Thanks for listening to The Herd podcast. Be 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 heard you're listening to Fox Sports Radio. This is The Herd. It's our chew live in La. The Herd Nick Wright. In less than ten minutes, heard hied her or heard hierarchy around the corner. Um got a lot of good stuff today. So I was saying last night, I always thought mac Jones is a franchise quarterback. I thought they had a low scene. But I sometimes when people are in duress and it's not their best night. I said this about Caleb Williams when he won the Heisman. I knew he was great when he after halftime with a pulled hamstring, came out and limped his way up the field. It was one of his weaker performances. I thought it sealed the Heisman. I'm like, you know, it's like the greatest flight Sully Sullenberger ever had was a crash. Yeah, that was his greatest flight. We always knew he was competent. Caleb Williams was always competent. Mac Jones is absolutely a franchise quarterback. I think he has low ceiling, but looking what he's dealing with right now and winning on the road with No. Number one, plus Stevenson's hurt, Harris has hurt, Davante Parker's got I think he's in concussion product. I mean, they got all sorts of injuries on the road. As like, it's not everybody knows on your everybody has good days at work, but it's when fit hits the shands and you can still make the sale and bring it home. It's like, that's impressive. Well, they got a little lucky. Kyler Murray goes down a few plays into the game, DeAndre Hopkins fumbles it, Patriot scoop and score. Colte McCoy throws an awful interception. I think Colin this Kyler Murray sit you ation gets very interesting in Arizona because acl injury probably means he's out until at least Halloween or Thanksgiving. And if Cliff Kingsbury follows up this clunker with another one, do they go get a quarterback in the offseason? He's got some decisions to make, all right. Now, these are not standings. It's not what we knew here. That's the other network. These are I believe this morning that ten best teams in the NFL. Here we go heard hierarchy. The top ten NFL teams according to College much much to the chagrin of McIntyre, barely New England best coach in the NFL. They've scored ninety two points off turnovers, leads the NFL. They're all banged up, so that's not their best. That's why they threw so much behind the line of scrimmage. And here's my thing, they're still very good situationally. And I will say it again. I was impressed with mac Jones last night. He's got nothing to work with and I think this kid in we can sit and bang on him. But I watched them last night and I'm like, he's got a defensive coordinator. Colin plays, he's barking, he's showing leadership. New England at ten. Number nine, the Vikings. I like the Vikings, but there's limitations. First team in league history to win ten of its first thirteen with a negative point differential. They've got a very low ceiling, but they're very capable. They're nine and oh and one possession games. Credit to Kirk Cousins and the coach. Justin Jefferson is a game changer. They went to Buffalo and one. He can literally win you a game on a road, and there are not many guys like this at Tyreek Hill and Justin Jefferson a Jamaar Chase where they can just you know, we know quarterbacks, we know Mahomes can do it. He's one of the only non quarterbacks you can go on the road, good team, and he just takes the game over Minnesota nine number eight. Listen, I'm gonna put the Dolphins in there. They're going through a bad stretch. They're struggling in protection. There's a ton of injuries with this team. I did not bail on the Niners earlier this year when they had seven starters out. I'm not bailing on the Dolphins. They'll score, they'll make the playoffs. They'll sneak in. They will sneak in. I still have so much respect for their receiving corps, their left tackle, their head coach. This is a team They're not gonna beat a top team in the league. But they could get into a shootout with teams if they have protection. Absolutely could get in a shootout with a Cincinnatian Buffalo, hopefully not in a snowstorm. But I put them at eight, number seven. Say what you will about the Ravens, and they drive me nuts. Have you looked at their defense since Week nine? It's like one two or three in the league on everything. Yes, yes, they're struggling offensively, but since Roquan Smith got there twenty three takeaways this year, only the Eagles have more. They're gonna be in every single football game. You just They're just gonna be in every game. And so to me, you're a top six seven team in the league if you're in every game. Lamar will eventually get healthy, so they'll be more dynamic offensively. Ravens at seven, number six, the Cowboys are at six. They tend to be you know, they're great when they're playing downhill. The less they rely on Dak, the better. Back to back years with ten plus wins. McCarthy may not be Andy Reid, but he's clearly capable four hundred plus yards in five or six games. Tony Pollard has emerged as a home run hitter The key with Dallas is very simple. You gotta ask Dak to throw fewer than thirty five times. I think we had the stat yesterday. When Mahomes throws thirty five times or more, Kansas City's forty three and fifteen. When Dallas does it, they lose two out of three. There's a way they have to play to win, but they do it often. They're at six, number five, Buffalo. Listen, Josh Allen didn't play particularly well and they still won. A part of that's the Jets defense. But von Miller's injury I think takes him out of the top three. You know, Cole Beasley, I'm not sure what that's all about. They've held opponents to one touchdown in back to back weeks, but I do think von Miller was brought in for a reason and he is gone. They do also tend to bail on the running game faster than I like. Right now, they have a knockout punch, but to be a heavyweight champ, do they have a jab? Kansas City's got both, Cincinnati's got both. San Francisco's got both. Gotta be more than a knockout specialist. Buffalo at five, number four, The Niners at four. I'd probably have him a spot higher, but brock Purty, I don't know. In the postseason, they've outscored their opponents. Since brock Purty took over sixty five to ten. They've outgained their opponents in twelve of thirteen games. I believe this is the best roster in football. Even their offensive players are physical. They do have a lower ceiling at quarterback, but they're the only team in the NFL. This is an interesting stat the only team to have more interceptions fourteen than touchdown passes allowed eleven. They are a handful defensively San Francisco at four number three, but Kansas City worked him in this second half in the Bay Area. I don't take much of the Denver game. They led twenty seven and nothing. What are you gonna do. You'renna go into a locker room. You're gonna tell a team, Hey, this game's in doubt. I don't care much about that. Number one total offense in the league. Mahomes leaves the NFL in passing yards they do. I think sometimes miss the explosiveness and the urgency that Tyreek Hill could get you. But this is still the most lethal offense, the most clever offense, the most coachable star quarterback in the league. I've got them at three, number two, but I do think situationally, Cincinnati's a little better, and I'm gonna have the Bengals who have won seven of eight and nine of eleven. Here's the key of this team, though, this offensive line. They went and bought it right, They went and bought some players. They were really rough in the first two or three weeks. Burrow was sitting in that pocket with time to throw, and they're running the football. So this is the kind of team that can keep the ball away from Mahomes. That's why Buffalo doesn't scare Kansas City because they bail on their run game. This team's got two running backs. This team's got an offensive line now that will eat the clock and has a star quarterback. Cincinnati at number two, number one, I think we have to give it to Philadelphia. There's there's a number here that's pretty amazing that they lead the NFL in one hundred and ten big plays. That's eleven more than like number two. They've got three players on this team with ten plus scrimmage touchdowns. I think I heard somebody else say This may have been at this network, but I heard somebody say this weekend, anytime a team can beat like three or four ways, they feel like a super Bowl team. They can beat you with defense, they can beat you with a rush, they can beat you on the ground, they can beat you through the air, they can beat you with a quarterback moving. They're just doing a lot of things right. I haven't seen it yet in the playoffs, but this is not a playoff Herd hierarchy. This is a regular season Herd hierarchy. And right now I have them at number one. I think those those top three teams are pretty tight. It's pretty tight in there, all right. First things first, is a new show, and they're crushing it. By the way, saw the ratings yesterday. They're crushing it. We have a little envy. It is the only show on cable news or sports with no budget, unlimited budget, unlimited. It's yeah, that's the yeah. I mean, but I'm pitching in my own money, Colin. Maybe you could do that too. I mean, I mean, the reason we have unlimited budget is because I'm self funding. In part. They told me they asked you years ago to do that and you rejected it. But how are you doing? Great hurt hierarchy. I agree with a lot of it. Patriot's a touch high, but other than that, I'd maybe flip flop the Niners and the Eagles. I think the Niners look terrifying, utterly terrifying, even with parties the quarterback. But yeah, it's a really good hurt hierarchy. Okay, So you know, I'm a Herbert guy because I used to work in Portland and he's such a great kid, and he used to listen to me as a kid. Not gonna lie that matters, it does anyway. So he was in a backseat of his car with his grandpa going to school. So I like him, but I also like him because he's amazing. It's hard to watch that game and not just say let's stop the debate, right, Like it's hard to say that, right Yeah, well no, I mean, of course, and it shouldn't have been a debate. And I listen, I say this with no disrespect at all to our mutual friend and colleague Emmanuel Acho. But you and I, both behind the scenes and you in front of the cameras, tried to talk Emmanuel out of that opinion, and he was in transigent he didn't want to move, and then the game happened. And listen three for seventeen to start a football game. That sometimes happens in the NBA for a guy that's having a bad shooting night. It never is supposed to happen to an NFL quarterback. Ever. I think our friend Ryan Leaf once started a Chief's game four for eighteen and it was considered the worst game of his career. Now he had some interceptions mixed in. So the dichotomy between Tua having one of the worst games we've seen from any quarterback in the league all season and Herbert playing a nearly flawless football game up until the fumbled snap at the end. To me, listen, there's Patrick Mahomes and then there's that next tier of NFL quarterbacks where there's Joe Burrow. I would have him next, but some people would argue, hey, give Jalen Hurts his credit. I know there are still people that I haven't watched football in the last two months, So they put Josh Allen in that group, and justin Herbert is in that discussion. Then there's another tier of quarterback that Dak Prescott is in. There's Aaron Rodgers, you know at this point is he's still in it. I'm not certain other guys. And then there's another tier of quarterback that the top end is your guy, Derek Carr ya Tua is in that tier. And by the way, I give him credit for being in that tier, because going into this year I thought he was going to be closer to the Marcus Mariota tier. He has proven that is not the case. But if I were the Dolphins Colin, I would be very, very concerned that the brilliant defensive coordinator in San Francisco, Damiko Ryan's unlocked something in that jamming these receivers and throwing off the timing. And when we saw it happen, I think a lot of us said, Okay, that was great, but that's also the best defense in football that did it. But when the Chargers JV team, with all those injuries, when they're able to do it, that to me is greatly concerning. If I'm a Miami Dolphins team with a pretty tough schedule the rest of the way, I'm not saying concerning like they're gonna fall all the way out of the playoffs, even though that is still on the board, but concerning and that this team has been figured out to a degree, and I don't think two is going to have the answers for you know, speaking of Brock Pretty, it's I watched the preseason game, but Brock pretty and my takeaway was, gosh, for the last guy taking in a draft, he's pretty. I saw him playing college and I'm like, there is a history in the NFL, as you know, because Mahomes fills this. Most of the great quarterbacks did not go to Bama, Michigan, Ohio State. No, they didn't. They go to non traditional football powers where they get beat up, run for their life and have to elevate non NFL players. That's Mahomes, that's Josh Allen. And I watched Brock Purty and I'm like, you know, Nick, that coach doesn't ask you to be Mahomes. You can. I look at him and I think absolutely, outside of going to Philadelphia, which I'm not sure about, this kid can play half this league is undrafted, right, Like, what do you make of him? Yeah, well, well, listen, I think Brock Purdy has been excellent through seven quarters. I you know, I'm gonna, you know, reserve judgment because you know, I'm honest with the audience. I don't grind college football the way you do Colin, so I didn't watch a ton of him at Iowa State. So most of my Brock Purty experience has come in these last two weeks where he's played well. I assume at some point he regresses. But this to me, and I know this is hard for you, but this is not about Brock Party. This is about Jimmy Garoppolo. Because if we ever wanted to get a case study, then the San Francisco forty nine ers are a paint by numbers offense. We are getting it right now because their quarterback is literally nicknamed mister Irrelevant. And that game on Sunday they looked more dynamic offensively than they've looked at any point with Jimmy Garoppolo. And one other thing that I think this NFL season is teaching us is that the teams and the coaches and the gms that try to move off their own quarterbacks there is a reason for it. The Seattle Seahawks were fine waving goodbye to Russell Wilson. They knew something. The Miami Dolphins tried two separate times to replace two a tongue of Iloa. Now they've said all the right things after that, and he had a great two months. But there's a reason for it. And the San Francisco forty nine ers moved heaven and earth to try to move up to get an elite passer because I think they believed they were getting the minimum from that position. And the fact that the two hundred and sixty second pick of the draft can step in, Kyle Shanahan can say, we don't really have to change much, if I'm being honest with you. And in fact, what they changed was they added levels to the passing game where they he in the second quarter Sunday through more deep or as many deep touchdowns outside the numbers Colin as Jimmy is thrown in the last three years. Brock Purty in one quarter threw as many deep outside the number touchdowns as jimmyj has thrown in three years. I think it shows you why the Niners were so desperate for an upgrade, because I do think that team, with that defense, that personnel and now Christian McCaffrey, if they simply have above average quarterback, they're the super Bowl favorite. We'll see if Rock Burty can give them that. We knew, or at least I knew. Jimmy Garoppolo couldn't I know? You know, you're you know, you're bewitched by the dentals. So at times you get the quarterback wins thing gets you. The MVP race is sort of Jalen Hurts and Mahomes, although I think I think Burrow is really good, but he's not going to be it. Yeah, um, I would guess you'd take Mahomes. That would be my guess if you had to vote. Okay, So let's just let's try to do this fairly. Okay. And by the way, Burrow I think is on the fringes of it. Yes, I think Burrow if they if they run the table and Mahomes and Hurts stumble, then I then I think that Burrow is on has a chance to steal it. But right now it is a two person race between Hurts and Patrick Mahomes. So Mahomes is a thousand more yards and nearly I think nine more touchdowns, And you might well, Nick, what about the rushing? Okay, when you add the rushing to the passing, Mahomes still has more yards and still has more touchcounts. Okay, Nick, what about the win loss record. Well, one team's twelve and one and one team's ten and three. They both played the Colts. Against the Colts, the Chiefs defense allowed to touch down at the end. The Eagles defense got a stop at the end, and then they drove down the field. So to me, I'm not going to do it based on the record when they both are, you know, either at the top or tied for the top in their conference. Here's what I would like to do when it comes to Mahomes and Hurts. Let's do a tale of the tape, Colin, and you tell me which team you would take. Eagles are Chiefs. Who is the better offensive line? Colin? Well, the Eagles offensive line is considered better. Agreed, Yeah, all right? Who has the better running game? The better running backs? Eagles? Eagles are yea Eagles? Right? Who has the better receivers? Well, at the high end, yeah a J. Brown, it would be the Eagles. Yeah. And DeVante Smith would also be the best receiver on the Chiefs, so they have two receivers. Even if you're throwing Kelsey, you'd still be the Eagles as a whole. Who is the better front seven? Defensively? Chiefs is underrated? But Philadelphia, Okay, who is the better secondary? Yeah, i'd be Philadelphia. Okay, who is the better quarterback? Yeah? I mean what are we doing? What are we doing? I mean, give me a break here. I mean, Philly, there is not a single unit on the Chiefs that the Eagles would trade for except for quarterback. And they couldn't make that phone call quick enough. Do you think Philly if they're like, hey, you want Mahomes the rest of the year and we'll take jail And they'd be like, no, actually, we love Jailen's quarterback sneaks so much we're gonna write it out. I mean, come on. And so I understand people might be like, well, just because Mahomes is better doesn't mean he's the MVP. But he also leads. I mean he leads the entire NFL in passing yards and passing touchdowns. And we've become so spoiled to him that he had a play on Sunday, Colin that was the play of the year in the NFL, and we're like, oh, yeah, that was Mahomes. And your buddy Peter King Kevin Wilds pointed this out to me. Your buddy Peter King, who I have massive respect and love for In the article on Monday arguing for Hurts to be MVP, one of his sentences was he makes positively Mahomes in plays, well what are we doing? But yes, agreed, he does things similar to Patrick Mallomes, which is a great compliment, but does not mean he should be the MVP over Patrick Mahomes. Like we did a thing at the beginning of the year, Colin, were because Josh Allen almost beat Patrick Mahomes, he was the MVP favorite. And now because at times Jalen Hurts reminds you of Patrick Mallomes, he's the MVP favorite. What he's given to Mahomes, that's a pretty good call. One minute left, I want to throw an MBA question. So the Celtics were rolling. They go west, where the Warriors and Clipper have multiple wing defenders. They slow down Jason Tatum and this team is essentially a one man offense. That's all they are is that. It is interesting that there is a way to beat the Celtics, and we saw it twice in the last four days. Throw the kitchen sink. If you have elite wing defenders and they are a one man offense. Love Malcolm Brogden not gonna give you twenty five regularity is that the Celtics will be again a great story come out of the East, and there's no chance they beat the Clippers of the Warriors in seven am I nuts? Oh well, I agree with some of that. I think we got to give Jaylen Brown credit because Jaylen Brown has been exceptional this year. Yes, he's been a fringe all NBA guy, so I wouldn't quite call it a one man offense. But I understand your point. I am not going to worry about the Clippers at all because the Clippers are not a real basketball team. Kawuhi after the game yesterday, I said, he doesn't even want to play right here. He's not worried about the regular season. I mean, Kawai scored twenty points for the first time all season yesterday. So to me, the Clippers are a non factor here where I am concerned about the Celtics as this they had they had looked like the best team in basketball by a decent margin, and then all of a sudden, the team that undressed them in three straight games in the NBA Finals they had to play them, and it looked like it was a fourth straight game of the NBA Final did against the Warriors. That to me was as much psychological edge as it was tech tactical edge. And here's the other thing you said at the end of there, they'll just get out of the East. Listen, my pick before the year was the Sixers. That is not looking great at the moment. We'll see. But if we were to get an Eastern Armorence finals of Celtics Bucks, if the Bucks are healthy, I have no reason to believe the Celtics are better because the Celtics don't have an answer for Yannis. They didn't last year, and last year they escaped with no Chris Middleton playing for Milwaukee. So I listen, I think the Celtics are really really good and at the top, you know, near the top of the list of contenders. But I do think that you make some good points, and I think that Warriors game was really concerning. Yeah, the Celtics had a really bad second half, Tatum wilted and the Warriors pulled away and blew them out. Nick, right, great, see anybody, first things first, after our show. See you man, all right? Take care? Yeah, he makes good arguments on Mahomes and that is that is It doesn't really count for MVP. But if you called privately and said I want to swap Mahomes for Hurts, everybody in the league would take it. Every It's just like it's like Herbert and Tua. There's not a GM in the league, including Miami's that wouldn't take Herbert over to it, right, But I don't think that's the question for MVP, but it is. It does put an exclamation point when you talk about how a guy is Mahomes like he is now the standard. Patrick's the standard of the league. For years and years, Brady would win, but we use Aaron as the standard. Like I think one of the stories this year is we have three young quarterbacks. Four they've moved past Aaron, Herbert, Burrow, Mahomes, and Alan. Nobody's taking Aaron over those guys. Nobody's even taking the phone call. By the way, if we're being real and I have Mahomes on my fantasy team, he was bad this week against Denver. Those interceptions were not like unlucky, those were bad interceptions. Well, they're asking more of him because the run game's inconsistent. They didn't have Tyreek Hill, so they're kind of piling more on him and asking him to do more. Which is why I think Cincinnati it's feeling like they I hate to use the word vulnerable. No, I think Cincinnati would beat them in the AFC Championship. I think Cincinnati does not rely on Burrow as much. They have two running backs, their defense post second half. When Cincinnati didn't run the ball earlier this year, you were asking a ton of Burrow. Now they can run the football. Burrow didn't get sacked, Burrow's not throwing picks. It still has to be one of the five craziest decisions this season when Andy Reid kicked that fifty five yard field goal Cincinnati instead of going for it on like fourth and six, fourth and seven with the great quarterback that everybody loves. I'm so angry at Andy Reid. Yeah, it cost me some money. Yeah, it always comes down to that 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. You have a chance to win ten thousand dollars from playing Argentina Croatia World Cup semifinals match. Playing along on Fox Super six. Download the free Super six app on your phone and make your six game predictions for your chance to win. Big. Ratings are up. Who you got in that one? Eighteen percent from the last World Cup eighteen Yeah, and the games are on early in the morning. No, no, no, it's amazing against football. When you consider what the World Cup has to go up against, it's never in the fall, so it's going up against football. Secondly, there have been like these two in the morning games. For the ratings to be up eighteen percent are insane. It shows you the growth of the sport in this country. This was not idea. If it's here or Canada or the whole different ball game ratings will be up thirty percent. So the rely you don't have to like soccer, but if you're not, if you're still denying it. An mL last team costs thirty five million bucks about ten years ago. Now they're all like three hundred million dollars. They're all exploding, and I'm it's remarkable if you look at when we have put this, Like the Women's World Cup goes in the summer, so it runs mostly unopposed. You know, some baseball games, watch the numbers, the Women's World Cup is going to get a huge, huge number, And in four years when it's here in the States, it will it will compete and beat some NFL stuff. It's growing, it will it Will it be in the summer, Alex Yeah, yeah, yeah, so so the men in four years in the summer, the women's this year in the summer, those are gonna be huge numbers. Yeah. I'm I'm blown away by it, considering what the time because of Qatar or what it's going up against. Yeah, how about the timing of me buying into a soccer team last year? Not bad? Huh? I go? Can I pat myself on the back without injuring my shoulder? Worn Buffett over here? Jmack with the news. No, no, this is the herd line news. So this Kyler Murray injury last night, Colin I was pretty tore up about it. I'm a big Kyler Murray fan. It's fun to watch ACL injury and it's non contact. Yeah, this damn turf out here. Anyways. Copeakoy came on to finish. Afterwards. He spoke about how hard it was to see his teammate go down and get carted off brutal as a group. We've just got to buckle down and play well together, practice well together and finished this, finish these last four games out, you know, one at a time. And I think that that will be my focus. And you know, it sucks for Kyler, like just we've been together for two years. We worked together every day, Like I don't ever want to see anything like that happened. I know how much he cares about the game, I know how hard he works. Um, it's just unfortunate. And you know, I think I'll be able to form. I'm around him through this because I've dealt with many in my career. Yeah, Colt's pretty good back up, he really is. You know, well, okay, backup for you know, a half or a game or two. Colin, He's probably gonna have to start ten to twelve games next year. What do you do if you're Arizona you have Colt McCoy start ten or twelve games. Are you drafting a quarterback third fourth round? I am always unless I have Burrow Herbert Mahomes. Listen, the Patriots Ted Brady. They drafted a quarterback seemingly every other year. Every now it was fourth round, six rounds. You can always flip them. I am always looking to draft a quarterback unless I have Burrow Mahomes, Alan Herbert. That's about it. This is where it gets to maybe Jalen Hurts. Now, I mean that it's about five six guys otherwise and they're in their prime. Otherwise I'm drafted quarterbacks. I'm just you know, I know they paid Kyler Murray. What if Kingsbury sees a guy says man, I could do some things with that guy. Well, then from the offense, I wore you absolutely, I think you have to. I don't think you do it in the first round, No, second, third, four, I got no. Hey, listen, Brady was winning Super Bowls and they picked Jimmy Garoppolo in the was a second round. I forget the second or third one. Yeah, I mean, it's like and then Brady was Brady didn't like it. But it's like Brady was still crushing people. You know, he was still rolling. And then if you if you find a guy who fits Kingsbury system and does well, hey, Kyler, no rush, Hey hey, stay on the sidelines. Take your time, buddy. Keep an eye on that situation in Arizona. Next up, Miami Dolphins. This is comical Colin. They had heaters on their sidelines for the game out here in La at so Fi Sunday night, temperatures were in the mid fifties. Chilly, you know, I like Jacket in December. Sofi Stadium had the roof obviously, but there are some like wind tunnels that kind of comes. You can see an open air stadium perfect most of the time. It's perfect. Is that being said? Heaters on the bench soft guys from Miami have to then fly back across the country to Miami, then fly north to Orchard Park this weekend. I think that's I think it has a chance to be ugly short week right they all Saturday night? Oh no, you know cold it can get Saturday night in Orchard Park. Oh they're calling for temperatures in the twenties. Oh it's over maybe teens and wind chance of snow. I like Buffalo. I like Buffalo. I mean, listen, I think seven and a half. Oh, I'd take Buffalo. Remember there, this is a revenge spot. Buffalo by three touchdowns. You know I don't like blowouts. Buffalo buy three touches. Also, and again, I think I said this yesterday. If you watch Buffalo Jets closely in the second half, Buffalo was showing nothing, a lot of basic stuff, no exotic plays. They weren't even really looking to move the ball. They were like, we got this one in the bag. Just park the bus here, get the next week, get some revenge on Miami. All right, this feels this does feel like blow out phones and we will wrap up with a sad story. Mississippi State head football coach Mike Leach has passed away. Leach was a head coach for twenty one seasons, spending time at Texas Tech in Washington State before joining Mississippi State in twenty twenty. Leaves behind a legacy of the air raid offense and will always be remembered for his fun and eccentric personality. Mike Leach was sixty one years old. Major impact Lincoln Riley, of course getting his start. Not only did he share all his quirkiness with us, which is, you know a lot of people are quirky, but you know a little they don't want to put it out there. Mike put it all out there. But a real major influence you start going, you know, like we all know Bill Walsh West Coast offense had an influence in the NFL. Mike Leach, his fingerprints are all over USC's offense, these air raid offenses, the offense that Patrick Mahomes played in a real inn of and you know a lot of times within it. Sometimes people who are eccentric, he was a little eccentric, aren't appreciated until they're gone. Like Mike was appreciated while he was here. I mean it was really when he went into hospice. I mean, the internet just exploded. I think Mike understood how important he was for the sport and his it really is. You start going to the top coaches, offensive coaches, all of them are like, oh, I took that from Leech. I took that from Leech. So he was an innovator that I think, And this is a great thing we appreciated when he was here, Mike Leach. And with that we'll take a break The Herd. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine a Empacific on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app. Hey what's up, everybody? It's me three time Pro Bowl of le Warrington and I couldn't be more excited to announce a new podcast called Up on Game? What is up on Game? You asked, along with my fellow pro bowler t J. Hudshmansatta and Super Bowl champion. Yep, that's right, Plexico Burds. You can only name a show with that type of talent on it. Up on Game. We're going to be sharing our real life experiences loaded with teachable moments. Listen to Up on Game with me LeVar Arrington, t J. Huschmansatta, and Plexico Birds on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcast from. Think about your happy play sulf on game Day, fishing boat, wherever it is, driveway dot com, check it out, let you buy or sell a car from there. So there was a report and I talked about it with Albert Breer earlier. I thought it was fairly substantial that basically the night before each game Brady now runs a separate meeting with the Buck Skill players. He doesn't tell Byron left foot, he doesn't tell Todd Bowls. He just does it and then they have to figure it out during the game. So he would never do that with Josh McDaniels in New England. Right like Tom versus Time. We all watched that documentary or most of us did who like sports, and I mean they were, you know, conjoined at the hip during the off season. So this is why San Francisco makes so much sense. Brady's career in New England was about defense, coaching, and culture, and then in Tampa he wanted more control and he got weapons, but he didn't have the coaching and the culture. San Francisco gives you all that stuff. You get the weapons, you get the coaching, you get the culture, and you get the defense. And I do think Tom realizes, the older he gets, this is the perfect spot for him. He could retire or pick and choose. You really get everything an older quarterback wants, you know. And Aaron Rodgers will tell people privately he's never had great defenses, and it's fair. Peyton Manning mostly did not have great defenses. So Brady's had the great defense and he won, and he's had the great coaching and he won. And he had great weapons in Tampa in a very loose culture and he won. But now he didn't have the culture, he didn't have the coaching with Bruce arians going upstairs, the defense is kind of hit and miss, and so I don't think Brady wants to do these meetings. He's not a control freak. He likes being hardly a hard coached. He liked McDaniels. Now it wore him out after twenty years of Belichick. He's not a control freak. We've never seen Tom as a control freak. He's doing this because he's telling you, I'm not getting it upstairs. I'm having to do this. So you know, I always said this about the late Kobe Bryant. Kobe Bryant wanted to be the man. He didn't want to be the only man. He wanted to leave the Lakers and go to Chicago because they wouldn't get him a second star. Then they made the deal for Pau Gasol. Tom wants to have a say. He doesn't want to have to have v say in coaching. He wants somebody else to come in here and get it done. And I said this when this thing first happened. Lucky enough join and I we broke this on the air, and I said, my only concern because I worked in Tampa for two years. Boston's a very academic city. There's fifty one universities within the Boston metro area, and the teams are early on analytics. The Patriots were very academic and very culture driven and very discipline. And it's a northern city. It gets dark early. We're going to film room where you lived in the office. Tampa. It's a port city. It's fun, it's loose, it's squirrely. It's always had big personalities. It's always sort of underachieved. They've occasionally been great, but then they're awful four years later. I always thought it was going to be. It's one of those things where what you're attracted to is not what you should marry. You can date, it, shouldn't marry it. There's a part of Brady that really misses elite coaching, elite culture, discipline, working around the clock. But he knows that New England didn't have the weapons and they've got their quarterback. He wants to go to San Francisco and get that. I think Belichick and Kyle are intellectual, and that's nothing against the coaches he has now, but those guys are like top of the food chain. I mean, there's Lincoln Riley's like a different level and Shanahan and you know, there's just a handful of coaches that are that I think pushed Tom and are hard on Tom, and though it wore him out, he misses that. It's really hard. It's like they always say about parent you can be tough on your kids and become a softer parent. It's hard to be a soft parent and then be tough and don't do this. You've developed a culture, right, and so the so Tom goes from being coached hard to a very loose culture. You can do that, right, but very quickly, right like very quickly. I think Tom's getting frustrated with you know, Left which never been a head coach. And then even though Josh McDaniel failed as a head coach, he experienced it. Then he came back and he was tough on Tom. They barked on the sideline and Todd Bowles as this league is pivoted. It just doesn't feel like he's creative. It's again, it's hard to be a successful head coach. There's like seven great ones in the world, right, like like seven. It's hard, and I just feel like it's too loose, it's too squirrely for him. So Colin, I'm curious, why would this story get out? Is this Tom Brady signals signaling to left witch and bowls guys, step it up. Is this Brady signaling to other coaches around the league, Guys, I'm not watched. Look, this is what I've got to do to try to make this mess of an offense. There's a reason this story got out. No, I read a lot of people who cover Tampa Bay. This right now is not a well coached team. For this to get out is telling you like Tom is frustrated, He's at wits end. Massive indictment of Bowls and left witches in over their head. It's a bad look. And I like Bowls because he was with the Jets. Yeah, it didn't work out for him, but also when he was with the Jets, the league felt different than it does today. Yeah, I mean, it's made like a exit stage right to offense in the last five or six years. For as much as he and arians budded heads remember famously, they were going at it. He needs that, You need that tough coaching, Yeah, I mean, And I think Belichick is just different. Yeah, you know, he's just I hear these reports that Tom would go to New England. I don't know. I don't They don't have any skill player, you know where he's gonna end. I have a good take on I was gonna save it for for lady. You don't if it's ever two ole mean, let me hear who Las Vegas Raiders Josh McDaniels. Vegas needs a guy. Remember they went there, put Gruden as head coach to be new franchise in Vegas. Brady in Vegas? Hey, who are all these acts that go to Vegas and do um these showcases where they're there for months and they make a lot of money. This is a perfect showcase spot for a forty six year old, don't you think that? I mean, I I find this Brady story crazy that it got out. He doesn't want to retire obviously, and a good spot for a single. Can imagine it's not crazy he wants it out for no But I mean, can you imagine it? Left wits reading that? Well, Yeah, it's just I don't I'm trying to say because left which is considered like a sharp coordinator. But I'm reading this and it's like, you wouldn't do that too. You can be pretty sharp with Bruce. Arians is the head coach, right, It's like Eric the enemy? Is he a good offensive coordinator? I don't know. Andy reads the head coach. Offense looks great to me. Yeah, it's just by the way, Vegas with Brady Davante Adams would be the best receiver Brady has had since Randy Moss. Right. Oh, Davante is amazing. It's a great fit getting the left tackle. Plus, Davante is very much like Brady, lives the game, totally disciplined, doesn't play the game. He thinks it. He plays it, he works on it. Like Davante, Adams is Brady like. He is a grinder, constantly elevating, constantly putting the work in. He thinks the game. You know who's not blowing for double digit halftime leads next year in Vegas, Tom Brady. He don't. He doesn't lose all those games cars losing all of them. By the way, someone just texted me you forgot an important stat about Tampa Bay Strip Club capital of the East Coast, or so I'm told. What does that mean? It's it's a relevant fact about Tampa Boston parochial. No, No, it's it's it's Tampa very It's a very loose I lived there for two years. It's an incredibly loose town, a very ebor city. Cocktails early here's the thing though, that's tough for Bold. Let me defend Bowls and Left which for a second, so Arians of the coach, he gets run out, So that signals to the room Tom wants control. So what is left which supposed to do? Like Tom got frustrated with Arians because he was meddling well by Leftwich is like it's Tom Brady. He got the other coach sending up stairs for meddling. Yeah, so I think I think left which is in a weird spot like Tom likes him. But the previous star coach with the Super Bowl got sent upstairs to his room because Tom is like, I'm gonna run this pirate ship. So left Ritch comes in and he's like whoa and Bowls is like, I'm a defensive guy, so I'm gonna run the defense. So I do think in fairness to Bowls and Left, which in fairness when when a when a super Bowl winning coach gets sent upstairs and the messaging is clear, Tom wants more control. What is left which supposed to do? That's a brutal position to be this figure it out. I mean, you're you're a great offensive coordinator making a lot of money. You work with Jamis Winston. They are working with Tom brad By the way, the updated AFC playoff picture. New England's in. I mean they're in right now. Yeah, I mean they're not. Not for long, They're not. I would rather the Chargers get in because they're more fun to watch. Oh yeah, I mean half the of New England's a rough watch. They are a rough watch. Okay, Hour three coming up.

Thanks for listening to The Herd podcast. Be 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 heard you're listening to Fox Sports Radio. This is The Herd. It's our chew live in La. The Herd Nick Wright. In less than ten minutes, heard hied her or heard hierarchy around the corner. Um got a lot of good stuff today. So I was saying last night, I always thought mac Jones is a franchise quarterback. I thought they had a low scene. But I sometimes when people are in duress and it's not their best night. I said this about Caleb Williams when he won the Heisman. I knew he was great when he after halftime with a pulled hamstring, came out and limped his way up the field. It was one of his weaker performances. I thought it sealed the Heisman. I'm like, you know, it's like the greatest flight Sully Sullenberger ever had was a crash. Yeah, that was his greatest flight. We always knew he was competent. Caleb Williams was always competent. Mac Jones is absolutely a franchise quarterback. I think he has low ceiling, but looking what he's dealing with right now and winning on the road with No. Number one, plus Stevenson's hurt, Harris has hurt, Davante Parker's got I think he's in concussion product. I mean, they got all sorts of injuries on the road. As like, it's not everybody knows on your everybody has good days at work, but it's when fit hits the shands and you can still make the sale and bring it home. It's like, that's impressive. Well, they got a little lucky. Kyler Murray goes down a few plays into the game, DeAndre Hopkins fumbles it, Patriot scoop and score. Colte McCoy throws an awful interception. I think Colin this Kyler Murray sit you ation gets very interesting in Arizona because acl injury probably means he's out until at least Halloween or Thanksgiving. And if Cliff Kingsbury follows up this clunker with another one, do they go get a quarterback in the offseason? He's got some decisions to make, all right. Now, these are not standings. It's not what we knew here. That's the other network. These are I believe this morning that ten best teams in the NFL. Here we go heard hierarchy. The top ten NFL teams according to College much much to the chagrin of McIntyre, barely New England best coach in the NFL. They've scored ninety two points off turnovers, leads the NFL. They're all banged up, so that's not their best. That's why they threw so much behind the line of scrimmage. And here's my thing, they're still very good situationally. And I will say it again. I was impressed with mac Jones last night. He's got nothing to work with and I think this kid in we can sit and bang on him. But I watched them last night and I'm like, he's got a defensive coordinator. Colin plays, he's barking, he's showing leadership. New England at ten. Number nine, the Vikings. I like the Vikings, but there's limitations. First team in league history to win ten of its first thirteen with a negative point differential. They've got a very low ceiling, but they're very capable. They're nine and oh and one possession games. Credit to Kirk Cousins and the coach. Justin Jefferson is a game changer. They went to Buffalo and one. He can literally win you a game on a road, and there are not many guys like this at Tyreek Hill and Justin Jefferson a Jamaar Chase where they can just you know, we know quarterbacks, we know Mahomes can do it. He's one of the only non quarterbacks you can go on the road, good team, and he just takes the game over Minnesota nine number eight. Listen, I'm gonna put the Dolphins in there. They're going through a bad stretch. They're struggling in protection. There's a ton of injuries with this team. I did not bail on the Niners earlier this year when they had seven starters out. I'm not bailing on the Dolphins. They'll score, they'll make the playoffs. They'll sneak in. They will sneak in. I still have so much respect for their receiving corps, their left tackle, their head coach. This is a team They're not gonna beat a top team in the league. But they could get into a shootout with teams if they have protection. Absolutely could get in a shootout with a Cincinnatian Buffalo, hopefully not in a snowstorm. But I put them at eight, number seven. Say what you will about the Ravens, and they drive me nuts. Have you looked at their defense since Week nine? It's like one two or three in the league on everything. Yes, yes, they're struggling offensively, but since Roquan Smith got there twenty three takeaways this year, only the Eagles have more. They're gonna be in every single football game. You just They're just gonna be in every game. And so to me, you're a top six seven team in the league if you're in every game. Lamar will eventually get healthy, so they'll be more dynamic offensively. Ravens at seven, number six, the Cowboys are at six. They tend to be you know, they're great when they're playing downhill. The less they rely on Dak, the better. Back to back years with ten plus wins. McCarthy may not be Andy Reid, but he's clearly capable four hundred plus yards in five or six games. Tony Pollard has emerged as a home run hitter The key with Dallas is very simple. You gotta ask Dak to throw fewer than thirty five times. I think we had the stat yesterday. When Mahomes throws thirty five times or more, Kansas City's forty three and fifteen. When Dallas does it, they lose two out of three. There's a way they have to play to win, but they do it often. They're at six, number five, Buffalo. Listen, Josh Allen didn't play particularly well and they still won. A part of that's the Jets defense. But von Miller's injury I think takes him out of the top three. You know, Cole Beasley, I'm not sure what that's all about. They've held opponents to one touchdown in back to back weeks, but I do think von Miller was brought in for a reason and he is gone. They do also tend to bail on the running game faster than I like. Right now, they have a knockout punch, but to be a heavyweight champ, do they have a jab? Kansas City's got both, Cincinnati's got both. San Francisco's got both. Gotta be more than a knockout specialist. Buffalo at five, number four, The Niners at four. I'd probably have him a spot higher, but brock Purty, I don't know. In the postseason, they've outscored their opponents. Since brock Purty took over sixty five to ten. They've outgained their opponents in twelve of thirteen games. I believe this is the best roster in football. Even their offensive players are physical. They do have a lower ceiling at quarterback, but they're the only team in the NFL. This is an interesting stat the only team to have more interceptions fourteen than touchdown passes allowed eleven. They are a handful defensively San Francisco at four number three, but Kansas City worked him in this second half in the Bay Area. I don't take much of the Denver game. They led twenty seven and nothing. What are you gonna do. You'renna go into a locker room. You're gonna tell a team, Hey, this game's in doubt. I don't care much about that. Number one total offense in the league. Mahomes leaves the NFL in passing yards they do. I think sometimes miss the explosiveness and the urgency that Tyreek Hill could get you. But this is still the most lethal offense, the most clever offense, the most coachable star quarterback in the league. I've got them at three, number two, but I do think situationally, Cincinnati's a little better, and I'm gonna have the Bengals who have won seven of eight and nine of eleven. Here's the key of this team, though, this offensive line. They went and bought it right, They went and bought some players. They were really rough in the first two or three weeks. Burrow was sitting in that pocket with time to throw, and they're running the football. So this is the kind of team that can keep the ball away from Mahomes. That's why Buffalo doesn't scare Kansas City because they bail on their run game. This team's got two running backs. This team's got an offensive line now that will eat the clock and has a star quarterback. Cincinnati at number two, number one, I think we have to give it to Philadelphia. There's there's a number here that's pretty amazing that they lead the NFL in one hundred and ten big plays. That's eleven more than like number two. They've got three players on this team with ten plus scrimmage touchdowns. I think I heard somebody else say This may have been at this network, but I heard somebody say this weekend, anytime a team can beat like three or four ways, they feel like a super Bowl team. They can beat you with defense, they can beat you with a rush, they can beat you on the ground, they can beat you through the air, they can beat you with a quarterback moving. They're just doing a lot of things right. I haven't seen it yet in the playoffs, but this is not a playoff Herd hierarchy. This is a regular season Herd hierarchy. And right now I have them at number one. I think those those top three teams are pretty tight. It's pretty tight in there, all right. First things first, is a new show, and they're crushing it. By the way, saw the ratings yesterday. They're crushing it. We have a little envy. It is the only show on cable news or sports with no budget, unlimited budget, unlimited. It's yeah, that's the yeah. I mean, but I'm pitching in my own money, Colin. Maybe you could do that too. I mean, I mean, the reason we have unlimited budget is because I'm self funding. In part. They told me they asked you years ago to do that and you rejected it. But how are you doing? Great hurt hierarchy. I agree with a lot of it. Patriot's a touch high, but other than that, I'd maybe flip flop the Niners and the Eagles. I think the Niners look terrifying, utterly terrifying, even with parties the quarterback. But yeah, it's a really good hurt hierarchy. Okay, So you know, I'm a Herbert guy because I used to work in Portland and he's such a great kid, and he used to listen to me as a kid. Not gonna lie that matters, it does anyway. So he was in a backseat of his car with his grandpa going to school. So I like him, but I also like him because he's amazing. It's hard to watch that game and not just say let's stop the debate, right, Like it's hard to say that, right Yeah, well no, I mean, of course, and it shouldn't have been a debate. And I listen, I say this with no disrespect at all to our mutual friend and colleague Emmanuel Acho. But you and I, both behind the scenes and you in front of the cameras, tried to talk Emmanuel out of that opinion, and he was in transigent he didn't want to move, and then the game happened. And listen three for seventeen to start a football game. That sometimes happens in the NBA for a guy that's having a bad shooting night. It never is supposed to happen to an NFL quarterback. Ever. I think our friend Ryan Leaf once started a Chief's game four for eighteen and it was considered the worst game of his career. Now he had some interceptions mixed in. So the dichotomy between Tua having one of the worst games we've seen from any quarterback in the league all season and Herbert playing a nearly flawless football game up until the fumbled snap at the end. To me, listen, there's Patrick Mahomes and then there's that next tier of NFL quarterbacks where there's Joe Burrow. I would have him next, but some people would argue, hey, give Jalen Hurts his credit. I know there are still people that I haven't watched football in the last two months, So they put Josh Allen in that group, and justin Herbert is in that discussion. Then there's another tier of quarterback that Dak Prescott is in. There's Aaron Rodgers, you know at this point is he's still in it. I'm not certain other guys. And then there's another tier of quarterback that the top end is your guy, Derek Carr ya Tua is in that tier. And by the way, I give him credit for being in that tier, because going into this year I thought he was going to be closer to the Marcus Mariota tier. He has proven that is not the case. But if I were the Dolphins Colin, I would be very, very concerned that the brilliant defensive coordinator in San Francisco, Damiko Ryan's unlocked something in that jamming these receivers and throwing off the timing. And when we saw it happen, I think a lot of us said, Okay, that was great, but that's also the best defense in football that did it. But when the Chargers JV team, with all those injuries, when they're able to do it, that to me is greatly concerning. If I'm a Miami Dolphins team with a pretty tough schedule the rest of the way, I'm not saying concerning like they're gonna fall all the way out of the playoffs, even though that is still on the board, but concerning and that this team has been figured out to a degree, and I don't think two is going to have the answers for you know, speaking of Brock Pretty, it's I watched the preseason game, but Brock pretty and my takeaway was, gosh, for the last guy taking in a draft, he's pretty. I saw him playing college and I'm like, there is a history in the NFL, as you know, because Mahomes fills this. Most of the great quarterbacks did not go to Bama, Michigan, Ohio State. No, they didn't. They go to non traditional football powers where they get beat up, run for their life and have to elevate non NFL players. That's Mahomes, that's Josh Allen. And I watched Brock Purty and I'm like, you know, Nick, that coach doesn't ask you to be Mahomes. You can. I look at him and I think absolutely, outside of going to Philadelphia, which I'm not sure about, this kid can play half this league is undrafted, right, Like, what do you make of him? Yeah, well, well, listen, I think Brock Purdy has been excellent through seven quarters. I you know, I'm gonna, you know, reserve judgment because you know, I'm honest with the audience. I don't grind college football the way you do Colin, so I didn't watch a ton of him at Iowa State. So most of my Brock Purty experience has come in these last two weeks where he's played well. I assume at some point he regresses. But this to me, and I know this is hard for you, but this is not about Brock Party. This is about Jimmy Garoppolo. Because if we ever wanted to get a case study, then the San Francisco forty nine ers are a paint by numbers offense. We are getting it right now because their quarterback is literally nicknamed mister Irrelevant. And that game on Sunday they looked more dynamic offensively than they've looked at any point with Jimmy Garoppolo. And one other thing that I think this NFL season is teaching us is that the teams and the coaches and the gms that try to move off their own quarterbacks there is a reason for it. The Seattle Seahawks were fine waving goodbye to Russell Wilson. They knew something. The Miami Dolphins tried two separate times to replace two a tongue of Iloa. Now they've said all the right things after that, and he had a great two months. But there's a reason for it. And the San Francisco forty nine ers moved heaven and earth to try to move up to get an elite passer because I think they believed they were getting the minimum from that position. And the fact that the two hundred and sixty second pick of the draft can step in, Kyle Shanahan can say, we don't really have to change much, if I'm being honest with you. And in fact, what they changed was they added levels to the passing game where they he in the second quarter Sunday through more deep or as many deep touchdowns outside the numbers Colin as Jimmy is thrown in the last three years. Brock Purty in one quarter threw as many deep outside the number touchdowns as jimmyj has thrown in three years. I think it shows you why the Niners were so desperate for an upgrade, because I do think that team, with that defense, that personnel and now Christian McCaffrey, if they simply have above average quarterback, they're the super Bowl favorite. We'll see if Rock Burty can give them that. We knew, or at least I knew. Jimmy Garoppolo couldn't I know? You know, you're you know, you're bewitched by the dentals. So at times you get the quarterback wins thing gets you. The MVP race is sort of Jalen Hurts and Mahomes, although I think I think Burrow is really good, but he's not going to be it. Yeah, um, I would guess you'd take Mahomes. That would be my guess if you had to vote. Okay, So let's just let's try to do this fairly. Okay. And by the way, Burrow I think is on the fringes of it. Yes, I think Burrow if they if they run the table and Mahomes and Hurts stumble, then I then I think that Burrow is on has a chance to steal it. But right now it is a two person race between Hurts and Patrick Mahomes. So Mahomes is a thousand more yards and nearly I think nine more touchdowns, And you might well, Nick, what about the rushing? Okay, when you add the rushing to the passing, Mahomes still has more yards and still has more touchcounts. Okay, Nick, what about the win loss record. Well, one team's twelve and one and one team's ten and three. They both played the Colts. Against the Colts, the Chiefs defense allowed to touch down at the end. The Eagles defense got a stop at the end, and then they drove down the field. So to me, I'm not going to do it based on the record when they both are, you know, either at the top or tied for the top in their conference. Here's what I would like to do when it comes to Mahomes and Hurts. Let's do a tale of the tape, Colin, and you tell me which team you would take. Eagles are Chiefs. Who is the better offensive line? Colin? Well, the Eagles offensive line is considered better. Agreed, Yeah, all right? Who has the better running game? The better running backs? Eagles? Eagles are yea Eagles? Right? Who has the better receivers? Well, at the high end, yeah a J. Brown, it would be the Eagles. Yeah. And DeVante Smith would also be the best receiver on the Chiefs, so they have two receivers. Even if you're throwing Kelsey, you'd still be the Eagles as a whole. Who is the better front seven? Defensively? Chiefs is underrated? But Philadelphia, Okay, who is the better secondary? Yeah, i'd be Philadelphia. Okay, who is the better quarterback? Yeah? I mean what are we doing? What are we doing? I mean, give me a break here. I mean, Philly, there is not a single unit on the Chiefs that the Eagles would trade for except for quarterback. And they couldn't make that phone call quick enough. Do you think Philly if they're like, hey, you want Mahomes the rest of the year and we'll take jail And they'd be like, no, actually, we love Jailen's quarterback sneaks so much we're gonna write it out. I mean, come on. And so I understand people might be like, well, just because Mahomes is better doesn't mean he's the MVP. But he also leads. I mean he leads the entire NFL in passing yards and passing touchdowns. And we've become so spoiled to him that he had a play on Sunday, Colin that was the play of the year in the NFL, and we're like, oh, yeah, that was Mahomes. And your buddy Peter King Kevin Wilds pointed this out to me. Your buddy Peter King, who I have massive respect and love for In the article on Monday arguing for Hurts to be MVP, one of his sentences was he makes positively Mahomes in plays, well what are we doing? But yes, agreed, he does things similar to Patrick Mallomes, which is a great compliment, but does not mean he should be the MVP over Patrick Mahomes. Like we did a thing at the beginning of the year, Colin, were because Josh Allen almost beat Patrick Mahomes, he was the MVP favorite. And now because at times Jalen Hurts reminds you of Patrick Mallomes, he's the MVP favorite. What he's given to Mahomes, that's a pretty good call. One minute left, I want to throw an MBA question. So the Celtics were rolling. They go west, where the Warriors and Clipper have multiple wing defenders. They slow down Jason Tatum and this team is essentially a one man offense. That's all they are is that. It is interesting that there is a way to beat the Celtics, and we saw it twice in the last four days. Throw the kitchen sink. If you have elite wing defenders and they are a one man offense. Love Malcolm Brogden not gonna give you twenty five regularity is that the Celtics will be again a great story come out of the East, and there's no chance they beat the Clippers of the Warriors in seven am I nuts? Oh well, I agree with some of that. I think we got to give Jaylen Brown credit because Jaylen Brown has been exceptional this year. Yes, he's been a fringe all NBA guy, so I wouldn't quite call it a one man offense. But I understand your point. I am not going to worry about the Clippers at all because the Clippers are not a real basketball team. Kawuhi after the game yesterday, I said, he doesn't even want to play right here. He's not worried about the regular season. I mean, Kawai scored twenty points for the first time all season yesterday. So to me, the Clippers are a non factor here where I am concerned about the Celtics as this they had they had looked like the best team in basketball by a decent margin, and then all of a sudden, the team that undressed them in three straight games in the NBA Finals they had to play them, and it looked like it was a fourth straight game of the NBA Final did against the Warriors. That to me was as much psychological edge as it was tech tactical edge. And here's the other thing you said at the end of there, they'll just get out of the East. Listen, my pick before the year was the Sixers. That is not looking great at the moment. We'll see. But if we were to get an Eastern Armorence finals of Celtics Bucks, if the Bucks are healthy, I have no reason to believe the Celtics are better because the Celtics don't have an answer for Yannis. They didn't last year, and last year they escaped with no Chris Middleton playing for Milwaukee. So I listen, I think the Celtics are really really good and at the top, you know, near the top of the list of contenders. But I do think that you make some good points, and I think that Warriors game was really concerning. Yeah, the Celtics had a really bad second half, Tatum wilted and the Warriors pulled away and blew them out. Nick, right, great, see anybody, first things first, after our show. See you man, all right? Take care? Yeah, he makes good arguments on Mahomes and that is that is It doesn't really count for MVP. But if you called privately and said I want to swap Mahomes for Hurts, everybody in the league would take it. Every It's just like it's like Herbert and Tua. There's not a GM in the league, including Miami's that wouldn't take Herbert over to it, right, But I don't think that's the question for MVP, but it is. It does put an exclamation point when you talk about how a guy is Mahomes like he is now the standard. Patrick's the standard of the league. For years and years, Brady would win, but we use Aaron as the standard. Like I think one of the stories this year is we have three young quarterbacks. Four they've moved past Aaron, Herbert, Burrow, Mahomes, and Alan. Nobody's taking Aaron over those guys. Nobody's even taking the phone call. By the way, if we're being real and I have Mahomes on my fantasy team, he was bad this week against Denver. Those interceptions were not like unlucky, those were bad interceptions. Well, they're asking more of him because the run game's inconsistent. They didn't have Tyreek Hill, so they're kind of piling more on him and asking him to do more. Which is why I think Cincinnati it's feeling like they I hate to use the word vulnerable. No, I think Cincinnati would beat them in the AFC Championship. I think Cincinnati does not rely on Burrow as much. They have two running backs, their defense post second half. When Cincinnati didn't run the ball earlier this year, you were asking a ton of Burrow. Now they can run the football. Burrow didn't get sacked, Burrow's not throwing picks. It still has to be one of the five craziest decisions this season when Andy Reid kicked that fifty five yard field goal Cincinnati instead of going for it on like fourth and six, fourth and seven with the great quarterback that everybody loves. I'm so angry at Andy Reid. Yeah, it cost me some money. Yeah, it always comes down to that 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. You have a chance to win ten thousand dollars from playing Argentina Croatia World Cup semifinals match. Playing along on Fox Super six. Download the free Super six app on your phone and make your six game predictions for your chance to win. Big. Ratings are up. Who you got in that one? Eighteen percent from the last World Cup eighteen Yeah, and the games are on early in the morning. No, no, no, it's amazing against football. When you consider what the World Cup has to go up against, it's never in the fall, so it's going up against football. Secondly, there have been like these two in the morning games. For the ratings to be up eighteen percent are insane. It shows you the growth of the sport in this country. This was not idea. If it's here or Canada or the whole different ball game ratings will be up thirty percent. So the rely you don't have to like soccer, but if you're not, if you're still denying it. An mL last team costs thirty five million bucks about ten years ago. Now they're all like three hundred million dollars. They're all exploding, and I'm it's remarkable if you look at when we have put this, Like the Women's World Cup goes in the summer, so it runs mostly unopposed. You know, some baseball games, watch the numbers, the Women's World Cup is going to get a huge, huge number, And in four years when it's here in the States, it will it will compete and beat some NFL stuff. It's growing, it will it Will it be in the summer, Alex Yeah, yeah, yeah, so so the men in four years in the summer, the women's this year in the summer, those are gonna be huge numbers. Yeah. I'm I'm blown away by it, considering what the time because of Qatar or what it's going up against. Yeah, how about the timing of me buying into a soccer team last year? Not bad? Huh? I go? Can I pat myself on the back without injuring my shoulder? Worn Buffett over here? Jmack with the news. No, no, this is the herd line news. So this Kyler Murray injury last night, Colin I was pretty tore up about it. I'm a big Kyler Murray fan. It's fun to watch ACL injury and it's non contact. Yeah, this damn turf out here. Anyways. Copeakoy came on to finish. Afterwards. He spoke about how hard it was to see his teammate go down and get carted off brutal as a group. We've just got to buckle down and play well together, practice well together and finished this, finish these last four games out, you know, one at a time. And I think that that will be my focus. And you know, it sucks for Kyler, like just we've been together for two years. We worked together every day, Like I don't ever want to see anything like that happened. I know how much he cares about the game, I know how hard he works. Um, it's just unfortunate. And you know, I think I'll be able to form. I'm around him through this because I've dealt with many in my career. Yeah, Colt's pretty good back up, he really is. You know, well, okay, backup for you know, a half or a game or two. Colin, He's probably gonna have to start ten to twelve games next year. What do you do if you're Arizona you have Colt McCoy start ten or twelve games. Are you drafting a quarterback third fourth round? I am always unless I have Burrow Herbert Mahomes. Listen, the Patriots Ted Brady. They drafted a quarterback seemingly every other year. Every now it was fourth round, six rounds. You can always flip them. I am always looking to draft a quarterback unless I have Burrow Mahomes, Alan Herbert. That's about it. This is where it gets to maybe Jalen Hurts. Now, I mean that it's about five six guys otherwise and they're in their prime. Otherwise I'm drafted quarterbacks. I'm just you know, I know they paid Kyler Murray. What if Kingsbury sees a guy says man, I could do some things with that guy. Well, then from the offense, I wore you absolutely, I think you have to. I don't think you do it in the first round, No, second, third, four, I got no. Hey, listen, Brady was winning Super Bowls and they picked Jimmy Garoppolo in the was a second round. I forget the second or third one. Yeah, I mean, it's like and then Brady was Brady didn't like it. But it's like Brady was still crushing people. You know, he was still rolling. And then if you if you find a guy who fits Kingsbury system and does well, hey, Kyler, no rush, Hey hey, stay on the sidelines. Take your time, buddy. Keep an eye on that situation in Arizona. Next up, Miami Dolphins. This is comical Colin. They had heaters on their sidelines for the game out here in La at so Fi Sunday night, temperatures were in the mid fifties. Chilly, you know, I like Jacket in December. Sofi Stadium had the roof obviously, but there are some like wind tunnels that kind of comes. You can see an open air stadium perfect most of the time. It's perfect. Is that being said? Heaters on the bench soft guys from Miami have to then fly back across the country to Miami, then fly north to Orchard Park this weekend. I think that's I think it has a chance to be ugly short week right they all Saturday night? Oh no, you know cold it can get Saturday night in Orchard Park. Oh they're calling for temperatures in the twenties. Oh it's over maybe teens and wind chance of snow. I like Buffalo. I like Buffalo. I mean, listen, I think seven and a half. Oh, I'd take Buffalo. Remember there, this is a revenge spot. Buffalo by three touchdowns. You know I don't like blowouts. Buffalo buy three touches. Also, and again, I think I said this yesterday. If you watch Buffalo Jets closely in the second half, Buffalo was showing nothing, a lot of basic stuff, no exotic plays. They weren't even really looking to move the ball. They were like, we got this one in the bag. Just park the bus here, get the next week, get some revenge on Miami. All right, this feels this does feel like blow out phones and we will wrap up with a sad story. Mississippi State head football coach Mike Leach has passed away. Leach was a head coach for twenty one seasons, spending time at Texas Tech in Washington State before joining Mississippi State in twenty twenty. Leaves behind a legacy of the air raid offense and will always be remembered for his fun and eccentric personality. Mike Leach was sixty one years old. Major impact Lincoln Riley, of course getting his start. Not only did he share all his quirkiness with us, which is, you know a lot of people are quirky, but you know a little they don't want to put it out there. Mike put it all out there. But a real major influence you start going, you know, like we all know Bill Walsh West Coast offense had an influence in the NFL. Mike Leach, his fingerprints are all over USC's offense, these air raid offenses, the offense that Patrick Mahomes played in a real inn of and you know a lot of times within it. Sometimes people who are eccentric, he was a little eccentric, aren't appreciated until they're gone. Like Mike was appreciated while he was here. I mean it was really when he went into hospice. I mean, the internet just exploded. I think Mike understood how important he was for the sport and his it really is. You start going to the top coaches, offensive coaches, all of them are like, oh, I took that from Leech. I took that from Leech. So he was an innovator that I think, And this is a great thing we appreciated when he was here, Mike Leach. And with that we'll take a break The Herd. Be sure to catch live editions of The Herd weekdays and noon Easter nine a Empacific on Fox Sports Radio FS one and the iHeart Radio app. Hey what's up, everybody? It's me three time Pro Bowl of le Warrington and I couldn't be more excited to announce a new podcast called Up on Game? What is up on Game? You asked, along with my fellow pro bowler t J. Hudshmansatta and Super Bowl champion. Yep, that's right, Plexico Burds. You can only name a show with that type of talent on it. Up on Game. We're going to be sharing our real life experiences loaded with teachable moments. Listen to Up on Game with me LeVar Arrington, t J. Huschmansatta, and Plexico Birds on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcast from. Think about your happy play sulf on game Day, fishing boat, wherever it is, driveway dot com, check it out, let you buy or sell a car from there. So there was a report and I talked about it with Albert Breer earlier. I thought it was fairly substantial that basically the night before each game Brady now runs a separate meeting with the Buck Skill players. He doesn't tell Byron left foot, he doesn't tell Todd Bowls. He just does it and then they have to figure it out during the game. So he would never do that with Josh McDaniels in New England. Right like Tom versus Time. We all watched that documentary or most of us did who like sports, and I mean they were, you know, conjoined at the hip during the off season. So this is why San Francisco makes so much sense. Brady's career in New England was about defense, coaching, and culture, and then in Tampa he wanted more control and he got weapons, but he didn't have the coaching and the culture. San Francisco gives you all that stuff. You get the weapons, you get the coaching, you get the culture, and you get the defense. And I do think Tom realizes, the older he gets, this is the perfect spot for him. He could retire or pick and choose. You really get everything an older quarterback wants, you know. And Aaron Rodgers will tell people privately he's never had great defenses, and it's fair. Peyton Manning mostly did not have great defenses. So Brady's had the great defense and he won, and he's had the great coaching and he won. And he had great weapons in Tampa in a very loose culture and he won. But now he didn't have the culture, he didn't have the coaching with Bruce arians going upstairs, the defense is kind of hit and miss, and so I don't think Brady wants to do these meetings. He's not a control freak. He likes being hardly a hard coached. He liked McDaniels. Now it wore him out after twenty years of Belichick. He's not a control freak. We've never seen Tom as a control freak. He's doing this because he's telling you, I'm not getting it upstairs. I'm having to do this. So you know, I always said this about the late Kobe Bryant. Kobe Bryant wanted to be the man. He didn't want to be the only man. He wanted to leave the Lakers and go to Chicago because they wouldn't get him a second star. Then they made the deal for Pau Gasol. Tom wants to have a say. He doesn't want to have to have v say in coaching. He wants somebody else to come in here and get it done. And I said this when this thing first happened. Lucky enough join and I we broke this on the air, and I said, my only concern because I worked in Tampa for two years. Boston's a very academic city. There's fifty one universities within the Boston metro area, and the teams are early on analytics. The Patriots were very academic and very culture driven and very discipline. And it's a northern city. It gets dark early. We're going to film room where you lived in the office. Tampa. It's a port city. It's fun, it's loose, it's squirrely. It's always had big personalities. It's always sort of underachieved. They've occasionally been great, but then they're awful four years later. I always thought it was going to be. It's one of those things where what you're attracted to is not what you should marry. You can date, it, shouldn't marry it. There's a part of Brady that really misses elite coaching, elite culture, discipline, working around the clock. But he knows that New England didn't have the weapons and they've got their quarterback. He wants to go to San Francisco and get that. I think Belichick and Kyle are intellectual, and that's nothing against the coaches he has now, but those guys are like top of the food chain. I mean, there's Lincoln Riley's like a different level and Shanahan and you know, there's just a handful of coaches that are that I think pushed Tom and are hard on Tom, and though it wore him out, he misses that. It's really hard. It's like they always say about parent you can be tough on your kids and become a softer parent. It's hard to be a soft parent and then be tough and don't do this. You've developed a culture, right, and so the so Tom goes from being coached hard to a very loose culture. You can do that, right, but very quickly, right like very quickly. I think Tom's getting frustrated with you know, Left which never been a head coach. And then even though Josh McDaniel failed as a head coach, he experienced it. Then he came back and he was tough on Tom. They barked on the sideline and Todd Bowles as this league is pivoted. It just doesn't feel like he's creative. It's again, it's hard to be a successful head coach. There's like seven great ones in the world, right, like like seven. It's hard, and I just feel like it's too loose, it's too squirrely for him. So Colin, I'm curious, why would this story get out? Is this Tom Brady signals signaling to left witch and bowls guys, step it up. Is this Brady signaling to other coaches around the league, Guys, I'm not watched. Look, this is what I've got to do to try to make this mess of an offense. There's a reason this story got out. No, I read a lot of people who cover Tampa Bay. This right now is not a well coached team. For this to get out is telling you like Tom is frustrated, He's at wits end. Massive indictment of Bowls and left witches in over their head. It's a bad look. And I like Bowls because he was with the Jets. Yeah, it didn't work out for him, but also when he was with the Jets, the league felt different than it does today. Yeah, I mean, it's made like a exit stage right to offense in the last five or six years. For as much as he and arians budded heads remember famously, they were going at it. He needs that, You need that tough coaching, Yeah, I mean, And I think Belichick is just different. Yeah, you know, he's just I hear these reports that Tom would go to New England. I don't know. I don't They don't have any skill player, you know where he's gonna end. I have a good take on I was gonna save it for for lady. You don't if it's ever two ole mean, let me hear who Las Vegas Raiders Josh McDaniels. Vegas needs a guy. Remember they went there, put Gruden as head coach to be new franchise in Vegas. Brady in Vegas? Hey, who are all these acts that go to Vegas and do um these showcases where they're there for months and they make a lot of money. This is a perfect showcase spot for a forty six year old, don't you think that? I mean, I I find this Brady story crazy that it got out. He doesn't want to retire obviously, and a good spot for a single. Can imagine it's not crazy he wants it out for no But I mean, can you imagine it? Left wits reading that? Well, Yeah, it's just I don't I'm trying to say because left which is considered like a sharp coordinator. But I'm reading this and it's like, you wouldn't do that too. You can be pretty sharp with Bruce. Arians is the head coach, right, It's like Eric the enemy? Is he a good offensive coordinator? I don't know. Andy reads the head coach. Offense looks great to me. Yeah, it's just by the way, Vegas with Brady Davante Adams would be the best receiver Brady has had since Randy Moss. Right. Oh, Davante is amazing. It's a great fit getting the left tackle. Plus, Davante is very much like Brady, lives the game, totally disciplined, doesn't play the game. He thinks it. He plays it, he works on it. Like Davante, Adams is Brady like. He is a grinder, constantly elevating, constantly putting the work in. He thinks the game. You know who's not blowing for double digit halftime leads next year in Vegas, Tom Brady. He don't. He doesn't lose all those games cars losing all of them. By the way, someone just texted me you forgot an important stat about Tampa Bay Strip Club capital of the East Coast, or so I'm told. What does that mean? It's it's a relevant fact about Tampa Boston parochial. No, No, it's it's it's Tampa very It's a very loose I lived there for two years. It's an incredibly loose town, a very ebor city. Cocktails early here's the thing though, that's tough for Bold. Let me defend Bowls and Left which for a second, so Arians of the coach, he gets run out, So that signals to the room Tom wants control. So what is left which supposed to do? Like Tom got frustrated with Arians because he was meddling well by Leftwich is like it's Tom Brady. He got the other coach sending up stairs for meddling. Yeah, so I think I think left which is in a weird spot like Tom likes him. But the previous star coach with the Super Bowl got sent upstairs to his room because Tom is like, I'm gonna run this pirate ship. So left Ritch comes in and he's like whoa and Bowls is like, I'm a defensive guy, so I'm gonna run the defense. So I do think in fairness to Bowls and Left, which in fairness when when a when a super Bowl winning coach gets sent upstairs and the messaging is clear, Tom wants more control. What is left which supposed to do? That's a brutal position to be this figure it out. I mean, you're you're a great offensive coordinator making a lot of money. You work with Jamis Winston. They are working with Tom brad By the way, the updated AFC playoff picture. New England's in. I mean they're in right now. Yeah, I mean they're not. Not for long, They're not. I would rather the Chargers get in because they're more fun to watch. Oh yeah, I mean half the of New England's a rough watch. They are a rough watch. Okay, Hour three coming up.