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Get an expert now on TurboTax.com. Host of the Ross Tucker podcast, Ross Tucker, NFL draft writer for The Athletic, Dane Brugler. Coming up, senior NBA writer for The Athletic, Joe Vardin. And now, sitting in for Rich, it's Tom Pelissero. Welcome back to hour three of a Rich Eisenless show. I am Tom Pelissero, sitting in for Rich with the fellas, Chris Brogman, Mike DelTufo, TJ Jefferson. You know, we're fired up 15 days out from the NFL draft. Great conversation earlier with Dane Brugler about that. Ross Tucker was here in studio, but this is, this is the rare occasion, okay, that I walk in and talk to Mike Hoskins before the show about what we're going to do. And I say, I really want to talk about the NBA right off the bat. I talk NFL all the time.
Yesterday, in my mind, was one of the weirder days. It's just like I can, I get to be a fan and view it from that perspective that I can remember from start to finish. Let's bring in somebody who's going to have a lot more insight than I do. Joe Vardin, senior NBA writer for The Athletic right now. Joe, we started out with Michael Malone being fired. We finished the night with Luca being ejected in crunch time from a huge game for apparently yelling at a fan.
And that's without even mentioning, you know, the Timberwolves blowing a 24 point lead. It seems like general chaos in the NBA, but I'm most curious about this. When something happens, like Luca, who listened to, he has a history of, of jabbering with fans and with refs and with everybody else. Does the NBA look at this situation?
Will they dig into it and try to figure out who is actually saying what to whom? How does the league handle a situation like this? Yeah, for sure, because there are fines involved with these technicals and ejections. And so, you know, they'll take a look into it and do some interviews, you know, whether it's with the officials, with Luca, with bystanders. And you can get the technical rescinded. Obviously, there's nothing they can do about the game part.
But, you know, you hate to see that. You hate to see a player removed from crunch time of a game, especially a game that mattered like that one last night. But to your point, I mean, Luca has a well-known history and reputation of just constant bantering with officials, to the point where he could have been talking to a fan and an official based on the context and the past history could have suspected otherwise.
So, you know, it's one of those things where maybe his reputation got him. But yeah, I mean, the league, the league takes a look at all this stuff. When you look at the Lakers and where they are right now, and there's been some streakiness even after acquiring Luca, they're hanging in the balance there and so is the rest of the Western Conference in terms of who's going to end up being the four, five, six seeds, who's going to end up in those play-in scenarios. But setting aside what happened after Luca got ejected, what do you make of the Lakers at this point in time a week or so out from the playoffs?
Well, I'm here in Dallas for tonight's game between the Lakers and the Mavericks and Luca's return here. And I have to say, I like the Lakers. You know, you mentioned they were streaky, but by and large a lot of that had to do with LeBron being out.
I think with Luca and LeBron on the floor at the same time, their record's really good. They're bigger. They're a big team. And I know like you don't get bigger by trading Anthony Davis.
That's not what I mean. But if you think about, you know, Rui Hachimura, like being back in the fold and Jared Vanderbilt, and then you have Austin Reeves who's really coming into his own, playing along two of the greatest passers-in court vision guys ever, you know, they're a very good team. And, you know, we always talk about experience as we get into the playoffs. And this is a team with, of course, a bona fide face of the league, you know, multi-time champion in LeBron. And then somebody who represented the West in last year's finals in Luca.
So, you know, health is a big thing for them, but I think they're going to be a tough out. So right now the Lakers, despite all that, they're sitting in the three seed in the West, exactly one game ahead of four other teams, one game ahead of the top play-in spot. And by the way, Joe, two of those four teams have fired their head coaches in the past couple of weeks. I don't, I don't remember a whole lot of precedent for teams in that playoff position. Speaking specifically on what happened yesterday with the Nuggets. Were there any signs?
Do you, I know when I cover the NFL and sometimes things will happen, I kind of rewind my brain like, oh, there was, there was this I should have picked up on that there was an issue. Were there signs that there was real trouble in Denver? Yes, but there's never a sign when you are within, you know, shouting distance of third and in a conference with, with three games left or however many are left for the Nuggets. There's never a sign that you're going to fire your coach at that point. There have been signs for months and really all season about a general, you know, sort of going separate ways between, you know, Michael Malone and Calvin Booth who were both let go yesterday, but it's just not a move that you think happens in the moment. And yes, the Nuggets have lost four in a row. They also struggled a little bit when, when Jokic was out, you know, with, with some nagging injuries, but that's expected. So, you know, I just, it's, it's hard to wrap your head around this. It's hard, you know, they're, of course, they're pitching Nicola to win another MVP.
And while his statistics are incredible, again, I think it's going to be a hard sell to voters to consider him the most valuable player in a year where the ownership obviously deemed the year not to be good enough to keep the coach. So yeah, it was certainly a surprise just like the Memphis thing was a surprise. You know, the Grizzlies people were saying, well, if you were here on the ground, you wouldn't have been so surprised.
But I don't, I don't buy that. I mean, you just, you tend not to go away from what got you there. And in the, I think when, when Taylor was let go, I think the Grizzlies were in third or somewhere between third and fifth. And the same thing with, with the Nuggets. I mean, I think maybe they're fifth now, but, but two days ago they were in third or something like that.
So it's crazy, you know, I mean, I will see, you know, how this goes long term with, with what happens in Denver. I mean, they, they, they're not even two years removed from winning at all. And I just, you know, I mean, what a, what a shot at the profession to just decide that, that soon out from winning that, that the coaches is no longer a fit for your team. So as you look at the West right now and even setting aside to the extent that we can, the turmoil for the Nuggets and the Grizzlies here, is this a clean path in your mind for the Thunder to run straight through to the NBA finals? Or is there somebody based on the moves the Lakers have gotten if everybody's healthy based on, I mean, the Timberwolves seem to be putting it together and then deliver an absolute flat performance last night. Who, who, if anyone, can actually challenge the Thunder in the West? Well, Tom, it goes back to this experience that we're talking about because the Lakers have it, the Nuggets have it, the Warriors have it.
Well, you know, with who they already had and then who they added and what's, what they've looked like since. So you start with those teams and then the Clippers have it, certainly with, with Kawhi and, and with Ty Lue in terms of champ, championship experience. So you look there and then, I mean, like you mentioned, the Timberwolves are finally, finally seem to be putting it together. So where, as in the East, you're almost exclusively talking about Cleveland and Boston. The conversation seems to be much more wide open in the West.
And I think that's funny because I mean, I'm engaging in it too, obviously. But then every single time I watch the Thunder, I come away thinking, wow, that team is so good and so deep. So I do really like the Thunder. I think they are the best team in the West. I think they're the most talented team in the West. They've done it right all year long. It's just going to come down to, does their style of play and their lack of experience in those final two rounds, the conference finals and the finals, will that come back to get them?
Because otherwise it shouldn't. They are the best team in the West. You mentioned Golden State in there and obviously they've got guys there. They've got a coach who have been there before. Where do they stand in this entire thing? Again, knowing based on the variance of these final five games, the Warriors could be in a spot where, you know, they're the six and they're facing the Lakers or they could even be in a play-in scenario.
Right. I think the goal in San Francisco all along has just been to avoid the play-in. So they're going to play their guys until they have that part wrapped up. And things are so tight in the West right now that the only things that are settled are first and second place. You know, right now the Lakers are third, but I mean they have to win to clinch a playoff spot. So they could end up theoretically in a play-in.
And it goes all the way down the list. So, you know, the Warriors are on track to do what they had set out to do when they made the Jimmy trade. Things have looked so much better there. They're seventh in the NBA in defense, or at least they were the last time I checked a couple days ago. In fact, I'm sure they are because the Cavs were eighth and they haven't been very good on that side of the ball lately. So yeah, they're better than they have been defensively. Jimmy's presence has given Steph some breathing room. He seems rejuvenated. And Draymond Green, you know, it's funny, he gets on his podcast and he says, well, I would like to be defensive player of the year again.
And it's almost like him saying that is what brought the eyeballs to his candidacy. But then if you actually take a look at it, the Warriors are seventh in defense and they don't really have a traditional center. So he is their defensive anchor and they do seem to play well on that side of the ball when he's there.
So I'm not sure he's going to win the award, but I mean, he's at his age to be in the conversation is awesome. The Celtics, you mentioned them in the Cavs in the East. You watched that game last night. This felt like a bigger moment, maybe in the Knicks season that it just would be on paper.
It's one of 82. They're not catching the Celtics for the two-seed here, but that was a dagger-type moment. It just felt like in terms of the Knicks trying to claw their way and show you're a factor and then for Tatum to do what he does in that moment.
It seemed just to create, even though again, close game goes to overtime. It just felt like one of those moments where the Celtics showed again, why they're going to be thoroughly in the mix. Oh, yeah, I mean Boston is. I think Boston is favored against Cleveland and that eventual Eastern Conference Finals matchup, you know, game seven would be in Cleveland, but Boston has too much experience, too much depth.
And when Kristops is on the floor, I mean, I just I don't know how you guard them over a seven-game series. So I mean, Boston is absolutely still there. Like to your point about the Knicks, I think they were, in fact, I don't think, I know they were winless against Cleveland and Boston. Coming up as I did in the NBA during the LeBron-Cleveland years, I always like to say and think that what happens in the regular season is not necessarily a harbinger for a team's chances against any one other franchise in a seven-game series. The Knicks are third. They've done it with, you know, they've had some injuries throughout the year.
And so that's still a pretty good season. What they need to figure out is how do they survive that second round matchup against Boston? How do they figure out, you know, how do they overcome the depth of the Celtics and, you know, being a worse defensive team than they have been since they got good again in New York? You know, how do they make up for that? I mean, they're not quite as dynamic of an offensive club as the Celtics are, as Cleveland is.
Cleveland still has the number one offense in the league. But, you know, they have stars and they have a little bit of size now. So, you know, we'll see. But, you know, I think to your point, it's just, you can call it deflating.
You can call it a reminder. But just in a regular season campaign to not get one win against the other, those two franchises is, it's a bummer. We just showed the Eastern Conference standings there. And I say this mostly kidding, but when you look at who's going to be in that play-in tournament in the East, is there ever a scenario where the NBA just scraps that?
Just basically says, like, this is just, this is awful. I know the Heat and the Bulls are both winning right now, but you got multiple teams going in at seven games below 500. It just feels like, you know, as the NFL considers things like not giving a team with a losing record a home game in the playoffs, that maybe the NBA be like, all right, you got to be at least with 500 team to actually get into this thing. Yeah, I mean, the Magic you can be okay with because you know that they played a huge swath of the year without Wagner and then without Paolo.
So 39 and 40, maybe by the time it's all said and done, they get over that 500 mark. How do they match up against the Celtics in a first round? I mean, the Magic can't shoot, but they are good defensively. So that would, you know, maybe give the Celtics something to think about.
I want to differ with you a little bit on the other side of that bracket. Chicago, after just a miserable season, you know, where they end up having to trade, you know, Zach and I mean, it looks like they're going, you know, the way of a rebuild and here they are again towards the bottom of the play-in, except they're 12 and 7 over the last month. And they are, they have been pounding teams. I don't like them in a first round matchup against Cleveland over, you know, over seven games, but they're there.
Can I say they're a tough out? I mean, I kind of like them to get through the play-in. I actually, I kind of expect the Bulls to be that first round matchup right now against the Cavs. And that's just a testament to the players they have there, to Billy Donovan.
Kobe White has just been awesome. You know, they didn't play any of their guys, any of those guys. I think they sat like five regulars last night in Cleveland to gear up for tonight's matchup against the Heat. They have a half, or they're tied with the Heat. They own the tiebreaker. So you think the winner of that game is going to end up hosting that 9-10 matchup in the first round of the play-in.
Great stuff, Joe. Enjoy a big game in Dallas tonight. Also, we've been cooking up a theory in here that you could have a sleeper cell scenario where Mark Cuban or whoever from Mavericks management might fly in the courtside tattoo guy as he calls himself. We got Luka ejected last night. Dress him in that same thank you Luka shirt just sitting there. So just keep an eye out. Anybody with too many tats courtside, let us know if he shows up. We appreciate you, man.
Thanks for the heads up. Joe Farden from the athletic. Great breakdown of a wild, wild day in the NBA. I'm always heartened when people who cover other sports have similar types of responses when things like a firing comes, where you're like, there were the signs.
I was here when Robert Sola got fired last year. Yeah. And it's like you kind of think back in your head of, OK, there was this.
That would make sense. That was still weird. That was on a Tuesday. The timing of it, they were about to play the bills for first place in the division. But you heard right there with Joe, it's like, yeah, there's there's signs of trouble with the Nuggets. They're not winning right now and they've got a talented roster and they still have an MVP candidate and they're kind of limping toward the playoffs. But you don't think you're going to fire the coach.
We I asked, I was having the same thought that you brought up before the show, Brock, when I was flying here yesterday and saw the the Shams bomb about Michael Malone being fired. And I'm thinking like, what is the equivalent? What's the closest thing that has actually happened in the NFL?
You said it would be the equivalent would be. Yeah, it would have been last year, week 16, 17. The Rams fire Sean McVay and Les Snead. Like they're the fourth seed going into the playoffs. They are a firm playoff team that could maybe make some noise, which the Rams eventually, you know, they almost did. They gave the Eagles the best game in the playoffs. They had just won a championship a few years earlier. Boom.
Nope. Out right before the playoffs. And in an 82 game season compared to a 17 game season, that is the equivalent of doing it with one game left. Yeah, you are 95% of the way through your season.
We left. I asked our tremendous NFL research department, Ben McWilliams, just like has there ever been a head coach in the NFL fired by a team in playoff position, which is a tough thing to quantify because the number of playoff teams has shifted over time. He came back with this, which is the closest answer for teams since the AFL NFL merger in 1970 have fired a coach in season with a winning record four times in 55 years. No one even remotely close to the playoffs. I already quizzed you off air, but the list is Ron Meyer with the 84 Patriots Bobby Ross by the Lions and Norv Turner with the Washington team both in 2000. Norv was the closest seven and six with three games to go. Wow.
I went back. You had to be 10 and six to go to the playoffs. They probably weren't making it anyway, but that's the closest we've come and then obviously had the John Gruden situation a few years ago, which is one of only two times ever an interim coach has actually made the playoffs with rich, but they were extenuating circumstances to say the least to say the least on that. I did not see any New York Times or Wall Street Journal stories about Michael Malone prior to this has appeared to be.
I have not seen basketball email leaks basketball only. It is wild. It's going to be Snyder involved in the Denver thing yesterday. I'm not sure.
I think he's on a yacht somewhere laughing about it and saying now at least they got somebody else. Yeah, we're gonna take a break Brockman's got some burning questions NFL and otherwise coming up only Masters. Oh Masters Masters only people. What's the Masters is that this week?
Part three going on right now Masters burning questions after this. Every day when we're on the road people around us in danger themselves and others by using their phones while driving. They think they're hiding it, but we've all seen them and know exactly who they are. For instance, there is the sneak a peeker who darts their eyes between the road and their texts. There's also the got a ticketer looking upset because they just got a ticket for using their phone while driving. And what about the fast scroller who can't drive five minutes without updating their social feeds or the night lighter who has that mysterious glow illuminating the inside of their car after dark. Do any of these sound familiar if they remind you of yourself or someone, you know, rethink your behavior before you find yourself becoming the fender-benderer the veering off the rotor or worst of all the driver who killed someone put the phone away or pay paid for by NHTSA. Don't let the urge to sing along to that catchy tune distract you from that truck drifting towards your lane or that lane splitting biker creeping up beside you. Fortunately every Hyundai offers advanced safety features that can alert you to potential dangers around you and Hyundai is over 120 IIHS Top Safety Awards since 2006 because Hyundai is always working to ensure the road doesn't get you.
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Navy Federal Credit Union, our members are the mission, insured by NCUA. What's the most pissed off you made Nick Saban, ever? Oh, when I took the sack, second and 26. In a national championship. You mean the one that you immediately made up for with an amazing play that put you on the map?
Yeah. That sack? Okay, so walk me through how that, what he said to you, if you can, in a certain way on a live radio TV broadcast. I mean, I could only see it on camera, you know, how mad he was. That was probably the most pissed off, though, I think he's ever been. I mean, he was squeezing his headset so hard.
And then, you know, like it was hard because the emotion was like so mad to so happy, you know, so fast for him. And, you know, we got into the locker room when everything settled down. I mean, he was still the same coach, you know, put me to the side. Like, what were you thinking, you know? So after you won the game and you've picking confetti out of your hair, he still took a moment in that moment to revisit that sack. Being who he is, I mean, you know, he put me to the side. He said, you know, well, why did you take the sack?
Right. You know, and I thought it was a good time to joke with him, you know? So I mean, we won the national championship. So I told him, I told him, well, you know, we needed more room to throw the ball coach, you know, and like, he looked at me and like, I was laughing. He's like, that's not funny. So I mean, I didn't know what else to do in that situation. I was like, okay, I'm sorry coach.
So I shook his hand and he just moved on. I was like, oh man, that's amazing. I love that story.
Yeah, I made my favorite story the whole week. So you just figured, yeah. Hey, I was like, oh, maybe, yeah. That was a good time to joke, but it wasn't. Nope. It's never a good time.
I guess in that respect. Welcome back to the Rich Eisen Show Radio Network. I'm Tom Pellicero sitting at the Rich Eisen Show desk furnished by Grainger with supplies and solutions for every industry. Grainger has the right solution for you.
Call clickgrainger.com or just stop by. We got a lot going on right now, including whatever you guys are just talking about while I was trying to give that strong Grainger read. No, you did a great job, Tom. Look, that was an aggressive Grainger read.
Grainger is proud of you right now. That's all I'm asking for. 15 days off from the NFL draft. Crazy day in the NBA. The Masters also getting going tomorrow, which means it's probably time Brockman for some burning questions. Let's go. High five. One, two, three, four, five.
Brockman's. Top five. Great job, Mike. Every time you nail it. Guys, we need to start talking in hushed tones. Dulcet tones.
Normally for the top fives, I'm very excited and animated, but right now we're going to Augusta for my top five. Get a little deeper for Jim Nance. A little deeper. Jim Nance.
That's down here. How do you feel about Jim Nance announcing his retirement in 11 years? We're going on an 11 year Jim Nance retirement. Is that why you put in the email?
Yes, I did. Yeah, that's why I put that in my retirement. My Masters pool email. I'm walking away in 2036. But I don't want a retirement tour by my quarter zips. Folks, it's time for my top five Masters burning questions as we get ready for the 2025 edition. Some of these old golfers are going to die soon. So we got to get them to record their tributes this year. Number five.
Would I retire in 11 years? Number five. By the way, I'm doing this the entire segment. So get ready. Fantastic.
Can't wait to read the YouTube comments. Number five. Which Jordan Spieth are we getting? Folks, it's been 10 years now since Jordan's record-breaking performance at Augusta when he burst onto the scene. I believe he won two majors that year and Jordan Spieth.
We thought he was going to win 10 of these babies and it's been a long road since. He's had some injuries and just the Jordan Spieth golf experience is one to take in and enjoy. You don't know what you're getting shot to shot with this guy, which makes him one of the most entertaining golfers we have.
I'm very excited to see which Jordan Spieth shows up at Augusta this week. That's part of the excitement, Jim. Right, Jim? Number four. Jim talking to Jim. Jim talking to Jim's dream.
Number four, folks. The Zander Slam. You may not realize this, but Zander Shafley, maybe you've forgotten, Zander Shafley won two majors last year. And if he wins the Masters this week, that will be three of the last four majors. Won by Zander Shafley, who previously was the butt of a lot of jokes. He could not close until last year at the PGA and the Open Championship. He, too, is coming off of an injury, but is rounding into shape.
He's looking better in recent events. What is going to happen with Zander Shafley this week and could he get the Zander Slam? Two major wins, yet can you spell Shafley, Brockman? S-C-H-A-U-F-F-E-L-L-E. Did I add an extra L? I think you added an L. One L. One L-E. So close. Zander Shafley.
You have 11 years to get it right. My farewell tour. Please buy my wines. Number three, Schifoli. Which live golfers are going to show up?
Now we have to add this every year because we do not know. Look, you may have forgotten, but a couple years ago, Phil Mickelson came in second place in the Masters. Kind of shocking. Brooks Koepka was unbelievable last year in the first couple rounds before Scottie Scheffler ran away with it. Jon Rahm, of course, won a couple years ago before bolting to live. Lot of live. A lot of former Masters winners went to live. Charles Swartzel, Patrick Reed, Sergio Garcia is playing great golf this year. How will the live golfers perform at Augusta? Jim, are you just naming live golfers now? They all won the Masters.
I'm not making any of that up. They have green jackets. We're going to show the dinner photo later, and they all have creepy looks on their faces. No tiger in the photo. No tiger this year. He's recovering from Achilles surgery.
And of course, his newfound love. Don Jr's ex. That's a real thing. We're going to leave that there, Jim.
Lil Wayne is not a golfer, but he used to go to live on Sundays. That's very true, TJ. Thank you for pointing that out. This is great. This bit is never going to end.
Number two, number two in my top five. Will it be the Scheffler show once again, folks? Yes, it's Scottie Scheffler's world and we're all just paying rent. Scottie Scheffler with a Masters win this week. He would go back to back and that would be three Masters victories in four years. Only the great Jack Nicklaus has done that. So that would be a record-breaking performance for Mr. Scottie Scheffler. He struggled a little bit this year, but the putter got hot a couple weeks ago in Houston, where he was runner-up Scottie Scheffler. Will it be the Scheffler show once again?
Hopefully only during the tournament and not on the way there. What are we waiting for, Mike? Why do you keep playing that? I don't know.
Thank you. Thank God Jay Felley's here tomorrow. And number one, and this is always going to be my number one Masters storyline until it actually happens. Is it finally Rory McIlroy's time? Rory McIlroy has not won a major since 2014. He was famously, I mean, very epically choked in the US Open last year against Bryson DeChambeau.
He couldn't make a pair of three-footers. Tom, I'm sure both your daughters could make a three-foot putt, but Rory McIlroy missed both and gave away the US Open Championship at Pinehurst number two. But this is Augusta, where Rory has never won. He's looking to complete the career Grand Slam to be only the sixth golfer to do so.
Is it finally Rory McIlroy's time? I guess now the next time that I see… All right, we'll get one more. One more? Please. A one more edition of this Masters Burning Questions? Will we get another random winner?
Because the Masters, among all tournaments, you'd think it's dominated by all-time greats. No, no, no, no, no. There is a random winner here or there. Who could forget the Denny Willett victory in 2016? You made that name up, Jim. That's a real name and a real person. Denny Willett. He's an Englishman, and he famously won the 2016 Masters after Jordan Spieth. You could be making up names, Jim.
Put like three in the water on 12. Mike Weir, also a random winner. Find out Denny Willett in this photo, Jim. Denny Willett is right over, I believe, let's see, he's next to Phil Mickelson.
He's over Phil Mickelson's right shoulder. Fuzzy Zeller. Fuzzy Zeller, a random winner. Mike Weir. Who could forget Charles Swartzel? I mentioned him earlier. Ian Woosnam.
Trevor Immelman, now an announcer. With me, Jim Nance. For the Masters, he is also another random. Augusta gets random winners.
And you never know, could that be this year? Who would be your random winner, Jim? Who would be a random winner this year? Hmm. Let's see. You're picking one. Who would be a random? I think maybe Sep Straca would be a random winner.
I don't know if he's going to win any other majors, but he's rounding into form heading into Augusta this week. Are we ready to wrap the bit, Jim? Okay, that's it.
Good job. Thank you everybody for playing along. Those are my Masters burning questions as we get ready for the greatest weekend of the year coming up. Stay tuned for my outfits the next couple of days.
I am going to be very Masters festive. This is greatest weekend of the year. You're putting this number one in there.
You know, Mike and I were actually talking about this before. Masters Sunday, I think, is up there with any singular day sporting event. You get the opening round in the NCAA tournament is great. Super Bowl Sunday, obviously.
The NFL Draft first round Thursday has become quite the event, quite the spectacle. Masters Sunday is very up there for me. Top five.
Top five for sure. How would you rank the majors the Sundays? Well, Masters Sunday is number one. US Open number two because it's always on Father's Day, which is pretty great.
Especially if you have that type of relationship with your dad, where golf is kind of your connecting point. That's a British third. Yeah, British third. British is always fun because you never know. Super early in the morning. It's super early. You get to watch kind of like morning golf. That's super fun. Brunch golf. Being across the pond is what we're mandated to say.
And you also don't know what the weather is going to be like. You know, Brian Harmon, kind of a random major winner. He won in the rain and like it was basically a rainstorm a couple years ago. It was nice being broadcast from cameras in 1985. Yeah, like it's kind of the blur. Yeah, the whole thing.
Yeah, the raindrops on the camera lens and then and then the PGA fourth. It's it's like they ran out. It's just fine.
That's fine. They moved it up. They moved it up. It used to be in August. Now it's now it's in May.
And so yeah, that's kind of tough. It felt like it feels like the extra. It feels like we just need to we need to have another one. I think it's a Ryder Cup in there, you know, every other year. The Ryder Cup this year, it's going to be at Bethpage in New York and it's going to be, you know, pretty rowdy in September.
That's going to be pretty fun. That'll probably be a pretty cool Sunday, especially if the if the match is close. But if you would, all right, Masters Sunday versus let's say pick a Sunday in NFL season.
You can only live one day over and over. Are you picking a random NFL Sunday? Or are you picking Sunday of the Masters?
No, I'm picking the 2019 Masters Sunday and I will live that day the rest of my life. That's not the option. The option is just random Zander Shafle win.
Ooh. Just any you have no idea what it's going to be. It might be different every time.
OK. But every day you're in a Groundhog Day scenario. Just a random NFL Sunday? You're in a Groundhog Day scenario. Every day you wake up and it's either going to be Sunday, the Masters or it's going to be random NFL Sunday. You don't know what games are on.
You don't know who's winning the Masters. But you have one thing that you're taking in for, you know, the 7 to 10 hours. Am I in a you're not in a vegetative state. OK, you. Am I in a legal gambling state that do I live in? Do I live in like, you know, let's say you're in a legal gambling state gambling state. You don't have very much money.
See, that's not fair. Give me a Masters Sunday. Well, actually, it's Groundhog Day. So you could bet everything every day, right? Exactly. You wake up and you say, well, I could rob a bank in the morning, like like Phil Connors does in the movie. And then spend it on, yeah, NFL, random NFL Sundays.
There's usually some crazy stuff that happens. So how can you say Masters Sunday is the greatest Sunday of the year? Because Masters Sunday is great.
You think so. You think any NFL Sunday week five is better than Masters Sunday? Week five. That's crazy.
I wake up. That's crazy. And I'm not talking about like the, you know, the quadruple header days where NFL Network starts it over breakfast. I'm just saying your random day for windows. Let's say it's a no buy week.
She got everybody's playing 14 games. I mean, obviously lose the Monday. You lose the Thursday. You got 14 games, three windows from 10 a.m. Pacific to 9 p.m. Pacific, 11 hours, or you just live a Sunday at the Masters.
Let's do sand. Somebody who's never heard of wins. Is it 2007? So I get to watch Brady and Moss cannot pick the year. I mean, come on, you got to give me some options. You have no clue.
You have no context. But modern day, let's say it's modern day. I guess Mac Jones, my quarterback, or maybe my quarter twenty five. Yeah, he's got a random Masters any year. Any it could be any of the Masters, but no, but it's this year. I'm saying it's a hypothetical. Yeah, you ain't got to beat it this year, but it'll play out differently every time.
Oh, I see differently every time differently every time. Then Rory's bound to win one and that'd be pretty exciting. That's true, because you could have like 70, however, however many different winners on Sunday. How many people make the cut at the Masters make the cut?
Usually it's like in the fifties. OK, so 50 something different people could win, right? Or the NFL, you have binary outcomes in each one. So there is something to be said for the randomness of the Masters, which is that could be pretty fun.
You could watch it a thousand times. We got to get these. We get a playoff one year. I'm still going. I'm still going Masters Sunday over week weeks, eight NFL. Come on. I think I'm going in if you're too close to it, Tom.
Yeah, I'm definitely too close to it. But just like the pace of it, you know, the nonstop action. I need I need you watching Red Zone the whole time.
Red Zone is an option. So I'm why you're watching it. However, you watch it. For me, that would be Red Zone. One headphone in listening to Hanson. The other, you've got a mix of game one or two games on the TV.
Oh, man. But Masters, you're just watching straight. Yeah, we're locked in hours of Nance. Give me Nance.
Give me a moment. How many hours does Nance actually do? Because they come in later, right? I mean, later. Well, no, I don't think any more. I think it's about six hours on Sunday.
I think they pretty much go a lot less time. What are you doing with the rest of that day? I'm getting ready. I'm not a lot of time. I'm having mimosas in the morning. He's not an EWR.
What is this? The airport airport drinks at eight o'clock in the morning. Still, I walked over the Newark Airport to message us or call in and explain the policy. I never got an explanation why I was just told this is the policy. You can't start until the Masters. No, exactly.
Until they tee off until the first group tees off. You don't get it. You don't get it.
That's right. I had a panic order at the Sky Club on the way here. I couldn't think of the word mimosa.
I just threw a complete blank. I was like, can you go get me? Can you get me a Bloody Mary?
It was actually was last Sunday coming back from Florida. Can you give me a Bloody Mary? Am I all right?
So I go up there. My air, what am I going to have? And I'm thinking in my head mimosa. I'm just thinking orange juice champagne. So my bloody Mary and and I'm just there's nothing. The word is not in there, which is probably a sign. I should not have a drink, but I just go mojito accidentally order a mojito at like 10 a.m.
It's a big mistake choice choice drastically. Just a little base drink. It's from Miami. We had some good pineapple mojitos. Oh, yeah. I mean, oh, yeah.
There's they're good. They're talking about this is the basic like the when you're in any of those the clubs in the airport. Sure.
You're getting the most basic version of everything, right? Unless you pay the miles, go up to get like I'm going to give 7500 miles to like so you can put a little bit of pineapple in there. No, I'm not going to do that. That's like a third of a ticket to Chicago.
I think I'm not going to use that word. Use that toward one drink. I'll just take give me the old Forester in a glass.
Yeah, the big rocks know. OK, just a bunch of little tiny ice cubes that will all melt in the next 30 seconds. So I'm now drinking a water in old Forester.
That's what I want. Make that mojito with the pre-made simple syrup, please. Just as much simple syrup as possible that a little Captain Morgan on top. Did you get the mojito expecting a mimosa?
No, no, I didn't. I couldn't think of the word mojito. And then I didn't have a pivot and there's a line. So I just say the closest word I can think of to mimosa. And alcohol drink. And then what? Like that. And then I come back and Sarah just goes, what is that? I go, it's a mojito. I panicked.
I couldn't think of the word. I gave it the Collins try. It's pretty good. I was just like, I'm going to go for it. It tasted just like the last mojito I ordered 20 years before.
Still not what my palate was asking for. Probably also on spring break. Would that be a good Masters drink? Would you have a little mojito?
Uh, sure. I mean, I'm going to go nuts this weekend. It's going to be crazy. What do you drink during the Masters?
Let's go. Oh, I don't know. I'm just saying, gambling and watching and Rory stuff. It's going to be nuts.
Like, I'm trying to figure out. Your sports Caligula this weekend. What's fiscally responsible to bet on Roy to win this week. I mean, I know I'm going to be disappointed probably in the end, but it's like, I just want to feel something, you know, you drink beer during the football games, but you can only drink mojitos during the Masters. I'm not a huge beer person, so I guess I'll go. You can have any drink you want during football, but only mojitos during the Masters. Then we have to go football.
We finally, we got there. All right, let's get back back to a little football talk coming up after this 15 days out from the draft. What are the Browns going to do when the draft really starts at number two? We'll talk about it next on the rich eyes and show. Let's talk O'Reilly Auto Parts people. They're in the business of keeping your car on the road. Oh, oh, oh, O'Reilly Auto Parts offers friendly helpful service in the parts knowledge. You need for all your maintenance and repairs. They've got thousands of parts and accessories in stock, either in store or online.
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That's OReillyAuto.com slash Eizen. McDonald's meets the Minecraft universe with one of six collectibles and your choice of a big back or 10 piece McNuggets with spicy nether flame sauce now available with a Minecraft movie meal at participating McDonald's for a limited time a Minecraft movie only in theaters Seattle is hosting New Orleans in a playoff game. Correct in Seattle and we played them earlier in the season.
So it's not uncommon. We played them on Monday Night Football five weeks prior and now we are back in the divisional round at Seattle only it's a little different. We're we're staying over across the water in Bellevue. And so the first thing in the morning when I get up is I have a waffle, you know, the whipped cream strawberries and I'm flipping through the networks trying to get either ESPN or NFL Network who's going to give me the forecast. There's NFL Network. I got it and they're going to these sites where the divisional games are going to be played and talking about this is sunny here buh buh buh and then to Seattle and they and they get to the Seahawk Stadium and and I know that it's going to be you can see the wind and I'm eating my waffle and they pan down on Russell Wilson and Drew Brees throwing a football on the field in their graves. I'm going to tell you where I was supposed to be at that moment when they're throwing a football I am supposed to be meeting with the officials discussing the inactive's.
All right and getting ready to say the Lord's Prayer and give our players a peptide. That's where I'm supposed to be at that moment. I stumble out of the bed. This is my worst nightmare. I know I'm a half an hour away from the stadium and I'm thinking to myself National Anthem. I'm in my underwear late to the game, right? That's the nightmare that I have. Wow, and I just saw Breeze and Russell Wilson warming up and I run to the shower call my assistant can't get him.
The waffle is spilled on the floor. I get back. My assistant says hey, what's up? And I said, when did the buses leave? No one called he said coach the buses haven't left yet. They had taken b-roll from the Monday night game someone in the tape room ran the wrong tape.
Can you imagine? I text Falk. He's on set with Rich. I said, what are you guys doing?
I had a cow telling you you have no idea. We're talking about being like this is the divisional playoff game not being there for the kickoff as the head coach. That's how late I was and Sean just Marshall showing me the text. We went back and forth. I arrived this guy now is live on the field and I peek out at the stadium only because of the conditions and I take a look and Rich says good to have Sean Payton here at the stadium on time just some some slight comment that not one person can understand until we tell the story amazing.
Sean Payton. That's one of the legendary stories. I've heard that one before it is an absolute all-timer and completely believable to you. Yeah, and knowing Sean's personality when he says he had a cow I can imagine you don't want to be on the other you don't want to be on the other end of that for Sean who I saw I saw at the league meeting. He recommended is it like the entire conversation was recommending a complete unknown the Bob Dylan biopic sure watched on the plane back. He was right extremely good film likes it.
Yes inspirational shallow me, but he was he was yeah, he was extremely extremely into that. So a little different this year. I don't think the Broncos over under is going to be five and a half again.
That was free money. He was and Sean without again, of course, I can't give gambling advice. Neither can he but he did make a point of telling me that during camp welcome back to the Rich Eisen show Tom Pelissero in for rich was aware of what their number was talking about 100% Sean Payton and it was more or less the the conversation more or less went when the bleep have I ever won five games or six games like what what is wrong with you people those are I mean those were those win totals always fascinating because I'm always I'm always sitting back.
I know I'm too close to it at times, but I'm always thinking what is it? What is it based on? It's obviously it's public confidence and you want the bets that end up on either side, right? Yep, like why the public confidence on certain things is so high or so low the idea the Broncos are going to go five and twelve last year. Yeah, I never thought that but yeah would have been hard hard to imagine the Vikings were six and a half and the Vikings is pretty well as last year and that was just because of all right, Sam Darnold or JJ McCarthy.
They're not Kirk Cousins. And yet, you know, they go and they go and win 14th. Yeah, slightly different this year Denver nine and a half right now win total nine and a half. Which way are you going on that problem over is plus money on might be listening. Does that help well overs plus 125 and I think that's great value for the for an over for Denver 10 and 7 my come on betting on these two before the again.
I can't give gambling advice. Did I mention the draft? Yeah, you mentioned that if you're betting it before the draft seems completely wild to me because of the combination of trades that can happen before during the draft the draft picks that can vastly influence things as well. Right and we're sitting here 15 days out and again, I think that it was similar to this last year where at this point we knew Caleb was going number one. We had a pretty good idea. It's never a hundred percent this year.
Never a hundred percent. We had a pretty good idea. Cam Ward goes one to the Titans the draft begins at two, but unlike a year ago what it was. Okay, which quarterback is Washington going to take because the back and forth last year was not even Jaden versus Drake May.
It was Jaden versus JJ McCarthy. That was the real question about who was going to go number two this year. I would fairly say this. I would be surprised if the Browns take Chidor Sanders at two.
It seems like and again, everybody lies this time of year. There's tons of misinformation, but it seems like a Abdul Carter or Travis Hunter decision for the Browns. Then you get to the Giants at three. I would not be surprised if they took Chidor, but they take the other guy, right? No. Oh, you would. Oh, you would not be surprised. I would not be surprised.
Oh, interesting. If they were to take Chidor, I think you should keep saying that non-stop until the draft. I would, I would say for a variety of reasons, mostly so the Patriots can get one of those.
I know you love it. Absolutely. I would just say even though they, you know, they signed Jamis, they signed Russell. They're making a combined like 15 million this year. That's solid bridge quarterback high-end backup quarterback money between the two of them, right? There's nothing there to preclude you and I got a call from a GM who told me like everyone saying that this means I'm taking a quarterback after they signed Russ.
He's like, this is the perfect setup because you got two dudes who have been there before. Take the pressure off having to push Chidor onto the field and what buys you more time as a coach in front office than drafted a quarterback. So Chidor who rolled into a game earlier this year wearing full Giants garb, you know that he would like to end up potentially in that situation.
You are absolutely right that there are some teams right behind the Giants to have an absolute vested interest in wanting him to go there, including the Patriots who were at four and are not going to take a quarterback, but that would not shock me. So that becomes then if Chidor does not go at three, where does he go? And that is one of the many unknowns here because if you talk to people around the league and I've talked to enough coaches and scouts, there's a real difference here in the way that it's not unanimous.
It rarely is but the way that Cam Moore and Chidor are seen and if Chidor does not go by three, then you run into the real questions. All right, where exactly does he go because there's only so many teams are even a threat to take one in the first. Is he in for a long slide? Does he go three and life is simple and you guys fall completely backwards into Travis Hunter or Abdul Carter? That would be great best-case scenario for the Patriots if he does not go if they take the other guy, it's going to be fascinating to see because there's there's real intrigue and Tyler Shuck from Louisville, the seventh-year senior who's got three different degree degrees at three different schools. You've got Jalen Milro who and I know that Alabama fans. There's some there's some PTSD there in terms of watching the inconsistencies in the passing game, but he is a pretty unique runner and he's bigger than the other really good runners. We've seen in the NFL. There's real fans him and Jackson Dart the same thing.
There's real Jackson Dart fans out there. If you told me Chidor is not the second quarterback or even the third quarterback. I wouldn't be shocked. I think he ultimately is the second quarterback taken but that's the level of variance that exists there in a year where Cam Ward is probably in the mix with those top six guys that went last year at the top of the draft. He wouldn't be number one.
He probably wouldn't be number two, but he'd be in that mix with Chidor. He might be later on. We're back tomorrow.
Yeah, really big show. Can't wait. Appreciate you guys having me here today.
We'll do it again. Why not Tom Pelissero Infra Rich? Every day when we're on the road people around us in danger themselves and others by using their phones while driving they think they're hiding it, but we've all seen them and know exactly who they are. For instance. There is the sneak a peeker who darts their eyes between the road and their texts. There's also the got a ticketer looking upset because they just got a ticket for using their phone while driving and what about the fast scroller who can't drive five minutes without updating their social feeds or the nightlighter who has that mysterious glow illuminating the inside of their car after dark. Do any of these sound familiar if they remind you of yourself or someone, you know rethink your behavior before you find yourself becoming the fender-benderer the veering off the rotor or worst of all the driver who killed someone put the phone away or pay paid for by NHTSA.
