Top 5 NFL Quartebacks (Hour 2)

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Odyssey. Our number two of our radio program, that's right, it is the Zach Gelb Show. Just a coast on CBS Sports Radio, and about an hour and twenty minutes from now, football is back. No more of this pre-season nonsense. No more of people trying to pretend like they actually care about monotonous training camps, and you having all these geeky writers give you stats of people practicing.

We have games that actually count, and it's a wonderful thing to hear and see. Lions, Chiefs, defending Super Bowl champs, up against a young up-and-coming team. No Travis Kelce tonight for the Chiefs, out with an injury.

No Chris Jones tonight, but he may be in the building. We are almost here, and it's absolutely wonderful. But I actually just saw a very sad tweet, and it is really, really, really sad.

From Dov Kleiman. Man, I don't know how you can read this. It's going to be tough. Tonight's NFL game is the first time an NFL season starts without Tom Brady on a team since 2000. Twenty-three years for the greatest quarterback of all time, who now has a new girlfriend who's a smoke show, have gone by pretty fast.

Coach Prime would say, give me my theme music. I'll say, blast our somber music. Man, that's just sad. Hickey, that just ruined twenty, twenty-three years of my life seeing Tom Brady win six Super Bowl championships with the Patriots, and then won with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Brady will actually be honored this Sunday.

4.25 p.m. Eastern Time game where I don't expect the Patriots are going to win this one, up against the Philadelphia Eagles in Foxboro. Just a sad day. Just a somber day, and a horrible day. Now, myself and 99.9% of people listening right now are not upset whatsoever. What I will say is, your nightmare is over, folks. It has felt like that retirement video on the beach, that feels like, honestly, years ago. It was so sad. Like, in a very small way, I'm like, oh yeah, it almost feels like he's been gone for a while, where it's like, oh yeah, I guess this is the first NFL Sunday where he's not on a team.

I don't know, February until now feels like ages ago. Well, here was the weird part. So, he retired last year, and everyone was like, oh, he's not actually going to retire, and then he comes on back. Then, at the end of the year, we all knew throughout the season that the feeling was he was gone in Tampa Bay, but that he would go somewhere else. And it was almost as if that video on the beach, like, he knew that he had to kind of retire, he felt like he had to kind of retire, but you know that he didn't want to retire. But once you say that you are going to retire, and I do think the personal stuff factored into it, he even said it, yes, could Brady come back, and if he wanted to play again, sure, someone would have him.

But I think he knew publicly that if you're going to do this again, that this was actually it. And it was almost as if he knew he didn't want to do this, but there was nothing left for him to accomplish. And the only thing that was there was winning without Belichick, and he did that first year away from Bill Belichick in Tampa Bay, and then the year after that led the league in passing, and also led the league in passing touchdowns.

And it was, well, you feel like you had to leave Tampa, but did you want to go to a third chapter, and did you want to go somewhere else? And I just, I don't want to say that Brady didn't have it in him, but I think a lot of this stuff off the field was like, okay, I got to go be dad now, or I got to go into the next chapter of my career. Because that video of him on the beach at the ocean, it was really, really, just like really sad and depressing if I'm being transparent. And also, it was a video where when you watch it, it was almost as if maybe it did factor in last year, and I don't fault Schefter for doing this, that Brady was ready to walk away, but it annoyed him that it wasn't on his terms.

Maybe that also played into it too. Maybe, and maybe also the retirement last year, so it's like you're already kind of getting in the mindset of Brady not being there, is the reason why now this year it still feels like he's been gone longer than he actually has. But, yeah, it's one of those where I'm not sad, most people are not sad, I get why you are, but even still, he's with the Buccaneers, he's not coming back to the Pats.

It's really that sad for you, and you feel like you should be anything happy. So, here's where I stood with Tom, Tommy, TB12, my guy, the GOAT. You guys sound like a buddy, buddy, that is where I stand with Tom. I see him in the city all the time, he's driving around on trucks. Wow.

With the TB12, keep on seeing TB12 trucks all over the city. Business must be booming, as his former teammate would say. So, when he won the only Super Bowl in Tampa, I was happy, I was rooting for him in that game, and also he was going up against Mahomes and the Chiefs. I don't dislike Mahomes, but that was a huge moment still, where if Mahomes gets one, and look how people already talk about Mahomes now, if he would have beat Brady in a Super Bowl, we would have had more takes like Nick Wright, who's already calling Mahomes the greatest quarterback of all time. So, I was pumped up for Brady, since it wasn't up against the Patriots, but once they played up against the Patriots, it wasn't like I rooted against Brady, but I didn't need to see him win multiple Super Bowls in Tampa Bay, if you get what I'm saying. Wow, so you were rooting against your guy. You were happy when the Rams and Matthew Stafford threw that rainbow bomb to Cooper Cuff to end.

No, I was actually furious. And Tom Brady's magical 2021 season, and any threat of repeating for the first time since Tom did it himself at that point almost 20 years ago. Yeah, and he wasn't the reason they lost that game.

There was a great comeback, and then the second diary was just atrocious there. How you letting the best receiver in the league two years ago open deep late in the game? Hey, I don't get paid the big bucks, and that's Todd Bowles. It was just a weird, it was a really weird ending, though, because then you come back, he was fine last year, but the offensive line stunk, and Brady's not a mobile quarterback. Like, he'll move around in the pocket, but he's not a burner outside of, well, if you're Brian Urlacher, you may think differently, but then it's almost as if you just have an end with him going to the beach and saying goodbye video.

It's very anti-climatic, and I think part of that, too, was a lot of people did not believe that that was actually him retiring, and you're going through one of these drama-filled off-seasons once again. Did you buy the sand that he allegedly sat in? What do you mean? Oh, you didn't see it online?

Oh, boy. Oh, did I buy the sand? As soon as that video was released, people, well, people ran to any beach that was close to them, put sand in a bucket, and said, this is where Tom Brady retired, give me $1,000 right now, and the sand is yours. Do you have some sand in your apartment? I do not. That was recorded, I think, a few days actually before it was posted. Yes.

I don't believe that happened right in the moment. He went to the beach, and then all of a sudden, he posted the video shortly after that. But now, if you're buying Tom Brady's sand off the beach from where he may or may not have sat and announced his retirement, you're a loser.

If you go to eBay, the prices people are asking for are outrageous. I could see you buying some sand. No. You know what I'm saying? If that was Peyton Manning, like if Peyton Manning went on to have the greatest quarterback career of all time, I could see you maybe buying some sand. One, I'm not being a sucker and buying sand that's from some beach in California when Peyton Manning retires in Florida, and all of a sudden, I'm going to tell my friends, this is where Peyton Manning retired, and what am I going to do with the sand? It would actually be some dirt in the mountains in Colorado, because we know that he would never go back to Indianapolis. Some thin air in a bottle. Yeah, this is air Peyton Manning breathed as he was speaking the words of retirement. Who wants it? Omaha!

I'll buy it. So right now, as we enter this season, with Brady no longer in the league, who are the top five quarterbacks in the NFL? Number one, without a doubt, is Patrick Mahomes. Number two, it's Joe Burrow.

That's one too easily, then the conversation starts. Jalen Hurts has made a real push to be number three, but since Josh Allen has done it at an elite level longer, I still give the benefit of the doubt to Josh Allen, but I do believe you're splitting hairs between Josh Allen and Jalen Hurts. So I have Josh Allen three, Jalen Hurts four, and then for the fifth spot, you have a few guys that you're going to consider, but I still go with Aaron Rodgers. Two out of the last three years has won the MVP. Last year had the thumb injury, wasn't happy in Green Bay, now gets a new start with the Jets, a place that he wants to be, a place where he feels like he's respected by the GM and the coach.

He's basically running the organization. They're doing anything that Aaron wants, but those are my top five quarterbacks entering this year. Mahomes, Burrow, Allen, Hurts, and then Aaron Rodgers. For you, one and two, agree, agree. How do you go three, four, and five from there? I honestly think I agree with all five.

I'm trying to think, I'm just trying off the top of my head here. I don't think Herbert's in the top five right now. Trevor Lawrence needs another year to prove it and jump someone. Lamar Jackson has to be healthy? Lamar Jackson absolutely has to be healthy and play better in the playoffs.

Honestly, I think the top five is pretty much set. I know Jalen Hurts is probably the one guy that you can argue. He was fine in 2021, they made the playoffs. It's really a year and a half, we'll take the second half of the year. Then he went to an MVP level in 2022.

Right. I just think right now anyone else in the conversation is either not done enough or not been around long enough to right now be a top five quarterback outside of the five you just listed. I'm really curious though, at the end of this year, because two guys that have either already faded out of the top 10 or people have lost confidence in if they re-emerge in the top 10. Because we've talked about this before, there's eight quarterbacks, the top eight quarterbacks in the league that are not debatable. In no order, Josh Allen, it's Aaron Rodgers, it's Patrick Mahomes, it's Justin Herbert, it's Lamar Jackson, it's Joe Burrow, it's Trevor Lawrence, and Jalen Hurts. Those eight guys, in whatever order you want within reason, those eight guys are the top eight quarterbacks in football.

But nine and ten is open. Where we've talked about it, if Matthew Stafford's healthy, he could be there. Kirk Cousins, some have even said Jared Goff or Geno Smith after the year that they've had. I'm not ready to put them in the top 10. Russell Wilson, Deshaun Watson. You go through this list of guys that could potentially be in the top 10 in the NFL.

I don't think Dak's a top ten quarterback, but if you want to throw Dak in there at nine or ten, it's not as if I could tell you that you're absolutely wrong. But two guys that, for what, four or five years, bare minimum, were always in the top 10 were Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson. And you look at those two guys, Hickey, at the end of the year, I'm fascinated by how we're going to be talking about Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson.

And at the end of the year, Kevin Stefanski, the Browns, will make the playoffs, I think will be out of a job. But I do believe we'll see a big jump from Deshaun Watson this year, where I'm curious how that dynamic works, because I thought they put the ball in Deshaun Watson's hand too much last year when he came back for six games to kind of prove a point. And you've got to remember that Nick Chubb is phenomenal and could be the best running back or one of the best running backs in the NFL. But you look at Deshaun Watson, I think Deshaun takes a big step this year. And you've got to remember, yes, off the field what he did was a disgrace, but even before that, he had no intention of playing for the Texans again.

So this guy basically missed two years of football. And for a long time, he was looking like a top seven quarterback, top eight quarterback in the NFL. Can he get back into that top 10 status this year when we do this list next year?

Is he in the top 10? And then as for Russell Wilson, I kind of look at it this year, where Russell Wilson, you know when you go to a wedding and there's a cocktail hour, and you have like a solid cocktail hour, but then you're banking on the main course, which is always iffy at the wedding, to be spectacular. Right? Like if you have a great cocktail hour at a wedding, I don't care what the main course is. But I think like Russell Wilson this year is going to have like a solid cocktail hour. It's not great, but it's not awful.

It's kind of in between where I think Russ shows some flashes of the past and then has some moments that does kind of look somewhat like last year, which was a disaster. And then you got to hope that the dinner is just sensational so you could walk away feeling great. And that's what I kind of feel like this year is going to be, where it's going to be an average cocktail hour. And then it's going to be next year.

Do you just get a kick ass main course? If that makes any sense to you. I would agree in the sense that, yes, I think Deshaun Watson, like statistically is kind of a better year than Russell Wilson. So like when we're talking about it, like I said, this time next year, I think Deshaun Watson will be a top 10 quarterback.

Or I do think Russell Wilson will be outside. But again, near the conversation, kind of getting his career back on track. I do think also for Russ, because of how bad he was in 2022, I think it's also a multi-year process. It's one of those multi-year things where I think he needs one.

Well that's what I'm saying. He gets two years. He gets this year and then next year. He's a top 10 quarterback. I don't think he's going to be an MVP candidate this year where all of a sudden now, without a doubt, he's back in the top 10. I think it's going to be baby steps where he progresses well this year, gets into the playoffs.

And then it's like 2024 is the year where can he play well to get himself back in the top 10 consistently. So by the way, it's funny how I just pulled out that analogy. So I was at a wedding this weekend. And the cocktail hour was good. But I judge a cocktail hour, did you give me a pig in the blanket? And there were supposedly pigs in the blanket getting walked around the room.

I did not get one. But they had a good taco station. They had a good sushi station as well.

But I need something else. And then when I sat down at the dinner, at the table for dinner, and a lot of times the dinner at wedding is not good. They had a sea bass and they had a filet mignon and mashed potatoes on one plate. It was phenomenal. So I think Russell Wilson this year is going to be like the cocktail hour I was at.

You were solid, but you were left wanting more. And then the next year after that, you better have the dinner that I had at the wedding the other night. Because if not, then he's going to be out of Denver. And his spot in the NFL Hall of Fame, Hickey, is going to be called into question. And people are going to make the argument that maybe he doesn't deserve to belong in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. This is a big year for him.

This is a very big year for him. And I do think he'll respond positively and get back on the right direction again. Just get the train back on the tracks. It is derailed and it's nowhere near right now the station. Get it back. Get back on the tracks.

Let's start going back to the direction of positivity. Let me ask you this. Because I know you picked both the Browns and the Broncos to make the playoffs. I disagree with both.

But it got me thinking last night. If I had to pick one who makes the playoffs between those two teams, I would go with the Cleveland Browns. Are you more optimistic and bullish on the Browns compared to the Broncos if you could only... Like if I said to you, Hickey, if I gave you six playoff teams and I said, this is how the playoffs are shaken on out on the AFC. The Jets are in. The Bengals are in. The Jaguars are in. The Chiefs are in. The Bills are in. And let's just say the Dolphins are in. I just gave you six teams, I'm pretty sure, if I counted correctly. If there's one spot left and it's Broncos or Browns, who would you be picking over the other to make the postseason if you had to give up on one of the teams because you picked both of those stinking teams to make the playoffs? Hickey's taking a deep breath. This is actually really tough.

Off the top of the head, like I would... The Browns would make the most sense because they have a lot of talent. I'll go with the Broncos. I trust Sean Payton a lot. They have an elite defense.

I'm a little concerned about the injuries, for sure, but I will trust Sean Payton to, frankly, will this team to the playoffs. But you would agree that the Browns are a better overall team on paper? Yeah, they have more talent. Both sides of the ball.

Maybe not defensively, straight up. I think the Broncos defense is a little bit better, but overall, their talent is more, absolutely. Which is why I feel like, right away, you would think Cleveland because they have a more talented team, but I think the coaching gap, I will trust Sean Payton again to just kind of come in and not allow this team not to be a playoff team.

And in this scenario, you would need to be the second team in your division. That's why I also go with the Browns. I think it's a better chance that the Browns are the second team in their division, even in a tougher division than the AFC West, than it would be that the Broncos are the second team. I think, without a doubt, it is a lock that the Chiefs are one in the AFC West, and then two, it's the Chargers, and then you have the Broncos and Raiders fighting for third and fourth place, and I would go Broncos three and Raiders four. When it comes to the AFC North, the Bengals are going to win that division, and then it's a fight between the Ravens and the Browns. And the Steelers, I think, could be solid, but I would feel more confident picking either the Ravens or the Browns to finish second, and right now, you know what? I would lean Browns.

I would. I think the Browns are going to finish in second in that division. But that's a really tough division, too.

Because you could have four playoff teams. I don't think you could make the case for the Raiders to make the playoffs inside the AFC West, and I really don't think you could make the case for... I don't feel good about the Broncos making the playoffs. That's just one that I just don't see this year, and I get it. Sean Payton is a phenomenal coach.

Phenomenal. And their secondary is awesome, but that offense on paper doesn't do much for me. I feel as if the Bronx... People keep on telling me the last two years, oh, the Broncos, Russell Wilson, look at all the weapons. He had better weapons in Seattle. I said that the day he got traded. He has better weapons in Seattle.

And when your quarterback's no longer elite and you don't have better weapons, that's what just makes me say, like, you'll be okay, but I don't think you're really going to pop this year. What you're forgetting, though, is that now he has more time, because he's not kissing babies and shaking hands, to watch film... Or you hope. He's coming defensively and be able to adjust and game plan for it, and he's also slimmer now, so all of a sudden now he's more mobile, and his hands are less tired because he's, again, shaking less hands around the Denver, larger Denver area. So now he'll be more prepared and ready to go.

You know what? He could have carpal tunnel syndrome. Could happen. Last year, that was a problem. No, no, no. It could happen this year. He has the iPad now more in his hands, studying plays.

That could be a problem for him. I think you had the clicker. You're fine. You're fine.

That clicker was designed to prevent carpal tunnel. If you had to rank these one, two, and three. Actually, one, two, three, four. You have the Broncos in the playoffs, which I disagree with. You have the Browns in the playoffs, that I disagree with. You have the Rams and the Bucks in the playoffs as well.

All four I disagree with. Where's your confidence most to lease between those four teams to make the playoffs? Broncos one.

That's stunning to me. I'll put the Browns two, despite being in a tougher division, tougher conference. Yeah, the NFC stinks.

Bucks three, and then Rams four. Gotcha. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. I was wondering how Hickey thinks, and we just really got into the brain of hot take Hickey right there.

Well, come on back. We will do a little news brief. We'll update you some of the biggest stories in the world of sports with some audio. Zach Gelb here with you on the Zach Gelb show.

Ryan Hickey riding shotgun as always. We're coming on back talking more football next. Stream the NFL and Westwood One for free. Sponsored by AutoZone all season long. You can listen to every Westwood One broadcast of the NFL Live on the NFL app by asking Alexa to open Westwood One Sports. Or on the Odyssey app. Get in the zone, AutoZone.

AutoZone's free battery testing and charging is available for free at your local AutoZone. Get in the zone, AutoZone. Restrictions apply. We start things off with Andy Reid saying injuries and holdouts aren't distracting him for the game. Remember, no Travis Kelce tonight, and Chris Jones has his contract dispute.

He won't play as well. We're focused in on the guys that are here playing the Lions and getting ready to play the Lions, and that's where I'm at. If you're not there, you're not there. Unfortunately, that's the name of this game.

You can't spend time together to exhaust your time on the team that you're playing. So this game has a lot more meaning tonight for the Detroit Lions. Where if the Chiefs lose, if anyone questions Kansas City and if they could go win another Super Bowl after this one game, you're an idiot, you're a moron, and you're a dope. Eventually, Chris Jones will come back. Travis Kelce will eventually play, maybe next week. I would not play him, though, until he's 100% healthy, but as long as you have No.

15 in the playoffs, you're going to have a chance. But, Hickey, I'll ask you this. Not that Andy Reid seemed really stressed, because he sounds the same way throughout every press conference, but you can tell he's getting tired with the Chris Jones conversation. Is this a big burger night after the game, regardless of the performance, win or loss, for Andy Reid, the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs?

I don't think so. I think that big burger night, maybe the double comes... Only for wins? No, I was going to say, actually, when Chris Jones is back on the team. Because win or loss, the questions are not going to stop, now that maybe they lessen or get less important if, again, they're 3-0, 4-0, 5-0.

But, either way, he seems sick of just hearing about it. That big burger is when he officially decides he comes back. So, I live by the three Fs in my life. That is food, that is family, and that is football. Probably not in that order. If we're being serious, it's... football, food, and family.

One, two, and three. But, if we look at those three Fs, I don't think you're an expert hickey, as you displayed throughout the years in the food department. You're also not a large man, so you don't have the big guy mentality, even though you claim you're a man's man. I think Andy Reid, either way, win or loss tonight, has a big fat burger after the game. And I actually think the double burger, potentially, is reserved more so for the losses. Because that's when you're in kind of, even though you won so many games, that kind of depressed state of you lose the game, you know all the questions are going to come, you're annoyed it just eats at you, and then you've got to kind of eat your feelings away. If you are a true man's man, food will not solve your frustrations with a loss. If Andy Reid loses tonight, a double burger is not going to make him feel better. It eases the pain, it absolutely does. You know what?

Hate to call Andy Reid out, he's not dedicated to the game. I'm sorry you're so wrong. I am so right. No, because I'll look at people that are actually a man's man, like my uncle, always had a great box of cookies whenever the Patriots lost. Ease the pain a little bit in the short term. Mraz, whenever he had to deal with the tough loss, you see him posting photos of ice cream and all that. Eases the pain a little bit.

You're wrong on that one, but it's okay. Patrick Mahomes says the Lions will play extremely hard tonight. Play hard the entire game, no matter if it's good play, bad play, they're going to come back that next snap and play extremely hard. And then they do a lot of great stuff scheme-wise. They had a lot of young guys playing last year.

You can see, even throughout the season, how they grew and got better and better. Dan Campbell says he's not treating this game any differently. Honestly, it's no different than any other game. Once you get through this early portion, even the openers on both sides of the ball, now you're into the flow of the game. And so, man, we just got to stay steady, consistent. Don't get too high, don't get too low.

You know, and they know that. I mean, we could be down 14, we could be up 14. And you got to play every play and just relax, put the last one behind you, and just keep playing football. This team started off 1-6 last year at Detroit, and they still almost made the playoffs. Their first two games of the season, Kansas City and then Seattle.

Now, I don't like to make a week one feel as if it's an enormous game. But the way that I will say this for the Lions, this is a tone setter this year. Because people think you'll be good this year. Some are skeptical, like I am, where everyone's ready to say that the Lions are this wonderful football team.

I got to see them take care of business before we crown them anything. But if you want to show that you could be the third best team in the NFC this year. Because we know the Eagles are 1 and the Niners are 2. This is a game, then, that can make a big message and can be a tone setter for your season. Because it's not as if you're going up against the Chiefs at full strength.

There's no Chris Jones, there's no Travis Kelce. They're missing two out of their three best players. If you can't beat them now, it's not as if your season's over. But then I do believe that people, depending on how you lose. Like if you lose a game 27-24 and you lose on a game-winning field goal at the end, what can you do? But if you get embarrassed tonight for the Lions, that's where the early season panic, even after starting 1 and 6 last year with no expectations, that people then start to look at you this year, those questions start to pop up of how good can you actually be.

It's not truly safe. This is a must-win. Oh, stop. A must-win? I don't care if it's week 1.

No Travis Kelce, no Chris Jones. A must-win? The Lions are legit.

Which I think they are. You have to win this game. Alright, what happens if I tell you? You lose tonight, but then you go on to win 11 games this year and you win the NFC North. Was that really a must-win? Can't take it seriously. Oh, shut up. Season's over.

Oh, shut up. Might as well pack it up and go right to Cabo. You're full of you-know-what. You're halfway there if you're Detroit Anyways.

Send the plane south. You're full of crap. Kyle Shanahan says he's prepared to play week 1 without Nick Bosa before he signed. You try not to think about it much because it's not really in my control and you just got to let the process play itself out. Once it kind of went through the weekend, I just kind of got in my mind that we weren't playing with them. Because if I would have gone back and forth, I would have been miserable. So I just decided we weren't. I think our team was ready to not and that was our mindset this way. It was a hell of a bonus to just get told that coming in here. So we're obviously real excited about it. So he gets the new deal.

Nick Bosa, $34 million a year. Late last night flew back to the Bay Area. And then he's going to get back on a plane tomorrow because I think they leave on Friday to go to Pittsburgh. Their first game is up against the Steelers. What's that stadium called again now? It's no longer Heinz Field. Acra Shore Stadium.

Nah, I'm still going to call it Heinz Field. Anyway, here's Kyle Shanahan. Now the question is how much will Nick Bosa play Sunday versus the Steelers since he's now available and you didn't think you were going to probably have him? How many snaps are in the game? I'm just joking.

No, you're not. We got to see when he gets here. I know Nick will come in shape. I know he'll be good. It would be great if he could get in something today. I don't know when he's going to get here or where he's flying from. But I know we'll be smart with it and that will be based on these next two and a half practices.

Yeah, he'll be a full go. Matthew Stafford's wife. I remember talking about this story last week on our podcast. Kelly Stafford said he has a hard time relating to the youngsters on the team.

Matthew Stafford was asked about that and he says he has no chemistry issues with his teammates. I was going to come out here with a newspaper under my arm and some spectacles just to kind of set the mood. But it turns out you can't even find a newspaper around here so I couldn't do that.

I was going to try to have some fun with it but no, it's been great. I love coming to work. I love working with these guys and they all know that. I'll tell you, that's a good way to diffuse that situation. Poking a little fun at yourself with the newspaper.

You can't find one around here. That's a good line. That's a smart line there by a savvy Matthew Stafford. Here's Matthew Stafford when asked if he spoke to the team after his wife's comments about lack of team chemistry. No, I think those guys understand where I'm coming from.

They see me come in this building every single day and know how to go to work, know how to interact with everybody. We didn't really think too much about it to be honest with you. Let's go to Josh Harris who owns the Philadelphia 76ers, the New Jersey Devils and also the Washington Commanders. He says Ron Rivera has to win this year courtesy of the Economic Club of Washington, D.C. We all realize that and he realizes that. We all realize that ultimately we have to deliver wins on the field and so that you don't really need to say anything. It's just out there.

And I think that, and so I think that all this is, you know, but so far so good. Now I've heard Josh Harris speak a ton before. He is not a good public speaker. I remember our boss when he was not my boss, Spike Eskin, our current boss. He once heard me ask Josh Harris a question in a press conference when they were getting rid of Brian Colangelo and asked if he'd bring back Sam Henke and it was basically verbal diarrhea from Josh Harris. And I remember Spike tweeting out that Zach Gelb just put Josh Harris on skates.

So that was not a great sounding answer by Josh Harris, but I think you could interpret it. Ron Rivera, you want to keep your job next year, Hickey? You better go make the playoffs this year. And you know what?

Wait should be. Right? That's when you want to win. That's how you set the tone.

You set the standard right away. Let's win. And finally, here's Jim Harbaugh saying he enjoyed Deion Sanders, Coach Prime's debut as Colorado's head coach. I love Prime's halftime interview, too.

If we had hit him on two more passes that Heisman would be chilling at his crib. That's quite a performance. It's great. Great.

I think, yeah, maybe the coach of the year is chilling in the Prime's crib. It's great. It's great for the game. So there were so many great moments from that game. Was that line by Deion Sanders right before halftime the best one, though?

When you look at all the moments from the game, Hickey. I mean, it's a good line. I like it.

It's a great line. I like the coaching. I like coaches saying what's on their mind. When I say it's better than any of the plays made on the field. Travis Hunter interception was pretty dope.

Probably not. I still would put the on-field performance ahead of what Deion said by halftime. Jadore Sanders throwing 510 yards. Four different 100-yard wide receivers. Yeah, they did a lot offensively. That was very impressive. And the one defensive stop they needed, that I think kind of outweighs a little bit of what Prime said.

Gotcha. Coach Prime to you, by the way. Coach.

Coach Prime. Let's have some respect for a friend of the show here on CBS Sports Radio. Who was not annoyed when I called him Deion Sanders the first time. He was on with us.

He actually said I was his guy. And then last week, when we had him on two weeks ago, I got a lot of blowback from Colorado fans because I called him Coach Deion Sanders. They were annoyed. I emphasized coach. Like, what else did you want from me? What were they annoyed about? They want me to call him Coach Prime. They thought I was trolling.

A lot of comments there. They won the game. It was before the game, to be fair. I guess you're right. It was like two weeks ago.

Still. Deion Sanders loved the interview with us. Coach Prime loved the interview with us.

He's now come on multiple times. If you're going to have said about how your coach is called, get a life. Remember, the views of Hot To Kiki do not reflect the views of the Zach Gelb show right here on CBS Sports Radio. We are big Coach Prime fans.

It is the Zach Gelb show. We're coming on back. You got to hear this quote from maybe right now the biggest jackass in college football. That's the way that I'm going to describe this guy. It's not Coach Prime. We love him. But there is another coach out there that right now just keeps on sounding like he's the biggest jackass in college football. We'll tell you who when we come on back. You're listening to the Zach Gelb show.

It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. Driving under the influence of marijuana is illegal and law enforcement officers can tell if you are driving high. If you feel different, you drive different. Drive high.

Get a DUI paid for by NHTSA. So I don't like people that when they lose, they don't realize why they lost the game and they're not willing to adapt. And they continuously do the same thing over and over and over again. Davos Sweeney has been a great college football coach. But when you are a great coach, eventually people catch up and they will find a way to run past you if you don't adapt and get with the new way of doing things. And Dabo has poked fun at NIL.

He has not embraced the transfer portal and he has shoved his own foot in his mouth over and over and over again. And he's starting to become like the biggest jackass in college football, where now he's becoming a punchline to so many jokes for a guy that went toe to toe and defeated Nick Saban multiple times. And a guy that we looked at as one of the great next college football coaches for years and years and years. But now this Clemson program, they go win the ACC like last year, but they don't have the feel of a dominant team and a team that could go to a college football playoff. And I look at this Clemson team this year, I was not buying in on them. I picked Florida State to win the ACC. But Dabo Sweeney praising his offense, and it's one thing to talk in a positive way about your team when they lose, but trying to paint a picture that's not realistic just doesn't fly with me and take zero accountability for what happened.

And you can go through all these different stories, right? When Eric McLean joined us and he's like, oh, the coaching staff said that DJ Wengle LA does things that make Trevor Lawrence look average. Like, think about the insanity and the arrogance that's marinated a comment like that. And you know what? Since DJ didn't work out at Clemson and you thought he could be that good, guess who's that? That is on. That's on you, Dabo. And now you have Kate Klubnick, who's supposed to be really good, and you had a team that only put up seven points against Duke, and I like Mike Elko.

I've been a big fan of Mike Elko. But they were the better team, Duke, and Duke on paper shouldn't be the better team. So I'm fired up today because this is Dabo Sweeney saying he was happy with the offense on Monday night. Listen up. You know, everything that I wanted to see as far as how we play and what leads to winning, I saw that. There's not, you know, the guys are in a position to win.

I mean, if we average what we, if we do what we did offensively for the rest of the year, we won't lose another game. It's just that simple. I'll take that.

I'll sign up for that right now. And so I was very encouraged by what we saw. Mike, are we serious here? And I know that he said right after the game, oh, well, there's positives because we threw for over 200 and rushed for over 200. It wasn't all bad, but you only put up seven points Dabo. So if you put up those yards again for the rest of the season, doesn't mean that you're going to win every game because when you continuously turn the ball over in the red zone, I don't care how many yards you put up.

I don't care how many yards Will Shipley goes for, how many yards Kate Clubnick goes for. You can't turn the ball over in the red zone. You can't turn the ball over as much as Clemson did because look, Tom Brady, for example, right? The greatest quarterback of all time. His best Super Bowl was one that he lost statistically, put up 505 yards.

Brandon Graham had a strip sack, turnovers kill you, turnovers ruin great statistical games. And that's why Bill Belichick says stats are for losers. And Dabo Sweeney there comes off as a loser when he keeps on telling you how great his team played when the final scoreboard reveals Duke 28 Clemson 7 hickey. And this guy, he is insufferable.

I can't stand Dabo Sweeney and it all started back in 2021 when you had a laundry list of things piling up and this guy just says dumb thing after dumb thing over and over again. And it's one thing to say dumb things, but it's another thing to have your actions just be so stupid in terms of not embracing the transom portal, making fun of NIL and then trying to tell me that if this offense plays the way that it did on Monday night for the rest of the year, they won't lose another game, like what are you talking about? At the end of the day, I don't care what the stats are, you put up seven points. And the one touchdown came off a muff punt where you got the ball starting like the Duke 10 yard line, whatever it was. So it was a short field. So it's like even had one nice drive all game that ended in a score.

I just don't get like, what's the motivation? What are you like, you're trying to rally the troops here, trying to like, trying to make it seem like, oh, this loss is not as bad as people are making out to be. No, it was pretty bad. You were dominating that game. And there's nothing you could say to wipe away the pain or make the loss any less embarrassing. It's like he's now trying just by saying anything. We played great. If we do this again, 11 more times, we'll be 11 and one. He's a fool.

He's a fool. Like right now, I'm not saying they're going to lose all these games. But if you tell me tomorrow, Florida State or Clemson, I'm easily picking Florida State. That game, September 23rd. If you tell me right now, Notre Dame or Clemson, I'm picking Notre Dame. That game's on.