Thanks for listening to the Best of Herd podcast. Are you sure to catch us live every weekday from twelve to three eastern, nine to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS one. Find your local station for The Herd at Fox sports Radio dot com, or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Herd. This is the Best of the Herd with Colin Cowhern on Fox Sports Radio. It is great to have you in on a Friday, live in Los Angeles. It's the Herd wherever you may be, however you may be listening iHeartRadio, Fox Sports Radio FS one. Joy Taylor is off today. My buddy Jason McIntyre is filling in. It is great to have everybody in on a Friday. One hour from now, we're gonna call it Bold and the hopefully beautiful. My five boldest NFL predictions. These are risky. I could be wrong, very vulnerable. These are not like you know, this team does something a little here, this guy play as well. I'm making massive predictions that I believe to be true and could go oh for five, but I believe strongly in each. That is one hour from now and j Mac it is great to have you in We were just discussing before the show. It's been a very tough week for me. For the first time, playing wordle Wednesday, I didn't get the word. It had two wise in it, and I, by the way, by the time I get to the sixth guests, I wasn't even close on that. I wasn't even close. So I've I've been a little off center this week. Devastating. For devastating, you rebound from that. It must have taken a while. It did m that I almost pouted and didn't play the rest of the week, but I but I went forward and got it in four. Both we must do that in life, deal with adversity and you bounce back. It says a lot about your character. Thank you so much. I really appreciate that. So last night Jags Raiders sloppy, messy. I think it was a penalty on the first play. Uh you know it's it's they don't play starters in that game. But it does mark the beginning of the NFL season, and I think we're gonna have a fantastic season. I said this years ago and I believe it. I don't think we've ever had this elevated a level of quarterback play. Quarterbacks are better, they're younger, they're better sooner. I think the coaching is more sophisticated, it's smarter, it leans offense. I think the league is incredibly well run. I've never enjoyed it more. Now in many states you can gamble on it legally. Owa's gamble responsibly, by the way. But I can't wait for the season, and I do think you know, a lot of times people will say, you know you're picking on this guy, or you never stopped talking about this guy. For the record, I didn't talk Lebron James. It was the least I've ever talked about Lebron James. I tracked my shows ever this year. I haven't talked about Baker in Carolina. I don't think it's that interesting. But I will remain somebody that talks about Aaron Rodgers a lot because I do think he's the back to back MVP. I think he's getting sick, rich, older, and weird. And Chris Collinsworth on the broadcast last night, talked about one of the big shocking moves this offseason, where Davante Adams, an unbelievable talent, arguably first or second best receiver in the league. He's a huge talent, great kid, left Green Bay in a Hall of Fame quarterback, the MVP to go to a much tougher division and what's perceived as less of a team and less of a quarterback. And Chris Collinsworth talked about why when he said one of the factors, not the only factor, but one of the factors was he didn't know how much longer Aaron Rodgers was going to play. He knew Derek Carr was going to be here for the length of the contract that he had, and he just wasn't sure, and so he sort of took the shirt thing. Obviously, the money a huge factor, Getting close to the West Coast again where he lived in California a factor, but definitely a factor was the uncertainty around Aaron Rodgers. Well, when you got really rich and you get single and you don't have anybody to answer to, everything gets very unbalanced and self indulgent, and we're all kind of guessing with Aaron Rodgers, what does the tattoo mean? These subtle hints at retirement mean. I don't think Aaron understands. I know Aaron loves to be the smartest guy in the room. But I don't. I don't think he understands the power of his own words. And I mean, remember when he discussed and dismissed vaccines. He was shocked at the blowback. You're Aaron Rodgers. Remember when he wasn't truthful about his vaccination status, he was shocked at the blowback, you're Aaron Rodgers. Yesterday, Aaron Rodgers discussed the benefit of psychedelic drugs, which thousands of Americans have died from with the improper amount digested. Yesterday, once again he talked about retirement. Somebody asked him about Brady and he goes, no, I'm not going to play that long. Sometimes you gotta keep things to yourself. So he and he mentions retirement regularly. So clearly what's best for the packers is not Oway's best. For Aaron Rodgers, he is the priority. And again, when you don't answer to anybody, you don't have a wife, you don't have kids, you don't really have a boss. Matt Lafleur was lucky to get that job. You don't have an owner. Your life gets very self indulgent, it gets very unbalanced. That's why kids are important. Marriage, a strong boss people to call you out in your crap. Aaron doesn't have anybody. Green Bay's lucky to have him. They don't have an owner. Lafleur's lucky to have him. Lafleur's lucky. I still don't know if man it's a great coach. He's lucky to have Aaron Rodgers as his quarterback. And everybody kind of knows it. And once the Packers whiffed on the Jordan Love pick, it just heightened the leverage and the power that Aaron has. Then he gets fifty million dollars a year. He's never had more money. And for being the smartest guy in the room, I think sometimes he dismisses how important it is when he speaks. He dismisses vaccines, lies about his status, psychedelic drugs, talks about retirement. These are impactful and powerful and Davante Adams he has entered. And this happens as guys get older and richer. In their single this zen live in the moment, be in the present. But sometimes when you're in the present and living in the moment, I and me have to take a back seat to we and us. And a lot of his comments here he gets a tattoo. This is what it means to me. And I took psychedelic drugs because it changed the realm for me. Power impact, words matter. That's why I say when you step to the microphone, part of being a franchise quarterback is falling on the sword. Eli Manning understood the power of his words. Derek Jeter power of his words. Brady in New England power of his words. Russell Wilson power of optimism. If you go and everybody's I want my athletes to be truthful. I don't. I don't want my I don't want my star quarterbacks to be truthful. I want him to fall on the sword, be presidential. I don't want Trump to tell me everything he's thinking, because a lot of the things he's thinking are weaponizing and harsh and uncaring, and it takes the worst of us and often encourages people to do dumb things and bad things and harsh things and violent things. I don't need to hear every word. When you're in a position of power, sometimes suck it up. Take one for the team. Stop talking, especially about retirement, because the Packers have arguably the weakest receiving corps in the league and you can't win a Super Bowl in twenty twenty two with the weakest weaponry in the league. And with that we go to the Deshaun Watson story. So this is just a it is a circus. But at least now we understand now how upset Roger Goodell is. So Roger Goodell and the NFLPA, the league in the NFLPA a couple of years ago decided what we're gonna do in situations like this is we're gonna have like a retired judge like Sue Robinson, and she's gonna come in and she's gonna say, we'll pick her and then she'll decide the punishment. And so she did. She said six games. And in her fifteen page detail of the Deshaun Watson case, she clearly didn't believe him. She thought he was untruthful, he fibbed a lot, and there was a preponderance of evidence that he was creepy and if not criminal, completely inappropriate. Well Goodell did not love that, and so then he now has found another guy, a former New Jersey Attorney General Peter Harvey, who by the way, has a connection to the league. So Peter Harvey is on the NFL's Diversity Advisory Committee. So this is one of his friends or at least you know, somebody he's worked with an associate. So what Roger Goodell is saying is, yeah, I don't want to Shaun Watson to play this year. I don't want him to play this year. And he may play this year, but I'm not taking the hit. And let's be honest about this. So when the Cleveland Browns gave Deshaun Watson a guaranteed contract, it's spit in the face of Goodell, the other owners, advertisers, fans in the league. It's one thing if you signed him, but you did something that was unprecedented. You rewarded fully guaranteeing creepy, awful behavior, whether or not it's criminal. He is the face of now a franchise, and I think Roger Goodell is saying, I'm going to protect me. The advertisers are fans, I am going to ruin this season, and it's a punishment. I don't like what Cleveland's done. I understand business, but I think when they fully vested as fully guaranteed this contract, it kind of spit in the face of the NFL and other owners, and I think Goodell has the backing of all the other owners, and I think it was a misstep by Cleveland's ownership. Haslam, Jimmy Haslam, he has them is a misstep by fully guaranteeing this deal, and they probably thought that was the only way to get him, and maybe it was the only way to get him. But by doing that, which was historic by NFL standards, you were rewarding the worst kind of behavior. And that has not been lost on Roger Goodell or the other owners because it really, it really moves, it really moves the football in the advantage of the athlete in the NFL. And one of the reasons I know everybody wants their athletes to get paid, but one of the reasons the NFL is so much more popular than every other league is that you don't get stuck with awful contracts. Players don't run the league. They can't hold your hostage. I mean, when I say bad contract in the NFL, it's hard to think of one. I mean, it really is. If I said bad contract in the NBA, you're like, oh, they're also a Westbrook contract is terrible top of your head. If I said bad contract in baseball, I mean the Dodgers. Now you know they've got a bad cot Trevor Bauer situate. You have bad contracts in all these sports, but in the NFL, it's hard to think of a bad contract. You can cut guys, you can get rid of them. And that's the strength of the league that fans don't become like a prisoner of a bad contract. You can't get out of it. I mean, like right now the Lakers are going through this. They just can't get out of that Westbrook contract. Houston couldn't get out of that John Wall contract for a year or two. So I think Goodell has just said, I mean this season for Cleveland, forget about it. You're gonna get a much longer suspension. Then you're gonna get a lawsuit, You're gonna get massive appeals. But I think it stems back to really creepy bad behavior and then rewarding it. And I guess if there's a moral to the story, don't do that at Everybody deserves a second chance. I'm fer Deshaun Watson having the right maybe eventually to play. I'm not saying people in life don't make mistakes. We all do. I have everybody deserves us a second chance. But boy, when that kind of behavior sixty different massage therapist twenty four file a lawsuit and you give him the greatest contract in league history that has not gone unnoticed. This is punishment. We're going to wreck your season. Noise, pr suspensions, lawsuits. You know this one's done. This season's over for Cleveland. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app. Well, you know, as a guy, I can say this. Some guys can take a joke and some can't. Golden State years ago made a joke or two about Kevin Durant. Everybody later realized he takes that stuff personally. Cliff Kingsbury made some jokes yesterday about Kyler Murray and it's a It's been a bizarrely noisy year for Arizona. The off season's been crazy, and historically the noisy or the off season the worst the season. The Rams are sweart of God, the Rams make no noise. I've been sitting here telling me that for five years. I've never seen a team as good as the Rams. They're never in the news, and now Matt Stafford's got ten nanitis. Who that's about it, big? I mean their stars don't talk. Jalen Ramsey used to be outspoken in verbose, even he's quiet. Nobody talks, Aaron Donald, Matt Stafford, Cooper Cup, Alan Robinson. It's like Bobby Wagner, like it's the quietest team I've ever seen. Arizona's never won anything, and it's just tension anxiety. So Kingsbury, Cliff Kingsbury, the coach, was talking about Kyler Murray had COVID and so we didn't have to practice. But Kingsbury wanted him to get on the headset and call plays at practice to see how hard it is, because I guess Kyler can be very difficult to feed plays to Kingsbury's you know, he's he's rolling his eyes, he's shaking his head, and Kingsbury's like, okay, I want you to call plays for a practice to see how hard it is. And he joked about it after yes that they paying easy, you know, like every now and then he starts shaking his head when I'm calling it in there, I'm like, all right, well go ahead, big dog. You know I would not want to play for Kyler Murray, if I was a quarterback, he was the coach. I think that's a joke. It may not land his one. Listen, I have defended Kyler Murray like for years, so he not all quarterbacks are the same. Kyler and Aaron Rodgers have this thing where they constantly want to remind you they're kind of special. Kyler's like, yeah, I don't really have to watch tape, you know. I'd probably keep that to myself. And Aaron is constantly telling you, yeah, I think about retirement. Maybe I'll play, maybe not. I'd keep that to myself, you know. Aaron's off seasons, he acknowledges, yeah, I'm not gonna sit and watch table all the time. Again, I'd probably keep that to myself. I don't think you have to. I think there's different ways to attack it. By the way, they're both great. They're both gonna end up probably in the Hall of Fame, Aaron Willforshure. The difference, of course, between Aaron and Kyler is this, Aaron has no owner, so he can be chippy and passive, aggressive and take shots at the front office and be hard on his coach right like Aaron was brutal on McCarthy the last couple of years, eye rolling, ripping him in the huddle. It's well documented. He didn't have an owner, nobody to call him out. Kyler's got an owner, and he's already called him out, and he's already added something to his contract and leaked it so it got public. And that's the difference is Aaron's not really hell. Everybody's kind of in Green Bay lucky to have Aaron, and he knows it. Especially since the Jordan Love pick has gone nowhere, it's given him more power. Who's he gonna answer to? Lafleur is gonna bark at Aaron? Really? All right? Play Jordan Love. The front office is all right, I'm out of here. You got Jordan Love. There's no owner. Owners occasionally come downstairs and bark at a player, like they hold you accountable. Green Bay didn't have one. Arizona does, and they've already pushed back a little. So you know, I'm kind of fascinated to watch this division. I've picked Arizona for second because I just think Kyler's reready special. I like a lot of elements of the roster. They picked up another interesting wide receiver. I think like Cincinnati last year. They've got holes on the team. Parts of the team I don't love, but the parts I love, I really love. So I think Arizona wouldn't shock me if they got to the playoffs, wouldn't shock me if they won the division. It wouldn't shock me if they got to the NFC Championship. Because you don't have to be a perfect team. Cincinnati had a bad online and average linebackers. But the parts that were great about Cincinnati, the edge rush, the weapons, the quarterback, the running back were fantastic. But it is you know, if you are special in play by different rules like Kyler and Aaron, you probably don't want to remind people over and over about it. And us goes back to a lot of the times I say about quarterbacks. Fall on the sword, don't win every argument, don't lubricate, don't agitate because you've already make the most money and you've got the most power. Don't remind people of it. Right, be sure to catch live editions of the Herd weekdays and noun Easter, nini empacific. Our phones, our devices have done this to all of us. And I'm guilty, and I don't know if you are. But I think as a society we are less patient that you used to have to, you know, wait for somebody to call you back, or we waited more years ago. You don't wait for anything. Now. You get information when you want it, You get a hold of people when you want. The iPhone has so many benefits. I mean, it's like everything in one pocket. But it's made us less patient. And in sports, I see this all the time, and I especially see it in college football, where a really good coach with a great track record gets a job and you expect him to be great immediately. So Brian Kelly leaves Notre Dame in great shape, go to LSU and a story yesterday cracked me up. So there's a high school right next to LSU stadium and they had this high school football player. His name was Jaden Osberry. He's a great linebacker, and Notre Dame came and stole him from LSU even though he plays in the shadow of their stadium. He's a great, great kid, great player, right, And so LSU fans are freaking out, and it's like, you do get that Notre Dame's got momentum that Brian Kelly created and LSU is a mess that Brian Kelly's trying to fix. Patience. The iPhone wasn't a big deal when Nick Saban was at Michigan State. There was no such thing as the iPhone. Do you get that? Nick Saban the greatest college football coach ever. Year three at Michigan State six and six. Year three at LSU, he lost five games five Nick Saban his first year at Alabama, the best college football program ever. He lost at home to Louisiana Monroe and in year two got smoked in the South to Utah. Brian Kelly is one everywhere. Grand Valley State, Division two, Central, Michigan, Cincinnati, Notre Dame. I thought Notre Dame would never turn it around after Bob Davey, Ty Willingham and Charlie Weiss. I thought it was gonna be like Nebraska. Eight wins, not viable. All four turned around, most of them in year two or three. LSU's in the toughest conference. They're a bit of a mess. He's got to clean it up. And this is the way business works, kids. You got to tear some stuff down as you build it back up. Nick Saban's done it at Michigan State and LSU. He was trying to do it with the Miami Dolphins, and he did it at Alabama, and he didn't really tear it down enough and get it built back up until year three. So yes, Notre Dame is better than LSU this year, and they're gonna win some recruiting battles that they won't win in two and three years down in Louisiana. But I've never seen a single column from a sports riders say you know, I was wrong on Brian Kelly. He's a great coach. I've yet to see that column. People roll their eyes, they mocked at own like him. He's cringey at LSU. He had a bumpy start, very bumpy at Notre Dame, which he acknowledges and we all acknowledge. But it's okay to occasionally admit in our space. Hey, I whiffed. Every Monday, I do a segment Colin right, Colin wrong, four or five times, whiffed. I was talking to a friend about this last night. The political media and the medical media. You guys were wrong on the COVID thing that people go into the beach without a mask in college football games without a mask. We're not going to be massive breakouts. They weren't. Ever could you acknowledge you were wrong? Science is experimental by its nature. Yet everybody had these defiant, definitive opinions about COVID and you were just guessing. Right, It's okay to acknowledge. Masks kind of feel like cosmetic theater and the sun beats down in a virus. You can go outside to the beach. You're not gonna get it. It's like, okay too, admit. Brian Kelly's really good. Everywhere he goes. Every single place he goes, he wins Grand Valley State, I don't even know where it is. Seriously, Cincinnati, one, Central michigany one, big, Notre Dame. He turned it around with all those academic you know, roadblocks, hard place to get it into school, and he's gonna win big at LSU. It's gonna take a while, though it's a mess. It's a great conference, the best by far in college football. I'm George Reister, host of the Reister or Wrong Hidcast. This is the intersection where sports, business, society, and pop culture beat the truth absolute fire on Monday's, Wednesdays and Fridays. Facts only. Make sure you check your feelings at the door because nobodys is allowed. We keep it one hundred. This is where real conversations happen. Listen to the Rights or Wrong podcasts on the iHeartRadio, Apple Apple Podcast or where ever you get your podcasts. Ninety percent of what people say. Nobody wants to get called out anymore. Everybody's terrified of, you know, being wrong, because years ago you were wrong, nobody said anything. Yeah, I get called out. It terrifies. But that's the fun of this business. The fun of this business is taking big swings. Sometimes you crush and sometimes you completely with and I think the audience, I think you deserve it. You have big opinions on sports, I can't go I can't go weak here, I gotta go strong. So we're gonna play today our little game. We're gonna call it the Bold and the hopefully Beautiful. And don't ask me why my forehead gets bigger every year. Okay, these are my five riskiest biggest predictions of the year. Number one, Minnesota wins the NFC North and I think they may win it going away. First of all, fourteen Viking games were decided by one score, easily the most in the league, and They lost eight games by one score, easily the most in the league, but they have pivoted to an offensive coach who will support Kirk Cousins. Between Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, Adam Felham and a certainly serviceable old line. I like their roster. It's a wonky division, and again kirk Cousins like Tua finally as a coach that supports him. I think it matters when any of us have a boss that trusts us, respects us. I think Minnesota's gonna pop. No team that wins eight close games the following year duplicates it, and no team that loses eight close games, including two overtime losses, duplicates that. I think the Vikings win the NFC North. I think they beat the Packers in the opener and they start pulling away by Thanksgiving number two. The Cowboys missed the playoffs. They will not win the division, and they won't even make the wild card. First of all, Dallas has made the playoffs and back to back years since Oh six and oh seven. Lots of areas concerned me didn't land Von Miller and lost Randy Gregory, don't have a world class pass rush that means you can double more often. Michael Parsons. They had notable losses on the offensive line, an aging offensive line Lyle Collins, Connor and Williams, and Tyron Smith is a Hall of Famer but can't stay healthy. The wide receiving corps isn't nearly as dynamic. Ceedee Lamb moves to one, but Cedric Wilson's gone, Amari Cooper's gone, and Michael gallops off an ACL tear. And the truth is, I don't think they have an elite coach. And I think is the game has gotten more sophisticated. That is no longer a luxury, it's a necessity. And I don't think Dallas is a playoff team. Number three big bold prediction. Bill Belichick retires at the end of the season. First of all, retirement's weird. He likes to golf. He's got a house in Jupiter, Florida, and a beautiful girlfriend. Nice round number of seventy. He hasn't named coordinators, He's got kids on the staff. The reality is Bob Kraft and Belichick ev Owa's had a little bit of a turbulent relationship. Kraft was close with Brady. Every book you read about New England. Kraft tolerated a lot of the surliness of Belichick. They were twenty eight ranked in passing. DeVante Parker helps a little. I don't think they're close to Buffalo. Belichick doesn't necessarily love what's happened in the league where players have more power and defense isn't as important. Seventy is a good round number. I think they finished third. He walks off into the sunset to his beautiful Jupiter, Florida home. Golfs is a highly paid consultant for the league. But it's going backwards weird. Wonky reached on a lot of draft picks. I think Belichick retires as the greatest coach of all time through another nine and eight year. Number four. I think Russell Wilson wins MVP. He's never gotten a vote and that's why I think he wins MVP because now I think it's a good story. And I also think between Brady to Tampa and Stafford the Rams, when you come to a team and all they need is a catalyst, there is a certain energy that you bring to a team and hopefulness, and let's be honest, Aaron Rodgers won back to back MVPs played its best football with Nathaniel Hackett, who is now Russell Wilson's coach. Now they have five primetime games and seven nationally televised games. I actually think it helps him. It creates urgency and energy around the program. I think they have the perfect mix of youth between their coach and some of their defensive and offensive players and solid veteran guys. I love their roster. I know it's a hard division, but that helps Russell Wilson because when he puts up good stats, you say, God, he did it against the Chargers and the Raiders and the Chiefs. And in that division, with those great quarterbacks, you've got to run a pretty open offense. You gotta win shootouts. I think he puts up big numbers and wins the MVP because he's the best story. And finally, I think the Rams are going to repeat. I know it hasn't happened since two thousand and three, two thousand and four. A lot of things to remember. Seattle's now tanking, Arizona has been noisy, and we don't know if Trey Lands can play. The division is not as tough as it was. They're going to get more layup wins. Secondly, they didn't have cam Acres last year, and they drafted a running backs, so Stafford will have a better running back game behind him. There's also room for improvement. You know, It's like the games were close in the playoffs, right, San Francisco and Tampa Bay and the Cincinnati Super Bowl, and Stafford led the NFL interceptions, right, So there's like room for improvement. The divisions weaker. They have upgraded at wide receiver with Alan Robinson, they have upgraded at linebacker and leadership with Bobby Wagner. And let's just be honest. The NFC's not as good nor as deep. If Green Bay's not as good, they're not Mike Evans got hurt today. If Tampa and Brady's last year is not quite as dynamic, and I don't think they will be. Who's in their way? Dallas, San Francisco, Noisy Arizona, Philadelphia. Let's be honest. The NFC's got a few good teams at the top. But it's not like the AFC, where you gotta go through the Bills and the Chiefs and the Bengals and the Ravens and the bron Goes. It's not the same thing. It's like within the PAC twelve. You know what I mean. You don't have to be great, you have to be good. So there are my five bold predictions, Risky being vulnerable. Here, Vikings win the NFC North Cowboys missed the playoffs, Belichick retires Russell, Wilson wins MVP, and the Rams repeat one more Herd. The Herd streams twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Within the iHeartRadio app, Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you like. Very exciting goosebumps. First practice for Lincoln Riley at USC change the roster, fifty four players from last year gone, and UCLA starting practice two. But USC is a big story in town, and the Rams are a big story in town, and Justin Herbert's a big story in town, and nobody's talking UCLA. And it's interesting, is that as USC as everybody's talking around the country at USC football. Look at USC schedule. Here's what nobody wants to admit. It's hard. They're going to be an underdog at Utah, an underdog at UCLA, and an underdog and will lose to Notre Dame. I predict nine and three if the quarterback stays healthy. Ucla schedule is the weakest in the country. They return most of their best players outside of tight end. They will be an underdog once all year at Oregon, and it will be a small underdog. They're out of conference. Schedule is laughable. Bowling Green Alabama, State, South Alabama, Washington, Utah get them both at home in this year of Lincoln Riley. Do not be shocked if UCLA ends up with a better football team. I'll say it right now. The Bruins win ten games and USC wins nine games, and I'll give The reality in college football is this. There are certain programs Oklahoma, Ohio, State, Alabama, you know, the big dogs right as four or five or six of these programs LSU, Georgia that when you get a good coach, it takes you about a year and a half. You're often great by the second year. Bob Stoops won a Natty second year, Kirby Smart, Georgia great by the second year. Alabama won a title with Saban great by the third year. But UCLA is a basketball school. For most schools, they need four or five years to pop. And this is the I think it's the fifth year for Chip Kelly, and it's perfect. There's no pressure, none at all, none between the Rams Herbert and Lincoln Riley. He returns his quarterback, he returns. They've got very good defensive line play in a conference that doesn't have a lot of it. So as we're talking about USC, I even saw Kirk Herbstreet said this the most underrated team in the country is UCLA. So it's gonna be a good football year in southern California. Between the Trojans, the Bruins, the Chargers, in the Rams, we're very, very lucky here. We have four really interesting football teams, all right. Zach Taylor is the coach the Cincinnati Bengals, and I think one of the reasons you ever watch a story about a young kid or a young person that has to overcome something, it's really emotional. None of us root for the trust Fund kid. Your root for the kid that's come from a tough background or people that have to overcome things in life. That's what they write movies about or do on streaming shows about people overcoming. And so Zach Taylor, coach of the Bengals, was talking this week and he said, listen, we're gonna We're not sneaking up on everybody like we got a huge target on our back. But it is interesting when you look at Zach Taylor. So Matt Lafleur is viewed as this really good coach, but there's a trust fund kid to it. So he takes over the winning stable, talented Aaron Rodgers Packers in a week division, and in the last two years Green Bay has melted down in the fourth quarter at home and playoff games. Tampa and San Francisco absolutely coaching meltdowns. Zach Taylor at Cincinnati takes over a losing, shaking, frugal aging Andy Dalton, not very talented, roster, tougher division. They've gotten better each year and last year they won back to back road playoff games. So Zach Taylor's entire existence in the National Football League is overcoming. They had to find a new quarterback. The division is tougher, he's got an owner that doesn't spend any money in free agency. Then, by the way, Joe Burrow got hurt, so he basically a star quarterback gets hurt. He's gone for a year. The roster was shaky, and Matt Lafleur, what's going to be interesting This is Matt Lafleur's first year of having to overcome something, which is you don't have a number one wide receiver, and so I think this is the test this year. We will see if Matt Lafleur is a good coach. Because I've said this, if you look at Mike McCarthy's postseasons and Matt Lafleur's postseasons, they look a lot. They look a lot the same meltdowns, losing at home, losing as a favorite. Now Lafleur has had a much better regular season because the division's much weaker. Detroit's a mass Chigo's many think is the second worst team in the league to Atlanta. Minnesota has had some dysfunction in recent years, so it's very interesting to contextualize it. We think Matt Lafleur is a great coach, and we thought Zach Taylor was over his head, and this morning, who has had to constantly overcome roster injuries, find a new quarterback facilities they don't have until recently. We're never going to build an outdoor practice facility. They were the only Northern tier team in the league without an indoor practice facility. All Zach Taylor don overcome overcome overcome overcome overcome, win in the road, Lafleur, just don't wreck the Mercedes. You got Aaron Rodgers, you got Aaron Jones. He inherited everything. He inherited. You know, I think the inherited backtr and Davante Adams and Aaron Jones and stability and winning and they. So I'm interested to see Green Bay. This is a real Allene, this is a real challenge. Try to make two rookies work with Aaron Rodgers, who, like Tom Brady, is not fond of depending on rookie wide receivers. Let's be fair here. Brady didn't like it either. Brady loved Mike Evans. Brady went right to Mike when he showed up in Tampa. Brady went right to Mike Evans. And then he wanted Gronk in a b in New England. Who did he want? He wanted Wes Welker already in the league. He wanted Randy Moss. They struggle dressed. So Tom and Aaron. You know, we love Tom and we're critical of Aaron. It's the same thing. They don't work. You come into this league, they're on you're on their timeline. It's like the Warriors Steph Curry. They're not playing coming in the playoffs. They're not playing Moses Moody or James Wiseman. They're not ready to help Steph Curry. You're not getting on the floor in the playoff games. So I think it's really interesting. I think this is the first time we'll see if Matt Lafluor is a good coach, because I've watched two fourth quarter home meltdowns. Is a favorite, and that's where I'm gonna judge you. Not beating the dysfunctional Bears Lions. I'm that smart. I'm not judging on that. McCarthy did that and he got run out of town, and we don't think McCarthy's a great coach, and McCarthy won a Super Bowl. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Easter not Ampacific on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app. I haven't talked to Melvin Gordon in a while. Now. He's a Broncho running back, eighth year, two Pro Bowls, by the way, eight rushing touchdowns in six straight years. Nobody in the NFL's got a longer streak. How about that? And Melvin Gordon is joining us now, So I picked you to win the division. I love me some Russell Wilson. So let's just tell us Melvin, I haven't seen you in a while. The vibe with Russell, how is it? I mean you had Philip Rivers Phillips a trash talker and Russell's not. I mean, what's Russell like to be around to practice? Yeah? He good man. He'd be locked in though, say the least man. He wants everybody bets and that's kind of how he come in every day man. He straightforward man. He bought business. When he had work, he clocked in and it's just kind of he he all about football. Yeah, it's crazy. So Nathaniel Hackett is the offensive coordinator. He did Wonders in Green Bay head coach now of Denver. He was the quarterback coach in Green Bay. Where am my guy going? There we go? So Nathaniel, tell me give me a little story on Hackett. What's he like? What do you like? What are you making Nathaniel Hackett your coach? Um man hack cool man, Hacker cool dude. Um, It's something that I'm definitely not. I'm not used to be honest, and it was just I'm so used to like serious coaches all the time. And his personality. Man, he's so chill, he's so vide out there. You know, he's not one of them coaches. When you see him, you walked the other way. Um, I mean he cool man. He wants the best for everybody, lookout for us. Man. So I'm appreciative of him. I mean, he knowing the lock in, he knowing tap in. He holds everyone accountable. Um, he shows us our mistakes, he shows us the plays, the good plays that we made. Um, you know, he do what a good coach supposed to do. Javonte Williams is your backfield mate. Young guy is a stud. So you got a two tandem running situation. Um, you got good receivers. Timmy Patrick's out for the year, but you got good receivers. What is the offense do you think gonna look like? What's the balance gonna look like? Melvin? Uh Man, I'm hoping. I'm hoping that we could hit hit from every cylinder, you know what I mean. I think, Um, we got the receivers that we need to push the ball down the field. Um, we got Judy to create separation. Um, you know, we got Court, the big ball guy, like I said, the stretch the field along with with uh, you know, with kJ Um and then me and Javanta, you know we we we could do it all. And then obviously you got Russell Um who could also who could also run, impass the ball on a dime. Um got precision, can throw the deep ball, can run out the back I field, so he helps us out in the run game as well. So you know, I'm assuming that I'm I'm hoping man that that you know, we messed good, um and we come out and be hitting on every cylinder. Man, Listen, you're the third leading roger in the league since Jander that seven years ago. You're an old veteran now, right, Like do you hit? Yeah? I mean you got a new young coach. You're an old veteran. Do you like that role? Are you a little bit of a mentor? You talkative? You verbal? What's it like? Um, it's different, it's different, man. Uh, you know it kind of the role kind of came so fast. Uh, to be honest, Um, to be it to being you know with the Chargers, like I said before, to being one of the younger guys and and then coming here and then being one of the older guys in the room is kind of crazy. Um, but you know, I definitely mentor when I can. I'm still competing, you know. I feel like I still got traded on the tires. Yeah, so I'm still out here competing, you know. But um, you know, like like Wood had taught me, Man, no matter how old you are, young you are if you you know, you always be a sponge and always be willing to learn. And if you know something that you know another player, don't, um, you know, you should be more than open and willing to let that person know. You know, this is what I see, this is what I feel. You can do better, And you know, I'll tell you what I can tell you. And if you know you you take that for what it's worth, you know. Tom Talesco, the GM of the Chargers, told me that it was one of the toughest moves of his career and he didn't sleep and it made him sick that that he realized at some point they had some other positions and you moved on. Any bitterness. I mean, I always think this, if I was a broadcaster and somebody said you know, we don't want anymore. I'd be kind of pissed. I'd have a little chip on my shoulder. Is there a little bit of you that thinks, man, I'm gonna be big two times a year against the Chargers. I mean, man, that's anybody that you know, you you you get part of away from your team. Uh, you know you you want to. I want to score against them boys so bad, I really, I really do. And it's just funny, man, because I still in Callie, So I still, you know, train with Keenan a lot. I go chill that Mike. I live down the street from Mike um Derwin, So I still, you know, top it up with those boys a lot. Man. But um, I'm not bitter. You know, I understand it's a business. And Um, I had a great relationship with Tom. Um. You know, he still wished the best for me. Um for every game. You know, he makes sure he speak the whole organization speak to me. He went out when we play him the equipment guys. Uh, you know Duddy, Autumn guys. I know Autumn guys, and we're still we're still in contact. So um they still so love. But that don't change anything. You know when we're playing them, you know, I definitely want to win and I need to score. I got to I got two chances. Yeah, there you go. Finally, Melvin, Uh, you played on good Charger teams that were talented. I picked Denver to win the division. I think Denver has a real chance to get to the Super Bowl. Um, tell me about the overall talent. Compare it to the last year with the Chargers. I think this team you're on is I don't think people get quite how good it is. Then you added Randy Gregory, the defensive lineman from I mean, when you're at practice every day, does this feel like the most talented team you ever been on? It? Do it? Do? It's up there, man, Um, it's up there. We had a talented team with the Chargers. Um, but I think I think the defense, uh, you know, this is a little bit better just all around. Um. You know, I think we saw it upfront, crazy upfront. Um, you know throughout the line, h the linebackers are are are are great. Um, the corners phenomenal. Pat is crazy like just yeah yeah, I mean he's I mean, I honestly think he might be the best corner in the league. You know at some point in a couple of years, um, not this year. Um. But those guys, I mean I see him every day in practice. Kjack Man. Those guys are so smart and you know they they I'll be seeing the best. So I don't know what they're saying about our defense, but uh, you know firsthand, you know those boys gonna be locking stuff down. But we got a top tier team. Uh. It sucks that we lost him, um because he was definitely one of our key pieces. But you know, we got some good guys that's gonna step up and make some names for themselves. And I think I think we up there. Man. We had a good team with the Charges, but you know we run a hand to hand. That's the show. But Broncos have led the NFL and rushing touchdowns last couple of years. You had almost nine and twenty yards ten touchdowns. If you have a fantasy team, get him on you. Melvin Gordon a good dude. The one thing your career hasn't had is a lot of playoffs. Seven years one time. I'm wishing you the best. I think you got a great club and it's good seeing you again. You look healthy and happy. Man. I appreciate save

Thanks for listening to the Best of Herd podcast. Are you sure to catch us live every weekday from twelve to three eastern, nine to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS one. Find your local station for The Herd at Fox sports Radio dot com, or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Herd. This is the Best of the Herd with Colin Cowhern on Fox Sports Radio. It is great to have you in on a Friday, live in Los Angeles. It's the Herd wherever you may be, however you may be listening iHeartRadio, Fox Sports Radio FS one. Joy Taylor is off today. My buddy Jason McIntyre is filling in. It is great to have everybody in on a Friday. One hour from now, we're gonna call it Bold and the hopefully beautiful. My five boldest NFL predictions. These are risky. I could be wrong, very vulnerable. These are not like you know, this team does something a little here, this guy play as well. I'm making massive predictions that I believe to be true and could go oh for five, but I believe strongly in each. That is one hour from now and j Mac it is great to have you in We were just discussing before the show. It's been a very tough week for me. For the first time, playing wordle Wednesday, I didn't get the word. It had two wise in it, and I, by the way, by the time I get to the sixth guests, I wasn't even close on that. I wasn't even close. So I've I've been a little off center this week. Devastating. For devastating, you rebound from that. It must have taken a while. It did m that I almost pouted and didn't play the rest of the week, but I but I went forward and got it in four. Both we must do that in life, deal with adversity and you bounce back. It says a lot about your character. Thank you so much. I really appreciate that. So last night Jags Raiders sloppy, messy. I think it was a penalty on the first play. Uh you know it's it's they don't play starters in that game. But it does mark the beginning of the NFL season, and I think we're gonna have a fantastic season. I said this years ago and I believe it. I don't think we've ever had this elevated a level of quarterback play. Quarterbacks are better, they're younger, they're better sooner. I think the coaching is more sophisticated, it's smarter, it leans offense. I think the league is incredibly well run. I've never enjoyed it more. Now in many states you can gamble on it legally. Owa's gamble responsibly, by the way. But I can't wait for the season, and I do think you know, a lot of times people will say, you know you're picking on this guy, or you never stopped talking about this guy. For the record, I didn't talk Lebron James. It was the least I've ever talked about Lebron James. I tracked my shows ever this year. I haven't talked about Baker in Carolina. I don't think it's that interesting. But I will remain somebody that talks about Aaron Rodgers a lot because I do think he's the back to back MVP. I think he's getting sick, rich, older, and weird. And Chris Collinsworth on the broadcast last night, talked about one of the big shocking moves this offseason, where Davante Adams, an unbelievable talent, arguably first or second best receiver in the league. He's a huge talent, great kid, left Green Bay in a Hall of Fame quarterback, the MVP to go to a much tougher division and what's perceived as less of a team and less of a quarterback. And Chris Collinsworth talked about why when he said one of the factors, not the only factor, but one of the factors was he didn't know how much longer Aaron Rodgers was going to play. He knew Derek Carr was going to be here for the length of the contract that he had, and he just wasn't sure, and so he sort of took the shirt thing. Obviously, the money a huge factor, Getting close to the West Coast again where he lived in California a factor, but definitely a factor was the uncertainty around Aaron Rodgers. Well, when you got really rich and you get single and you don't have anybody to answer to, everything gets very unbalanced and self indulgent, and we're all kind of guessing with Aaron Rodgers, what does the tattoo mean? These subtle hints at retirement mean. I don't think Aaron understands. I know Aaron loves to be the smartest guy in the room. But I don't. I don't think he understands the power of his own words. And I mean, remember when he discussed and dismissed vaccines. He was shocked at the blowback. You're Aaron Rodgers. Remember when he wasn't truthful about his vaccination status, he was shocked at the blowback, you're Aaron Rodgers. Yesterday, Aaron Rodgers discussed the benefit of psychedelic drugs, which thousands of Americans have died from with the improper amount digested. Yesterday, once again he talked about retirement. Somebody asked him about Brady and he goes, no, I'm not going to play that long. Sometimes you gotta keep things to yourself. So he and he mentions retirement regularly. So clearly what's best for the packers is not Oway's best. For Aaron Rodgers, he is the priority. And again, when you don't answer to anybody, you don't have a wife, you don't have kids, you don't really have a boss. Matt Lafleur was lucky to get that job. You don't have an owner. Your life gets very self indulgent, it gets very unbalanced. That's why kids are important. Marriage, a strong boss people to call you out in your crap. Aaron doesn't have anybody. Green Bay's lucky to have him. They don't have an owner. Lafleur's lucky to have him. Lafleur's lucky. I still don't know if man it's a great coach. He's lucky to have Aaron Rodgers as his quarterback. And everybody kind of knows it. And once the Packers whiffed on the Jordan Love pick, it just heightened the leverage and the power that Aaron has. Then he gets fifty million dollars a year. He's never had more money. And for being the smartest guy in the room, I think sometimes he dismisses how important it is when he speaks. He dismisses vaccines, lies about his status, psychedelic drugs, talks about retirement. These are impactful and powerful and Davante Adams he has entered. And this happens as guys get older and richer. In their single this zen live in the moment, be in the present. But sometimes when you're in the present and living in the moment, I and me have to take a back seat to we and us. And a lot of his comments here he gets a tattoo. This is what it means to me. And I took psychedelic drugs because it changed the realm for me. Power impact, words matter. That's why I say when you step to the microphone, part of being a franchise quarterback is falling on the sword. Eli Manning understood the power of his words. Derek Jeter power of his words. Brady in New England power of his words. Russell Wilson power of optimism. If you go and everybody's I want my athletes to be truthful. I don't. I don't want my I don't want my star quarterbacks to be truthful. I want him to fall on the sword, be presidential. I don't want Trump to tell me everything he's thinking, because a lot of the things he's thinking are weaponizing and harsh and uncaring, and it takes the worst of us and often encourages people to do dumb things and bad things and harsh things and violent things. I don't need to hear every word. When you're in a position of power, sometimes suck it up. Take one for the team. Stop talking, especially about retirement, because the Packers have arguably the weakest receiving corps in the league and you can't win a Super Bowl in twenty twenty two with the weakest weaponry in the league. And with that we go to the Deshaun Watson story. So this is just a it is a circus. But at least now we understand now how upset Roger Goodell is. So Roger Goodell and the NFLPA, the league in the NFLPA a couple of years ago decided what we're gonna do in situations like this is we're gonna have like a retired judge like Sue Robinson, and she's gonna come in and she's gonna say, we'll pick her and then she'll decide the punishment. And so she did. She said six games. And in her fifteen page detail of the Deshaun Watson case, she clearly didn't believe him. She thought he was untruthful, he fibbed a lot, and there was a preponderance of evidence that he was creepy and if not criminal, completely inappropriate. Well Goodell did not love that, and so then he now has found another guy, a former New Jersey Attorney General Peter Harvey, who by the way, has a connection to the league. So Peter Harvey is on the NFL's Diversity Advisory Committee. So this is one of his friends or at least you know, somebody he's worked with an associate. So what Roger Goodell is saying is, yeah, I don't want to Shaun Watson to play this year. I don't want him to play this year. And he may play this year, but I'm not taking the hit. And let's be honest about this. So when the Cleveland Browns gave Deshaun Watson a guaranteed contract, it's spit in the face of Goodell, the other owners, advertisers, fans in the league. It's one thing if you signed him, but you did something that was unprecedented. You rewarded fully guaranteeing creepy, awful behavior, whether or not it's criminal. He is the face of now a franchise, and I think Roger Goodell is saying, I'm going to protect me. The advertisers are fans, I am going to ruin this season, and it's a punishment. I don't like what Cleveland's done. I understand business, but I think when they fully vested as fully guaranteed this contract, it kind of spit in the face of the NFL and other owners, and I think Goodell has the backing of all the other owners, and I think it was a misstep by Cleveland's ownership. Haslam, Jimmy Haslam, he has them is a misstep by fully guaranteeing this deal, and they probably thought that was the only way to get him, and maybe it was the only way to get him. But by doing that, which was historic by NFL standards, you were rewarding the worst kind of behavior. And that has not been lost on Roger Goodell or the other owners because it really, it really moves, it really moves the football in the advantage of the athlete in the NFL. And one of the reasons I know everybody wants their athletes to get paid, but one of the reasons the NFL is so much more popular than every other league is that you don't get stuck with awful contracts. Players don't run the league. They can't hold your hostage. I mean, when I say bad contract in the NFL, it's hard to think of one. I mean, it really is. If I said bad contract in the NBA, you're like, oh, they're also a Westbrook contract is terrible top of your head. If I said bad contract in baseball, I mean the Dodgers. Now you know they've got a bad cot Trevor Bauer situate. You have bad contracts in all these sports, but in the NFL, it's hard to think of a bad contract. You can cut guys, you can get rid of them. And that's the strength of the league that fans don't become like a prisoner of a bad contract. You can't get out of it. I mean, like right now the Lakers are going through this. They just can't get out of that Westbrook contract. Houston couldn't get out of that John Wall contract for a year or two. So I think Goodell has just said, I mean this season for Cleveland, forget about it. You're gonna get a much longer suspension. Then you're gonna get a lawsuit, You're gonna get massive appeals. But I think it stems back to really creepy bad behavior and then rewarding it. And I guess if there's a moral to the story, don't do that at Everybody deserves a second chance. I'm fer Deshaun Watson having the right maybe eventually to play. I'm not saying people in life don't make mistakes. We all do. I have everybody deserves us a second chance. But boy, when that kind of behavior sixty different massage therapist twenty four file a lawsuit and you give him the greatest contract in league history that has not gone unnoticed. This is punishment. We're going to wreck your season. Noise, pr suspensions, lawsuits. You know this one's done. This season's over for Cleveland. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app. Well, you know, as a guy, I can say this. Some guys can take a joke and some can't. Golden State years ago made a joke or two about Kevin Durant. Everybody later realized he takes that stuff personally. Cliff Kingsbury made some jokes yesterday about Kyler Murray and it's a It's been a bizarrely noisy year for Arizona. The off season's been crazy, and historically the noisy or the off season the worst the season. The Rams are sweart of God, the Rams make no noise. I've been sitting here telling me that for five years. I've never seen a team as good as the Rams. They're never in the news, and now Matt Stafford's got ten nanitis. Who that's about it, big? I mean their stars don't talk. Jalen Ramsey used to be outspoken in verbose, even he's quiet. Nobody talks, Aaron Donald, Matt Stafford, Cooper Cup, Alan Robinson. It's like Bobby Wagner, like it's the quietest team I've ever seen. Arizona's never won anything, and it's just tension anxiety. So Kingsbury, Cliff Kingsbury, the coach, was talking about Kyler Murray had COVID and so we didn't have to practice. But Kingsbury wanted him to get on the headset and call plays at practice to see how hard it is, because I guess Kyler can be very difficult to feed plays to Kingsbury's you know, he's he's rolling his eyes, he's shaking his head, and Kingsbury's like, okay, I want you to call plays for a practice to see how hard it is. And he joked about it after yes that they paying easy, you know, like every now and then he starts shaking his head when I'm calling it in there, I'm like, all right, well go ahead, big dog. You know I would not want to play for Kyler Murray, if I was a quarterback, he was the coach. I think that's a joke. It may not land his one. Listen, I have defended Kyler Murray like for years, so he not all quarterbacks are the same. Kyler and Aaron Rodgers have this thing where they constantly want to remind you they're kind of special. Kyler's like, yeah, I don't really have to watch tape, you know. I'd probably keep that to myself. And Aaron is constantly telling you, yeah, I think about retirement. Maybe I'll play, maybe not. I'd keep that to myself, you know. Aaron's off seasons, he acknowledges, yeah, I'm not gonna sit and watch table all the time. Again, I'd probably keep that to myself. I don't think you have to. I think there's different ways to attack it. By the way, they're both great. They're both gonna end up probably in the Hall of Fame, Aaron Willforshure. The difference, of course, between Aaron and Kyler is this, Aaron has no owner, so he can be chippy and passive, aggressive and take shots at the front office and be hard on his coach right like Aaron was brutal on McCarthy the last couple of years, eye rolling, ripping him in the huddle. It's well documented. He didn't have an owner, nobody to call him out. Kyler's got an owner, and he's already called him out, and he's already added something to his contract and leaked it so it got public. And that's the difference is Aaron's not really hell. Everybody's kind of in Green Bay lucky to have Aaron, and he knows it. Especially since the Jordan Love pick has gone nowhere, it's given him more power. Who's he gonna answer to? Lafleur is gonna bark at Aaron? Really? All right? Play Jordan Love. The front office is all right, I'm out of here. You got Jordan Love. There's no owner. Owners occasionally come downstairs and bark at a player, like they hold you accountable. Green Bay didn't have one. Arizona does, and they've already pushed back a little. So you know, I'm kind of fascinated to watch this division. I've picked Arizona for second because I just think Kyler's reready special. I like a lot of elements of the roster. They picked up another interesting wide receiver. I think like Cincinnati last year. They've got holes on the team. Parts of the team I don't love, but the parts I love, I really love. So I think Arizona wouldn't shock me if they got to the playoffs, wouldn't shock me if they won the division. It wouldn't shock me if they got to the NFC Championship. Because you don't have to be a perfect team. Cincinnati had a bad online and average linebackers. But the parts that were great about Cincinnati, the edge rush, the weapons, the quarterback, the running back were fantastic. But it is you know, if you are special in play by different rules like Kyler and Aaron, you probably don't want to remind people over and over about it. And us goes back to a lot of the times I say about quarterbacks. Fall on the sword, don't win every argument, don't lubricate, don't agitate because you've already make the most money and you've got the most power. Don't remind people of it. Right, be sure to catch live editions of the Herd weekdays and noun Easter, nini empacific. Our phones, our devices have done this to all of us. And I'm guilty, and I don't know if you are. But I think as a society we are less patient that you used to have to, you know, wait for somebody to call you back, or we waited more years ago. You don't wait for anything. Now. You get information when you want it, You get a hold of people when you want. The iPhone has so many benefits. I mean, it's like everything in one pocket. But it's made us less patient. And in sports, I see this all the time, and I especially see it in college football, where a really good coach with a great track record gets a job and you expect him to be great immediately. So Brian Kelly leaves Notre Dame in great shape, go to LSU and a story yesterday cracked me up. So there's a high school right next to LSU stadium and they had this high school football player. His name was Jaden Osberry. He's a great linebacker, and Notre Dame came and stole him from LSU even though he plays in the shadow of their stadium. He's a great, great kid, great player, right, And so LSU fans are freaking out, and it's like, you do get that Notre Dame's got momentum that Brian Kelly created and LSU is a mess that Brian Kelly's trying to fix. Patience. The iPhone wasn't a big deal when Nick Saban was at Michigan State. There was no such thing as the iPhone. Do you get that? Nick Saban the greatest college football coach ever. Year three at Michigan State six and six. Year three at LSU, he lost five games five Nick Saban his first year at Alabama, the best college football program ever. He lost at home to Louisiana Monroe and in year two got smoked in the South to Utah. Brian Kelly is one everywhere. Grand Valley State, Division two, Central, Michigan, Cincinnati, Notre Dame. I thought Notre Dame would never turn it around after Bob Davey, Ty Willingham and Charlie Weiss. I thought it was gonna be like Nebraska. Eight wins, not viable. All four turned around, most of them in year two or three. LSU's in the toughest conference. They're a bit of a mess. He's got to clean it up. And this is the way business works, kids. You got to tear some stuff down as you build it back up. Nick Saban's done it at Michigan State and LSU. He was trying to do it with the Miami Dolphins, and he did it at Alabama, and he didn't really tear it down enough and get it built back up until year three. So yes, Notre Dame is better than LSU this year, and they're gonna win some recruiting battles that they won't win in two and three years down in Louisiana. But I've never seen a single column from a sports riders say you know, I was wrong on Brian Kelly. He's a great coach. I've yet to see that column. People roll their eyes, they mocked at own like him. He's cringey at LSU. He had a bumpy start, very bumpy at Notre Dame, which he acknowledges and we all acknowledge. But it's okay to occasionally admit in our space. Hey, I whiffed. Every Monday, I do a segment Colin right, Colin wrong, four or five times, whiffed. I was talking to a friend about this last night. The political media and the medical media. You guys were wrong on the COVID thing that people go into the beach without a mask in college football games without a mask. We're not going to be massive breakouts. They weren't. Ever could you acknowledge you were wrong? Science is experimental by its nature. Yet everybody had these defiant, definitive opinions about COVID and you were just guessing. Right, It's okay to acknowledge. Masks kind of feel like cosmetic theater and the sun beats down in a virus. You can go outside to the beach. You're not gonna get it. It's like, okay too, admit. Brian Kelly's really good. Everywhere he goes. Every single place he goes, he wins Grand Valley State, I don't even know where it is. Seriously, Cincinnati, one, Central michigany one, big, Notre Dame. He turned it around with all those academic you know, roadblocks, hard place to get it into school, and he's gonna win big at LSU. It's gonna take a while, though it's a mess. It's a great conference, the best by far in college football. I'm George Reister, host of the Reister or Wrong Hidcast. This is the intersection where sports, business, society, and pop culture beat the truth absolute fire on Monday's, Wednesdays and Fridays. Facts only. Make sure you check your feelings at the door because nobodys is allowed. We keep it one hundred. This is where real conversations happen. Listen to the Rights or Wrong podcasts on the iHeartRadio, Apple Apple Podcast or where ever you get your podcasts. Ninety percent of what people say. Nobody wants to get called out anymore. Everybody's terrified of, you know, being wrong, because years ago you were wrong, nobody said anything. Yeah, I get called out. It terrifies. But that's the fun of this business. The fun of this business is taking big swings. Sometimes you crush and sometimes you completely with and I think the audience, I think you deserve it. You have big opinions on sports, I can't go I can't go weak here, I gotta go strong. So we're gonna play today our little game. We're gonna call it the Bold and the hopefully Beautiful. And don't ask me why my forehead gets bigger every year. Okay, these are my five riskiest biggest predictions of the year. Number one, Minnesota wins the NFC North and I think they may win it going away. First of all, fourteen Viking games were decided by one score, easily the most in the league, and They lost eight games by one score, easily the most in the league, but they have pivoted to an offensive coach who will support Kirk Cousins. Between Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, Adam Felham and a certainly serviceable old line. I like their roster. It's a wonky division, and again kirk Cousins like Tua finally as a coach that supports him. I think it matters when any of us have a boss that trusts us, respects us. I think Minnesota's gonna pop. No team that wins eight close games the following year duplicates it, and no team that loses eight close games, including two overtime losses, duplicates that. I think the Vikings win the NFC North. I think they beat the Packers in the opener and they start pulling away by Thanksgiving number two. The Cowboys missed the playoffs. They will not win the division, and they won't even make the wild card. First of all, Dallas has made the playoffs and back to back years since Oh six and oh seven. Lots of areas concerned me didn't land Von Miller and lost Randy Gregory, don't have a world class pass rush that means you can double more often. Michael Parsons. They had notable losses on the offensive line, an aging offensive line Lyle Collins, Connor and Williams, and Tyron Smith is a Hall of Famer but can't stay healthy. The wide receiving corps isn't nearly as dynamic. Ceedee Lamb moves to one, but Cedric Wilson's gone, Amari Cooper's gone, and Michael gallops off an ACL tear. And the truth is, I don't think they have an elite coach. And I think is the game has gotten more sophisticated. That is no longer a luxury, it's a necessity. And I don't think Dallas is a playoff team. Number three big bold prediction. Bill Belichick retires at the end of the season. First of all, retirement's weird. He likes to golf. He's got a house in Jupiter, Florida, and a beautiful girlfriend. Nice round number of seventy. He hasn't named coordinators, He's got kids on the staff. The reality is Bob Kraft and Belichick ev Owa's had a little bit of a turbulent relationship. Kraft was close with Brady. Every book you read about New England. Kraft tolerated a lot of the surliness of Belichick. They were twenty eight ranked in passing. DeVante Parker helps a little. I don't think they're close to Buffalo. Belichick doesn't necessarily love what's happened in the league where players have more power and defense isn't as important. Seventy is a good round number. I think they finished third. He walks off into the sunset to his beautiful Jupiter, Florida home. Golfs is a highly paid consultant for the league. But it's going backwards weird. Wonky reached on a lot of draft picks. I think Belichick retires as the greatest coach of all time through another nine and eight year. Number four. I think Russell Wilson wins MVP. He's never gotten a vote and that's why I think he wins MVP because now I think it's a good story. And I also think between Brady to Tampa and Stafford the Rams, when you come to a team and all they need is a catalyst, there is a certain energy that you bring to a team and hopefulness, and let's be honest, Aaron Rodgers won back to back MVPs played its best football with Nathaniel Hackett, who is now Russell Wilson's coach. Now they have five primetime games and seven nationally televised games. I actually think it helps him. It creates urgency and energy around the program. I think they have the perfect mix of youth between their coach and some of their defensive and offensive players and solid veteran guys. I love their roster. I know it's a hard division, but that helps Russell Wilson because when he puts up good stats, you say, God, he did it against the Chargers and the Raiders and the Chiefs. And in that division, with those great quarterbacks, you've got to run a pretty open offense. You gotta win shootouts. I think he puts up big numbers and wins the MVP because he's the best story. And finally, I think the Rams are going to repeat. I know it hasn't happened since two thousand and three, two thousand and four. A lot of things to remember. Seattle's now tanking, Arizona has been noisy, and we don't know if Trey Lands can play. The division is not as tough as it was. They're going to get more layup wins. Secondly, they didn't have cam Acres last year, and they drafted a running backs, so Stafford will have a better running back game behind him. There's also room for improvement. You know, It's like the games were close in the playoffs, right, San Francisco and Tampa Bay and the Cincinnati Super Bowl, and Stafford led the NFL interceptions, right, So there's like room for improvement. The divisions weaker. They have upgraded at wide receiver with Alan Robinson, they have upgraded at linebacker and leadership with Bobby Wagner. And let's just be honest. The NFC's not as good nor as deep. If Green Bay's not as good, they're not Mike Evans got hurt today. If Tampa and Brady's last year is not quite as dynamic, and I don't think they will be. Who's in their way? Dallas, San Francisco, Noisy Arizona, Philadelphia. Let's be honest. The NFC's got a few good teams at the top. But it's not like the AFC, where you gotta go through the Bills and the Chiefs and the Bengals and the Ravens and the bron Goes. It's not the same thing. It's like within the PAC twelve. You know what I mean. You don't have to be great, you have to be good. So there are my five bold predictions, Risky being vulnerable. Here, Vikings win the NFC North Cowboys missed the playoffs, Belichick retires Russell, Wilson wins MVP, and the Rams repeat one more Herd. The Herd streams twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Within the iHeartRadio app, Search Herd to listen live or on demand whenever you like. Very exciting goosebumps. First practice for Lincoln Riley at USC change the roster, fifty four players from last year gone, and UCLA starting practice two. But USC is a big story in town, and the Rams are a big story in town, and Justin Herbert's a big story in town, and nobody's talking UCLA. And it's interesting, is that as USC as everybody's talking around the country at USC football. Look at USC schedule. Here's what nobody wants to admit. It's hard. They're going to be an underdog at Utah, an underdog at UCLA, and an underdog and will lose to Notre Dame. I predict nine and three if the quarterback stays healthy. Ucla schedule is the weakest in the country. They return most of their best players outside of tight end. They will be an underdog once all year at Oregon, and it will be a small underdog. They're out of conference. Schedule is laughable. Bowling Green Alabama, State, South Alabama, Washington, Utah get them both at home in this year of Lincoln Riley. Do not be shocked if UCLA ends up with a better football team. I'll say it right now. The Bruins win ten games and USC wins nine games, and I'll give The reality in college football is this. There are certain programs Oklahoma, Ohio, State, Alabama, you know, the big dogs right as four or five or six of these programs LSU, Georgia that when you get a good coach, it takes you about a year and a half. You're often great by the second year. Bob Stoops won a Natty second year, Kirby Smart, Georgia great by the second year. Alabama won a title with Saban great by the third year. But UCLA is a basketball school. For most schools, they need four or five years to pop. And this is the I think it's the fifth year for Chip Kelly, and it's perfect. There's no pressure, none at all, none between the Rams Herbert and Lincoln Riley. He returns his quarterback, he returns. They've got very good defensive line play in a conference that doesn't have a lot of it. So as we're talking about USC, I even saw Kirk Herbstreet said this the most underrated team in the country is UCLA. So it's gonna be a good football year in southern California. Between the Trojans, the Bruins, the Chargers, in the Rams, we're very, very lucky here. We have four really interesting football teams, all right. Zach Taylor is the coach the Cincinnati Bengals, and I think one of the reasons you ever watch a story about a young kid or a young person that has to overcome something, it's really emotional. None of us root for the trust Fund kid. Your root for the kid that's come from a tough background or people that have to overcome things in life. That's what they write movies about or do on streaming shows about people overcoming. And so Zach Taylor, coach of the Bengals, was talking this week and he said, listen, we're gonna We're not sneaking up on everybody like we got a huge target on our back. But it is interesting when you look at Zach Taylor. So Matt Lafleur is viewed as this really good coach, but there's a trust fund kid to it. So he takes over the winning stable, talented Aaron Rodgers Packers in a week division, and in the last two years Green Bay has melted down in the fourth quarter at home and playoff games. Tampa and San Francisco absolutely coaching meltdowns. Zach Taylor at Cincinnati takes over a losing, shaking, frugal aging Andy Dalton, not very talented, roster, tougher division. They've gotten better each year and last year they won back to back road playoff games. So Zach Taylor's entire existence in the National Football League is overcoming. They had to find a new quarterback. The division is tougher, he's got an owner that doesn't spend any money in free agency. Then, by the way, Joe Burrow got hurt, so he basically a star quarterback gets hurt. He's gone for a year. The roster was shaky, and Matt Lafleur, what's going to be interesting This is Matt Lafleur's first year of having to overcome something, which is you don't have a number one wide receiver, and so I think this is the test this year. We will see if Matt Lafleur is a good coach. Because I've said this, if you look at Mike McCarthy's postseasons and Matt Lafleur's postseasons, they look a lot. They look a lot the same meltdowns, losing at home, losing as a favorite. Now Lafleur has had a much better regular season because the division's much weaker. Detroit's a mass Chigo's many think is the second worst team in the league to Atlanta. Minnesota has had some dysfunction in recent years, so it's very interesting to contextualize it. We think Matt Lafleur is a great coach, and we thought Zach Taylor was over his head, and this morning, who has had to constantly overcome roster injuries, find a new quarterback facilities they don't have until recently. We're never going to build an outdoor practice facility. They were the only Northern tier team in the league without an indoor practice facility. All Zach Taylor don overcome overcome overcome overcome overcome, win in the road, Lafleur, just don't wreck the Mercedes. You got Aaron Rodgers, you got Aaron Jones. He inherited everything. He inherited. You know, I think the inherited backtr and Davante Adams and Aaron Jones and stability and winning and they. So I'm interested to see Green Bay. This is a real Allene, this is a real challenge. Try to make two rookies work with Aaron Rodgers, who, like Tom Brady, is not fond of depending on rookie wide receivers. Let's be fair here. Brady didn't like it either. Brady loved Mike Evans. Brady went right to Mike when he showed up in Tampa. Brady went right to Mike Evans. And then he wanted Gronk in a b in New England. Who did he want? He wanted Wes Welker already in the league. He wanted Randy Moss. They struggle dressed. So Tom and Aaron. You know, we love Tom and we're critical of Aaron. It's the same thing. They don't work. You come into this league, they're on you're on their timeline. It's like the Warriors Steph Curry. They're not playing coming in the playoffs. They're not playing Moses Moody or James Wiseman. They're not ready to help Steph Curry. You're not getting on the floor in the playoff games. So I think it's really interesting. I think this is the first time we'll see if Matt Lafluor is a good coach, because I've watched two fourth quarter home meltdowns. Is a favorite, and that's where I'm gonna judge you. Not beating the dysfunctional Bears Lions. I'm that smart. I'm not judging on that. McCarthy did that and he got run out of town, and we don't think McCarthy's a great coach, and McCarthy won a Super Bowl. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays in noon Easter not Ampacific on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app. I haven't talked to Melvin Gordon in a while. Now. He's a Broncho running back, eighth year, two Pro Bowls, by the way, eight rushing touchdowns in six straight years. Nobody in the NFL's got a longer streak. How about that? And Melvin Gordon is joining us now, So I picked you to win the division. I love me some Russell Wilson. So let's just tell us Melvin, I haven't seen you in a while. The vibe with Russell, how is it? I mean you had Philip Rivers Phillips a trash talker and Russell's not. I mean, what's Russell like to be around to practice? Yeah? He good man. He'd be locked in though, say the least man. He wants everybody bets and that's kind of how he come in every day man. He straightforward man. He bought business. When he had work, he clocked in and it's just kind of he he all about football. Yeah, it's crazy. So Nathaniel Hackett is the offensive coordinator. He did Wonders in Green Bay head coach now of Denver. He was the quarterback coach in Green Bay. Where am my guy going? There we go? So Nathaniel, tell me give me a little story on Hackett. What's he like? What do you like? What are you making Nathaniel Hackett your coach? Um man hack cool man, Hacker cool dude. Um, It's something that I'm definitely not. I'm not used to be honest, and it was just I'm so used to like serious coaches all the time. And his personality. Man, he's so chill, he's so vide out there. You know, he's not one of them coaches. When you see him, you walked the other way. Um, I mean he cool man. He wants the best for everybody, lookout for us. Man. So I'm appreciative of him. I mean, he knowing the lock in, he knowing tap in. He holds everyone accountable. Um, he shows us our mistakes, he shows us the plays, the good plays that we made. Um, you know, he do what a good coach supposed to do. Javonte Williams is your backfield mate. Young guy is a stud. So you got a two tandem running situation. Um, you got good receivers. Timmy Patrick's out for the year, but you got good receivers. What is the offense do you think gonna look like? What's the balance gonna look like? Melvin? Uh Man, I'm hoping. I'm hoping that we could hit hit from every cylinder, you know what I mean. I think, Um, we got the receivers that we need to push the ball down the field. Um, we got Judy to create separation. Um, you know, we got Court, the big ball guy, like I said, the stretch the field along with with uh, you know, with kJ Um and then me and Javanta, you know we we we could do it all. And then obviously you got Russell Um who could also who could also run, impass the ball on a dime. Um got precision, can throw the deep ball, can run out the back I field, so he helps us out in the run game as well. So you know, I'm assuming that I'm I'm hoping man that that you know, we messed good, um and we come out and be hitting on every cylinder. Man, Listen, you're the third leading roger in the league since Jander that seven years ago. You're an old veteran now, right, Like do you hit? Yeah? I mean you got a new young coach. You're an old veteran. Do you like that role? Are you a little bit of a mentor? You talkative? You verbal? What's it like? Um, it's different, it's different, man. Uh, you know it kind of the role kind of came so fast. Uh, to be honest, Um, to be it to being you know with the Chargers, like I said before, to being one of the younger guys and and then coming here and then being one of the older guys in the room is kind of crazy. Um, but you know, I definitely mentor when I can. I'm still competing, you know. I feel like I still got traded on the tires. Yeah, so I'm still out here competing, you know. But um, you know, like like Wood had taught me, Man, no matter how old you are, young you are if you you know, you always be a sponge and always be willing to learn. And if you know something that you know another player, don't, um, you know, you should be more than open and willing to let that person know. You know, this is what I see, this is what I feel. You can do better, And you know, I'll tell you what I can tell you. And if you know you you take that for what it's worth, you know. Tom Talesco, the GM of the Chargers, told me that it was one of the toughest moves of his career and he didn't sleep and it made him sick that that he realized at some point they had some other positions and you moved on. Any bitterness. I mean, I always think this, if I was a broadcaster and somebody said you know, we don't want anymore. I'd be kind of pissed. I'd have a little chip on my shoulder. Is there a little bit of you that thinks, man, I'm gonna be big two times a year against the Chargers. I mean, man, that's anybody that you know, you you you get part of away from your team. Uh, you know you you want to. I want to score against them boys so bad, I really, I really do. And it's just funny, man, because I still in Callie, So I still, you know, train with Keenan a lot. I go chill that Mike. I live down the street from Mike um Derwin, So I still, you know, top it up with those boys a lot. Man. But um, I'm not bitter. You know, I understand it's a business. And Um, I had a great relationship with Tom. Um. You know, he still wished the best for me. Um for every game. You know, he makes sure he speak the whole organization speak to me. He went out when we play him the equipment guys. Uh, you know Duddy, Autumn guys. I know Autumn guys, and we're still we're still in contact. So um they still so love. But that don't change anything. You know when we're playing them, you know, I definitely want to win and I need to score. I got to I got two chances. Yeah, there you go. Finally, Melvin, Uh, you played on good Charger teams that were talented. I picked Denver to win the division. I think Denver has a real chance to get to the Super Bowl. Um, tell me about the overall talent. Compare it to the last year with the Chargers. I think this team you're on is I don't think people get quite how good it is. Then you added Randy Gregory, the defensive lineman from I mean, when you're at practice every day, does this feel like the most talented team you ever been on? It? Do it? Do? It's up there, man, Um, it's up there. We had a talented team with the Chargers. Um, but I think I think the defense, uh, you know, this is a little bit better just all around. Um. You know, I think we saw it upfront, crazy upfront. Um, you know throughout the line, h the linebackers are are are are great. Um, the corners phenomenal. Pat is crazy like just yeah yeah, I mean he's I mean, I honestly think he might be the best corner in the league. You know at some point in a couple of years, um, not this year. Um. But those guys, I mean I see him every day in practice. Kjack Man. Those guys are so smart and you know they they I'll be seeing the best. So I don't know what they're saying about our defense, but uh, you know firsthand, you know those boys gonna be locking stuff down. But we got a top tier team. Uh. It sucks that we lost him, um because he was definitely one of our key pieces. But you know, we got some good guys that's gonna step up and make some names for themselves. And I think I think we up there. Man. We had a good team with the Charges, but you know we run a hand to hand. That's the show. But Broncos have led the NFL and rushing touchdowns last couple of years. You had almost nine and twenty yards ten touchdowns. If you have a fantasy team, get him on you. Melvin Gordon a good dude. The one thing your career hasn't had is a lot of playoffs. Seven years one time. I'm wishing you the best. I think you got a great club and it's good seeing you again. You look healthy and happy. Man. I appreciate save