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Now. On with the show. Yeah. Bonnie Freeman has ended it! This is the Rich Eisen Show.
This game is incredible. From the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. Kelsey ties Priest Holmes. Today's guests. Fuck Sports NFL Analyst.
Mark Schlereth, ESPN MS. LB columnist Muster Olney. Host of the Paul Feinbaum Show, Paul Feinbaum. And now, it's Rich Eisen. We're thrilled to have you call in, talk about, obviously, the game three for the ages last night, the Monday night football, Kansas City Chiefs dismantling of the Washington Commanders, anything going on in the NBA, anything on your mind, we're here for you.
844-204 Rich is the number to dial. We've got Paul Feinbaum on this program. We figured, let's get a voice of college football, quite an opinionator to say the least, on what's going on with all these buyouts, all these. Coaching gigs that are now wide open in some spots across the college football landscape that previously. Where spots that people wanted to coach.
And as I mentioned, there's you at 844-204-RICH, NOWATEDAL. Good to see you over there, Chris Brockman. How are you? Good morning, Rich. How are you?
How are you, Jason Feller? Good to see you. I bet you are. TJ Jefferson, I see the candle is lit. What up, though?
Good to see you all over there. And again, we're here for you, 844-204-RICH, number to Dow. Listen, we are obviously a football-centric show. We love our baseball. But listen, there's very few things.
That would knock a Kansas City Chiefs Monday night football victory as they continue to get better and look like the AFC champion again and look like the Super Bowl contender that we've gotten them used to being. There's very few things that would just knock them off the front page, if you will, of this show. But listen, you know, when playoff series happen, and certainly the World Series go down. Before they start seven game series, you see the two words next to games five, six, and seven, if necessary. Uh very rarely.
Uh Has there been an asterisk next to a game three and say a game three B? if necessary. A second game was necessary last night. An entire second game was necessary last night. 18 innings worth.
Two different nine-inning games were necessary last night. to decide the Normally, game fives are pivotal, but when 70% of game three winners Um in a World Series tied one game apiece. go on to eventually win the World Series, Game 3 could prove to be the most pivotal. Certainly, based on what we saw last night. And it was more than just, again, a pivotal game.
of a world series. It was one of the wildest games. We we'll ever see. And that You know, isn't recency bias? That's a fact.
And I think we kind of got the sense. Last night. that this was going to be unlike any other game. When Yeah. In the second inning, Beau Bachette gets picked off of first base because the home plate umpire and.
Mark Wegner takes a little bit of extra time to call strike two on a 3-1 pitch to Dalton Varchow, who thinks it is ball four, starts to walk to first base. Bo Bachette celebrates the ball four by pirouetting and facing right field, not knowing, oh, wait a minute. The umpire did call strike two. I'm now pick offable. And sure enough, Tyler Glass now flips to Freddie Freeman and he's out.
I've never seen anything like that. And I'm 56, and I've been watching baseball for as long as I can remember. And that was just the beginning. Because a couple base hits after that The Blue Jays still don't have a run. And then former Blue JT Oscar Hernandez school.
gets the scoring going in the bottom half of the inning with a home run. And then in a third inning. Uh uh Just the first of many unicorn things. The Game 4 starter hits a home run in Game 3. for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Show a Tani homers to give the Dodgers a 2-0 lead, and that inning ends with Freddie Freeman thrown out at home. Which was just the beginning of the Cycle of getting thrown out at bases, we were seeing last night. Literally, everybody got thrown out. It felt... At every base last night.
During this 18-inning game, fourth inning. Leadoff walk to Vlad Guerrero Jr. Beau Bachette hits one right to Tommy Edmund, and it goes underneath his glove. Beau Bachette is running so slow. He makes Jim Carlos Snanton looked like Ricky Henderson.
So that's a surefire double playground ball that's now in right field with two guys on, of course, Alejandro Kirk. Is going to hit a three-run home run to give the Blue Jays the lead, and he does. I mean this fire hydrant is unbelievable. And The Blue Jays add on another run on a sack fly. It's 4-2.
Max Scherzer's on the mound, by the way. Future first ballot hall of famer for the Blue Jays. He wasn't the only one. With such a resume. to pitch in this game.
Scherzer gets pulled. And a game four starter Hits an RBI double and scores the tying run when Freddie Freeman knocks an Otani. We can't I honestly I cannot stress enough of what absurdity we're seeing from Shoe Otani.
So it's a 4-4 game, sixth inning. T.O.S.C.A. Hernandez is trying to... Get to third. He gets thrown out at third.
First guy to get thrown out at third on the night. Hmm. Innings over. It's a 4-4 tie going into the seventh. Bo Bachette knocks in Vlad Guerrero Jr.
Who scores By sliding head first and getting his hand in just before Will Smith can tag him out. And I don't know how a man that size can just put his hand down and then hop up. Which he did. To celebrate the Blue Jays having a one-run lead until the The game four starting pitcher for the Dodgers ties the game with his second home run of the night. In the bottom half of the seventh.
By the way. John Schneider had seen enough of Otani. Maybe For the rest of this series, with a bat in his hand and the opportunity to swing it, smart. Tied five. Blue Jays, top nine.
After they threatened Sasaki in the eighth. Var show. Hits a screaming liner that goes off of Freddie Freeman's glove into right field in IKF. Keiner Falaffa thinks I'm going to third. Tommy Edmonds slides from his second base position.
towards the right field line. To grab that ball, hops up and throws a seed to Max Muncie to nail IKF at third base. For the second out, wiping out The Blue Jay's threat and begins to Redeem himself for that error. Earlier in the game. Game goes to extras.
Top of the tenth. Lucas of the blue jays. Lines a double to right. Davis Schneider. Who looks like somebody I had 15 cards of in 1975 in the tops pack, right?
The way he looks with that mustache and the glasses. Very 80. Very 90s ball player. Honestly, it felt like I had 15 of him in a tops pack in 1979. He's thrown out at home by a wide margin on Hernandez throwing Edmund, who makes another seed of a throw to Will Smith.
The Blue Jays tried a challenge to say that Smith blocked the plate, but I'm glad that was upheld. He kinda did, but Well, when he fielded the ball, he didn't. And so when he's when you feel the ball, you need to not block the plate. Right. which, by the way, we were having described to us by the umpire, former umpire, that the uh I like that.
That was a good element. That was great. But Jon Smoltz asked a follow up question and he's answering the question as a batter is hitting. Right. If that ball leaves the yard, True.
Fox has got an umpire nobody's ever heard of talking about a rule analysis. I'm sitting there, that was the most nerve-wracked I was for the television broadcast. Top of the 12th. The Jays load the bases. And unbelievably Dave Roberts Wants to go lefty, lefty on Lucas, and the guy he's bringing in from the bullpen is Clayton Kershaw.
For not only His First ever. Extra inning appearance. of his career. But a base is loaded situation to boot. And he gets Lucas to ground out.
As Edmund Can only make this one play by grabbing the ball with his glove and flipping it with his glove to Freeman at first. While Sandy Colfax is watching. What the hell? Sandy Colfax was there. Watching Kershaw get the one out they needed from him and his wife.
who probably went to the game thinking, oh, this is great. I'm just gonna go to the game. Come out to the game.
Now, suddenly, her husband's in the highest leverage situation possible. And he gets out of it. Did you think he was gonna blow it? Dude, we all know what his history is. Answer the question.
I thought it was possible. Did I register on you? I didn't. You're the only one. I've had some belief that there's just no way he was going to go out like that.
And then we're settling it. Everybody's trying to swing from their shoes and end it. And sure enough, Will Smith, I thought he did. He thought he did. Everyone did ball lands in the glove.
Of Varcho in left center field. Freddie Freeman almost had one. But Yaskar. And every single time Otani's coming up. John Schneider is saying, yeah, he is 100% not hitting right now.
And a game four-started pitcher reached base all nine times last night. Got shot nine times. Nine. He's starting tonight And sure enough. Like, listen.
If you could have put on a piece of paper. When this game went to extra innings, how was it going to end? Yeah. Right. If you could put on a piece of paper, how will this game end?
I swear to you. I swear to you. I would have written down Freddie Freeman walk-off home run. Maybe that's the PTSD in me from game one of last year's World Series as a Yankee fan, bringing my boy Cooper, Evan Eisen to the game, only to watch that home run streak across our perfectly field of vision. down the red-to-d line.
And sure enough, in the 18th inning with Yamamoto. Just two days removed from his complete game, warming up in the bullpen in case he's needed in the 19th inning for. The first inning of game three. Of game three. Not needed as Freddy goes yard straight to center field.
Game over. We can go home now. That is correct. That is correct. And the final numbers of game three of the 2025 World Series.
I think we have it. I think every single person who works at home on the Rich Island Show, or most of them are all Dodger fans, probably arm wrestling to see who could create this graphic for us here on the program. Second longest game in postseason history. I think your game, what? Red Sox Dodgers of 2018.
That's the longest press. Six hours, 39 minutes long. Freddie Freeman now has the most walk-off home runs in World Series history. In back-to-back years, he's done it. 19 combined pitchers used 609 pitchers thrown.
37 combined runners left on base. And one of my favorite moments of the night was Tom Verducci with a report for the broadcast. Basically, saying, Hey guys, we're running out of baseballs down here. I had no idea. I wasn't even thinking: like, are they going to have enough?
Is someone going to have to run out to Big Five down there in Chavez Ravine? and knock on the door and say, open up. I know you're closed. We need more baseballs. They go to go get Warren.
Right? Stupid. Take a baseball stand. I don't know. Just go to the fans in the stands and say, hey, we need that back.
There's a clawback rule in the World Series when it goes at gajillion innings. All those fouls. Oh, the crap. All those fouls you guys got, Kajaya. Can you just throw some of the back, kids throw some of the ball please?
The last step is the last step. Again, it's OTAN. Very good. He's in the magic mazes. Otani is the game four starting pitch.
Did I mention you starting game four tonight? And he reached base nine times in a row. Because and just think again let's talk about this For a few minutes. At one point I think it was either Taylor or Xander asked a great question while we're watching this game. Which is Um Is there a rule in baseball about the number of times you can intentionally walk somebody?
And I mentioned no. And the the question of why came back. And that's not a Bad. Question. To ask.
It really isn't Chris because I understand there's a unicorn aspect of this. We haven't seen it since Barry Bonds. I mean, Aaron Judge on occasion will get walked intentionally with third base open. I understand that. Um But The fact that And baseball can discuss it.
you know. That Do you want to take the bat out of the hands of the one person that maybe... Every casual fan willing to stay up. Till one in the morning, twelve thirty in the morning, two in the morning. You know If these things happen, that The other manager could just say four.
and the bats taken out of his hands. But the fact that John Schneider, this is how this out of everything. about Otani. can describe just how remarkable he is. and how one of one he is.
John Schneider was putting Otani on base. intentionally, willingly, saying, take it. In a tie game. In walk-off situation after walk-off situation after walk-off situation of a World Series game with Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman up next. That's not just like some 200-hitter.
Pick your poison.
Well, Mookie is probably less than that.
Well, I mean, Mookie is not, but he still bets and. You don't want to make, if you will, a bet on this will be the one time he doesn't turn it around? But come on, and Will Smith is no piker either. You're asking for a. Beginning.
You're asking to not get walked off. That's true. I'm not the best player in the game. By the way, I'm not saying he was wrong. At all.
to do that. Whatsoever. But are you advocating for this or are you just throwing it out? I'm just throwing it out.
Okay. As John Schneider was talking about afterwards. His strategy, and basically, it looks like you're done seeing Otani as a hitter. Who's going to get a chance to swing the bat in this World Series? We're trying to pitch around them.
You know what I mean? You trust Sir Anthony to make pitches to do that.
Sometimes for pitchers it's it's hard to do that, you know, when you're you're kind of trying to throw a ball and didn't put it where you want to put it, but You know, he had a great game, he's a great player, but I think after that, You just kind of take the bat out of his hands. And not to give away secrets, but that's pretty much what we should expect going forward. Yeah. I don't blame them. Yeah.
Now again, um You Chris texted the group during the game. Is Otani better at baseball than Tiger was at golf when Tiger was at his... That was the interesting text. Early 2000s, when he was just wearing shirts on everybody. Tiger Slam.
Yeah. Yeah. Great question. Great question. Because he also makes it look so easy.
So did Tiger. I know. Otani, by the way, one of the few thrown out at second base last night, too, on a stolen base because the first intentional walk. He stole immediately and got thrown out because he overran the base because he's. Nine feet tall and can run like a deer, and that base isn't big enough to stop his momentum.
Yeah. And IKF wisely kept the tag on him. Good play. And If that's the case, if you think it is. Golf courses.
Started. Making their holes longer. Because of Tiger. They tiger-proofed the game. They tried.
And so they tried. And so if that happened. Then maybe just maybe you come up with a rule Where you can't intentionally walk somebody more than three times in a game. You can't make the stadiums bigger. No, no.
That's the comparison. That's the same thing. Because it's not just the home runs. It's also doubles, triples, singles. But they didn't make the holes now par threes and they're 500 yards.
I gotcha. I'm just throwing it out there. I understand. Because you want to see him hit. You want to see him hit.
Within a while, you're going to just do that. Are they really going to do it the rest of the world? I hope so, actually.
So leading off the game, they're just going to walk him? Yeah, why not? Do you want to be down 1-0, or do you want to have a guy on first? It's unbelievable that we're having this conversation. Because bonds didn't lead off.
No. But had he walked him. Yeah, they definitely would have. It's unbelievable. I just think we saw kind of a one-off.
Like, we're not going to get another 18-inning game. There's only been two in World Series history. Right. You know? And I just wanted to point out the last time the Dodgers won an 18-inning World Series game at home with a walk-off home run, all their team won the trophy.
I'm from the AL East.
So I don't know. I mean, we'll see what happens tonight when Otani starts. What do you expect tonight? Because you kind of saw it. These guys were so exhausted.
Even in the post-game, Otani is like, I just want to go home and go to sleep. Do you think it's going to be a crisp game tonight? Are we going to run? That's the beauty of baseball. It's the next day, even though it's the same day.
And we will see. Bye. Yeah. It was crazy.
Well, we I can't. I mean, it's just this guy is magnetic. He's magnetic. He's telegenic. He is so likable.
And I'll tell you, the biggest winner outside of anybody else in the Dodgers organization last night was Michael Bouble, who got played nine times. The walk-up music. Does he get residuals? I don't know. If you do, Michael.
Intentionally walk him on Spotify. Jeez, what a night. All right. Let's take. Oh, by the way, we've got.
Um Buster only, who is at the game for ESPN Radio, coming in here in our number two. But it is 844-204-RICH is the number to dial right here on Disney Plus, the ESPN app everywhere and ESPN Radio presented by Progressive Insurance. All right, so we'll talk football. We'll talk about the Chiefs Monday Night or anything else with our friend Mark Schlareth back here on the Rich Eisen Show. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast.
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Mark Schlerith here on The Rich Eisen Show, back on ESPN Radio, presented by Progressive Insurance, three-time Super Bowl champion. All right, Mark. I don't think we're needing to wonder if the Chiefs have turned a corner anymore. The question now is: how far can they go? Super Bowl, right?
I mean, like, we're seeing it. Sure. We're seeing it in front of us, right, Mark? Yeah. Well, yeah, yeah.
When you talk about how balanced they are right now. How good they are right now. Like it's been, it's been, hey, man, that, you know, it was the offense that led them early in kind of the Patrick Mahomes era. And then it was the defense for a while. And then, you know, and now it's, hey, the defense is good and the offense is struggling.
And now, and now they got all their weapons back at the wide receiver position. And Travis Kelsey's got some pressure taken off of him because you've got, you know, Rashi Rice back. And, you know, you got Hollywood Brown, who's healthy. And now their running game all of a sudden is a little bit better. And you watch what they were able to do even last night and they put the whole thing together.
And now it's not, now it's a complete team. And even your first two drives, you got Mahomes throwing interceptions, but then all of a sudden they put it together and they just roll. And, you know, the no-look pass and the amount of protection he had. Like the Chiefs are legitimate. And I think they're probably, even though they don't have the best record in the AFC, of all the teams that.
That I've watched and studied, I think they're probably playing better than anybody else in the AFC right now. Can the Broncos knock them off, though? I mean, what we're seeing from them right now. Um is exactly why the bandwagon filled up during the summer. of people thinking, hey, the Broncos have got a real chance here.
And they started fast finally on offense this past week. And Bonix is beginning to put it together. And the defense just handed Dak Prescott his lunch in a way that few have been able to do this year.
So what do you think about the Broncos' ability to win this division anyway? Mark. I still think they have a shot. And Bo Nix is playing really good football. Like last week was the first time he hit the deep ball.
And he was money on target on the deep ball last week, which was the first time all season long that he's been able to hit that. And they actually ran the ball effectively. And they pared down to me some of the things they did, they've been doing in the run game. They pared it down to where they had kind of a like concept, whether it was duo or power or counter. You know, double team is a double team on duo on power and counter.
That's the same thing. So they had some like concepts that they coupled together, kind of pared down the run game a little bit. They were really good in the running game. The Pat Sertan thing is legitimate, man. It scares me a little bit.
He could be out three to six weeks with a pictorial injury. He just shuts down one side of the football field and gives them the ability to bring the blitz, gives them the ability to rush the opponent's quarterback, lead the league in sacks. They've done that two years in a row right now. They're crushing everybody when it comes to pressuring the quarterback. A lot of that has to do with this symbiotic relationship between coverage and what Pat Sir.
Tan brings to the table, and what you do as a defensive front.
So that part scares me a little bit, Rich. How long will he be out? I don't know. But yeah, they're playing pretty good football right now. And, you know.
You got the Chargers here as well. Looks like three teams can make it from the AFC West as we're hitting the midway point of this season right now, as we're crystal balling it. And then if you don't win the AFC West, you might wind up the five-seed. Or if you don't win the AFC East. you wind up The five-seed, and that's something we did not say coming into the season.
You just saw the Patriots. If the Patriots take on, One of these teams that we just mentioned from the AFC West. And it could be the Umptine. time AFC Champion Chiefs. Are they for real?
Can they do it in the playoffs, do you think, on the road if necessary, Mark? Yeah, you look at the Patriots right now and Kudos to Mike Brable. He's got them playing great. Josh McDaniels is a phenomenal play caller. Um, a phenomenal just orchestrator of offense in general, and it's time to quit saying, Hey, Drake May is, you know, one of the best young quarterbacks in football.
He's just one of the best quarterbacks in football, the way he's playing right now. And there's so much room for growth, Rich, there's so many times where you watch Drake May, and it's the front side of the progression, it's one to two. And then it's take off and run. One to two, take off and run. One to two, take off and run.
And they're implementing and trying to get him to go one to two to three. Take off and run. And so there's so much room for growth, and they're so excited about it. He's throwing the deep ball with unbelievable accuracy and effectiveness. And they are playing great, not good football, but great football.
And it's really interesting. You know, I think back to the Parcells days and having played against Bill Parcells all those years, you know, when he was with the Giants and then he was the Patriots and then he was with the Jets. And always watching him bring along like Steve Diazi and Pepper Johnson, right? And his guys to implement his system. And, you know, when Phil Parcels is going to go off on you, these guys can help manage the locker room in those situations.
And then I see Brable, and he's got Harold Landry on one edge, who is with him in Tennessee. He's got Spillane playing middle linebacker for him, who was with him in Tennessee. He's got Jack Gibbons, was also a middle linebacker, a backup player for him.
So he's brought these guys along with him to say, hey, man, it's kind of this Parcells feature. Like, I got my guys, and we're ready to go to battle together. He's a really, he's a really good head coach. And, you know, he's tough. He coaches them hard, but he builds relationships with those guys.
I think he's doing a phenomenal job. If it wasn't for what Shane Steichen's doing in Indianapolis right now, he'd be my leader in the clubhouse for coach of the year. Finishing up our AFC talk, Mark, the Colts sit atop the conference, and for good reason. They're as well balanced as any team that I've seen in recent years. And they've got an MVP at running back who is unstoppable.
They're going to pack their bags, though, now. They're at Pittsburgh this week, a home game against Atlanta, but that's in. Germany.
So they're going to go from Pittsburgh all the way to Germany. A bye week before they visit Kansas City. And I think that's where rubber meets road, right? Because they've got their. Um the rest of their games are against their own division.
Two against Houston, two against Jacksonville, and then... Two against the NFC West, and that could be some of the top teams, obviously, in that division. But barring injury, they're the favorites to win this conference right now, aren't they? Mark? Yeah, you yeah.
And they're playing great. You know, it's it's so funny. Because, you know, I'm such a... Anti-wide receiver guy, you know, wide receiver. I think I've told you this before, like children.
Um, you know, I mean, one, they're completely dependent on everybody else doing their job. Two, uh, they whine and cry and piss and moan if they don't get fed. Um, and so you know, that's that's how wide receivers operate. And then you look at you know, and I hear this all the time: well, who's the number one? Oh, no, they don't have a number one, they got to go get a number one.
You know, you got Alex Pierce, you got Pittman, and you've got Downs, and they've got really good players, but there's nobody, you're not, you're not. Confusing any of those guys for Jamar Chase or Justin Jefferson. It's control line of scrimmage, run the ball, open up your play action game, your RPO game with Daniel Jones. That's what they're doing. And they're controlling both lines of scrimmage.
And they are right now playing as good as anybody in the NFL. And like you said, have the fast track to the number one seed in the AFC, which is absolutely incredible. And think about Minnesota, Rich. Minnesota had Sam Darnold. Who's playing kind of at, you know, at a.
MVP level, if you will, or all pro level. And they had Daniel Jones in that building. And they decided to go with a young kid that wears a lot of eye black. I you know I get that you draft kids. And I get that you're trying to implement them, but boy, I tell you.
Those two guys they let out of the building. Um That's, you know, hindsight being 20-20. It seems like a mistake.
Well, two follow-up questions. First one: when you say the analogy about receivers being kids and that they You just tell them to do their job. What's the job? Is it going potty? Is that the analogy?
Eating what you're supposed to eat? Is that the job you're referring to with kids, Mark? Yeah, well, it's all the above jobs. It's parenting. You got to do some, you got to parent.
I understand that. Yeah, my kids are in their late 30s now, and mid to late 30s. Early to late 30s, and I'm still parenting then. Of course, it's never over. It's a job that never ends.
But the real follow-up question is: is in your mind Jonathan Taylor, the MVP of this league, entering week nine. Mark. Oh, I would love that. I would love that. No, no, no, no.
Who is yours? You can make it still. Yeah, no, sure. Yes, Jonathan, I'll give it Jonathan Taylor. I love that.
I hadn't thought about it up until you asked me the question. Sure. But because quarterbacks don't play football, quarterbacks play quarterback. That's like that to me, I hate the fact that we just give, it's like the Heisman. The Heisman goes to a quarterback.
I hate that, right? Like, I quit watching and paying attention to the Heisman when Terrell Suggs had 24 sacks one year and didn't even get invited to New York. Like, stop it. It loses all credibility to me. And so I want to see.
Football players, guys who actually play football, I'd like to see those guys win MVPs because they deserve to win MVPs as opposed to just giving it a quarterback every year. Mark Sharath here on the Rich Eisen Show. And then in the NFC, the Packers do lead the roost in record. Do they lead the league for you, the conference for you? Are they the best team in the NFC?
Because after them, it's just a host of teams. That have a shot, including the Lions. I mean, we were talking before about the AFC: that if you win the AFC East, you could be. Either a two-seed, a one-seed, or the five-seed. Same thing with the AFC West.
That happened with the NFC North last year, and it sure could happen again. Where you either win the division in the one seed or you're going on the road to start the playoffs. In a wild card weekend, Mark. Yeah, I don't think there's any question. You know, I thought.
Green Bay the first couple of weeks of the season. I thought they were playing the best of any team in football. And then they scuffled a little bit, but they had a lot of injuries. They just got Christian Watson back. They had injuries at the receiver position.
I tell you what, nobody's playing better than their tight end Kraft. He's just been amazing. But I remember doing a game, I think week three, it was Washington and the Raiders. And Washington had just gotten beat up by the uh By the Green Bay Packers and Cliff Kingsbury telling me, I've never seen a faster team like in person. Like their ability to rush the passer, their ability to just play flat foot reads and say, you're not going to get the ball off before we break on it because ultimately our pass rush is going to get there.
And they got their health back on the offensive side of the ball. They're going to be very tough to beat, no question. All right. Lastly, for you, Mark, I said on the program yesterday after Jalen Hurts clearly fumbled the ball on a tush push. and it was ruled a stop of forward progress as if he hasn't been stopped.
With his forward progress before, and the play winds up with him eventually being shoved in the end zone a couple of beats later, a couple of Mississippi's later. I'm saying that this is now, we've now reached the zone of this being. Thoroughly Um unofficiable. That's the real word. You can't officiate it.
So I'm done with it. What about you? Mark. What about you? Yeah, I was like, I love the physicality of the phone.
I do too, man. I hear you too. And I don't want to be one of those people who's like, you know, they do it best. Everyone else can do it.
So you're trying to prevent everyone else from doing it. But you can't officiate it properly. You can't officiate whether it's a false start, if it's off sites, or now in the case of this, a fumble and when forward progress is stopped.
So, so my issue with it from the start is: I love it as a football play. I think it's great. And it really wasn't the officiating, it was the hypocrisy of the play. Because I played in a time where we used to shove a dude through the line of scrimmage on PET field goal and special teams.
So we got, there was a guy that would be in the A gap. I would stand behind that guy. We'd get our tallest tight end or defensive end, and I'd stand behind. I'd shove him through the A gap and try to block the field goal. And the league deemed that is too dangerous.
So that became illegal.
Okay, how's that different than the tush push then?
So it's illegal to do it on special teams.
Okay, let me get it straight. It's illegal to do it there, but on offense, it's fine. And the hypocrisy, it's not congruent. That's why I ban it, is the lack of congruent nature of the play, is exactly why I would ban the play. Yeah, again, that was a clear fumble.
And if you're saying, all right, that was forward progress. then his forward progress uh has been stopped on at least half of these. And then you allow it to keep going, which I understand that you do that. I understand that you do that.
So if that's. If if we can't officiate it properly. and now you can't officiate it consistently. then it's to the bene another benefit to the team that runs it well. Yeah.
Yes. Is what I'm saying.
So that's why I'm Rich, I completely agree with that. But I will say this. At the risk of getting in trouble. I don't we can't officiate any play consistently.
So I got you. All right. Well, we're out of time, Mark. All right. Hey, man.
Always great to have you and enjoy your Your sojourn to Las Vegas, and we'll have you on real soon again, as always. All right, you're the best. That's good, buddy. Ladies and gentlemen, everybody, check out the Stinking Truth podcast with Mark Schlereth, and of course, Mark when he calls games. on Fox.
He's awesome at it. 844-204-RICH is the number to dial. My two cents on the Chiefs, and you also chiming in before Buster Olney stops by in the studio to talk about that epic Game 3. The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. The Rich Eisen Show on all of our platforms, including ESPN radio, presented by Progressive Insurance.
Progressive is helping veterans drive their lives forward with its keys. to Progress program. 844-204-RICH is the number to DOM. As I just mentioned to Mark Schlarth, if you're just joining us or watching this later on our YouTube channel, youtube.com/slash Rich Eisen Show, we say hello to all of you out there. It's no longer a question as to whether the Kansas City Chiefs have turned a corner in this 2025 season that they started off.
O and two in. It's just a question of how far they're going to go. And The reason why that is, is they're fully constituted. Rashi Rice is back. He is fully integrated into this offense.
Kareem Hunt is coming on the field as a running back when Pacheco needs a break, or the Chiefs are inside the 10 and they need a battering ram. And he scores twice last night, and Mahomes. Even when you get him off the spot. is making the plays even when you pick them off. Twice in a row to start the game.
First time that's ever happened to Patrick Mahomes as a professional. First two drives of the game, interception on both. He's only been picked off on consecutive drives in the same game. Five times in his entire career, and that includes the playoffs. Even when you do that, like the Washington Commanders, you're losing by 21.
Obviously, Being an arrowhead helps. But Travis Kelsey is looking like the Kelsey that we we know. Um Even when he is Sometimes not. Catching the passes that Mahomes is sending his way. Six catches for 99 yards and a touchdown, his 100th career touchdown.
Congratulations to Kelsey on that milestone. And his 83rd career Um A scoring touchdown. Thies priesthomes for the most in Chief's history. As He also became the fifth tight end in NFL history with 80 or more career receiving touchdowns. Congratulations to him on all that.
As Mahomes joins Peyton Manning, he's the only player with 40,000 pass yards in his first nine seasons, including the playoffs. And he tied Dan Marino for the most games with three or more passing touchdowns in a player's first nine seasons. But that's, you know, the. Larger picture, and what we'll be talking about when both of those guys go into Canton, Ohio's first ballot hall of famers when they get the chance. Um But it's just this year what we're seeing.
What we're seeing is a defense that can get. You off the field. And be opportunistic. And we're seeing an offense that's just on tilt. Mahomes is 100%.
I mean, in terms of quarterbacks from start to finish this season, In the mix for For Offensive Player of the Year, because Jonathan Taylor is the MVP, right? Yeah, of course. It's now a race for Offensive Player of the Year. Sure, I like it. I think we're going to go with it at this point in time until further notice.
Um But you know they're not even in first place in their own division that's a lot to say No Um because the Way that they started, and the Broncos have caught fire. They're a game behind the Broncos. They're in third place because they're five and three record. Isn't as good as the Chargers because the Chargers have already beaten the Chiefs. That's the way the season began.
Uh and then you know The rubber begins to meet the road now for Kansas City. You're at Buffalo. Always an epic game. The Bills just came off of a 40-point domination. They've scored 40 points in a dominating performance against Carolina said they're feeling really good about themselves, and they always feel good about themselves when they play Kansas City in the regular season.
Chiefs get a bye, then they're at Denver and home for Indianapolis before they visit Dallas. on Thanksgiving. And a Houston Home date. before they see the Chargers again.
So what I'm saying right now is corner turned Check that box. How far are they going to go? The next six weeks will decide whether they can actually host games in Arrowhead or not. And If they go on the road. In the playoffs, can they do what they did a couple years ago, which is go on the road in the playoffs?
Doesn't matter, they make the Super Bowl and win it anyway. Because they certainly have those horses. They certainly have them. I'm not telling any tales out of school on that. No, sir.
And right now, if the playoffs began now, the Chiefs would be the seventh seed going to New England. And I proffer to say that's probably not the first home playoff test you'd want Drake May to have. I don't think that's who they want to see. That would be who the Chiefs are talking about. Yeah, they want to see.
But I mean, you take a look at everyone else. The Chiefs over the last month have played better football than the Chargers, the Bills, the Steelers. I don't think this is the order. On overreaction Monday, I said: look, the seven teams in the NFC, that's lock. I don't think these are the seven that are going to be in the AFC.
Well, and the only pushback I would give on that is: I think the Patriots, you do make it. I think the Chargers, Bills, Chiefs, Broncos, and Colts make it. I just don't know what the Steelers are. Agree. That's the one I would say, and the one that's not even on the screen is sniffing it, as we call it here on the Rich Island show.
It's not in the hunt. You're sniffing it, and the it is the playoffs, just so everyone understands. This is a kid-friendly show, absolutely. Um The Ravens at 2-5 are the team that I would. Peg.
As the one to run down the Steelers who have the Colts in their house this weekend. They're going to have to go on a heck of a run, though. And they will. I also don't think the Chiefs will be the seventh seed. I think the Chiefs can win the division.
And if they beat the the Colts in a couple of weeks. Have a shot at the one seat again? That's how well they're playing. I mean Rashi Rice is just beginning to scratch the surface And you're wondering about how you could still work at Juju Smith-Schuster? Check that box.
Kareem Hunt, check that box. They were all doing. Work last night, Hollywood Brown, Xavier Worthy, look. Out. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast.
Mm-hmm.
