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Now, on with the show. This is the Rich Eisen Show. And there is your dagger! From the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. Jordan Love, you are as ready as ever to win a Super Bowl.
You know, not just me, but the team we have. We've all been building this thing together. Today's guests, Pro Football Hall of Famer, Kurt Warner. Colts running back, Jonathan Taylor. Actor and comedian, Andrew Santino.
And now, it's Rich Eisen. Numbers have been triple digits deep in the 900s, so maybe I'm excited. 844-204-RICH, number to dial here on the program. Good to see you over there, Christopher Brockman. How are you?
Rich, what's up, man? I'm great. How are you? I'm doing well. DJ and Mikey D, good to see you.
How are you? Good to see you. TJ Jefferson, that's a lot of pink over there. I kind of dig the look. I'm not going to lie.
You know, on Wednesdays, we wear pink. What is that from? Is this a... Mean Girls. I like the plaid jacket.
Are you going hunting? No, no. Just are you going out later on today? No, I just put this on two seconds before we started. This is just a fit with Brett the Hitman Hart shirt on.
Like, let's do this today. Folks who are listening, you got to get to a television and see this thing. It's fantastic. I'm enjoying it. Three guests.
Kurt Warner is going to join us on the program in about 20 minutes time. It's Warner Wednesday. It's very excited. He'll be joined by Kurt. Jonathan Taylor, man, of the Indianapolis Colts is going to be joining us in our number two.
Your son. He's another one of those guys who he could play for me and he's an adopted child for me. And the Cheeto Santino. Let's go. He's going to be here in studio number three.
Andrew Santino. He said the Bears were going to go 11-6 when he did the win-loss game back in May. The Bears. We'll check on his work. Uh-oh.
Because I know some Bear fans ready to jump off the ledge right now. Does it rhyme with smashed and schmucher? He's probably one of them.
Okay, good to know. Maybe we'll get him zooming back in to vent. We're here for everybody. We should do that. We're here for everybody, whether they're a half a man or two of them.
Together, they're two and a half. Men, men, men. Guys, we are here in between weeks, two or three. We're here, and you're there. We're here, you're there.
I'm better than you. we're all sitting here between hours 1 and 2 and also days 3 and 4 of the NFL weeks 2 and 3 I'm going up and down the line here and we've got backup quarterbacks everywhere so many backups everywhere as a matter of fact what once upon a time was J.J. McCarthy hosting Joe Burrow is now Carson Wentz hosting Jake Browning. It's a backup quarterback versus backup quarterback. And Carson Wentz was added to the mix late in the summer for Minnesota.
We've got Mac Jones potentially starting for a second week in a row. For San Francisco. And then you also have Throb Taylor. For the New York Jets. Justin Fields beaten up in week two by the Buffalo Bills.
Sort of an avatar for the entire Jets team with what the Buffalo Bills did to the Jets. It's a backup palooza. And Aaron Glenn, moments ago, shortly before he went on the air, had this to say about Justin Fields currently in the concussion protocol. When it comes to injuries, one person that I can just say out right now would be Justin. He's still going through his protocol.
All right, so he'll be out.
So that was a quick, oh, by the way, oh, by the way, our starting quarterback is definitely out for week three against Tampa Bay, and it's Rod Taylor.
So there's that.
Okay. And by the way, all eyes on Dan Quinn today in Washington, D.C., to see if there's going to be such an announcement for Jaden Daniels, who finished that game on Thursday night, and everybody asked him after the game, are you okay? He says, yeah, I'm fine. and then yada, yada, yada, he's an MRI, and everybody starts reporting in the NFL media world, he might not play this week against the Las Vegas Raiders, which means all of Tom Brady's scouting goes out the window. I'm facetious, everybody.
As you can tell, I'm in a touch of a mood to start today's program. But why?
So here we go. Backup quarterbacks galore. And by the way, I have no, I'll be, I'm very surprised by this, that, and I guess I'm learning now that we're in the world of our friends in the Walt Disney Company and ESPN and all the manner of shows. I'm surprised that my take that the Bengals season is not over is potentially hot. You know, I kind of, I'm a little surprised by that, or at least it's been picked up in a way.
The season is not over. It is not over.
Well, you're losing a top what? Where do you put Burrow? Four, three, and he's out for basically the season. I understand. And you got a backup who hasn't played a lot, only seven games.
Jake Browning started seven games in the season the last time that Joe Burrow couldn't finish it.
Okay. 2023. Right. and the team finished 9-8, which unfortunately for the Bengals was good enough for last place in the division. Everybody else crushed it, including the Browns, who made the playoffs and got one and done with Joe Flacco, if you recall.
And so everybody else made the playoffs. And so why would anybody be surprised if that team that went 9-8 and Browning finished 4-3 and they started 0-2 and were at 500 after six weeks. Why would anybody be surprised if Jake Browning goes one game over 500? That's 10-7 the rest of the way. 10-7 might make the playoffs.
Season is not over. And Browning, you know, has had similar stats to Joe Burrow. The difference is, is Burrow is an assassin when it comes to the playoffs. I don't know if Browning's got that in him. I guess the way that I'm laying it out with the Bengals and Jake Browning, I'm saying we're going to find out.
Because the defense through two weeks does appear to be somewhat improved. And that's still Chase, who got a buck 60 in the game in which Burrow went out in the second quarter. And Higgins got his. And Chase Brown's going to get his. And, you know, it'll be a different offense in a way.
Some of those numbers that I've read because I'm a lead pipe wielding professional who studies, you know, there's a lot more screen passes with Browning than Burrow. That there's a lot, you know, a lot of that action that might be more into play. And Chase Brown appears to be a guy that you're going to have to chase down in those situations. If everybody stays healthy, and it's a big if, and Browning goes one game over .500 the rest of the way, that's 10-7. And maybe Burrow comes back.
And what happens then? Yeah, that was my next question. He sits on the bench. No, he does not, sir. I mean, you got a guy who played all season and takes you to the playoffs.
Got it. And you're like, see ya? Pretty much. The Giants didn't do that with Jeff Hostetler and Phil Simms. I got it, but they still went to the Super Bowl.
And won it with the backup. With the backup. Yeah. And I know that happened, speaking of Tom Brady, back in the day with the main quarterback having a nine-figure contract like the current one has. I think the difference between that, Rich, is Hostetler and Sims' skill sets are closer than Burrow and his backups.
I understand what the analogies are, and I understand. And there's a – if is doing a very heavy lift in this conversation right now. I'm just saying the season's not over in Cincinnati. That the guy, when you look at what Jake Browning did in 2003, you know, he had three, in 2023, you have three 300-yard games. Three of them.
The weapons are there. Just protect them and let them go to work and see if I'm right. I'm happy to be, you know, obviously right. But if I'm wrong, I'll just raise my hand and go on with my life. I think the wildest thing to me is you being surprised that, you know, you've got power in these streets.
You're hiding streets right now, Rich. Come on now, man. I'm just, again, surprised that, again, in a league that more than any other team's sports league, maybe anywhere on planet Earth, personifies that you never know. You can't make it up. After two weeks, a team's 2-0.
and then a guy who went 4-3 in a seven-game stint as a backup might have to start 12 games. And if he does have to start, let's just say the rest of the way, 15 games, and he goes 8-7 in those games, they're 10-7, which might be good enough to be a wildcard start. That's all. 844-204-RICH is the number to dial. And if Jake Browning does what I think he can potentially do, next level.
You know that Brockman next reaction If I may if I may get the control of the program back If Jake Browning does what I think he can do at the very top end, he might wind up on this list. That is way too early. You're like, we love doing way too early lists. And I'm going to get this out of the way before Kurt Warner joins us. Because if he knew I was doing this, he'd be saying, what is your mouth?
I'm so angry. But through two weeks of the NFL season, top five MVP candidates. Hey! Oh, Rich! I like that.
Through two weeks of the NFL season, presented by a Hyundai hitter. High five. One, two, three, four, five. Rich's top five. All right, everybody.
Top five MVP candidates through two weeks. And we'll see how it holds up.
Okay? We're not holding you to it. We're putting a marker out there. Come on. We'll see how it holds up at the end of the season.
I can't wait for this. This is great. Number five on the list is my boy Baker. Oh, okay. Baker Mayfield is on this list, man.
Jaisen. 2-0. And the last and only other quarterback in the history of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to start the season with back-to-back games with fourth-quarter comeback wins is Doug Williams in 1980. And what Baker is doing by putting his arm out there and just slinging it around and making dart throws and then running and picking up first downs on fourth downs and must-win drives. Baker Mayfield is doing it, man.
And he's leading, and he's a guy after Tom Brady who's leading, and he's winning divisions in a row and doing what he's doing now after two weeks. That's Baker Mayfield. number four on the list of your 2-0 green bay packers our tuesday guest jordan love is sitting right there by the end of the day jordan love if he takes the packers to a one seed and he wins 13 14 games and he's continuing or 12 and 13 games and he's doing what he's doing right now winging it around finding a bunch of different receivers you know it was a it was a uh a tucker Kraft game on Thursday night, right? It could be a Romeo Dobbs game. It could be a Dontavian Wicks game.
Let's hope it's Matthew Golden's game. It could be a Matthew Golden game since obviously that was a fantasy thing, I believe you just said. Jordan Love's got the pieces and he's got the defense to back it up. Who's now playing defense for the Green Bay Packers, Mike? You got that?
Oh, forget it. Oh. Are you paying attention? I mean, who's playing defense for the Packers? Macca.
Thank you very much. I was looking at something. Don't worry, don't worry. There's no reason for you to be looking other than eyes front. I feel like a kindergarten teacher.
Eyes front, Mike. I'm talking. You're working. Here, coach. Number three on the list.
I saw him with my own two eyes in Brazil. He had a 300-yard, three-touchdown game against the Kansas City Chiefs, and he had a big-time pickup on third down with his legs and a slide on camera. to ice it. Then he goes to Las Vegas and he beats the Raiders going deep for one. He's finding Keenan Allen for another and he's got LaDeeDee over the middle.
The run game hasn't even started yet. Justin Herbert is doing amazing things for the 2-0 Los Angeles Chargers. Could this finally be the MVP season for Justin Herbert? It's set up right now. you know who number one and two is it's just the order of it and once again everybody just i think believes lamar's got a better weapons around him so i'm putting him two and josh allen one i think that's just the way it looks right now again because allen is just i ain't again now i understand i understand lamar has had better stats and things of that nature but this is a guy who's a leader of a team of who else i i know it sounds really uh other than james cook that it's it's it's offensive to say that to the other guys but when you compare cook to henry and you're comparing the other weapons that lamar has around it might wind up with josh allen one and if lamar winds up one and this doesn't age well just after two weeks easily my bad but lamar is just remarkable he just keeps on doing things that nobody ascribed to him when he was working out at the Combine.
So I'll do that here for the moment and think that maybe some of these voters for the Associated Press who somehow someway split the baby last year and gave first team all pro to one guy and then didn't name him the MVP might do it again. Or they might reverse it. They might reverse it. You have one more. I did not know this.
Thank you for giving that particular version to me. That's my boy, Coop. You may know him by his full name, his birth name. You may know him by his nickname. But that nickname is changing.
It's Danny Diamond. Wow. He's one more. And the reason why I just didn't put him in top five is I just. You didn't believe?
I don't know. Right now, I'm still side-eyeing to see if that pumpkin. Shows up. Last year, the part of Daniel Jones is played by Derek Carr.
Okay. Right. After this. Right. If we did this list last year, Derek Carr just came up with, I think, 90 points in the first two weeks.
So many points.
So. But what Daniel Jones is doing, we haven't seen since Peyton Manning in the Aux, which is start 2-0, and start winging it around and having no turnovers in the process. He has been spectacular. and the run game with him at the controls, Jonathan Taylor is, you know, on a pace to potentially win the rushing title this year.
So it's all working and everybody's catching footballs and Tyler Warren is on the verge of maybe leading the league in yards for a tight end at this point in time.
So that's my top five MVP candidates through two weeks presented by Hyundai. And I'm glad I got it out of the way before Kurt joined us Because again, Kurt would be like, what are you doing? What are you doing? Such a thing. He's doing it.
He's laughing right now. Bring him on. Bring him on. Bring him on. Pop him on.
Kurt, you're joining us next, but I just did that. Yeah, but I was listening. I don't know what we're doing. See, I know my guy. I know my guy.
What are we doing? When Kurt Warner says, what are we doing? You know you're not doing something right.
Okay, very good. Or you are doing it exactly the way you should be, and he's just, you're a stick in the mud. You know what I mean? I don't know. You know.
All right. That might be a little. I understand. I understand my role. I understand your role.
I'm fully into this. We're role playing here on the Rich Eisen show. We'll take a break. And Kurt's back in his role of being the lead adult of the Rich Eisen show in a moment. The Rich Eisen show podcast.
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Eastern Time, Kurt Warner here on the Rich Eisen Show. All right, Kurt, later on in this program, we're going to have a segment about one-on-one teams and which team are they, the week one version or the week two version. And we're definitely going to be talking about the Steelers. What did we see out of the Steelers' offense this week that you noticed on film that stood out and maybe concerned you or just said, you know what, week one is going to be the guy that we see out of Aaron Rodgers most of the year? Um, I, you know, I actually said it after week one too.
Um, you know, Aaron obviously made some, some great throws and a lot of those throws that those four touchdowns in the first week were really scheme oriented. It was all basically naked bootleg.
So getting out in space, which I think Aaron still feels really comfortable out in space. Uh, but he doesn't look real comfortable inside the pocket. Uh, and that was the same the first week is what we saw this past week. And so, with the other issues that they have as a football team, I think what we saw this last week is more who the Steelers are right now than, you know, what we saw the first week and their ability to come back. But I mean, you know, I think the other indication is the Jets, right?
What the Jets did week one and everybody's like, oh my gosh, different team. Look at what they're doing. And then we saw what they did week two against the Bills. And so I think all that is a representative of who the Steelers are right now and who Aaron Rodgers, I think, is as a quarterback. I still just don't think after the injury that he's gotten fully comfortable playing the game inside the pocket, letting things develop, you know, as he did earlier in his career.
And so I'm a little concerned about the Steelers. You are. Yes.
So what can be done based on what you saw other than just you know getting more of a fountain of youth if it is on rogers is it on a scheme i mean obviously it usually a combination of things yeah and again i mean i think there's things aaron rogers can still do at a high level and i and when i thought this team was going to be good i thought it was going to be based off of playing good defense running the football or having a scheme that you know started with running the football and then the play action game for aaron rogers which is where i think he's really good at this stage in his career and what we saw in week one. But right now they're not playing any defense and they're not running the football. And so now it all falls to Aaron Rodgers and the guys on the outside. And that's the other thing is, you know, DK is there, but I don't know if they have a lot of difference makers in terms of guys that scare you on the outside, that if you are going to play the drop back game, oh man, you know, they spread us out. What are we going to do?
How are we going to match up? I don't think that's necessarily the case. I mean, they got a couple of good tight ends but again those aren't guys that are going to change the complexion of the game on one catch and so I think you know they were built to play that way defense and run the football and play action game and they just haven't been great in those other areas the first two weeks and so it's falling more on Aaron to have to play a different way than I think they want to and the other quarterback in the game if I may and Sam Darnold what did you see out of him and the Seahawks offense in week two that you can hang your hat on or not yeah i mean i think they're a good team i don't think they're a great team i think they're a team that's going to be built on um you know kind of what the steelers want to do playing good defense and running the football and then sam darnold and the pieces on the outside being more of a complimentary piece um you know i don't think they've been explosive in either game they got that you know that that gift handed to them on the special teams that kick off for a touchdown, you know, and got a couple other breaks, but I don't think they're great offensively, but I think they're good enough defensively that with running the football and Sam and, you know, a few of their weapons on the outside, that they're going to be in a lot of football games and have an opportunity to win a lot of. Kurt Warner here, my hall of fame friend on his Wednesday Warner Wednesday spot here on the Rich Eisen show.
So, Tua Tungo-Vailoa, I guess, raised an eyebrow or two, unless it's not worthy of it, by saying something at his press conference podium after falling to 0-2, losing to the Patriots. And there were a couple moments where Tyreek Hill got 100 yards rushing, receiving in the game. Tua airmailed him. and that was brought up to Tua and Tyreek's reaction in the game. And this is what he had to say.
Having some talks with Reek and whatnot, that if I do, just don't think that I'm going to throw it 80 yards. Like, as you're running, just do your best to track it because you could potentially stop. That's what ended up happening on that play for Reek. And then with him and Waddle with those deeper outbreaking routes, just trying to help them get open while maneuvering, you know, the corner in the flat. What do you make of these comments, Kurt?
Well, I mean, you know, I mean, the one is obviously off of the long ball that he threw that was kind of more of a punt that he threw it late. And, you know, Tyreek had to come back and try to make a play on it. I mean, of course, yeah. I mean, try to stop and make a play on it if I underthrow you. But, you know, that's one that if Tua is going to make that throw, you got to get it out there and give him a better chance.
You know, and the other comment that he was talking about is, you know, doing some things to maneuver the corner to, you know, to get the corner routes open and stuff. I just think sometimes Tua does too much of that. Instead of just allowing the defense to dictate where to throw it, he's trying to turn his body and manipulate the defense. And again, there's nothing wrong with that. I mean, a lot of good quarterbacks manipulate the quarterback or I mean, manipulate the defense, you know, to try to make a throw.
But sometimes you can do it too much. And sometimes you just have to come back and play. And you've got a corner in a flat. Just read the corner. If he drops deep, just throw the flat.
You know, if he comes up, throw the corner. But don't try to get him to throw the, you know, to jump the flat every time. And so you can throw the corner. And then if it's not open, then your footwork is all off. And so I think there's a lot of issues.
I did a breakdown on my YouTube page, like 50 minutes long. this past game. And I think there's a lot of issues going on. I think there's scheme. You know, there's some of it that's that's to and it's footwork and it's timing and some of the stuff that we're talking about here.
There were details, I believe, on the outside by by receivers or how they're teaching it that cost them. I just think there's a whole bunch of issues with this football team right now. It's not just one area. But, you know, I've said for a long time that I I think it can be a hard offense. What Tua does plays perfectly into what Mike McDaniels wants to do offensively.
But when, you know, that doesn't work, when their number one guy isn't schemed open, there's some hard things sometimes in this offense for the quarterback to work through. And so I just think there's a lot of things that they have to get better at. I think what we know is, you know, Tua's got to play on time and in the pocket. And, you know, that's not – it doesn't mean he can't play in this league. It doesn't mean he can't be a great quarterback.
It just means the scheme and the guys around him have to help him more than maybe they have to help a Josh Allen or a Lamar Jackson or a Patrick Mahomes who can overcome some of that stuff. You know, I said it in my breakdown. I was very much like Tua. I wasn't going to be able to create and make plays happen out of nowhere. I needed a scheme and players around me to do what they were supposed to do so I could see it, make decisions, and get the ball out of my hands.
And so you just have to have schemes that fit who your quarterback is. We've seen Tua play at an extremely high level, but I just think there's a lot of issues within this scheme and with what Tua is doing right now that's being accentuated because they're stacking on top of each other. Yeah, and then a Thursday night trip to Buffalo might not be what the doctor ordered at all. Kurt Warner here on the Rich Eisen Show. Again, QB Confidential is what Kurt is referring to on his YouTube channel.
Check it all out here on the Rich Eisen Show. A few minutes left with my friend, Kurt Warner. What is working so well for Daniel Jones and the Colts, Kurt? Yeah, well, I really felt like what Shane Steichen likes to do, a lot of RPOs, a lot of movement of the quarterback, you know kind of the pure progression read type stuff I thought it really fit Daniel Jones well he's he's a mobile quarterback he does a nice job with the RPOs and reading that stuff but he's just playing really good football right now he looks very comfortable in their system their team is a good team you know that they're solid across the board good offensive line I mean You saw Jonathan Taylor run for, what, 160 yards in the game. They got a good solid defense that, you know, can turn teams over and they don't give up a lot of points in big plays.
And then, again, Daniel fits their system very, very well. It's not a lot of spread out, drop back, have to read the whole field. You know, they designed it around, you know, trying to make the game easier for their quarterback. And as long as they stay on schedule, which, you know, you alluded to it, they stayed on schedule. I mean, they've stayed ahead of the chains, and they're scoring every time they touch the football.
They're finding a way to put points on the board because they're doing that. And so all of that stuff plays perfectly into who I believe Daniel Jones is as a quarterback. And so I just think right now it's a perfect fit with how this team is playing and what the skill set is of Daniel Jones. Can it roll on? I mean, Tennessee is next up, and it's his first away from Indianapolis.
and Tennessee, as we saw, against Bo Nix and Stafford this past week. Tennessee's defense is no joke, man. I mean, Snead's in the back end and Simmons is up front with some other players around. What do you think this week? Yeah, I mean, they're a competitive football team.
And, you know, I think the real test for the Colts is going to be when they fall behind and have to show that they can play catch-up football. if they don't have to do that. And I don't think Tennessee is explosive enough offensively, or at least we haven't seen it, where they're going to jump out to a two-touchdown lead and force the Colts to play a different brand of football. And so as long as they play this brand of football, I think it can continue to roll. But that's going to be the true test, is when they fall behind, a team's able to jump out on them early, and you force them away from what they really want to do.
and that's going to give us a true indication of where Daniel Jones is in this offense, who he is as a quarterback at this stage. Is the same guy that maybe we saw in New York, or has he grown? Is he different with that change? And so that's going to be the true test, and I don't see Tennessee being able to do that, and so I do believe that the train can roll on for Indianapolis. Kurt Warner here on the Rich Eisen Show.
Listen, we've got backups everywhere. Tarab Taylor is going to start for the Jets against Tampa. And it could be Marcus Mariota for the commanders against the Raiders, potentially, if Jaden Daniels is out. Mac Jones already has one start in, and now the Bengals are going to have to play maybe the rest of the season without Joe Burrow. It's Jake Browning's center stage act, and his first is against Carson Wentz, a backup for Minnesota.
so how do you how well do you think browning can perform here we saw seven games from him two years ago what do you what do you think kurt well i mean i think jake is a a solid backup quarterback in the league and by that i mean he can come in and he can win some games for you and he's going to make some throws we've seen that i think the problem here is that um you know i don't think anybody's going to argue that he's not joe burrow and you know the way the bengals have been built is on Joe Burrow's right arm winning games for them making throw after throw after throw for them and I'm not sure that's who Jake Browning is as a quarterback in the national football league I mean we saw last week he threw three interceptions trying to make those kinds of throws and being asked to make a lot of throws down the field he made some throws and obviously brought him back and won the game for him and he can definitely do that but I think it's going to lead to more mistakes for him than it would have been mistakes for Joe Burrow. And that to me is, is what Cincinnati is going to have to figure out is what style of play can we have with, you know, with Jake Browning as our quarterback? Are we built that way? Can we have success playing any other way? Cause I think most of us feel like they haven't been able to have success other than throwing it all over the yard with Joe Burrow And so if that the style that they have to play I concerned about this football team you know even though they started 2 you know being able to be one of the better teams in the AFC.
I think they're going to have to adjust their model a little bit. And I'm just not sure that they're built to, you know, play better defense and run the football. And I think it may have to go through the passing game and the guys on the outside. And, you know, and I think that's, again, that's a tough task for anybody.
So don't get me wrong. I'm not picking on Jake. You know, there's only a handful of guys in this league that you can say, hey, you've got to carry us every week with your right arm, and they can do it. You know, and most of the guys that, you know, are in the backup role right now are guys that you're not going to ask to do that.
So that's the interesting thing to me is are they going to try to play the same style or is there some way, shape, or form that they can adjust it a little bit so there's not that much pressure on Jake every week? Has Harbaugh unlocked Justin Herbert? I mean, we saw in Brazil, you and I, and then we saw on Monday night. And so they've won in two hemispheres now and on two different days of the week, you know, Friday and a Monday, you know.
So what do you think? Has Jim done it with Herbert? Yeah, I mean, you say unlocked. It's an interesting question is that what they do offensively is more deliberate. You know, when they get into their passing game, it's a lot of the play action.
It's a lot of what I would call, you know, simpler reads where, you know, you're not asking, you know, five guys to go out and the quarterback to have to see things quickly and decipher and get the ball out of their hands. And not that Justin can't do that, but I just don't think that's his greatest strength. What they're doing is more drop back, let things develop, use the big arm, you know, two or three options, find the throw for those two or three options. And so, you know, again, I don't want to say unlocked because Justin's been really, really good. But I do think they're playing to what Justin does best and allowing him to take a little bit more time processing and seeing it and then using that big arm more to push the envelope down the field.
I think this style is perfect for who Justin Herbert is. And so that's what you mean by unlocked. then the answer is yes. But I think it's just a perfect fit with what they're doing and how Justin sees and plays the game. And it's bearing out.
Obviously, what he did last year, not turning the ball over, making a lot of big plays. And we've seen that through two weeks this year as well. A lot of the same concepts you're going to see over and over again. You know, the touchdown to Quinton this past weekend was a play that we saw two or three times in our game. In our game, it happened to go to the crosser and not the deep one.
But they will run those same plays over and over again. And Justin's comfortable with it. And they're very good at it. And that, to me, is what's taken him to another level, just in terms of his efficiency playing the quarterback position. And only two playoff teams from last year have started 0-2, Texans, Chiefs.
Which one are you more concerned about, Kurt? Texans. You know, and I don't know why I say that, because maybe, you know, the team around their quarterback and maybe has played a little bit better. But to me, it's – you know, C.J. Stroud just doesn't look like the rookie C.J.
Stroud. I mean, and that's amazing for us to say, right? We're looking for this guy that's in his third year to look like he did as a rookie, but he doesn't look like that. He looks uncomfortable. He doesn't look confident when pressure is on him.
You know, he's not seeing things. He's not making throws that, you know, he could make in his sleep. And so I don't know what's wrong there. I don't know what's happening with him offensively, you know, and specifically around their quarterback. Was it because of the issues of the offensive line last year and that's just carried over and now he's not the same competent guy?
I mean, you know how I talked about him when he was a rookie. I mean, I thought he moved into that top five conversation with the way that he saw the field and the way that his technique, you know, his eyes and feet worked together and he was so – all these things. And I don't see any of that now. I mean, the way that they didn't handle pressure against Tampa Bay on Monday night just leaves me so worried about, like, you know, Todd Bowles in critical situations is going to blitz. How do you not have an answer?
How do you find yourself holding the football and taking sacks in those situations when you know, like everybody knows that's what's going to happen? And so those are the things that really concern me. Whereas the Chiefs, I've got some concerns. I've got some concerns about them offensively. but they still got 15 and he's the guy that, that I'm not concerned about that.
He's going to find ways to win football games for that team, even when the other pieces aren't right.
So I'm not as worried about them right now. Last one for you, Kurt. I think I'm going to ask you this of you every week. I asked you last week, you said Daniel Jones had the best game that you saw on film of every quarterback in week one, the week two winner of such, of such a, we'll call it a weekly award. The best quarterback you saw on film in week two is good question.
I mean, I could put Daniel Jones up there again. Wow. A couple of other guys that I like, though. I like what Jordan Love did, and I like what Matthew Stafford did. I thought Matthew Stafford played a really good game this past weekend.
I mean, he's one of those guys that's just really, really fun to watch. And now with Devontae and Puka, I really like what they're going to be as a team. You know, I was concerned about his back issues. It doesn't seem to be a problem. But I thought Staff played really, really well this past weekend.
I may give him the nod in week number two.
Okay. And I'm sure Rams at Eagles will be something you and I will be chopping up on game day morning quite a bit coming Sunday. Everybody check out the QB Confidential page channel on YouTube for Kurt Warner. It's a must. It's a must-see.
Thanks again, Kurt. You're the man. We'll chat over the weekend. See you soon. All right, buddy.
Ladies and gentlemen, Kurt Warner, everybody. Kurt and I will be calling Jets Broncos. Could be Bo Nix, Terod Taylor. Who knows? that'll be in London in a couple weeks right here on the Rich Eisen Show.
Let's take a break. Back with a little bit more of what Kurt had to say. Jonathan Taylor's right around the corner here on the Rich Eisen Show.
So are my power rankings, everybody. The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. On the Rich Eisen Show, ESPN Radio is presented by Progressive Insurance. If you're a renter, make sure you're protected. Renter's insurance includes options that cover stolen property, personal injury, and living expenses if your place is damaged.
Quote renter's insurance at progressive.com. Lots of conversation about whether quarterbacks who aren't playing this weekend, kind of a blessing in disguise, right? If Justin Fields is having trouble reading protections or anything like that in some way, shape, or form. Didn't appear to be the case in week one. I mean, week one, you got to hang your hat on that if you're a Jet fan.
He was terrific against the Steelers. I mean, Mike Tomlin's like, we got to stop the run. That's what he said when they're leaving, talking about what they need to do defensively better. Very rarely does a team who plays the Jets feel that way. For instance, the Bills aren't talking that way this week.
and the Bills came in and just wrecked the MetLife buffet completely. And Fields is out, and you've got to sit here and think, maybe Terod Taylor against the Buccaneers, not that terrible of a situation. Because they're coming, and Terod Taylor has got a lot more experience and try to read it, and we'll see how it works out. And everyone's thinking maybe Carson Wentz could be somewhat better than what the J.J. McCarthy already needs a breather.
which isn't a great thing if you're thinking that this is the quarterback of the future and he needs to play. You know how I feel about Jake Brown and we saw about Mac Jones win.
Well, good. And I think the Bengals can go to 3-0 this week, potentially.
Now, if Jane Daniels doesn't play for the Washington Commanders, with all due respect to Marcus Mariota, we'll see. I mean, crazier things have happened in this league. beating the Raiders in an early window game in a short week in front of your home folks, that's entirely doable. But the long run, kind of want your unicorn in there. And we've been waiting, as I said, we led the show with Aaron Glenn talking about, oh, by the way, he said it, buried the lead.
Speaking of injuries. One thing I can tell you is our starting quarterback is out. And I'm like, maybe we're going to hear that from Dan Quinn whenever he speaks. later today everybody waiting with bated breath about an update on jayden daniels and here it is what is the plan for jayden today and then the rest of the week sure so jayden had a good rehab session day also through um out on the field he won't practice today and then as we get into friday i'll give you an assessment of where we're at um for you know after we go through practice on friday practice on Friday.
So a DNP today, a DNP on Thursday. Dan Quinn said we're going to be smart, not just fast. That seems like he's not playing. That's what it sounds like to me. Yeah.
That's what it sounds like to me. And so we'll see. Marcus Mariota versus Geno Smith in in one game. I'd feel better about that game if I was a Raider fan. If I saw a little bit more out of Geno on Monday night, he was not good.
Guess what? I think we might be talking about teams that face the Chargers in the same way we've spoken about teams that face Green Bay for the first two weeks. Oh, and the Lions in years past, yeah. The Chargers are no joke, man. They are physical.
how about the news that Khalil Mack who dislocates his elbow to the point where you're thinking that is the ugliest thing I've ever seen and all he does is matter-of-factly walk into the blue tent and just stand there the rest of the game like rooting his team on as if his elbow was just in a sling because you know it's it feels better for him and uh my colleagues at the NFL Network are all reporting it's not season ending okay arms are not supposed to bend that way dude this guy Again, it's a personification of what we've seen from the Chargers through two weeks. I think that's the way we're going to see it. And maybe we'll see more Ashton Gentry. I think we'll see it. Hopefully he can pass probably a little bit better to stay on the field.
If he wants to get him 20 carries. We'll see. But if your quarterback's not practicing Wednesday or Thursday, that's a tough, that's a tall order. It doesn't feel very good. Wednesday I get, but no Thursday.
Well, we'll see Friday. At most, he's going to be limited on Friday, so that's not a good sign. He ain't playing. Yeah, and then you're going to throw him out there and say, just avoid the condor if you can. Yeah, yeah, that guy over there.
Yeah, that ain't it. Don't get hit by that guy. The Ridge Eisen Show Podcast.
