This is The Rich Eisen Show. Hey, everybody. Can't get enough of The Rich Eisen Show? You're in luck. You can find us everywhere.
Watch us weekdays on Disney Plus from noon to 3 Eastern. Miss the show? We've got a podcast so you can listen anytime. But here's the best part. Our YouTube channel.
Subscribe at youtube.com slash rich Eisen Show and you'll never miss a moment.
Now, on with the show. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. Kyle Tucker to the thought is what are we talking at? His repeat now? This is the Rich Eisen Show.
MLB, do something, enough is enough. Just like that. Tucker's second home run of the ball game. Earlier on the show, NFL Network Insider Tom Pellisero. Texans wide receiver Christian Kirk.
Coming up. Rams running back, Blake Coram. And now, it's Rich Eisen. Hour number three of the Rich Eisen Show is on the air. One more hour to go, and then we get to our divisional playoff weekend.
Why not? I'll be on NFL Network between the hours of 9 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Eastern Time leading up to the first game of Divisional Playoff Weekend. Bills at Broncos on Saturday, and then on Sunday, I'll be on NFL Network between 8 a.m.
and noon, taking the kickoff of the Texans and the Patriots. We had Christian Kirk on last hour.
Now it's time to chat with somebody from the final game of the divisional playoff weekend, the Los Angeles Rams at the Chicago Bears. Ladies and gentlemen, in his second year as a Los Angeles Ram, one of my favorite Michigan Wolverines of all time, always puts a smile on my face when I see Blake Corham's smiling face on my screen. Good to see you, Blake. How are you, sir? I'm very new.
Good to see you, man. I just love watching you ball out. I love watching you ball out for this Rams team. How does it feel for you in year two? It feels different just watching you.
I'm wondering about you. Like it feels completely different. I just feel. Like myself, right? I feel like I understand the scheme now.
I was in it for a year.
Now, going to year two, I just feel more comfortable, able to play fast. You know, build that trust with my guys. And man, it's it's been a blast. This is a heck of a tee. When you say understand understand the scheme better, it allows you to play fast.
You got an example of that? When I was at Michigan, we were duo gap scheme, right? And we still run that here. But here, we also run mid-zone, outside zone. And so, really just understanding where my blocks are going, really locking into film and understanding how to watch film on defenses.
And so when I go into the game now, you know, I have a good idea of, you know, where the intent is to run. And I just feel very comfortable back there. And I'm able just to play fast. And when you play fast, you play good. What's it like sharing the ball with Kyron Williams?
What's your relationship like you guys? We're close, man. You know, we really. thrive off each other's success. I love seeing him out there make plays and then vice versa.
And so we just feed off each other, staying fresh. Um, you know, it's been a great one-two punch this year. And then, what's it like being in the huddle with Matthew Stafford, future Hall of Famer? Oh man, that's that is great. You know, I couldn't be in a better position than being in the backfield with a great like Matthew Stafford, just a great overall guy, but really just the.
Top tier leader when you look at him, you know, a competitor. You know, savage.
Now he's phenomenal. Yeah, I know you're used to winning a championship with a guy who wears number nine. What is it like? Were you in the huddle for the Snatching Hearts moment? I was not in the huddle, but when I heard Devontae say that in his interview after the game, I'm like, yep, that's something I see Matthew saying just because he's.
That type of competitor and You know, he knew we were going to win. Yeah, and so what was your perspective then from the sideline, watching that begin, that drive start? I had no doubt, and that's just something with this team. Sure, right. You know, we're so even-kill, you know, throughout the whole game, whether we're up or down, you know, whether we had to come back like we had to.
But, you know, there was never no doubt, you know, especially when you have a leader like Matthew and then the rest of the guys, you know, man, we're just, like I said, level-headed and we knew we were gonna go down there. You know, we play our style of ball. No hard stop. What's Sean McVay's message been to the team this week? We're enough.
You know, what we've done this season, you know, we're here for a reason. And everyone that's in this facility, on this field, coaches, players, staff, whatever it is, we're enough to get the job done. And so, really, three phases of football, right? You know, defense, special teams, offense, when we play our style of ball, you know, we're hard to beat. And so, really, just doing us, man, finishing up with a good practice today.
You know, a little walkthrough tomorrow before we hit the plane, but really just being us, man, and go and have fun, you know, bringing the energy, execution. And it's going to be a great day. I thought you meant wear enough, as in layered clothing. I thought that's what you meant by. You know, it's going to be a little chilly, but there's a lot of guys from the Midwest.
I was about to say. Blake, you know what? I was saying that the other day. When uh-oh. Here it comes.
Will they be able to run the ball in the cold?
Somebody who's played in some big-time football games in the cold and flurries. I know one of those guys. I'm looking at them right here on the screen, right? 100%, Rich. 100%.
You know, ain't no worried about how cold it may be.
Well, I mean, apparently, though, it's supposed to feel like negative one, Blake, and now you're a Southern California guy. We've all had our blood thinned out. I mean, what are you and the rest of the team saying about this narrative that's going around that the the weather is going to um Put a stop to what you guys are able to do offensively, along with a Bears defense who can take the ball away. Yeah, it's bogus. It's bogus.
I do believe, you know, the Bears team in general, I think they're a phenomenal team. But in terms of you know, the weather impacting this game, it's bogus. Um, you know, we're going there, they had to play in it just like us. Um You know, like I said, a lot of the guys that are from the Midwest, East Coast, you know, where it gets cold and You know, so we're just gonna go play our style of ball, man. You know, we're not worried about how cold it may be, negative one, whatever.
Whatever the weather is going to be, it's going to be right. And so, you know, we just know we're going to go in there, you know, have fun. you know, play our style ball. And you know, let everything else uh take care of it.
Okay. Puka's not gonna be cold, you know what I mean? Like that Devontae. Uh listen, he wore a shyste indoors to Detroit when you were coming out of college two years ago, because he thought that the Lions played outdoors, bless him. But I mean, Adams obviously has experience playing in Chicago.
So does your quarterback.
Well 100%. Hey, no worries over here. Yeah, no worries over here.
Okay. I like that. I like that a lot. Blake Coram here on the Rich Eisen Show. Has McVay said anything or anybody in the locker room said anything about the way uh Ben Johnson has been talking about The Packers and Matt LaFleur's name being in his mouth and his introductory press conference, and his actual brother is your offensive coordinator, and Sean McVay's tight with Matt.
Any conversation in the locker room? Noticing that back and forth at all, Blake? I haven't heard any conversation about Ben Johnson, you know, Matt and Mike. Haven't heard anything in the locker room about that. You know, I think we're just focused on us right now.
Okay. All right. Just wanted to ask that. Damn it. I've been trying to stir that up.
Like, I'm not going to really have that. Not going to lie. I'm not going to lie.
Okay. So, the idea that the Rams can also potentially host an NFC championship game, like you could take the field knowing. based on the Saturday result that you come home. Is that something that you guys have Talked about, mentioned, anything of that nature, Blake? Honestly, Rich, we haven't talked about what's next at all.
You know, I think we're totally locked in on learning from some things we can learn from our game versus the Panthers. And really, just we've been locked in all week. It's been a heck of a week of practice. Um so I really think we we're Standing where our feet are. We're being where our feet are right now in the moment.
And really, you know, getting ready for the Bears. You know, good defense, great offense. you know, with Caleb leading the way and You know, prepare for Sunday night.
Okay. So let me stray out of the lane a little bit with you, Blake Corum here on the Rich Eisen Show. Any word from back in Ann Arbor about Kyle Whittingham showing up and how things are? At that ranch, Blake? I haven't talked to anyone.
A lot of people I played with are now gone. But you know I think Just from what I've seen from outsiders around, I think that's a phenomenal higher. You know, he's the right guy for the job. You know, so I'm super excited to see. You know, what are Wolverines do this year?
You know, it seems like they did pretty good in Transfer Portal. Got some. talented guys in the portal. And also, you know, you have Bryce coming back year two. You know, so I can't wait to see what the Wolverines do, you know, with this offseason with Coach.
Coach Kyle. And uh you know I think I think it's gonna be uh A good show. Yeah, I'm excited about that as well. Have you seen what Indiana's been up to? trying to do it trying to do what Team 144 did, which is You know, beat Ohio State, win the Big Ten championship, and go undefeated.
Yeah, I really think they're going to do it. I think Miami may be more of a talented team, but I don't think I think Indiana as a team in general, they play hard for one another. They make very few mistakes, right? Um And I think they're definitely playing for that coach, and I like that coach a lot.
So I think Indiana's gonna get the job done. Uh, you know, when it comes Monday, um, but it should be a good game, yeah. No doubt about that. I mean, that would make it three in a row for the Big Ten as well. Like, who's the SEC, right, Blake?
You can look at your quarterback and go, I don't know, who's Georgia? You know what I mean? Like, you could do that sort of thing, right? Yeah, exactly, exactly. Come on, Big Ten, where's that, Rich?
Just means more, my, you know, what.
Okay, Blake Coram here on the Rich Eisen Show. Let's talk about you a little bit here. I brought this up on the program. Blake, when you had your first career 100-yard rushing game. and two touchdowns.
I think we got a great photograph of you high stepping. Your way into the end zone right there. I believe after this run, you gave Matthew Stafford the rest of the afternoon off, if I'm not mistaken. Right? That's right.
And I just remembered because, you know, the only time I've seen you on that field with my own two eyes. was when you were kind enough to take a picture with my son Cooper. Right there, who's now 6'2, believe it or not. But there you are on crutches, you know, with your knee. surgically repaired, you know, obviously your future Who knows, right, at that time.
On that field. Did you think about that? About how your knee was in a certain way, you couldn't play on that field when you were there as a Michigan Wolverine on that day. Obviously, it. It was uh not a day that Michigan won, but Now, here you are on that same field, two touchdowns, high stepping for the Los Angeles Rams, your first 100-yard game.
Like Yeah, I definitely thought about it. I thought about it a lot. And actually, it happened again. Right, when we played the Vikings, when the fires were going on out here, and then I was injured again with the broken arm. But, you know, I definitely thought about it, right?
You know, how life works and how you have to, you know, fight through adversity. And then at the end of adversity is success. You know, the way I look at it, you know, hard times, dark times, they don't last forever. You know, as long as you keep pushing and fighting and believing. And so, you know, that was definitely something after that game I thought of, like, dang.
You know, I've been injured twice on this field where I couldn't play in the game and Now, look at God, right? You know, my first 100-yard game, a great team win. It was phenomenal. Yeah, I thought of that again, that who knows, right? It couldn't have been easy for you to watch your teammates warm up for a national semifinal game.
And you didn't know, you know, obviously, what would happen when you returned. Although, those who stay do become champions, you're actually an avatar for that sort of thing as well. But now here you are in the National Football League getting to set to play on a divisional playoff weekend once again in the cold. Trying to potentially face a division opponent for a third time. And I'm wondering how that hits you.
Do you sit around and wonder about your journey at all? Yeah, I definitely do. I sit around oftentimes and I just. You think about how blessed I am, right? Blessed to be in this position, blessed to have this platform.
And blessed to play a game that, you know, this is a child's game. You know, our running back coach, Coach G, always says, you know, we're playing a challenge game, so go have fun. And this is a game, you know, I've been playing since six years old, and I've just been blessed, you know, be able to reach my dreams and continue to chase my dreams, you know, playing this game.
So every time I touch the field, you know, like I said, I look up to the sky, man, I'm blessed to be here. Let's go have fun. And so, you know, I'm just very grateful to be in this position. Are you one of the people that Devontae has told this is it doesn't get any greener in the NFL than right here with the Rams right now? Has he told that to you, buddy?
Yeah, he's said that in front of the team in an offensive meeting before, but uh. You know, you can you can see how much fun he's having this year. Obviously, you know, last year, you know, probably didn't have much fun the year before that, but you know, he's having a blast and he's contributed, you know, so much to this team. He's added so much, you know, fire. You know, and he's you know, done a phenomenal job, you know, just his presence, right?
I'm having a vet in the room like him, a future Hall of Famer. It's been nothing but great. All right, Blake, go be great, you know? Go be great. Appreciate that, Ray.
You do you. You do you. I'll be out there watching. Um, and this team, you know, from Southern California going a soldier field, man. That's a pretty neat spot.
That place is going to be rocking. Um and it'll be up to you and your teammates to quiet 'em. Nah, we can't wait. We're ready for the challenge. We're ready to go.
And can't wait for Sunday. All right, Blake, you be well, and let's chat down the line. Appreciate it. No, sounds good. Thank you so much.
You got it. That's Blake Coram right here. He's about to go to war for the Los Angeles Rams right here on the Rich Island show. You want to go to war, but like it's. There you go.
I'm for real. There you go. Taking on Sunday night football. Glad to see you laughed at that. Oh, good.
He wants to go to war. He truly does bring you joy. There are like certain people that, like, when you interview them. It's different for you, and he's definitely on that list of like people. Who's your favorite college player?
Of all time? For who's made you happy for the team? Again, you're you root for Penn State, Florida State, right? There's Duke in basketball for you, right? Georgetown.
Who's made you the most happy? That's a good question, man. Uh I don't know. You know who I used to love back in the day? Who's that?
Craig Ironhead Hayward at Pitt.
Okay. So much fun.
Well, that's when you lived there, right? No, no. Oh, in Pennsylvania. Yeah, I lived in Pennsylvania.
Okay, that's what I'm saying. What about you? Who's the Syracuse guy? Is it Melo? Carmelo Anthony and Jerry McNamara.
Carmelo was obviously one and done, but Jerry McNamara. Maddie, the king of the threes in the national championship game, six threes in the first half, and then obviously a great, great. Four-year career for the Orange. Yeah, the king of the matchup zone that people would just not see throughout the year, and then all of a sudden. Syracuse is into Sweet 16 every single friggin.
Yeah, the legendary running one-handed three against Cincinnati, that whole Big East tournament run, the Jim Beheim, not one effing game this year. We would have won. Had 40 in the tournament game at BYU. Right. He.
Love Jerry McNamara and then obviously who's a football player? Is it McNabb? McNab was a senior my freshman year, so it was super fun. And it was, he was like kind of like the Beatles. Like he was, you never saw him around because he had already graduated.
Right. And so if you saw his car driving around, he had a personalized vanity plate, D-Nab 5.
So you knew that it was him driving around. And then right after the draft, because he went second that year, famously booed by the Eagles fans who wanted Ricky Williams. He showed up on campus the next week at a brand new Lincoln Navigator. Like, oh, draft money. All right.
Same plate. Same plate. Took the plate off. Took the plate off. Same plate off.
Somebody did it for him. Brand new. He used to have this old beat-up Nissan Pathfinder with Illinois plates. He's from Chicago. Right.
And right after the draft, a brand new Lincoln Navigator. You got one, college player? I was just thinking.
So I partied with McNabb in Vegas a couple of times. Nice. She was so nice to all the fans that came up. Cool. That's cool.
Great time with her. Absolute legend. Yeah, I mean. Blake Coram, I I I don't I mean, there's Desmond. Desmond football with Charles Woodson.
Desmond and Charles just make you kind of. Oh, please, come on. Are you kidding me? I mean, this is it. Desmond Howard doing the Heisman pose.
On Ohio State. I'm part the Ohio State. Uh Charles Woodson winning the natty. you know, having half of it taken away because there was a gold watch that needed to be given to Tom Osborne in Nebraska by the uh by the writers. and going up by his fellow coaches, the Ryders made Michigan the national champs.
Um Mm-hmm. Hmm. Blake. Yeah. Quorum.
Just the way that he runs is his style. See what? Um Well, I mean, Glenn Rice won it all. Right. Ramil Robinson.
Right. Ramil made the free throws. Glenn Rice, the three. You want to talk about raining? Three's in.
He was unbelievable. C Web and the Fab Five were always fun to watch. Yeah. Right, but those are the folks. I'm starting to like now all these players are coming.
Charlie Ward. Sure. Charlie Ward, you know, Georgetown, Iverson, Morning, Mutumbo, those were all guys I love. You know, just I'm thinking about it. There's just because I have so many college teams, there are just you.
Oh, Ewing, of course. He was the reason. I've said that multiple times. Grant Hill. Duke, Grant Hill was the reason I even started paying attention to Duke.
Was it Bamani Jones who couldn't believe he likes Duke and Georgetown? And he really read you a little bit of his riot act. That was a riot act. That was all Grant Hill right there, man. I still just love Grant Hill.
He's one of my biggest what-ifs, Chris.
Well, he's got like an air about him of, you know. Like a president of the United States. You know what I mean? Good one. You know, like he has this air about him where.
You know, he seems like more than just an. He was always Gran Hill, man. And if he, if his ankle doesn't betray him, I think we're talking about Gran Hill about well, and Jaksa Lendeborg could be that way for me in about uh, wait a minute, two and a half months, yeah, right. Oh my gosh. But Dusty May makes me happy.
Yeah. Makes me smile. 8442. Oh, gosh, at this point in time, I'm just thank goodness for him. Thank goodness for him.
But Blake is definitely, he's 100% like out of everybody, Aiden Hutchinson, right? But J.J. McCarthy as well. But Blake just has this way about, again, he's not. Tall in stature, but he is in terms of aura.
And what he would do in the community, the way he would use his NIL to give away turkeys at Thanksgiving, and go about his business. And again, he blows his knee out.
Okay, he blows his knee out against Illinois the week before Ohio State, tries to go against Ohio State, can't answer the bell. And then Michigan moves on to TCU and that Fiesta Bowl and I saw him on those crutches. And of course, you know, I'm going to say, would you mind taking a picture with my son? And he was Couldn't have been like it. sunnier, happier.
And when he got drafted by the Rams, after he comes back, wins the national championship, scores in the Rose Bowl. You know, scores in the national championship game. I think he had, what, 28 touchdowns?
Something insane like that. And um Then he gets drafted by the Rams. I'm on the Rams. I'm on the draft set. I was thoroughly unprofessional.
I just thought to myself, my God, Sean McVay is going to employ this guy. You know, I don't know how it would fit in with Kyron, and now he's getting more snaps. He's getting more snaps. Yeah, they're a great one-two punch. They are hell of a one-two punch, but so do the Bears have one of those as well.
Yeah. You know, and he just blew up my whole narrative about it, they're going to do it for the Matt LaFleur. They're not talking about it. Took a chance there. But guess what?
I only have 39 more minutes to beat that. We can keep talking about our favorite college players when we come back. Oh, we could. There's so many. You like it, right?
I love doing it. You like it. All the biggies, basketball, Ray Allen, Alan Iverson. Yeah, but no, no, I'm talking about for you personally, not like you're fans of. I hated Chris Mullen back in the day.
Oh, my God. And on the other side, I loved him. I love Chris Mullen. Oh, John Wallace, Otis Hill, that I told you about my Chris Mullen story, right? About meeting him?
No. Never told you that? Never heard it. Maybe. I mean, I'm sure.
No, you would remember it. You'd remember it. You'd remember it. I think you should tell it. Sure.
I don't know. It's not really a tease. It's just a really quick story. I saw I was playing at a a Jimmy V golf tournament, charity golf tournament. and I'd never met him before.
And it's one of those where you play and then there's a dinner afterwards. And, um, um We're showering. Get out of the shower, and who's standing there without a stitch of clothing on but Chris Mullins?
Okay. And I learned on the spot how comfortable athletes are talking without a stitch of clothing on. Because this is what they do: they play, they sweat, they shower, and they talk, and then they go about their business. Um I was not as comfortable. Mm-hmm.
And Chris was talking about how he was a fan. And I was excited about that, her learning that a guy who I had adored in 1985 and made my life so happy as a teenager, you know how I am around like Mattingly and whatever. Yeah, yeah. But every single time around Don, I'm fully clothed and so is he.
So is that? And Chris Mullen was not. And he put his like his arm up on the stall like, Hey man, like what's going on?
Okay? Like, I would like to continue this in about five minutes, if you don't mind. I believed him. Yeah, yeah. Rich, as long as he didn't put it in the story.
That's my Chris Mullen story. And by the way, will you forget this Chris Mullen story? I don't know. So I don't believe I've told it before until now. Brand new.
What's up, Chris? Hey. What if he's in the sauna right now watching this? Like, I remember that. Yeah.
Man splaying it. I said when he put the John and St. John's at that point. Take a break. We're back with more.
Yeah. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. Rich Eisen here. You know that feeling of handing off your taxes and then hearing nothing? Total radio silence.
Well, not anymore.
Now your taxes are done for you by a TurboTax full-service expert who checks for every deduction and keeps you in the loop with real-time updates on your phone. Just match with your dedicated expert, upload your docs, and go live your life, confident you're getting every dollar you deserve. This is how taxes should be. Visit TurboTax.com today to learn more. Real-time updates only in iOS mobile app, only available with TurboTax Full Service Experts.
O'Reilly Auto Parts can help take the guesswork out of your check engine ABS or maintenance light with O'Reilly Veriscan. The service is free and provides a report with solutions verified by ASC certified master technicians. O'Reilly Veriscan can identify the most likely problem with just one scan. If you need help, O'Reilly Auto Parts can recommend a shop for you. Don't ignore a check engine ABS or maintenance light.
Ask for O'Reilly Veriscan today. A free service exclusively at O'Reilly Auto Parts. Quick break. Want to make a big play on your next paint project? Go with Bear Marquee Interior Paint and Primer.
Only at the Home Depot. With over a thousand colors, exceptional hide, and advanced stain blocking, Bear Marquee is built to stand up to real life. No do-overs, no wasted weekends, just bold color and a finish that holds strong. One coat coverage, no overtime. Bear Marquis.
Only at the Home Depot. How doers get more done. Valid only when tinted to colors from the Bear Marquee Interior One Coat Hide Collection. Before 204 rich number to dial, let's take some phone calls, shall we? James in Atlanta, Georgia is hanging on.
What's up, James? Hi, Rich. Hi, guys. Thanks for taking my call. I'm a second-time caller.
I'll behave this time because the last time my Eagles lost three in a row.
Okay. Uh-oh. Shout out to TJ. Pass too. The Eagles offensive coordinator search right now.
The big names I'm hearing are Dayball and McDaniel. But I feel like they're going to both leave after the team has some success.
So wouldn't it make sense to look for a guy who's going to stick around a little bit longer? A name we haven't heard from in a while is Eric Bienemi. He's a running backs coach in Chicago. We could probably get him. I don't know, James.
It's whoever does well anywhere is going to be asked to go. And Uh Yeah, yeah. Honestly, the last two that worked out that took you to the Super Bowl, one of them won and the other one didn't in Steichen. Uh leave. And again, that's why Again, I would always lean towards hiring a coach.
Who is the play caller? Always, you know, that part. That said, though. Four coaches this weekend: Ben Johnson, Sean McVay. Um Sean Payton And um What was the f Fourth one are Colin plays.
I think it's McDermott Colin plays for defensive, right? And then you've got, I saw a list.
So there's four who are calling plays, and four who are just the CEO. You know what I mean? D'Amico Rhines is the CEO. And Vrabel is a CEO. Um And I go back and forth, right?
McDonald. McDonald is calling defensive players, right? You know what I mean? Like, so. I I kind of like your head coach calling plays.
If he can handle not having his face in the play sheet when you got to focus on time and you got to focus on timeouts, you got to focus on a million other things. And in a way, I wouldn't mind being that way too if you're the head coach because you get the most control out of it. And then also as you as you heard Tom Palarcero saying in the first hour Part of the reason why Matt LaFleur is so valued by Green Bay is that they know if they get rid of him, they're in the market for a new offensive coordinator as well. Unless they hire somebody who is a play caller on top of it. I go back and forth on this, James.
Um yeah, and and that's that's where my head's at because naturally you have success, they come after your coaching staff. But it does hurt that the best guys we've had over the last five years have gotten head coaching jobs right after the Super Bowl. And it's kind of like we need somebody to stick around long term because you look at the situation for Jalen Pertz, who's had a different OC every single year he's been in the league. Like, where's the consistency to help him mature and grow into a system to? Take that next level.
Right. As a quarterback in the NFL. Appreciate the time, James. Thank you so much. One quick take for TJ.
Yeah. Oh, boy. I'm going to watch no contest wrestling, but I just want to hear his picks for the Royal Rumble winners later in this month. Oof man, it's kinda early, but let's go Braunbreaker and Bianca Belair right off the top of the head. Appreciate it.
There you go. That's James Atlanta, fan of TJ Jefferson's no-contest wrestling, but not his professional football. Yeah, Ben Johnson calls the plays for Chicago, Shanahan for San Francisco, McVay for the Rams, Sean Payton for the Broncos. And then you've got, I guess what, four defensive-minded head coaches. Right.
Ryan's And McDermott. and McDonald and Vrabel. Yeah. So you got half of them are the play caller head coach. On our fence.
who aren't going anywhere. And I guess Vrabel's got the code cracked because I don't know if Josh McDaniels is ever leaving. They must pay him a pretty penny to be the the O C. there. And after his forays into the AFC West as the head coach twice, You're not hearing his name mentioned in the coaching carousel after the way the first two kind of flamed.
Right. Yeah. So, if I can get somebody of Josh McDaniels and Mike Vrabel, sold.
Sold. Right. John Harbaugh and who's he going to bring as his O C. I don't know. And is it somebody like if the OC kills it?
then you're gonna you're gonna lose out Yeah, they're going to leave. He's going to leave to be a head coach somewhere else. This was um Nick Siriani talking about how the offensive coordinator needed to be changed in Philadelphia. I think it's important that we continue to evolve as an offense and that we, you know. Go out and do what's best for this football team.
And again, everything that I do and every decision I have to make, I have to do that with what's in mind, with the just like Howie does, just like Mr. Lorry does, with the intent of being the best thing for the football team. And at this particular point, you know, I love Kevin and And everything that he has provided to this coaching staff for his five years here. Big reason why we've we've won a lot of football games. But at this particular point, I just felt like that what that's what I needed to do to be the best thing for the football team.
And then Kevin Petulo, I think what what did Ryan Fitzpatrick say on his part with um With wit, that Petulo had said something along the lines of, it's not just me here, man, it's deeper. And everybody keeps on intimating: the deeper is what? Who is it? Is it uh the head coach? Is it the quarterback?
And Mike Silver just wrote an article for The Athletic. Talking about how the secret, if you will, in Philadelphia is that. hurts is driving people nuts. with his I guess as Um Kurt Warner says his ability to process Other teammates, his ability to get in the football. Despite Hertz's Best games coming in the biggest game.
And if you're wondering about his development, maybe being stunted for somebody who's a Super Bowl MVP. Maybe it's this. I keep returning to this. How Lane Kiffin was his offensive coordinator in Alabama. And then Sabin tells him, you want to be head coach somewhere else?
Get out. And then he has Sarkeesian be the OC for the last game, right? Was it for the. For the natty or the the um And then so he's gone, Dayball comes in. Then he goes.
To the NFL. Mike Loxley comes in. He goes to Maryland, in comes You know, two is time.
So out goes Jalen Hurts to. Oklahoma I guess that's the one year that he purposefully left. Yeah. and changed his system. Lincoln Riley's the guy.
Then he goes to the pros. Doug Peterson's his guy. I guess only when Carson Wentz does something to the bed so badly that he's got to turn to Jalen Hurts, if you remember. Then they pulled Jalen Hurts in the last game of the year. 'Cause they wanted to see what they had in Sudfeld.
Do you remember that moment? Peterson goes, in comes Steichen, who actually sticks around an extra year. Before he goes to the Colts, in comes Brian Johnson. That was the 2023 nightmare that everybody thought they were reliving this year in Philadelphia. In comes Kellen Moore, he goes to the Saints.
In comes Petulo, out he goes.
Next person, I guess, is going to be a head coach in the NFL, right? As they take him to the Super Bowl? I mean, how can you possibly Be consistent as a quarterback yourself if your system and your constantly changing.
Well, I mean, if the system might be the same because at least the head coach hasn't changed, but. And then there's the question of A.J. Brown that was asked of Um Howie Roseman in the exit chit chat in Philadelphia. Don't forget. Earlier this week, we heard from Our friend Mark Schlerith, didn't he say that if he's the Eagles, you're done with A.J.
Brown? Yep. And again, I guess from. his position. He sees Brown's drops and his you know frequent passive aggressive posts as being a guy who is no longer Fully committed to the team?
Do you say something along the lines of He's played with guys who you see working in the training room, you're like, I don't want to go in there. I don't want any part of this. And that permeates the team. And again, I don't know if that's an accurate. Finger point.
But You were saying, Chris, the other day that this is the end for A.J. Brown. I would be stunned if he's not back. And I did hear what Howie Roseman said earlier about great players.
Well, I mean, I got the soundboard. Oh, you hit it. Are you open to trading him, or is that just a non-starter? Yeah, we talked about this, I think, at the trade deadline last time I talked. It is hard to find great players in the NFL, and AJ is a great player.
I think from. My perspective, that's what we're going out and looking for when we go out here in free agency in the draft is trying to find great players who love football, and he's that guy. Um So I think that would be my answer. I'm sorry? Yeah.
Exactly. I hear you. He makes sense. Like, you don't trade guys like him. This one does have a feeling of talking his value up more than.
Sticking with them. Unless You don't do that, right? I mean, why would you you've got Brown and Devontae Smith, why don't we find a right OC here to potentially unlock? And you could Everybody who keeps saying Mike McDaniel's the guy, don't forget Mike McDaniel and Vic Fangio did not work out together in Miami.
So I don't think that's the guy who's coming. But who who could else? There are some big-time names that are out there. As opposed to trying it with somebody who hasn't done it before. That might be the way, 'cause they went to an old ann in Vic Fangio.
Thumbs up. That's not the side of the ball that we're talking about.
So, maybe you go with some guy who's been there, done that call place for a while, sort of like Kellen Moore. That worked out. Shane Steichen had some experience. He did. But Yeah, I think.
You're kind of just eliminating the defense first coach right now. We're saying that. You personally, you'd rather again. I mean, they're changing it out right now in Philadelphia. Wouldn't you want to just have the guy who's at the top just do it if he can?
That ain't easy either. But that's not happening in Philadelphia.
So find a guy who's done it before. been there, done that, get that old hand at it. Whoever the old hand is, get me a Vic Fangiel on offensive coordinator. How's that sound?
Sold. Isn't that easy? By the way, I think I looked that up. It's on page 300. Get it to Vic Vangio Francis.
Vic Vangio Franc, right there. It's in she's book. Are you taking it? No way. Get out of here.
Stop it.
Okay. Stop it.
844-204-RICH, number to dollar. I've got a top five as we go out the door. Um And it's a fun one. And Coop came up with the idea. Not going to lie, it's coming up next.
The Rich Heisen Show, the podcast. Here on Rich Eisen's show, the Hyundai Hope on Wheels campaign. I love talking about it because you may not know about it. I guess if you listen or take in the show, we talk about it almost every day. For over 27 years, every Hyundai sold has helped fund life-saving pediatric cancer research.
Together with over 850 dealers nationwide, they've raised more than $277 million, supporting over 25,000 kids in their fight against cancer. Visit HyundaiUSA.com and search Hyundai Hope on Wheels to learn more. At Hyundai, Hope isn't optional, it comes standard.
So, um, it was Brian Cranston who came on this show and talked about how, uh, When he was playing Dr. Tim Watley on Seinfeld and the episode where Jerry was getting the laughing gas. And he said somebody, uh, a gaffer or an electrician on top of a ladder said, You know what you should do? You should take a hit of it yourself before you put it on Jerry. And he did it, and it made, you know, comedy gold, gold, Jerry, gold.
And he always said, Best idea wins, right?
So I'll take ideas from anybody. And certainly when they're by boy coop. I said to him, I said, I need to come up with the top five for Friday's show. And he said right off the bat, he goes, You know what I was talking about in school yesterday? I'm like, what?
He goes, how about top five defenses left in the playoffs?
Okay. So here we go. I can verify, you left here yesterday knowing you had to come up this year. That is correct. And you were a little stressed.
You're like, all right, I'll think about it. I said to him this morning, I'm like, Coop, I need a top five. And he goes, This is what I was talking about just yesterday with his buddies. Top five. Defense is left in the National Football League playoffs presented by Hunting.
Yeah. Riches, top five. All right, here we go. As you know, there's only eight defenses left in the playoffs, so I got five for you right here. And I'm going to start number five with the best defense of weeks one through twelve.
They haven't performed very well since then, but the same guys are there. And I believe they can do it. And this is a team that has the fourth most takeaways in the National Football League this year. Only three teams created more takeaways all season long. They also um rush the passer really well.
And they, again, like I said, they were the number one ranked defense for the first dozen weeks of the NFL. I'm putting the Rams fifth on my list right here. One of two teams have three players with 50 or more pressures. this year. They also have Jared Verse and Byron Young.
Byron Young, fifth in the NFL with 29 quarterback hits. Verse eighth in the NFL with 27. They can rush the passer. They can also tackle you on the second level with Nate Landman. Um Who hasn't been relieved of his duties?
Spoiler alert. Wow. Rams defense, number five on my list. Number four on the list is the one that's going to get my guy across the way at the 11 o'clock position from me squawking, maybe a little bit. I'm putting the bills here.
The Bills over the last month have tightened the bolts a little bit here. They are the number one pass defense in the NFL. Number one. In the NFL. And they're the fifth team since 1950 of the NFL's leading rusher and the number one passing defense.
The last two such teams each won the Super Bowl or the NFL championship. And they have been, they begun to, if you will, cook a little bit. And last week, they had enough in the tank. To get Trevor Lawrence off his game when the Jaguars were as on fire as they come.
So I'm putting the bills fourth on the list, and I think you can guess the last three. Um I'm putting the Broncos here. uh third on the list. They're stupendous. I mean, it's really, what's your flavor?
Who do you like? Who do you think is passing the eye test? The Denver Broncos have a plus 45 sack differential in 2025, 68 of their own. Only 23 sacks taken. That's the best sack differential in a single season since 2000.
And their previous six teams with a sack differential of 32 or better since 2000 did lose their first playoff game, including last year's Broncos.
So I don't know if it's going to get them through the day. But they've got tons of quarterback pressures. They've got four players with seven or more sacks for the second straight season. They got Nick Benito, too, a defensive player of the year candidate. Number two on the list.
A best defense remaining in the NFL. Is the team that's first in points per game allowed, second in yards passing play per allowed? Tops and yards carry allowed, tops and opposing third down percentage. It's the Seattle Seahawks. They're two.
On the list, they've allowed the fewest points in the NFL at 17.2 points per game. It's the fifth season in team history that they finished with the number one scoring defense. And the only reason why they're not number two is I've just seen the Houston Texans in my own two eyes, or they're not number one. I'm putting the Texans number one. They appear to be as ferocious as anybody I've seen.
Since I've started with NFL Network in 2003. And um And I'm not the only one comparing them to the 2000 Ravens as the most impressive defense that they've seen. I know the Legion of Boom is out there, too. I'm putting the Texans there at number one. You have one more.
I did not know because it was Cooper's idea, and it's Cooper's team. The Patriots. You know what? Coming in. That's so low, by the way.
But, dude, what are you going to do? You're going to put them above. Obviously, I know you think you put them above the Rams and you put them above. The Bills. Yeah.
But the Patriots are finally getting their guys back, and they just had an incredible game, obviously, against the Los Angeles Chargers. Um Listen, like I said, this is as close as they come. This these lists are all food for thought or fodder. Um And they just They just destroyed and eviscerated the the Los Angeles Chargers. And they're going to have their hands full.
Maybe not this weekend against the Texans. But at some point, the rest of these playoffs, we'll see what happens. But I'm putting the Patriots as a. As a defense, that I think a lot of people in the punditry coming into the playoffs were saying. Their defense isn't as good as their offense.
Well, for one week in the wild card round, it caught up. And they are both terrific. And those are my top five best defenses left in the playoffs presented by Hyundai. An idea concocted. Bye bye boy coop.
Thank you. I should have said it was um Einstein. Sure. terms of defenses left in the playoffs, which makes no sense, but it's a bit. And I'd like the bits.
I will see you on NFL Network hopefully Saturday and Sunday, and then back here on Monday. Mark Schlareth is going to join us to break down the divisional. Playoff weekend and get you set for the national championship game. Enjoy. The best football weekend of the season.
And the year. Everybody. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. Mm-hmm.
