. Don't validate the acquisition. Get out of it. It's over. Getting in the way. Don't force Aaron to have to occasionally throw to him. Time to move on because what this coach and this quarterback are doing with what they have right now, it's pretty remarkable. I mean, I'm watching that yesterday and I'm like, man, there it's a 300 pound

16:18 tight end. It's, I mean, the old line's not bad, but a lot of that's Aaron Rogers and Mike McCarthy are good at old line play. Like they can, they can make them, you know, we've seen this before. Offensive coaches tend to get old line play to a level that defensive coaches can't consistently do it. Peyton's done it in Denver and we see this all over the league, but, um, I mean, it just, you know, Mike McCarthy bailed on Jerry.

16:44 He's in first place. Jerry's got a circus going on. It's time we all, myself included, tip the cap to Mike McCarthy. That is not a first place roster. Defense is old and expensive. Offense has one star. That's it. J Mac with the news.

17:03 This is the herd line news all right let's start with that thrilling broncos win over the chiefs very awesome finish some questionable decisions by andy reed in the fourth specifically kicking a 54 yard field goal with 235 left didn't get it harrison buckner has been awful all.

17:22 Season raining bad weather he's not in a right state of mine I did not get I love Andy I did not get that decision.

17:30 At all yeah remember this is a Broncos offense that's limited they I mean Chiefs out gained by over 100 yards why not punt and pin Colin I'm seeing it around the league these coaches feel like I gotta be tough I gotta be a man I gotta go for it I gotta make dumb decisions Kevin O'Connell's made him two weeks in a row and this read one was absolutely puzzling um and then listen uh fourth down you got uh at the doorstep Jalen Moore twitching off sides. Listen, offensive line has been a problem for them. We talked about in the off season and Moore, he was off sides.

18:02 I don't know what you want to do. Like people are, I know Pat Mahomes, his wife went on Instagram and was complaining. Guys, anybody could see right here. There's a clear flinch. He's off sides, right? Yeah.

18:14 I think in that moment that I'd probably need a little more movement, but. Oh, yeah.

18:19 I mean, it just felt like a non buttoned up Chiefs here down the stretch when for years Mahomes and Reid get the ball late.

18:26 It's over.

18:26 It's a done deal. I mean, you can see him twitch and then he tries to play it off, you know, by looking back to Mahomes.

18:31 I just I thought at their best, the Chiefs were brilliant situationally. And some of it is Mahomes wasn't a fortune and they had multiple options. The last three years, they're not nearly as good in the red zone. They're not nearly as dominant on third down. And some of it is you're asking Mahomes to play behind a shell as an offensive line that is not close to as good as Denver's last night. And, I mean, again, he has not in the last two weeks completed a ball down the field over 20 yards. Teams have figured it out.

19:11 Beat is deep. Go for it. There's nobody open. There's nobody that's consistently worthy. We always knew this. is a gadget guy who, you know, bottom of the first round gadget guy. Who's kind of spindly and can get banged up. Like they just don't have enough players.

19:28 Well, the kid Emmett Johnson, the rookie was great. He looked like their best offensive skill position guy, Colin. They dialed up two awesome plays for him. He got, he's got some speed. I actually, maybe it's because of the Jersey. I see some Tyree killing him, not the twitch, but the speed.

19:42 Yeah.

19:43 I mean, in, in space, no linebacker can hang with him. Kansas city, two losses in a row. Now they get to take it out on my Jets next week. I assume that's going to be a beatdown. The Chiefs get right after this, right? They're not still... But are they elite in the AFC Cup?

19:58 No, I think, again, Denver and Seattle are very well coached and very good rosters. But you can see now, you know, it takes people a while to figure it out. When Kenneth Walker, first month of the season, came out, we're like, whoa, Andy Reid really is going to be a run-first guy. And then everybody's like, okay, what do we do with it? And also, there are games during an NFL season when you play on national TV against Seattle, the league's watching, and Seattle says nothing. We're going to stop Kenneth Walker beat us elsewhere and they can't. And then Denver goes, let's just do what Seattle did and see.

20:33 So there are blueprint games. And I think that Seattle game, if that Seattle games at one o'clock. The league's not talking about it, but you know, it's a Seattle game. It's a blowout. And everybody's like, Oh, a bit of a blueprint. Yeah. So thank God for the fifth round running back, or they would have been in real trouble.

20:51 So last year at the deadline, they realized they don't have the running back and they try to get breeze all from the jets this year, Colin. Now we've seen two games in a row where the offense very limited. Do they make a play for a wide receiver? Do they, I mean, Pickens is probably too rich for their blood.

21:07 And I don't know that they want the headache.

21:10 They need a mature adult receiver that can give them eight targets and six to seven catches. Whoever that is, go make a deal. It could be in their offense. It could be a Trey Harris for the Chargers. I don't know. But you've got to go find somebody that's a grown up. That's not squirrely like an adult that can come in a hard worker and Mahomes within two weeks can target him eight times. That's what they they don't need an injury prone guy or an immature guy.

21:38 I mean, I've said this before. Denver's got guys that are good that they don't use much because Bo Nix can't throw the ball down the field. But Denver's not going to give him any.

21:48 I would look to the NFC and Jawan Jennings was a big splash signing by the Vikings. He's buried on the depth chart. They rarely use him. He's unhappy in his role. Addison returned yesterday. I don't know that the Vikings are going to do that to help the Chiefs. Why would you want to help the Chiefs?

22:02 Well, it's a different conference. That's not a bad call.

22:04 Yeah, and Jennings is a pro. I mean, that guy's a really good player.

22:07 Total hard worker, overachiever, total pro.

22:11 All right, let's move to college football and the USC Trojans. I know you're all excited, Colin. They get the win over Ohio State. They look pretty good. Look at this play by the young fella.

22:20 Mark Bowman.

22:21 Right over, and they're just running dudes over. I mean, isn't that what Brock Bowers wore in college, 19? Yeah, he's a true freshman. Guy looks talented. Anyways, USC rolls. I know you're excited. I don't want to kind of be a killjoy here. But this was more about the Ohio State quarterback being inept. You saw Jeremiah Smith come off the field at one point saying, what the bleep are we doing? You know, like it just it didn't look like.

22:45 We we talked all week. You and I said, Ohio State's never vulnerable. They are this week.

22:55 Right.

22:55 Like like USC was humiliated. It's the Lincoln Riley's backed into a corner. It's his last stand. USC was healthy. USC has a first round quarterback. Ohio State. I think Ohio State. This is like a baptism, like, okay, this freshman kid, Fahey, go ahead, play. I think he'll be fine. This is still a really well-coached team. You know, fans are funny about this. Like, we crush quarterbacks like a C.J.

23:24 Stroud or a Drake May when they have no run game or Sam Darnold. We're like, they're terrible. And then somebody gets healthy in the run room, and suddenly Drake May, C.J. Stroud, and Darnold are good. We do this with coaches. When they're coaching with a backup freshman quarterback on the road, we're like, Ryan Day had a bad Saturday. Ryan Day's expression throughout the course of the game was telling you he wasn't furious. He knew there were limitations what he could do with this offense. You know, they bracketed Jeremiah Smith.

23:53 USC was smart. They're like, OK, you can beat us anyway. You're not beating him with him. If you want to be mad, be mad at Ohio State's run defense because USC ran the ball, couldn't run it at all against Wisconsin, ran the ball very well. Good six and seven yard gains, you know, in these tight spots where they needed a first down. That's not on Ryan Day. That's the defensive room.

24:15 But you got to be honest with yourself. There are these games like I'll give you an example. Notre Dame hosts Miami this week. Notre Dame's the play. The game is.

24:26 For that one, by the way.

24:27 Say what?

24:28 Notre Dame's favored by six.

24:30 I think it was four the first time I checked. By the way, Notre Dame, why? Because it's the season for Notre Dame. They don't win them. They can't make the playoff. Miami's got more liberty to lose a game. Miami's off a wildly emotional game. By the way. you know, 48 degrees at night, maybe, or 48 degrees in Notre Dame for a Miami team. And it's actually been warmer than usual in November in the Midwest. But that is a, that is one of those spots that if Miami plays poorly, we told you so we told you the side all week.

25:04 We're like USC's backed into a corner. This is Lincoln's biggest game. They're going to play well. And as the best USC's played in like four years.

25:12 And let's go to Lincoln Riley. He had an interesting moment in the press conference afterward.

25:16 Here he is. Take a listen.

25:18 This program is not built on internal joy. It is built on internal joy, not external applause. This wins for all the staff members, the players, the leaders, admin, all the people within the walls. I said before this game that I'm the right person for this job, and as long as all those people know that, that's all I care about.

25:40 I mean, a reading from a prepared statement? How much time did he put into that? I don't love that, Colin.

25:46 Okay, go ahead. It was two sentences. It wasn't the Gettysburg Address. Can we just memorize it and go on and talk? You know what I mean? It's not like it's legal proceedings. He's a smart guy. Just come out and say, hey, listen. I know I'm up against the wall, and so was the program. It's always been about the players and the administration and the university. It's not about outside validation. I'm okay with the message, but I think he's too smart to have to read a prepared statement, which is two sentences, and he's a good talker. You can ask him, he's a smart guy. I thought that felt a little trying too hard for me. The other thing is when you win, win graciously. If you lose and you want to have a little attitude like, hey,

26:33 we're not going anywhere. We're going to be great next week. And the team hears that. But when you win, just be like, hey, so proud of my guys. We beat a great coach and a great program. And just get out. Just us. I didn't like that at all.

26:49 Listen, he's up against it. He hates the media, understandably. Colin, I want to look forward. So they have a bye this week. Then they play Indiana. Now, I'm sure you saw Indiana got lucky as hell, hitting a 60-yard field goal to force overtime. They benched their starting quarterback, had to go to the backup, okay? They're a top-10 team.

27:06 Then there's Maryland.

27:07 That's a win.

27:09 And then you got the UCLA game. USC has two games left against top 10 teams.

27:14 Indiana is basically Ohio State. Well-coached, mediocre currently at quarterback.

27:20 Yeah.

27:21 A couple of great wide receivers and a tough defensive front. The difference is now you're on the road. I got to tell you something. That Indiana game, having two weeks to prepare.

27:34 Well, OK, so, you know, Ohio State had two weeks to prepare for this one, I believe. Anyways, so I saw one set USC 19 percent chance to make the playoffs. UCLA, 52%.

27:46 What is the line on USC Indiana?

27:49 I don't know that there is one because it's two weeks out, and I don't know if there's a starting quarterback officially yet for Indiana. But that is, listen, this next couple weeks of college football, I don't want to hear any negativity, folks. The games are so freaking good. Final story, let's go back to the NFL and the Detroit Lions and the Vikings, their first loss ever. of the season a clutch drive late basically dan campbell stopped trying to outthink the room and just said we're gonna run the damn ball yeah uh vikings blitzed golf on like 81 of his dropbacks and they said forget it we're just gonna run gibbs gibbs went nuts.

28:22 Man there's some good running backs in the league right now jameer gibbs is just unbelievable.

28:27 So good Colin, I saw a stat six running backs topped 140 yards on the ground yesterday. Hello, people. Who's been telling you it's a running league now? I don't want to hear this passing stuff. But there was a negative moment. The Lions defense, which has played great against the Packers and Vikings the last two weeks.

28:44 Right.

28:44 Yeah.

28:44 They lost Jack Campbell to a scary injury.

28:47 Very hospitalized.

28:49 I don't know if it's neck or spine. They're not saying much, but that's a big loss to a defense. It's gotten better. Does this do anything for you in the division, in the conference?

29:01 No, I mean, I think, you know, I'm not the Jack Campbell thing. I mean, I just, it's rough. I mean, you saw Aiden Hutchison's reaction. My take in that whole game outside of Jack Campbell, my take is if you're Minnesota, do you call Vegas and go get Kirk Cousins? Because because I thought Kyler would be like 70 percent of Sam Darnold. Like I knew he wasn't Sam. He's not as big or strong. It's just not good enough. I mean, Justin Jefferson's been a good teammate. He's not always had consistent quarterback production like they they're just you can't use a third of the playbook. You could with Sam Darnold or Kirk cousins. Like he can't see over the line.

29:43 I'm sorry. He can't like, so it's, I think Minnesota, I'd make a call. I go find out a Kirk cousins in Vegas would, would listen. Yeah.

29:51 He knows the system. And by the way, the schedule upcoming for the Vikings is really difficult. They have Josh Allen this week. As if they couldn't stop a run game.

30:00 Jordan Love's around the corner. Brock Purdy's around the corner. Watch out.

30:05 Yeah, but Bills, Packers, Niners, a lot of Fox games, a lot of prime time games. You see the Patriots looming on the road outdoors. Kyler Murray, we know he can't play in cold weather. I don't know, Vikings. You got to do something.

30:18 I'm with you. Jay Mack with the news.

30:21 Well, that's the news.

30:23 And thanks for stopping by.

30:24 The Herdline News. There is an obvious coach of the year. I've already submitted my ballot. I will not reconsider. I watched something yesterday. I've never seen anything like it. Next.

30:37 Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays at noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific.

30:42 By the way, I have turned in my NFL head coaching ballot, if I had one, imaginary, and it would be Sean Payton, and I'm not reconsidering. The Denver Broncos have won 15 straight one possession games. I've never seen anything like it. 15 straight. That's coaching. Dallas can't beat Arizona at home and Gardner Minshew. He's coming back to beat Mahomes and Steve Spagnuolo. And, you know, I always laugh when the Denver media gets snarky with Sean Payton.

31:11 You guys do realize you are seeing historic late game play calling. I mean, Bo Nix has a top five offensive line, two capable running backs, stars in depth at wide receiver. Sean Payton is a play caller, and they lead the NFL in punts. Their first half scoring's lower than Cleveland and the Giants. I'm watching Drake May carry a New England offense, missing his top five targets. You guys crush Sam Darnold occasionally for interceptions. At least he gets first downs. Between Vance Joseph and Sean Payton, the coaching staff of the year, hands down is Denver. I said this last year about Sala and was it Sala last year and Kyle Shanahan or was that the year before?

31:54 I'm like, that's coaching. It was last year. What they're doing in Denver right now, it is incredible. Who wins 15 straight one possession games? And the Broncos schedule, by the way, they're through the tough part. Now comes the easy stuff. So I'd like to say this can't happen. Can't happen. It's happening. This was the tough part of their schedule. And I understand that Sean Payton tends to lead with his chin. He's got strong opinions and a strong point of view. And the media bristles at that.

32:31 But the late game play calling, I mean, week after week, start after start. Think about this. Bonix has a 59% completion percentage. That's not good enough. With the lowest average of depth per attempt in the NFL in seven years, he can't get the layups right. The layup drills a challenge. So have you noticed how often, look at how wide open that player is. That is scheme, not quarterback. Steve Spagnola late game got worked and nobody works bags. So, I mean, this is, I, you know, I joked, I call him Bo can't move the sticks. Nick's like, leading the NFL and punts with that whole line and that run game and that play caller and that coach. So I, again, I got no, I was a bone X guy. I was an zealot. I was an advocate. I'm not, but

33:21 I'm telling you what you're seeing in Denver now. That's why when they tried the field goal with Kansas city, I'm like, Oh, don't do that. Make him work. You got to make him go to the field. You got to make him go 84 yards, short field with Sean Payton. So like coaching is not, we all know in this league, quarterback plays, not even, we all know the Steelers receiving core is awful. The Cowboys is good. Like we all know that the coaching right now in Denver, you got a defensive coordinator who's doing magic and Sean Payton taking over the play calling. I mean, it's just 15 straight one score games. And I know Sean wears people out.

34:07 but he doesn't hold grudges. He'll bark at people. He doesn't hold grudges, but I mean, it's, I think too often people vote in awards. They won't vote on people that they don't like or that irritate them. I don't care what you think of Sean. I like him. I think he's wildly smart and entertaining here. He is after the win.

34:28 Obviously big one. I'm proud of just the grit, you know, hang in there. You're playing a good team. You know, it's all the things, like, you know, you talk about it's going to be a fourth quarter game. There's so many ebbs and flows to that game, which kind of makes, you know, our league compelling.

34:52 I mean, bad early, bad third quarter, amazing late. That's Denver. That recipe, it's like baking. Just follow the recipe. You'll win every week. I've never seen anything like it. One of Denver's next six opponents has a winning record. So this was the gauntlet. Jay Mack and I talked all summer. We're like, if you're Sean Payton, would you just sign up for three and three through the first six? Like sign up for it. Right now, Sean Payton, 15th in coach of the year odds. What league are you people watching?

35:32 What are you watching? Oh my God. Um, so listen for any great player in this league, especially quarterbacks, there is a sliding scale like, and the scale is what can I pay you based on what are you producing? You can't extend Lamar Jackson. I'm not blaming him. for being able to play one play before he got hurt.

36:04 I'm not blaming him. That's his reality. Between the moods, the injuries, he has 200 more rushes than any quarterback in the league since he entered it. And... annually now is he practicing is he playing the team doesn't know i'm not blaming him for the injury but injuries are now part of the story i've said this with joe burrow one more big injury to joe burrow and whether he comes back or not you got to draft another quarterback So the moods, I don't know if he trusts the organization, which stinks. I mean, that's just sometimes players do.

36:39 Sometimes they don't. I mean, it makes a lot of money. I think I would trust my employers that they're paying me 50 large. So, I mean, all I know is this. His speed last year when clocked was not the same. It feels like he's getting hurt. More often, I'm not blaming him, but the first seven seasons, I always supported Lamar Jackson. I always said, guys, he wins 75% of his starts. The last two years, nine and nine, 500 quarterback.

37:06 And again, the quarterbacks, it's one thing if you're a number three corner or a number two tight end quarterback, my entire franchise is built around you. So I'm not, guys get injured. Maybe you just say it's wacky. It's coincidental. Well, here's what I know. Josh Allen never gets hurt. Here's what I know. Justin Herbert's taking a beating and he's, he's up not playing well, but he's up. So I think you're in a, I think you're in a tough and, and I think you're in a really tough spot and I know he's wildly popular, but this is why you pay the executives in the NFL seven figures. for really hard decisions. Anybody can draft Andrew Luck if he's available at number one or Trevor Lawrence. That's the easy stuff.

37:48 Anybody can cut somebody that does something that's really, really vile or unacceptable by league policy. That's the easy work. The hard work is finding Brock Purdy in the last round and he becomes the MVP candidate. That's hard work. Hard work is saying, you know, a quarterback that's beloved. You know, we can't go here. So I think it's, I mean, listen, here's Lamar's current reality. I'm not pointing fingers, but less available, less productive. That's I'm going to struggle tying my franchise to that. Here's Jesse mentor on the one play injury to his thumb.

38:27 For a lot of the game, really proud of the way our guys fought and played. Um, you know, when you lose your quarterback early, uh, we lost him on the first play. That'll be a surgery deal.

38:36 He'll go to IR. Um, You know, that's a tough deal.

38:40 You know, when it happened, I think at the time, you know, you're just hoping that maybe it's something small. And then I think pretty quickly kind of realized what had happened.

38:51 It got real weird at the end with John Harbaugh. There was somebody leaked it to the Baltimore Sun, the local reporter who would prefer not to report this, that, you know, Lamar had fallen asleep in meetings. He was playing video games at night, which, you know, I mean, that makes him look bad. He's not the first quarterback probably to do that. But at the end with Harbaugh and Lamar, a lot of finger pointing, a lot of passive aggressive stuff. I'm not supporting or blaming anybody, but Harbaugh's in first place and Baltimore Baltimore's in fourth, and I don't know what they're going to do. I watched yesterday.

39:26 You watched.

39:27 I don't know what they're going to do with quarterback. But the whole thing. is getting– I don't want any mystery with my quarterback, and it just– I can feel bad simultaneously for a guy. It's like, oh, the guy's hurt again, and also be like, yeah, but it's kind of a trend here. It's happening a lot, four times, missed four games in four of the last six seasons, and just say– I mean, that was always the magic of Favre. Favre could take a beating. He was always available like that. That was part. I mean, he'd drive you nuts. He'd throw terrible picks. He was stubborn. But part of like the allure to Favre was every Sunday is ready to play. And I said that about Eli Manning, two minute drill, better on the road in big games,

40:04 didn't miss starts like that. That's a part of being a quarterback. Just are you ready to play? Because by the way, by week four, everybody's dinged up. The whole league's dinged up. Now, this injury, obviously, you can't throw the ball like that. I get that. But I think Baltimore's in a tough spot. Most beloved player they've had since maybe, I don't even know, Ray Lewis maybe? I mean, Ray Lewis was absolutely beloved. And this is a quarterback. So, yeah, it's tough. These are hard decisions to make. You know?

40:34 Colin Wright, Colin Wrong, top of next hour. Matt Hasselbeck stops by. Urban Meyer stops. Boy, I thought there was a J Mac, a little bit of a power outage in Los Angeles. I didn't see any of the Lincoln Riley internet hate on Saturday night.

40:47 Wow.

40:47 Defending your guy. I like it.

40:49 I like it.

40:49 Hey, by the way, uh, New York jet, they don't want Lamar Jackson just because people are going to push him. We don't want to give up the draft picks. We're not paying 60 mil.

40:57 We're good.