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Now we're down on the run out, game one. A job. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. Earlier on the show, NFL draft prospect Fernando Mendoza. Coming up.
Raiders general manager John Spitek. NFL draft prospect Casey Concepcion. The ringer NFL draft analyst Todd McShea. And now, it's Rich Eisen. Hour number two of the Rich Eisen Show on the Air Draft Week is underway right here on this program on Disney Plus, the ESPN app, ESPN Radio, Coast to Coast, and SiriusXM Channel 80.
Todd McShea of the Ringer is going to be hanging out with us in hour number three. Casey Concepcion is going to be joining us in hour number two. We already talked with Fernando Mendoza in hour number one. We'll chat with you too. 844-204 Rich is the number to dial our overreaction Monday podcast is already in the books.
It's out there on the Rich Eisen Show YouTube page, youtube.com/slash Rich Eisen Show. But let's kick off hour number two with a man who is equally is excited. About those who cut down the nets in Indianapolis, Indiana, a couple of weeks ago. I say go blue to the Misto Silver and Black himself, the general manager of the Raiders, John Spytek, joining us here on the program. How are you doing, John?
Good to see you. Go blue indeed. It's great to be here. Always great spending time with Michigan men. Hey, I'm with you too, sir.
I'm with you. I hope Albert Breer's watching right now. This is way nice to him. Wow, a shot at Albert.
Now, you know what? Albert doesn't follow basketball. Wow. He doesn't know. He's like, what's that sport?
I don't know what that sport is. They have just a football school over there. He's an Ohio State cherry picker. Whatever's convenient for him. Ohio State Cherry Picker.
Albert Breer, write that down. I'm going to use that one against him. And it's the name?
Now, again, you were there on campus as a freshman, if I'm not mistaken, when Tom Brady was a senior, correct, John? That happened? Right. Yep, fall of 99.
Okay.
So what was that? When was the first time you met Tom? Do you remember? That moment at all, or not really? I do not remember the first time.
I remember the first time I met Steve Hutchinson and Jeff Backus. It didn't end well for me, but how I met. I don't I don't recall that. I had a great Christmas Eve dinner with them in Miami. Um for the Orange Bowl down there where he sat with all the freshmen and and kept us Sane and happy since it was Christmas Eve away from home.
That's my lasting recollection of Tom Brady. I saw Christmas Eve shared with him in. December of 99.
Okay, so you had one of those moments in practice with Hutch. And back as you're talking about.
Well, on the scout team, I had many moments with Hutch. And at the time, I felt really terrible about myself. But then, you know, 20 years later, he's in the Hall of Fame. I'm telling my 19-year-old self, don't be so hard on yourself. He's going to end up there can't one day.
I love it. And then, so obviously, now you are teamed up with Tom and the rest of the Raiders' front office and management team right there with the first overall pick in the draft. And you're kind enough to give the Rich Eisen Show exclusive to tell us who you're drafting on Thursday night. That's what I've been told.
So the floor is yours, John. Go forward. I'll pass on that.
Okay.
You'll have your answer in, you know, what is it, 72 hours or so?
So, where are you? Like, what does it look like in your draft room right now that you're willing to share? On this front, John. You know, we've had a great process with our scouting department, with our coaches. And I mean, the board is mostly set right now.
And I've got ownership meetings coming up here in the next couple of days. We'll just make sure we're all on the same page before we're on the clock on Thursday night, but we're in a great spot right now. Walk me through what the ownership meeting looks like. That's Mark and Tom and everybody? Yeah, we got a we got a group and they they play devil's advocates and they like to throw different scenarios at me and we'll just talk it all through and so we we know exactly where we're going when We're on the clock to start off the draft here in a couple of days, but You know, I've always used Tom as a sounding board and He's been a great resource to me since.
since we got back together in Tampa in the fall of twenty twenty. And we always have great conversations, and along with MD as well. Egon and Mike Meldman, and we're just going to make the best decision for the Raiders. And the group of us are put in charge of that.
Well, I mean, you have Meldman in there just so you can get a good reservation, right?
Somewhere? That's pretty much it. Correct, he's the best, yeah. Yeah, he's the most generous person I've been around in a long time, and my family and I are very grateful. He's a good dude, yeah.
I've been around him here in Los Angeles as well.
So, we just had Fernando Mendoza on an hour number one, and he just seems like a dream come true, man. He really does. What are you willing to share with us about your experiences in chatting with this young man? John.
Well, we've had many touch points with them along the road here over the like really the past two or three months. I know the first time we sat down with them. was at the NFL Combine and You know, every step of the way, he's just an impressive young man. You can tell he was raised right, he's got really good values. He loves the game of football.
He's super passionate about it. He's a smart kid. He's hardworking. You know, I love the pro day where he took charge of the pro day, and he also used it to highlight his teammates, too. You know, there's a lot of credit to a guy that has been given the accolades the last.
several months that he's received, but still a humility about him that You know, it's about the team and his teammates, and that's something that Tom and I still talk about a lot, Rich, that will resonate with you: the team, the team, the team. And that's what we're trying to build here. And we're looking for as many men. To add to the program as possible, that believe in a team-first approach. Yeah, it's a Beauchampler line from back in the day.
And another word to describe him, too, is tough. I mean, again, we're going to hear an Not that I need to burden you with this, but you understand, as the host of the NFL draft, saying the name Ohio State four times in the first ten picks is going to be a tough professional moment for me, but I'll get through that. God bless you. God bless you. But three of those guys in the top ten potentially were the ones who were aiming for for Fernando in that Big Ten championship game, and he took some He took some tough shots in the chops, man.
And I'm wondering if those moments stood out to you as you were grinding tape on him. Yeah, they did. It's. I mean, I think we all know the quarterback, there's a lot demanded of the quarterback, but toughness is paramount. You've got guys really trying to hit you as hard as they can and get you out of the game legally.
as often as they can and You know, from the first play of the Big Ten championship game to the national championship game where he gets his his lip bloodied. He's willing to do whatever it takes to win and be out there with his teammates. I think he's got the line red eyed die on the field. I mean, I don't think we're looking for that from any of our players, but. Toughness is is paramount and I think he's proven that he's got that both mentally and physically.
And that's a huge part of our evaluation process of any player that we're looking at, but really the quarterback as well. How much has your phone been ringing for your pick atop the draft, John? It's been pretty quiet after that press conference I gave last week that Will made me do.
So those teams know where they stand. You know, we'll be open to any options. Options have value, and we'll be open to anything. But the last several days has been pretty quiet. Yeah, I bet so.
Because, again, I mean, Obviously, everybody's thinking of Fernando, and clearly, you are no doubt saying that as well without saying it. And I'll be honest, I told him this too. He just seems to be so genuine, and that post-game. moment he had on Fox after beating Ohio State and just emoting and being himself And just the way he comports himself, I'll be honest with you, John. I thought he reminds me of Kirk Cousins a lot.
And lo and behold, Who do you go ahead and hire over the last couple of weeks is Kirk, and I'm wondering if I'm connecting dots here. Or not. I don't know that there's a dot to be connected there, but I think we're always looking for people. To be authentically who they are. And Regardless of where you fall, like kind of in a locker room from that standpoint, you know, your authenticity will get you respected.
And when you have work ethic and production that back that up. Um that resonates with everybody and I think that's maybe the other thing that we found with Fernando and many other prospects along the way, too, is just. you know, we're looking for them to show us who they are and be themselves and We can deal with that. Kirk obviously has been somebody that I've respected for a long time. He tore us up in Tampa, his two years in Atlanta.
I think he threw for eight hundred yards in two games in twenty twenty three. And our 2024 one of the don't don't quote me on that, but it was it was tough. Just a lot of respect for Kirk, the player, and still think he's got a lot of good football left in front of him, too. And we're trying to load that room up. It's the most important room in sports, in my opinion.
And we're trying to load that room up with people that that can play. Throw the football and be real people. Yeah, and competitors like him. And so you know he's going to want a week one start, John. I mean, like, let's not kid each other here.
You know, he's going to want that. What have you told him? About that possibility with the rest of the free football world thinking you're going to take a quarterback first overall.
Well, he should want that. I wouldn't want him to come here if he didn't want to start week one. I wouldn't want anybody in that room that doesn't want to start. And you know, I've had great conversations with Kirk and He understands he's the most proven quarterback in that room, you know, before we signed him, and now that he's here. He's going to get a shot to go out there and To be the guy first that takes the first reps, and we'll see what he can do with it.
He's obviously got a lot of familiarity in Clint's offense. He's played really good football with Clint being a coach, whether it was... the Q the QB coach or the offensive coordinator. And so You know, of all the guys in that room, whoever comes in, he'll have a leg up in that. But you know, I said the other day this is going to be a meritocracy, and the best man that will play.
And even though Kirk is a Michigan State Spartan, we sign three Spartans here. in the offseason and one Michigan man and I finally signed to Michigan man. And then I offset it with three Spartans.
So I'm not going to hold that against Kirk, though. And, you know, I've just got a lot of respect for Kirk, and he's played good football for a really long time, and we're just super excited to have him here in Las Vegas with us.
Well, we're expecting you to draft in Indiana, man, as well. And let's just say you draft a quarterback in this draft, John. Would that player also have the chance to be the first starter, the week one starter, just like cousins? The best man will play, Rich. We've got Aiden O'Connell, too, so we've got another best man.
We've got a Purdue guy. I know, who once stood in Michigan's way, you know, for the Big Ten championship game. I remember that. He balled out in that game. He did.
He played great against, I think it was the national championship team, right? He stared down the barrel and played good football. And Aiden played a lot of good football. His time here with the Raiders, too. And so I'm excited about Kirk and Aiden in that room.
I have an affinity for Big Ten players in general. And we'll have more answers here in the coming days about what other big ten men we had. A few minutes left here with John Spytek, whose Raiders hold the first overall pick in the draft right here on the Rich Eisen Show. What is the current status Between your franchise, Front Office, and Max Crosby, right now, John. It's been great.
It's really, you know, he really never left. I mean, if we look at the actual transaction, He's never not been a Raider. And he came in this first day back and sat in my office with me a little bit, and we talked things through like we always do. I've had a great line of communication. Max and I have had a lot of great conversations since I've been here.
Some of them have been easy when you're giving them a new contract, and some of them have been challenging. We pride each other, and I think we're always honest with each other. You know, there's been a lot of growth in those conversations as well, and Max is working his tail off. He's going to be ready to rock in training camp, and we expect him to play good football this year. For many years to come.
You know, things have an interesting way of working out however they do and We're thrilled to have Max here with us. And he's a great player, he's been a great raider for a long time. as we embark kind of on a new journey here with the first pick and the free agent class that we're able to put together, we're excited that ninety eight is still with us. Yes, I'm wondering if the free agent class that you were able to put together in between the actual announcement and the transaction, as you refer to it, not really becoming one, Has that Is that part of the growth that you're referring to? Where whatever might have been going down that.
caused you and the franchise to part ways with Max, albeit unofficially. Has that bridged anything between You and Max, is that the growth you're referring to? John? No, I don't I don't really think, Rich, there's ever been a bridge needed between between at least Max and myself. Um You'd have to ask him I We were just trying to add really good football players that are good people, and we were able to execute our free agent plan.
To add max to that too, it was almost like getting an extra free agent in there that we, you know, on Monday when the bell dropped, or when the bell rang. you know, we didn't anticipate having Max here, but it just to us, the way we looked at it, just added another really good player to it. It makes us feel even better about what we did this offseason.
Well, I mean, I'm just trying to figure out, John. Here we are in the media. If you don't mind me going here on this front, like the knee. That was in question here might have actually led to certain feat in Baltimore growing a. colder temperature.
Is that fair? To say, John? Is that fair? You know, Rich, I don't really have an opinion on that. Oh, you may not want to share it.
I mean, where were you when you found this out? We're physically. I was in the office where Mark Davis would expect me to be. Of course. And we just took the copy, we took the information as it came.
And. You know, I think really in that situation you you deal with the information as it comes and we put a plan together that we were excited about. And And we knew that you always know with the trade You know, there's all kinds of things. Expect the unexpected in the NFL. And so.
I just took it as it came and I think calmly delivered the news to MD and the other ownership group and Clint. And okay, away we go. Away you go. I mean, listen, when the downside is you get Max Crosby back, I mean, that's not a terrible blow. You know what I mean?
So I get it, but you were the one who delivered the information to Mark Davis. Like, hey, Mark, guess what? Is that how you is that how it went? That's how it went. That's how he would expect it to go.
And they just walked down there and said, hey, Max is going to pass the physical, he's going to be a Raider. And he said, okay. And away we went. It was pretty simple. I know you guys are looking for more, but it's just not the way I am.
I just try to be pretty stoic and. Flatlined, and you know, you control what you can control. I wasn't always good at that in my life, but I've gotten better at controlling the controllables and. Not stressing on the other things and You take the information as it comes and you you make the decisions The best you can with the information you have.
Well, I guess if you don't mind me asking this part either, like, what would happen if you didn't have the cap space to take Max back? based on all the spending that you made. Right. Like that would have presented a different problem. Right.
But Yeah, that would have presented a different problem, but we we were We were fortunate to be in a case where we structured things the way we did.
So we can always have flexibility and versatility in how we do deals. You always want to be ready to add players unexpectedly, whether You know, if somebody gets caught or Is available via trade that maybe you didn't anticipate. You always want to leave yourself some wiggle room in there so you can. Build the best team possible. We were in a spot where we were able to do that.
Yeah, I bet so. And so, as of right now, and for the foreseeable future, Max Crosby. Is going to be a week one guy for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2026. Best you can say. He absolutely is going to be.
Yep. He's healing up. He's running around. Um And he's got a lot of good football ahead of him. All right.
And then, last one for you: Clint Kubiak, what has he shown so far? Where you're like, okay. Right move, check the box. John.
Oh, I mean, how much time do you have? But he, you know, hardworking. Humble, smart, really good with the team, tells the truth. There's always been some examples in team meetings of him holding people accountable and you know, getting after people that deserve it. And you know, we got with us getting a little bit of a head start here, you know, with a new head coach, we get to actually get out in the grass today.
So we'll get to see him with the players on the field. move him around and how he conducts a practice, but Really happy to have Clint aboard as a partner. And through the whole draft process, the free agent process, the communication has been outstanding.
Well, I think we're all really excited that Clint decided to To join us here in Las Vegas after winning that Super Bowl. And then, again, I lied, last one for you: eight minutes. Obviously, you're going to be one of those. who doesn't really care about it because you're just going to be asked to hold on your choice long enough so the television broadcast can have a moment before you hand it in, because I'm sure or unless you want to wait to see if your phone rings. But how do you think eight minutes is going to affect your colleagues here?
Eight minutes in the first round? Uh of the draft, John. What do you think that's going to look like? Yeah, I think that the The trade part. Might be challenging.
I think more, maybe more of those trades come down to. Maybe later in the maybe later in the first round. more of those trades are not in place at the start of the day and they're more cognizant or reli you know, reliant on Players being available that maybe you didn't expect. Yes. But.
You know, we all got our processes down. We talk about it, we strategize on it, we practice it. You've just got to know going in, you got two less minutes than you've had traditionally to get that deal done and push through. everything will be sped up a little bit. But if you have a good plan in place and you have a process in your draft room, Where the right people are talking, you're organizing information the right way.
I think you'll be able to get it done. No stress. John, appreciate the time, man. Good to speak with you. Good to see you.
Have a great draft and go blue. John, go blue. Go blue, Rich. Thanks for having me. You bet.
That's the general manager of the Las Vegas Raiders, John Spytech, here on The Rich Eisen Show.
So in terms of uh whatever he thought about the Max Crosby deal, whatever happened in Vegas is clearly staying there. He's not saying anything. Yeah, and I really thought he was going to tell us what was going to happen. I really thought we were going to break some news here. You know what I mean?
We got the opportunity. Wait a minute. This is a Baltimore area code. I wonder if the the are the Orioles playing today or what's going on in spring training there?
Some tickets? Yeah, is Omar calling? Uh All right. Listen, man, when the downside is you get Max Crosby back, that's a moment like, you know, damn, that's wild. Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
Okay, Eric da Costa. Farewell. Fare thee well. We'll take Max back. And I love that guy.
You know how I feel about him. Yeah, big fan. And by the way, Raiders fans were like, why? I don't want to part with him. No.
Jay Felly's like, I love that guy. Doesn't he have ink? He's got ink. He's got ink. Jay Felly has the Raider tattoo ink on his left arm.
He was also willing to cut a. Give up on them if they got rid of Max. And again, having Kirk Cousins there gives them the leeway to do whatever they want with Fernando Mendoza, who, as you know, Could wind up speaking of Brady. Remember, Brady in year two was the guy who went in. To training camp and balled out to the point where when, when, when, when, um, Blood cell goes down.
It's like, okay, this kid was better in training camp. Maybe he has that moment. I don't know, but that was great. Great insight for the man who's going to be first on the clock in three days from now. Casey Concepcion, expected to hear his name sometime on Thursday night.
What a fascinating story of this young man out of Texas AM by way of NC State. And his athletic article, he's coming up next. Oh. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. Need parts fast?
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Just make sure they keep their cleats off the seats. Visit HyundaiUSA.com or call 562-314-4603 for details. Um For some of us, personal finances aren't just personal. They include a lot more people than ourselves. Loved ones, neighbors, the communities we call home, and the causes we hold in our hearts.
At Thrive Ent, we help plan your financial picture with the bigger picture in mind. Because even though our business is helping guide your finances, our ambition is to make it mean so much more. ThriveEnt, where money means more. Connect with us at ThriveEnt.com. Back here on the Rich Eisen show, he's one of the top wide receivers to be taken in this year's draft.
And he also wrote a compelling piece about his life and his life story in the athletic. Pardon me, the Players' Tribune, my bad. Here on the Rich Eisen Show, Casey Concepcion is on the program. Good to see you, Casey. How are you?
I'm doing good, man. You know, man, just blessed. How are you doing? I am doing very well. Thank you.
And I read your athletic piece, your first person. piece and it's uh you can feel the emotion coming off the keyboard. Um I'm wondering why you felt compelled to write what you wrote. Casey. Um Just you know, um But there's no Just, you know, wanting to let everybody know, hear my story.
It's been, you know, A lot of talk. who who is the best you know the receiver um and i And I, you know, I honestly feel like I am the best receiver. I bring. I bring the most versatility. I am the best playmaker in this class.
Yeah, and then you know um Let's talk about who you've uh who you've chatted with. How many teams do you feel you've chatted with in advance of this draft? Casey. I've had 11, 12 visits, top 30 visits, and I'll probably zoom with about. every other team honestly.
So, you've met with most of the league, if not the entire league, in advance of this draft? Yes, sir, yes, sir.
Okay.
So, a lot of plane travel for you. Yeah, man.
Okay.
I'm on a plane travel, man, for sure.
So, are you a sleeper on the plane? Are you watching TV on the plane? What are you doing on the plane? What do you got? more than uh likely Um I'm uh I'm a sleep.
Okay.
Snoring and stuff want to blaze up. Oh, okay. All right. So, what do you watch? Like, what are you watching when you're on a plane, if at all, when you're traveling?
Any TV shows that you've been binging? Any TV show I've been mentioning, I've been watching this show from. Um it's a uh it's a show on uh MGM.
Okay.
Um and and um I had watched The Wire again. Oh okay. Classic, man. Classic. You, you, you were okay.
Now then, Um that is, I feel. One of the best dramas of all time. One of the best of all time.
Something else.
So, do you so okay. This is good then. Do you feel this means you're going to be... In Baltimore? You're going to be a raven?
Yeah.
Hopefully, man, you know, man. You know uh I would love, you know, playing, you know, with Lamar. I feel like. I feel like, you know, he is a, you know, like he has a quarterback. And I feel like if he gets the right pieces around him, uh, And it'd be, you know, a legendary.
Yes, and you would be one of those. Or, or it could be any team, and you're like Omar, you're coming. It's that you're coming. Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
Yes, sir. With the honey nut Cheerios, not with whatever else Omar has been coming with on the wire. I do love that show. That is great. Yeah, right.
So you said you watched it again.
So you've okay. All right, Casey Concepcion here on The Rich Eisen Show.
So, um,. Which team, so you've seen, you've visited. Can you tell me which teams you've personally visited? If not all 11, you could just throw a few out there because so many fans are wondering. whose radar screen you might be truly on here.
Which teams I personally visited? Tennessee. Vegas Um New of England The Giants, Cleveland. Carolina, San Francisco, the Chargers, Buffalo, The giants I think I might leave one, two, four. That's a ton.
What do you tell them when they ask you who they're getting? Keithie. But A competitor, um, you know, um I love to compete, practices, games, day in. day in, day out, forgetting the guy, you know. Who versatile?
He could play any position on the field, X, F, Z. And honestly, you know, it really doesn't matter to me. Um I feel like I honestly bring the most value out of any of these guys. we don't um in the class uh because you know um I can I can I can literally play any position on the field and you know um I bring value in the special team again. Special teams.
Okay.
I don't know, man. You'd be a little too valuable to put out there.
So you're talking about returning, obviously, right? Kickoffs and things of that nature.
So, um, let's keep talking about it. It doesn't matter, man. Who do you model your game after?
Somebody that I would say that I'm out of my game after the catch, I would say Jamar Chase. Um I study him a lot. I would say releases I watch a lot of Devontae Adams. And I would say somebody Somebody who I would say my game probably models the best actor is like a Jaden, Jalen Waddle, JSN type of comparison.
Well, I hope your bank accounts compare at some point with any of those guys. You just went to the top. Of the of the financial food chain there. Have you had any relationship conversations with Mike Evans with the Texas AM connection at all, Casey? I've never talked to Mike Evans.
We haven't really talked yet, but you know, um, but you know, uh, I would I would, you know, I would, you know, love to, you know, be able to talk to him, be able to, you know, take his brain, you know. And just, you know, um create that, you know, relationship. Um Mike, man, you know, uh As you know, Mr. Consistent, you know, it's been. It's been about 10 years, you know.
He's had, you know, a thousand yards.
So, you know, any way I can make that, you know, connection happen, I'm willing to do it. Yeah, certainly if you go to San Francisco, one of the things that you visited, because that's where he is now. Yes, sir. So, okay, a few minutes I have left with you, K Concepcion. Are you a goal lister?
Do you write them down? Do you place them somewhere to look at? Or you just keep it internal? How do you. How do you approach that?
Keep it a turner. You do. I keep it turning on. I have, you know, the highest goals. Rookie year, I want to be rookie of the year.
Um After that, I eventually want to be offensive player of the year. And the ultimate end goal, you know, I want to be a Hall of Famer.
Okay.
And anybody who reads your Athletic article who think you might be Talking with your chest a little bit too much. What do you say? to that person, Casey. Um I would just say, you know, um I'm very, very confident. If you know me, um I'm um I'm probably, you know, I'm probably, you know, one of the most humblest guys.
You know, um you know you know um in the world but you know um But you know, I I you know had you know I I have, you know, the utmost confidence. Yeah.
Yeah.
Who is that guy you just saw walking up the stairs behind you? Who was that? Who was that? I don't know. That was my homeboy Jonah's dad.
Okay.
All right, where are you going to be draft night? I'll be in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Okay.
Yes, sir. I'll be there. I'll be there with the family, friends, teammates.
Well, I'll root for you, Casey. I really do. You know, I was talking to Fernando Mendoza earlier on the program. He's just another one to root for. Everybody's got different paths.
And I really would encourage everybody to check out your athletic article. And and you know you gotta speak things into existence and part of your article is that you have uh you know you've had growing up, a difficulty speaking. And how that has shaped you and how that has molded you. And I truly admire it. I mean, here you are on this program, and you've been conducting so many of those interviews.
I saw what you did. uh at the Combine, and that's courageous in itself, and I just wanted to tell you that. Thank you very much, boss man. You bet. Same here.
And I look forward to hearing where you go. And I look forward to you balling out. And when you hear your name called, and you are officially a National Football League player. How do you think that's going to hit you? Casey, just let yourself take a moment here.
And live in that Moment. in advance, if you don't mind. Um Honestly, you know, um I feel like, you know, um I f I feel like, you know, uh, it's like, you know, hit me, you know, pretty hard. Um, growing up, you know, um I was always underlooked, undervalued. I wasn't, you know, the biggest name.
But you know, um it's gonna. It's gonna It's gonna feel like all of my hard work has, you know, finally, you know, paid off, you know. And you know, it is time to put in some more hard work. I look forward to it. Casey Concepcion, you be well, sir.
And I'll be out there on the NFL Network draft set listening to your name for your name. And I look forward to seeing where you go and balling out. Yeah, yeah. Thank you very much, sir. You bet.
That's KC Concepcion at KCTheKid2 on Instagram, right here on the Rich Eisen Show.
So man, wonderful, right? I love that, dude. That's awesome. My bad. Again, it's, I don't know why I have the athletic in my head.
It's the Players' Tribune. Clearly, he's writing it for the Players' Tribune. It's about. His Mm-hmm. Writing uh player.
Yeah.
Um but you know as I said it It doesn't define him, his stuttering. And clearly he's um A terrific player who could, by the way, be a Raven by the end of the night on Thursday night. Todd McShay's gonna join us. We'll ask him where he thinks KC is going to wind up. Could be in KC.
Wouldn't that be something? Wouldn't that be something? Ninth overall is a, you know. They got that second pick. I know.
Yeah, they do. I don't think he's going to be there in the 29th. I don't think I'd be there. It seems like he's been rising. I think he's in the teens.
That's what I see in so many of these mock drafts. But neat stuff right there. 844-204-Rich is the number to dial on the program. Has anyone heard from TJ? No.
Actually, someone just knocked on the door. I thought that was him. It was Todd. Oh, McShay. Yeah, yeah.
Oh. He arrived through the summer. Did you let him in? We did. Yeah, we let him in.
I didn't notice. Yeah, we didn't just stare at him. All right. Yeah.
Let's take a break. Let's find TJ. Then I'll have to, I mean, as soon as he comes back. We'll talk baseball. I don't know if he's going to want to do that.
I mean, your team loses 11 in a row. You probably don't. Too bad. The Rich Heisen Show, the podcast. Rich Eisen here.
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It's the all-new Hyundai Palisade Hybrid. Aaron Rogers, where is he? Nobody knows. What year is it? It's every year.
It's every year now. 2026 last time I checked, yeah. Yeah.
Where is Aaron right now? Where is Aaron right now? What's more likely? He shows up Thursday night, announces I'm back to the Pittsburgh crowd. On draft nine.
Here you go, Roger. That would be really cool. Make the stage. Makes the pick. I don't like Rogers, but that would be really cool if he did that.
Makes it the first pick, comes out and says it. Meat Shield for Roger comes out. Cheers. Hey, I'm coming back. You're referring to the.
humans who are highly popular in the towns that the draft is held. That are brought out with Roger Goodell. Let me tell you one thing. The idea that Roger brings people so he doesn't get booed. He does.
He still doesn't care. How can you dispute that? I mean, Rich, come on. I know that he doesn't care. He does egg people on to boo him.
I know. And that's the crazy thing now is that they boo him collectively. But when Roger Goodell leaves the stage and strolls around amongst fans, they're all on a selfie with him. They do. They're like boo collectively and then individuals like Toothy Grin, like Toothy Grin selfies with Roger Catelli.
He's in Can oh, so they're gonna get meat what meat shields?
Okay.
But I bet you there'll be Steeler legends. Of course. Unbooable. Unprovable Steeler Legends. There will be whatever.
But the idea that Rogers is going to do that.
Well, that was a theory that was funny. I understand that. But if he does, then great. But the bottom line is Rooney said at the owners' gathering, I expect to hear something before the draft. We expect to hear it.
Well, expectations are one thing. And Omar Khan and Mike McCarthy today holding a press conference asked about all this. You know, we've had some great communication with Aaron, and nothing's changed, but it's all been positive and good. You know, I said this to you guys in March when we met. You know, he knows how we feel about uh him and um you know, we know how he feels about us.
Okay.
Oh, big.
So, you know what we want to know in the media and following up? What's the approach? How are you going to approach the draft? Mm. Without this knowledge, I'm curious.
The knowledge is there. They know. He just hasn't announced it. They're waiting to hear it. At any rate, how are you approaching?
Lightly? Treading lightly? Treading. Treading lightly. Or are they just going to go hard treading?
We're going to approach this thing. Hit it. You know, we still evaluate it. That doesn't change our evaluation process. We're still putting the guys up where they need to be.
You know, we'll just see how it shakes out. Yeah, I mean, there's no quarterback that's going to be drafted that's going to replace Rogers. Even the top guy might not be starting week one this year.
So, whoever they drafted quarterback, if they do, The only person that player might threaten for any reps or snaps is Will Howard.
So It's not going to change anything. The stewards are just going to wait. I just still can't believe. having been There with a front row seat at the very beginning of NFL Network 23 years ago. Farve.
Is he staying? Is he going? Is he staying? Is he going? Is he going to play anymore?
Is he going to start? What's going on? Hanging on. That Rogers Being the guy that forced Favre's hand at some point. or the Packer's hand to j hand the reins to him.
4 Mike McCarthy is now that guy. For Mike McCarthy. You know, 20 years later, after stopping. Buy the Jets! for one year as a starter.
Leaving the Packers for the Jets. It's the same career path. Jordan Love is him, he's now fav. Mike McCarthy's in the same role. Like, if this was a made-for-TV movie.
Mike McCarthy as Mike McCarthy. Aaron Rodgers as Brett Favre. Jordan Love as. Aaron Rodgers, the Jets is the Jets, as the same old Jets. It's crazy.
It's nuts. And the Steelers, as the Vikings, right? Am I wrong? The other thing too for me is Mike McCarthy got his Super Bowl ring with the Packers by beating the Steelers, and now he's the Steelers head coach with the guy that he won the Super Bowl against. True.
Replacing the guy you can't make it up. They know The Darkness Retreat as the Duck Blind. Yeah.
Yeah.
You know? Omar Khan as Ted Thompson. Unreal how this is happening. But at the end of the day, I mean, no one wants to get in his head. It is whatever he s wants it to be, but uh whatever reason He doesn't want to announce it yet.
I think he's going to play again. I don't think he wants to end his career the way it ended. Last year? That's not the last word he wants to have. I think it's a blessing that the new coach there is a guy who he knows, and it's this system.
And the guy who's there doesn't have a quarterback to start winning now anyway. Rogers, come on in. We win now. You know my system. I know you, you know me.
Let's go It's the way it feels to me. But I just can't believe. The parallels, it's the it's eerie. Yeah, t what is it? Time is a flat circle, right?
It is. It is very Yeah. True quarterback, right? And Rust Cole. Oh, man.
Oh, man. Derek in Missouri. Derek. Longtime favorites. What's up, Derek?
What's going on, Rich? Brock Midgel Tufo. Hey, Derek. Derek, do you know where TJ is? Where's TJ?
No, I have no clue whatsoever, Rich. He's probably hiding. He probably maybe overheard what you said about. Yeah, like, why would he want to even text any of us? I've landed.
I'm back. I don't know. That's his deal and your deal.
So I don't want to get in the middle of this. Oh, my God. I didn't mean to put you there, Derek.
Well yeah. Fair enough.
Okay.
All right. So I've got this draft deal for you, sir.
Now, if I'm not mistaken, I believe. It's the Cowboys, Chiefs, Cats, Giants stop at the Browns. The six teams that have two picks in the first round on Thursday night. Out of those six teams, Rick, who do you believe? needs to make the biggest splash.
Oh my goodness.
Well, all of them, some of them are at the bottom of the heap right now. And then you could make the case. Thanks for the call, Derek. I'm sorry to put you in between. Let us call back if you know where TJ is.
Ha ha ha. Oh, oh. Yeah.
Sorry, Richard. Um You can make the case that the Cowboys are the ones who need to make the most impact. When are they going to have two again? And one of the reasons why they have won is because of Micah. They traded Micah.
Like, you need to hit this. You need to turn that pick into a big time. Player for your defense because you gave one up for the right to change. The culture potentially, or make this pick. Right?
It doesn't have to be an edge rusher. It would be interesting if it was bust the budget. 12 and 20. We got to see something. You want to patch them together and make a big time move, a big splash move, and it comes into turn into Sunday stops because you've already made.
A nice switch here. Kenny Clark next to Quinnen Williams, next to Rashawn Gary is pretty. Like you took half, you basically sent. Micah Parsons and got back half their defensive line. Rashawn Gary and Kenny Clark.
I've just been told TJ Jefferson is pulling in. MACA. No text that he landed. No text. I've landed.
I'm coming. All my ways. I'm not reason. There's no reason to. Why would we be wondering?
We don't hear from him anytime. Oh, man. He just has no idea what he's about to walk into. Oh, sign. A buzzsaw of human resources and baseball losses.
Oh, yeah. Wow, it sounds like a book title. He has no idea. I can't breathe. What's about to hit him?
Todd McShay of the Ringer is going to be joining us in the studio next. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. Mm-hmm.
