Ashton Jeanty: I'm Ready To Change An NFL Organization For The Better

Hey, Rich Eisen here. I hear from a lot of business owners like you about the work it takes to pursue your passions, so I know how important it is to have the tools that can help keep you moving forward. And with access to world-class business and travel benefits, the American Express Business Platinum Card helps you take your business to the next level. It offers a flexible spending limit that adapts with your business. Plus, you'll have complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges worldwide, including the Centurion Lounge, so you can keep running your business while you're on the go. See how the Amex Business Platinum Card gives business owners like you the tools and rewards to do more of what you love. Not all purchases will be approved. Terms apply.

Learn more at AmericanExpress.com slash Amex Business. In the NFL, there is no margin for error. As you know, one mistake can change the outcome of an entire game. That's the same thing about your life and making sure you get the proper sleep, so you get done in your day exactly what you want because you're focused and you have everything in order. And the people who can help you do that are our friends at Sleep Number. Their mission is to provide the players of the NFL and you with data and insights to optimize your sleep for the ultimate competitive edge.

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See your store or sleepnumber.com for details. The Red Sox lead it 7-2. Today's guests, Boise State running back Ashton Gente, actor Sam Jager, WWE superstar Paul Heyman. And now, it's Rich Isaac.

Yes, everybody welcome to this edition of the Rich Isaac Show. Ashton Gente is going to be on. We're very excited to talk to the top running back available in this year's draft.

He's your man. You're hoping. We will see. I'll ask him who he's spoken to. We'll hunt and pack for any piece of information because you never know where it's going to come from, either an interview or somebody playing Fortnite.

You never know what's going to happen in the NFL draft world. We'll discuss that on this program. 844-204-rich-number-to-dial. Whether you're watching on the Roku Sports Channel, our home for the last three years of this year's show and thrilled to be on it. Same thing with the Infinity Sports Network, although we're a little bit more new to that. Sirius XM and Odyssey. We say hello to anybody taking in this program.

844-204-rich. You can take in our podcast version once we're done. YouTube.com slash Rich Isaac Show is our channel.

920,000 subscribers and growing. Sam Jager will be on this program. He is in the Handmaid's Tale.

He's he's been here before and he knows all about dystopia and being frightened because he's an Ohio State guy. Exactly. And you know, I mean, you can celebrate a trophy, but there's other things to talk about. There is? Yeah.

I mean, every last four November's have been his own personal Gilead. So yeah, that's what's going on. Petty Eisen. I love it. Mm hmm. Wow. Yeah. Or is it was we can call it off Scarlet and Gray, right?

Is that what it was? Hey, I'm just a wordsmith. I didn't even sleep well last night. So but I'm here. I'm here and you're there to sleep on the couch. I know. No, no. Paul.

Well, you can ask yourself. She'll be here, as always, at the end of the program in advance of women's sports. Now, recording today and hearing tomorrow on the thing got me in trouble. Roku Sports Channel eight four four two oh four. It's numbers up. Paul Heyman joining us. The wise man. Oh man, this could be joining us in our number three in advance of something called women. I haven't written down your WrestleMania.

Forty one. Vegas. It's called Trouble. Man, if my family wasn't coming to town this weekend, T.G., I'd be with you.

Is that right? My sister gets here tomorrow with her boys. Why are you blaming her on your family? Because they're an easy target. Very good.

It's an easy market. Oh, it's Easter weekend. There you go.

Is that what it's for? No? No. Okay.

Just here to hang out. Oh, that's right. I forgot. I forgot that you're a heathen. Eight four four goes to Catholic school.

Two oh four. I came up with that. I found that funny. Good to see you over there, Chris. Very great.

So, man, J. Mikey Diaz. You didn't respond to my Alex Bregman Instagram. We won't talk about it later. I'm sad. Good to see you, T.J. Jefferson. Is the candle lit? I can't say. Candle's lit.

Hoodie Soto season is still in effect. And I'm rocking the Dangerous Alliance Paul Heyman T-shirt. Very good.

In advance of Paul joining us in hour number three. So, I'm watching the play-in tournament last night and the second game last night. And I'm sitting there with Coop, my 14-year-old boy. And he turns to me at one point during the game, he says, Dad, have the Warriors always been good?

And I'm like, well, I'll tell you a story. In the 70s, they won a championship in the ABA. And there was a guy named Rick Barry. And interestingly enough, when later on we're talking about free throws at the end of this game and Rick Barry's name showed up on the screen as one of the great free throw shooters of all time.

I'm like, there's Rick Barry I'm referring to. Did you tell him how Rick shot those shots? I did not tell him about Underhanded.

Share that with him. And then I mentioned how there was a renaissance in the late 80s and early 90s featuring one of my favorite players of all time, Chris Mullen. You know, it kind of got lost in him. Run TMC gets lost in a 14-year-old reference, you know, to Mitch and Chris, because it's a longer reference than just 14 years old. And then I yada, yada, yada did it and said, and then Steph Curry showed up.

It's literally it's how I shorthanded it. I mean, and then Steph Curry showed. Yeah. And, you know, interestingly enough, you know, Steph Curry's first coach was in Golden State was Keith Smart. Really?

Yes. Who was there for a year after Don Nelson's second run there and before Mark Jackson took over. And we all know Steve Kerr showed up there. History lesson over because I was just saying Curry showed up. Now, listen, when Curry made that four point play last night, after a large lead dissipated and we'll talk about how the large lead came to be. But when Curry was running through like weaving through the Grizzlies defense dribbling the ball through it, handling through it, and then he gets from one part of the court from the right three point arc.

And he's now winding up on the opposite side of the court in the corner after a quick give and go with Kevon Looney. And then he launches the three and gets fouled. I audibly screamed. And the last time I did that in that room on that couch was during Rory McIlroy's remarkable Sunday.

Very few people will get me to just scream. And then Curry on the floor after he's fouled, looks at the fans sitting in the front row and they're elated, just out of their minds, elated. And he kind of looks at them like, did I just do that?

Like, did you just see that? Like, that's the look he gave them, a playful connection with the out of their skull elated Warriors fans. And I said to Suze, can you imagine what it must be like to root for Steph Curry? Like that he's your hometown hero. Could you imagine what that must feel like for Warrior fans who did live through the Al Addles, Rick Barry championship season two, the run TMC years where there was nothing going on. And then after that, before Curry showed up, can you imagine what this must feel like for them? And I understand that, you know, in this day and age, we kind of flip on players who win a lot, despite how insanely likable they are because they keep winning and that annoys you and you have fatigue in the same way there's Mahomes, right?

Mahomes is as close to anybody in the NFL is to Steph Curry, right? In terms of awesomeness and likability and winning and, and then doing things that are physically remarkable, that few others have ever been able to do while looking like an average human being correct. There's another one too. I was so relatable in that regard.

And they just got to be out of their skulls. Another one last night, another big moment, although I'll be honest with you, I, you could have knocked me over the feather on this stat. Did you know it was the first ever play in tournament victory for the Warriors? They were 0-3.

Had not known that. At any rate, they they're now the seventh seed. And what's really remarkable about this now is Curry's 37 point night didn't even lead the Warriors because they got a 38 point night from Jimmy Butler, their mid season acquisition, who has changed the fortunes of the Warriors significantly. Now you consider say they're the seven seed how can it, how can they be anything threatening? Well, in the Western Conference, the difference between the seven seed and the three seed could have been a great, you know, three in a week, four in a week. That's the difference. And Butler shows up like playoff Jimmy.

Big face coffee. And I'll tell you what, Warriors get 75 combined from Curry and Butler and they're going to be tough to beat. Certainly if you're going to fall down by double digits, 20 points at one point because Butler took over the first quarter while Curry was wrestling resting.

And then you make the comeback and come up with a five second inbounds violation when you need to launch a three with five seconds to go to try and tie the game. But Curry had this to say about Jimmy Butler now joining this fray. We all know about the big three back in the day where it was Draymond, Curry and Clay and then Durant joined the party and made them flat out unbeatable. But now it's Curry, Draymond and Jimmy.

We've all watched it. Like we're, he was on the Eastern Conference and we on the West. We never got to play against playoff Jimmy. But the idea of just he raises his level based on or at the right time when it's needed the most. And that's why the trade made so much sense for us because he has that experience. He has that resume and he's proven it since he's been here. But these last two games, you can see a different level of intentionality and especially just scoring the basketball because teams are trying to take away some of our pet actions.

At the end of the day, you just need somebody that can put the ball in the basket and he knows how to do that. 38-7-6 was a stat line and three steals on top of it. And the same way that I said that Curry and the Warriors had never won a play-in tournament game, they have never lost a playoff series, the Houston Rockets. They're 4-0 in that regard. Now taking on the second seed and Steve Kerr getting set for that series as the Grizzlies now go home and wait for the winner of tonight's Sacramento and Dallas game.

And we'll see how that happens. So Steve Kerr had this to say about the long journey to this very moment where the Warriors are now in the playoffs and not just that, but a legitimate threat. It's a playoff game, even though it disappears into the ether as we all know. There's no record of it, but it's a playoff game. I tried to downplay it a little bit before the game, but we desperately needed to win this game and get four days. Our guys have been basically playing knockout games for about three weeks and one high-level game after another. So to get this one took 83 games, but we're right where we want to be, which is back in the playoffs and we've got a chance.

But maybe most importantly, we get the time to rest and prepare because these guys need that desperately right now. Yeah. Steve Kerr wearing a Harvard basketball shirt.

I wonder why he's got Harvard on the bind, ripped straight from other headlines, I guess. So what do you think gents? Do the Rockets now join the Knicks as the Vogue one and done top seed home court advantage team entering these playoffs? Yay or nay? Yay or nay? I'll do respect to the Rockets. They made an incredible turnaround, the two seed. Oh, you're using past tense?

Well, it kind of paints a picture of where I'm going to go with this. Yes, it does. I'm not going to, I don't bet, but if I did, I wouldn't bet hard-earned American dollars against the Warriors in that first round matchup. Yeah, Warriors are favored on the series. Says the man who does actually bet, yes.

I don't know these things, so I- Minus 190. I'm looking at a tasty plus 160 Rockets right now. Really like Houston here. So the Warriors are favored? Yeah. Well, when you got Steph Curry, I think you've earned the right to be favored. The Rockets have been great all year.

They're two seed for a reason. Great coach, right? Let's not put any bones about it. Great coach. Absolutely. One of your guys. And you know, they got a really nice unit.

Young? You know, we've talked about the Knicks are a massive favorite against the Pistons. You can spin this any way you want, Rich, but they're a massive favorite. Like if the Knicks blow it, it's a huge upset.

I'm not spinning anything. Well, you're saying, oh, they're the Vogue pick to get upset. Well, they're not.

They're four to one favorites. I understand what Las Vegas may have to say or a fan who's dueling has to say. I get it.

The word on the street. Or a drafting king. I get it.

But watch any television show. And everybody's talking about the look out for the Pistons. So the Rockets are now the true Vogue favorite to be won and done in these first round of the playoffs. Doesn't matter who's going to come out as the eighth seed, right?

I don't think the Cavs are going to be. No. Well, what about. Hold on a minute. Wait a minute.

Hold on a minute. What about the defending world champion? Boston Celtics.

To get upset? That's the other game that happened last night. Minus 7,000 to win the series. Orlando Magic. That's a good bet.

How about, you know, Franz Wagner serving up some huevos banqueros for breakfast. What do you think? Yeah.

Trae Young and on Boston. OK, so you're not you. You're unconcerned.

Unconcerned. I wouldn't. I mean, out of would the Heat have scared you more just because of history? No, neither. No team scaring you. No, no. Nobody's scaring you. No.

The way that they're playing, whether who's playing the Anthony's, Cole and Black. What do you think? Who? OK. Wow. Forget about the man on the team. That's what I said.

Huevos banqueros. I don't speak German, so I wasn't sure. German is real.

Actually, Wagner is the German. I think you're disrespecting the defending champs who put another 60 win season out on the table. OK. All right. So you're saying it's going to be Celtics next. Don't worry about it.

Don't worry about it. Celtics. Celtics next. OK. Speaking of Trae Young, let's hit this and then we'll get to ask Jenti.

I mean, more change to go. He gets ejected. Game was over now. Game was over. He got too quick text.

Probably wasn't too sad. He got booed. I mean, it's just like, you know, he was apparently apologized to his teammates, took ownership, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But come on, the stand up guy. Well, I mean, blah, blah, blah, blah. I mean, he was a walking out guy.

You guys finish this. I just kicked the basketball. I refused to give it to the I refused to give it to. He definitely was a bad guy. No, I'm not calling him. Did I call him a bad guy? Nobody deserves criticism.

He deserves criticism. Your team's getting blown out. And so you're just going to just pitch a fit. Not give the ball back to the refs and then kick it. You know, I mean, he did fire it at the ref. I mean, now that I'm reliving this whole thing. Yeah. I mean, it was it's it's something that, you know, I don't know, the kick thing. It looked like he was trying to stop it.

I don't know, dude. I'm watching it right now. I mean, deserved ejection. He deserved to get the gate. He was ready to go home.

That's for now. Now calling it a mockery of the game might be a little little harsh, but that's what the referee James Williams told a pool reporter last night. These guys flopping is more of a mockery of the game. He said Trae Young did his first unsportsmanlike technical foul was for throwing the ball at a game official, which you shouldn't do a. And then his second one came for kicking the ball away and making a mockery of the game. As we were attempting to shoot the free throw for the first technical foul and by ruling, the player receives two days.

I take umbrage with all of that language. What do you mean? Watching the video? OK, Trae Young puts the ball in a mockery of a sham after a floater. He tosses it. He two handed chest pass the ball to the official who caught it with ease. By the way, was there a little extra sauce on that pass?

Probably. But the referee caught it, put it down and teed him up. Then he rolled the ball down to the other end and Trae Young is walking and he sticks his foot out to stop it.

And it kind of goes into the first row. So hold on a minute. Are you are you hold on? Are you calling this something he shouldn't have been ejected for? No, this is not ejection worthy.

Any of it? No, come on. None of it was ejection worthy. There's no kicking the ball. When they say throw the ball at the official, you think of him winding up and chucking an atom out of out of frustration, not a crisp two handed chest pass that the referee catches. And then when you read kick the ball, you think of him winding up for a field goal and kicking it into the stands.

Uh, he sticks his foot out and the ball hits his foot. Let me ask you this question. Let me ask you this. I agree 100%.

I know you like Brian Anderson. He was saying, he said that if there's any player out there, don't dare do this. That reeks of this is an embarrassing act. Yeah, I was embarrassed for him. I mean, this is a professional basketball player with four and a half minutes to go in a blowout. You know, just give the ball back to the official. He did.

If you didn't like the, the, the velocity on the, I will push back on that. I wouldn't sit there and think he's making a mockery of the game. No, of course not. And he, should he be injected?

No. What are we doing? This is what he had to say after there's one game.

I'm not, I'm not letting it do into, I'm not letting people think about what, what I'm feeling and things like that. Obviously I told him I was sticking up for the squad and I'm not going to let the rest frustrate me like that in our next game. I know we got to win or go home next. So I'm going to be ready. And I told the team, I'm going to be ready for him.

We got, we got to go home and take care of business. He does. He just needs to treat it like it's Madison square garden. How come he always saves his best for the Knicks there, huh? I mean, he's, he's a great player in this league. Who's got out there by the way, who's got to start winning. Agreed.

He's got to start winning series. Don't forget who was drafted right after him. They were traded for trading for you, right? Right. Right. You know what I mean? Yeah. We could dodge it.

So look, they had the one nice run a few years ago to the Eastern cameras. Finals came out of nowhere and it's kind of been nothing else. It's time for him to just give the ball back to the official. Don't do anything stupid. Go and win the game.

Go and be the eight seed and, and, and go and show the Cleveland Cavaliers who you are. That's what he should do. That's fair. You know, but mockery of the game. That was a, and how about this too?

How about this too? Players should be on notice right now in the NBA for sure. Speaking of Luca, these officials are what's the word for it. I think sensitive Luca while I was out last week, right. Getting ejected.

Cause he's barking at a fan and the official thought it was at him. And then he throws Luca out of a game like, you know, with the seating on the line and everything like that. Yeah. And so this is now actionable and a mockery of the game. So beyond notice for the rest of these NBA playoffs, they are not playing around and they are, they have an earful and everybody's only get more intense. Honestly, when the Lakers play the, the Timberwolves at this point in time, Luca and LeBron will not be in their minds guilty of being somebody who's fouled anybody and 100% victim of a foul every time. Correct.

Okay. So that's where we're at right now. And then you've got Ant on the other side, who's one of the hot hottest head headed players in the league. So everyone should be on notice with Trey young now and Luca the week before these officials are very sensitive. You know, the glass break in your, in, in the NBA house right now is going to be set off by a pen dropping on the floor. 8 4 4 2 0 4. Rich is the number to dial Ashton. Genty is awaiting gents. He is one of the best in the draft.

Certainly at his position. Can't wait to chat with him next. Annie's first oil change wasn't as hard as she thought because she went to auto zone where a friendly auto zoner helped her find the right oil and save on an oil filter. He explained the job and showed her free how to's on auto zone.com. When she was done auto zone recycled her old oil for free. No hassles, just help everything you need. Nothing.

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Hey, Rich Eisen here. I hear from a lot of business owners like you about the work it takes to pursue your passions. So I know how important it is to have the tools that can help keep you moving forward. And with access to world class business and travel benefits, the American Express Business Platinum Card helps you take your business to the next level. It offers a flexible spending limit that adapts with your business. Plus, you'll have complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges worldwide, including the Centurion Lounge, so you can keep running your business while you're on the go. See how the Amex Business Platinum Card gives business owners like you the tools and rewards to do more of what you love. Not all purchases will be approved. Terms apply.

Learn more at American Express dot com slash Amex Business. Apologies in advance here to everybody for using Rich Eisen show real estate for this, but we're just like every other household. And somebody around here keeps not filling up the Keurig once it's already down in water. And let's not let's not let's not let's not let's not point fingers. I will. Let's just use this. I mean, I don't know.

I know it's not an Amy because you don't know. He doesn't use it. I don't use it. He doesn't drink coffee or another tea drink or anything. You don't ever use the Keurig.

He is a tea drinker and he constantly takes bottles and pills forever. You were like because I thought he was lean to me. I thought it would go off. I'm not I'm not. I'm a witness for a lot of people around here and we are a family and we are a family and somebody not like there is there is in our refrigerator as there are many, many places in America and back in my house where there is a, you know, a container for water so we can all have cold water. And I've got two teenagers and soon to be a third teenager.

There's not a single one of them that's just like, oh, wait a minute. This thing's all the way down. I'm going to fill it up.

No. So there the person the guilty party is not in this room. Oh, I can say that. Now we're all busy. You know what I mean? We're all busy.

But just say who it is. No, no, no, no. Because it feels like you were going somewhere with it. Yeah. Like, yeah. You can just start this just to be like, oh, let's just fill up. Let's fill up. You're coming at the Bears because I feel like it was coming towards me.

And I promise you, nobody's filled that thing up more than I have. Listen, somebody's making a mockery of the game here. Okay. And that's what I'm just saying to you. You're like the NBA refs. You're sensitive. You think I'm talking about you, but I don't know.

Am I talking about you? Back on the Rich Eisen Show radio network. I'm sitting at the Rich Eisen Show desk furnished by Grainger with supplies and solutions for every industry. Grainger has the right product for you.

Call clickgranger.com or just stop by. This man stopped by the end zone quite a bit in his time in Boise State. He is without question the best running back available in this year's draft.

The question is, where is he going to go? And joining us right now on this program, courtesy of Open Door, is Ashton Genti. How are you, Ashton? Good to see you. I'm good. How are you doing? I'm better for seeing you on my screen, to be very honest with you. What's going through your mind eight days before the NFL draft?

Man, a lot, man. You know, mine is swirling, but, you know, I'm just trying to find some peace to, you know, everything that's going on. But I'm just ready to hear my name get called. You know, I do know that that is for sure. And, you know, what what what's that going to feel like?

Do you think if you envision that moment when you do hear Roger Goodell say so and so selects Ashton Genti? Yeah, I've definitely envisioned it, had dreams about it. But, you know, I think it's just going to be a lot of emotions, excitement, joy, everything you can think of, you know, just because of all the hard work leading up.

You know, it's been a long journey to get to where I'm at. So you're going to be there, right? I mean, so you're your gente party of how many? Who's coming? We got mom, dad, all my siblings, older brother, older sister, younger sister, my godfather, godmother, two of my uncles on my mom's side. Who else? Mom, my girlfriend and her mom. And I believe that's it. Or, yeah, my brother's girlfriend said, I don't know, I lost count, but I just want to make sure I got to make sure you're OK, Ashton, just, you know, my my two unsolicited sense for your happiness. I would upgrade mentioning your girlfriend sooner than that on the list.

If you're going to pick the family first. Yes, you did. Yes, you did. You're right. Listen, this is obviously a momentous moment for them, too. So I'm glad that you're all going to be there. Are they still in Florida? Is that where they're all based?

Your family, mostly action notes. So everybody actually is pretty much in Texas, Texas now. OK. Yeah. Yeah. You were just born in Jacksonville. That's just your birthplace. Right.

And so how did you walk me through your journey? How did you wind up in the state of Idaho to play football? And so I grew up all over.

Right. My dad was in the military, but my his last stop was Naples, Italy. And after that, we moved to Frisco, Texas, where I played high school football for the last three years of high school. And, you know, I got recruited by a great bit of schools. And, you know, Boise State just stood out in their care. And, you know, the real you could see the real want in them, the real belief in me as a player to come through and, you know, do special things for this program. I mean, the long, long history, I mean, before I was even born, you know, winning a lot of football games, championships, you know, going to bowl games. Right. And, you know, just that history of running backs, you know, coming through and, you know, being great and excelling on the next level as well.

So I kind of wanted to be the next one. And living in Idaho, what was that that like for you being there? It was, you know, it was it's a chill, relaxed place. I mean, it's very peaceful. The community is great out there. The people are so nice and welcoming. You know, a lot of things to do outdoor, you know, float the river.

If you like hiking, you can go on a hike, fishing, all that type stuff. But I really I really did enjoy it. It was tough at first when I first got there in January, it was cold, it was snowing and I just came from Texas. So man, what's going on? But, you know, I really embraced it.

And, you know, they got the saying over there, you take care of Boise, Boise, you take care of you. And I definitely seen that. When did you when did you realize that you had a special talent? I would say in middle school, honestly, because it was always people telling me, you know, I thought I was just, you know, I thought it was great. But, you know, everybody told me that I was elite, that I was going to play in the NFL someday that I was going to be one of the best. And I just remember how I got into football was really because of one of my childhood friends, Mario, his dad was like, we were just playing around one day, actually at one of his practices, because I'll go and just hang out with him and watch practices. And then he was like, man, why aren't you playing football? And I was like, I don't know. And then next thing you know, I'm in I'm in Pop Warner football.

And now next thing you know, you're going to be in the National Football League fresh off of being a runner up for the Heisman Trophy based on what you've done and the abilities that you have. And we just showed that photograph, put it back up again one more time. When you see this, you think what?

What are you thinking here? I'm in space, man. I'm floating.

You are. I mean, you are doing that. I mean, when and then you watch it back. Do you do you even marvel at that? I do. I do. Sometimes after the game, I look back and I'm like, man, I really did that, you know?

Yeah, right. So who of that currently plays in the NFL do you reach out to for two cents? For help? I wouldn't say I really have reached out to anybody specifically, but I mean, I've talked to a few different guys that, you know, different events like Raheem Moster, Jonathan Taylor down at the Super Bowl, Mark Ingram, you know, just being able to connect with them and talk to them. They all gave me advice, you know, even talking with Marshawn Lynch a few times a little bit.

So but, you know, kind of building relationships with those guys who've been there and done that. Other than taking care of your mentals and your chicken, what did Marshawn tell you about? What advice did he give you, Ashton? He said, yeah, just, you know, kind of stay focused, you know, on the grind.

And, you know, you're just saying like I'm the one, I'm one of them ones, like I'm next up. So it's just great to hear that from, you know, somebody I grew up watching play. Fresh off of a twenty six hundred yard season, Ashton Genti joining me here on The Rich Eisen Show.

Let's get to it. Who have you spoken to, Ashton, from the NFL? With teams, huh?

Yes, sir. So I've spoken to a lot of teams, but, you know, the Raiders, the Bears, Broncos, Falcons, Seahawks, I mean, a whole lot of them. Have you spoken to the Jets? Have the Jets spoken to you?

Have you spoken to them? I haven't spoken to the Jets. What about the Patriots? Have you spoken to the Patriots? I spoke to them at the combine.

At the combine? What about the Dallas Cowboys? Have you spoken to the Dallas Cowboys? Um, yeah, just a little bit. Just a little bit.

Okay. Where did that take place? Speaking to the Dallas Cowboys? Down here in Dallas, man.

Down in Dallas. What would it mean for you to be drafted by the Dallas Cowboys, Ashton? I think it would be a, you know, a great opportunity. It would be awesome because, you know, I grew up here, you know, a lot of people would love to play for their, you know, their, you know, kind of hometown team where they grew up a little bit, played high school football. But, you know, I think it'll be a great opportunity to play for any team in the National Football League.

You know, and I know, I know, should you be drafted by a team other than Dallas, you know, you don't want to be on the record and saying, hey, you know, that would really be special, certainly if you're being drafted by another team, which is special in and of itself. But I mean, for a kid growing up, the way that you grew up, for you to go to Idaho, make your bones and then be able to play with the star on the side of your helmet. I mean, were you watching the Cowboys as a kid, Ashton? Not, not like as a young kid, just because I grew up all over.

Right. But it was more of kind of when I got to to Texas. I mean, obviously everybody here is a Cowboys fan in this area at least.

So just kind of, you know, seeing it, being around it, that type of thing. And who was the running back that you watched growing up then? Who was your guy?

I mean, I watched a lot of different guys, but I think the first guy I really started watching, to be honest, was Marshawn Lynch. So you getting to meet him had to be pretty neat, huh? That would be pretty cool. Yeah, yeah, yeah, definitely. Okay. So before we get to open door and then I let you go on with the rest of your day, every mock draft I see has you as a Las Vegas Raider. Can you characterize your, your conversations with the Raiders for me, Ashton? I mean, yeah, I mean, it's, it's, it's no, you know, surprise to me that I'm, you know, mock to go there being, you know, that the recent highs and Pete Carroll, we know his coaching style.

We know, you know, he likes to run the ball, likes a great running back. And, you know, also other people that they've, you know, excuse me, brought on the staff like Chip Kelly and, you know, Delann McCullough and a great running back coach. But yeah, it's been great conversations. Obviously meeting with the GM as well and Spytek, you know, they want to bring in, you know, great people, right? Obviously, you know, I'm a great player, but they, they want you to be a fit as a person as well. And I think it's, you know, well known by them that I'd be a great, you know, fit as a person and player. So it's, it's been great conversations with them and getting to know them as well. So look forward to seeing what's going to happen on the 24th.

Yes, indeed. And, you know, obviously Marshawn Lynch knows Pete. Pete knows Marshawn.

Marshawn was literally shouting him out during his introductory press conference in Vegas. Did you have any contact or meet Tom Brady at any point in time in this process? No, no. All right.

I'm hunting and pecking for what I can figure out for you on your behalf as well. Tell me about Open Door and your relationship with Open Door in advance of this year's draft. Yeah. I mean, so getting, getting drafted is, you know, going to be one of my biggest milestones in life. And, you know, I feel like teaming up with, you know, Open Door just, you know, felt like the perfect way to prepare for this next chapter.

I mean, not just in life, excuse me, not just in football, but in life. And they understand, you know, how major transitions feel and, you know, making it easier. And so, yeah, supporting homeowners in that transition or the milestone and obviously that's what you got going on.

Have you, you've been nothing but setting milestones and you're making a transition in life from one level to the next. It makes complete sense that you guys are connecting in advance of this draft. So before I let you go, I'm going to ask you what I ask every top prospect that is kind enough to say yes to appear on this program. A team gets what if they draft Ashton Gente next Thursday night? Man, they get a guy who's going to, you know, change and make this organization for the better. There's obviously a lot of great organizations, a lot of great players. But, you know, what I bring to the table is, you know, leadership, a person who's going to be able to connect with everybody in the locker room. And not only that, but make them better, you know, push them to, you know, higher limits, obviously an asset, you know, on the offensive side of the ball.

And then just the community, right? You know, doing things in the community, bringing change, and most importantly, a legacy for people to follow, you know, because a legacy is what you leave behind and leaving behind nothing but greatness. I love it. What an answer, man.

I'm so looking forward to seeing what you could do at the next level. I guess I got one last question for you. You can only do one thing, Ashton Gente. This one thing here. You can run through somebody, you can run over somebody, or you can run past somebody by leaving their ankles pretty much broken.

Yeah. What do you choose, Ashton Gente? I'm going to say run through somebody because it just sets the tone. It changed the game, you know, that type of physicality always gets everybody going. It gets everyone going.

So you choose the run through. I like that answer. I like it. Ashton, thanks for the time. Congrats on everything that's gone on in your life to this point in time, your relationship with Open Door included. I appreciate them making you available for this conversation that I hope we can continue when you land somewhere that makes you happy. Yeah, thank you so much. Enjoy your time with your family and everybody else that's a part of your world in Green Bay in a couple of Thursdays, Ashton. I appreciate it. That's Ashton Gente right here on The Rich Eisen Show. Fun stuff right there.

Man, he's going to look so good in the red throwbacks. Let me tell you something, Chris, we'll talk about it on the other side. A lot of cowboys went to Boise State is all I'm saying. I just said, let me tell you something. We'll talk about it in a second.

That literally is what I just said, which makes no sense. But we will. I can't wait. Put a pin in it.

That's a tease. Enjoy the added safety of Hyundai's available blind spot view monitor. Constantly scan for dangers and take advantage of Hyundai's standard forward collision avoidance assist to help prevent accidents by alerting you of imminent collisions and automatically applying the brakes. Stay alert at all times and be thankful that Hyundai's standard driver attention warning system monitors your attention levels and can bring your focus back on the road. Safety is all about making the right decisions on the road and when selecting a vehicle. Learn more at HyundaiUSA.com.

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Insured by NCUA. Your process in coming up with these videos right upon the cowboy's misery just piling on. There's no real process. I mean, it hits me. It hits me naturally. It's very impromptu. It separates right off the cuff. Yes.

I sincerely need from the bottom of my heart. I don't care whether you're young or old, black, white, Hispanic, doesn't matter to me. I think that Dallas Cowboys fans are the worst, most disgusting, most nauseating fan base in the American history. Nobody disgusts me more than a Cowboys fan because they never, ever, ever take a moment to smell their own stench.

This is a team that hasn't won a Super Bowl since 1995, and they walk around like they're the reigning defending Super Bowl champions every single year. I've got a Dallas Cowboys fan here, Rich Eisen's show, social media extraordinaire, grand maester, T.J. Jefferson, who… My condolences to him. He is reasonable. I do want to say that. I mean, you're right, but you did say five years ago, though, you were thoroughly just like every other Cowboys fan that Stephen A. has… I probably resembled the remarks that he made. Okay. But I mean, nobody feels that way anymore, man.

Really? I'm on Cowboys Twitter a lot. I see a bunch of angry and annoyed Cowboys fans.

I don't see Cowboys fans walking around thinking we're the Chiefs or something. What do you think, Stephen? Oh, my Lord. I don't know you. I don't know you. And I don't mean to cast any aspersions on you as a human being. I'm sure you're a very nice, highly intelligent dude. But for this particular subject, you are a damn liar. There is no way that you can say with a straight face that you don't run into Cowboys fans like that. The Cowboys fans are the most arrogant, disgusting, nauseating fan base you could possibly find.

You never take a second to smell your own stuff. And I'm just looking at here. You know, one of the great, great moments that I had. Yes.

All right. Remember, 2010, when you ended up going 6 and 10, but then those weren't my favorite years with the cow because I actually like the Cowboys when the Playmaker and Emmitt Smith and Troy Aikman were there. So I came over to San Francisco and all of this other stuff. But here was my favorite moment. 2011, 2012, 2013.

Not only did the Dallas Cowboys finish 8 and 8 each season, they had the last game of the regular division crowd on the line and lost all three years to each of the teams in the division. It doesn't get much sweeter than that. And even then, y'all still walk around. We'll be back next year. You'll see.

You'll see. Ah, yes. Back in the day before we outfitted T.J. with an appropriate corner filled with all of his stuff around him.

It was looking a little lonely back there. Just for this promotional announcement, the NFL Network and ESPN every year have a crossover where ESPN people show up on NFL Network shows and vice versa to promote the fact that the draft is on every single channel next week. And in that regard, I will be crossing over at 1030 a.m. Eastern Time from this very chair. I will join Stephen A. on first take.

I saw that last night. You need some hot take prep? Not everything needs to be a hot take. I'm just going to bring my own takes on that show.

My first take is on Thursday back on the Rich Eisen show. 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 bike or creeping up beside you. Fortunately, every Hyundai offers available class exclusive advanced safety features that can alert you to potential dangers around you. And Hyundai has over 130 IIHS top safety awards since 06 because Hyundai is always working to ensure the road doesn't get you.

IIHS top safety awards include top safety pick and top safety pick plus awards to Hyundai vehicles from 06 to 25. Listen, fantasy drafts and real drafts in the NFL, two totally different things, right? I get it.

Totally understand it. But one way in which it's very similar is that when you are in the first round of your fantasy draft and you have no shot at a guy that's going to be drafted six, seventh, eighth, ninth overall because you're not going to have that pick coming back in the snake draft. And you're sitting there, say fourth overall, you take the guy that's going to be there eighth or seventh or ninth early because you're not going to have a shot at that person. And that person may be in your mind more of a sure thing than who you're taking fourth overall.

Do you understand what I'm saying? Everyone I think understands that. There's absolutely every reason to apply that logic to the Patriots at fourth overall. If Hunter and Carter are off the board after Cam Ward goes to the Tennessee Titans. There's no reason to not take Ashton Gente fourth overall. I know you were joking.

I did say it as an overreaction topic last week. Now, I understand that they are so deep in the maybe offensive line hole that it makes no sense to put the running back cart before the horse. Right. So, you know, I disagree. They are so bereft of playmakers around Drake May.

That's true. They are so in need of something splashy and effective and someone who's great in the community. You just saw Ashton Gente on the screen. Chris, you also I did you both a favor by asking you to meet with the Patriots, to meet with the Cowboys. And the whole business that the Jets would be willing to trade Breece Hall if Gente drops. The Jets haven't even spoken to them, but that doesn't mean anything, as you know, in the long run. I don't think there's any I mean, listen, you can obviously go and protect Drake May.

That's the most important guy on your field. You have to. It's not as sexy. It's not as exciting.

It's not as splashy. It's not anything but. Smart. Rostering and team building to get that line set and then you can draft another kid at the running back position.

But nobody's Gente, though. I don't feel. And, you know, Dallas took Zeke. They didn't win a championship with him, but I think that worked out. Bijan looks stupendous. I'm just naming guys in the running back spot who have been drafted this high.

Saquon, how does he how's he looking right now? It was funny. So yesterday when I questioned it, you and Chris gave me those names. I was like, OK, I guess I'm wrong. That's what I'm saying. You know, I honestly traditionally you don't want to take a running back in the top five or whatever anymore.

But there are instances recently of really being a home run. If we're looking at the Raiders saying, oh, absolutely, Gente is perfect for them at six. It's just two picks in advance. Right. It's not out of the realm. Exactly. By any stretch. And so why?

Why? So, oh, it's a reach at four because you could have had him at six. But guess what? Patriots aren't going to be at six. They're at four. And I don't think there's anybody knocking on doors to get into the top five.

And I don't think we're going to see it either. I actually think it would be a mistake for anyone in the top 11 to take Ash and Gente. They should just let him go. I don't think I know why you're saying that. In case anybody out there doesn't have the inference skills, TJ's Cowboys draft 12.

Just leave him alone. That's all I'm saying. So I, I, I, I know I'm singing his praises, but to the point where Dallas should trade up from 12 to four for him. No, no. Vable said yesterday they're going to take the best players.

Well, the best player available could be Will Campbell out of LSU or Armand Membu out of Missouri. Because you need like if Drake May turns into David Carr, that's no good. Not good. OK. So with all due respect. I should have said that in advance, because then it's disrespectful if I say it afterwards.

I think David remembers how many times he was sacked. So he is definitely the guy you mentioned when you're saying top pick in the draft, top quarterback prospect didn't pan out because his ass was on the ground. You want your quarterback vertical, not horizontal. This just in. So.

I understand the mentality, and if the Patriots take that pick, you could say not sexy, not splashy, as I said. But you have to be tempted because, again, the the head seemed tightly screwed on properly when we just talked to Ashton Gente and who you're going to get. You're going to get a leader in the locker room. You get a leader in the in the community. And I believe it.

I believe it. Boy, you'd be Jack. Oh, my God. Beyond Jack, my phone would blow up live on NFL Network from you and Cooper. I don't know who would be the first to hit my phone, but you know, or my my brother in law or anybody roots for the Patriots. It would be dynamite. And then I don't know what the Raiders would do.

Because everybody's basically saying, you know. He's going there. Because the Jaguars are going to take Mason Graham. There's a lot of Sharpie and going on in mock drafts right now and get lineman in the second, third, fourth round. Maybe not as good as these guys. You can't get Ashton Gente anywhere but where you're at fourth. Well, then there's the whole running back debate about where you choose one.

But I think if the Patriots have a shot at him at four, they should do it. All right. Sam Jager of the Handmaid's Tale coming out. If your job at a health care facility includes disinfecting against viruses, you know prevention is the best medicine and maintaining healthy spaces starts with a healthy cleaning routine. Grainger's world class supply chain helps ensure you have the quality products you need when you need them. From disinfectants and cleaning supplies to personal protective equipment. So you can help deliver a clean bill of health. Call 1-800-GRAINGER. Click Grainger.com or just stop by. Grainger. For the ones who get it done.