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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.
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Now, on with the show. This is the Rich Eisen Show.
So please, welcome the greatest performer ever to have graced this earth. Rich Eisen. Is he back yet? Jeff Aaron Donald comes back. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles.
Today's guest, senior writer for the MMQB, Albert Breer. Rams cornerback, Trent McDuffie. Writer and actor, Brendan Hunt. Overreaction Monday on a Tuesday. And now, it's Rich Eisen.
All right, everybody, welcome to this edition of the Rich Eisen Show here on a Tuesday, right smack dab in the middle of August, getting ready for preseason football all over the place. The NBA has released some of its schedule on an opening night. I got to say words later on in this program. I told you so. Which is just my favorite words around.
We've got Trent McDuffie joining us right in the middle of this program. And we will have an opportunity for the first time in our new segment, Is He Back Yet?, to actually ask a Rams player, Is He Back Yet? And he, obviously, is Aaron Donald.
So, you know, Trent McDuffie is going to be right in the middle of this program. Is he back yet? Right now, he's not yet back, correct? Not yet.
So we got that. Albert Breer is first up. I believe he's joining us from a Vikings camp where there is a. Quarterback competition going down. And hour three, Coach Beard returns to the studio as Ted Lasso is back on your Apple TV screen.
And the very funny and talented Brendan Hunt is back on his program.
So are you. 844-204-Rich. Number to dial. It's an Overreaction Monday on a Tuesday because Chris Brockman and I recorded Overreaction Monday yesterday. That's sitting there in your RSS feed.
If you listen to podcasts, if you watch it, there's our YouTube channel, youtube.com/slash Rich Rising Show for all of that good stuff. How are you over there, Christopher? I'm excellent. How are you, Rich? Mike Del Tufo.
It's here. Good to see you. Oh, by the way, I'm fine. I didn't mean to not answer. I appreciate that.
Hey, Mikey. What's up? Did a game with a six-inning no-hitter last night. Oh, is that right? Did they put up a banner for that or something?
Who did that one? I missed it. It was a Phillies St. Louis. I was at an after-party.
Not what you did. What are you going on? TJ, how are you? This guy.
Well, see ya. Aaron Donald's not in the building, but I know at least Quentin Williams is going to be in my building. Ah, he has been signed. A $100 million contract. There you go.
We got that going. There you go. So. You read it after Bernie last week? Yeah, I was celebrating Quinn and Williams' contract.
For you. For you. Rashawn Gary's on Tomorrow's Pro. Oh, I know. Yeah, he's here in the studio.
If I didn't have the piece on Wednesday, I'd probably hit your ride back to Oxnard with us. Hey, man, listen, Quinnen Williams. being signed and happy. is great for you. It is absolutely great for you.
Three years, $105.9 million. Hey, Dad. By the way, Nicole Lynn is just. In Fuego right now. Yeah.
She might be Rufus, the best in the business. She's pretty clutch for Bijan and now for Quinnen. And she's Miles Garrett's agent, I believe, as well.
So when she tweets out, back up the Brinkstruck.
Well, then it's time for the Brinkstruck to be backed up. But. Again. Quentin Williams up front. with Rashawn Gary.
And Kenny Clark, just the three of them right there. Right there. It's pretty damn good. Overshone. Barham is the new Michigan Wolverine right there.
Caleb Downs on the back. You've got to wonder. This time of year, last year, it's just like Jerry's like, hey, light a candle. We're going to be fine. Wait a minute.
You know, Micah didn't shake my hand, or he shook my hand, and I said, You know, I thought we had a deal, and I didn't call his agent. His agent's not calling me, or I refused to talk to his agent. And everyone's like, What the hell's going on? Smash cut to now. Smash cut to now.
Oh, Jerry won that trade. And I got to tell you, with each passing day, we need to see it this year.
Okay. We need to see it. This year, Christian Parker is your new defensive coordinator, right? Loving everything I'm seeing.
Well, and well, we got to see how he is calling plays in the heat of the battle and what's going on, and how does he lead these guys? And do they follow him? And do they Do they play as one and how quickly can they play as one? But it's all set up for your Dallas Cowboys, man, too. Be better.
on that defensive line and still have futures as Jerry Jones says to potentially trade for somebody else. Right in the middle of the season, should they want to add more pass rush? Because somebody who's Smacking it around with Kirk Cousins doesn't want to be a Raider anymore. I promised I wouldn't do that. Wow.
I promised I wouldn't do that. I promised I wouldn't do that. What are we doing, though? If this is the case, let's just get this done with now. He doesn't want it to be done with right now.
He's going to be a raider. He's a raider. That's what he said. And I swore I wouldn't do it. And now I just went back on.
Now I got to turn my back on you. But that's For another day. This day, the Dallas Cowboys are getting it done and getting it done right. And they come into the season ready to roll. Steven also said yesterday: did you see that?
He thinks that they can absolutely have CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens long term. I know Dak hopes so. Can do that. Dak bacon 60. And then the receivers together combined making sixty?
That's 120 can easily do the math, caps a little bit over 300 mil. They're gonna want more than 60 at the end of the day.
So Well done.
Well done.
Meanwhile, where we are in training camp season is a Thursday kickoff to week one. of the preseason calendar. And that means teams who are going to be playing against one another. Are practicing against one another. Joint practices.
Love joint practices. In the case of the Bucs and the Jets, wow, it didn't take long. Apparently, Luke Gedeke and. And David Bailey, their new second overall pick, started throwing down. With each other.
A jet helmet went flying 20 yards, apparently.
So Troops are salty. And then Geno threw not one but two pick sixes. Alex Anzalone, new to the Bucks, and Pepe Williams. Little Pepe and his steppy. I said, too.
Okay. Okay. So there's that. Yeah. You know?
Just practice, though. Practice. We're just swinging it around. Talk and practice. We're joint practicing.
That's what we're talking about: joint practicing. Not a game, Rich. Not a game. Not a game that we all love and live and die for. Joey Pratt.
And the Jets take on Tampa on Friday night. That's on NFL Network. I'll be in the studio for that one, 7 Eastern. I'll be in the studio on Thursday night as well, 7 Eastern. Hey, Green Bay at Pittsburgh.
Okay. So business is picking up for you. Yeah. So it'll be the. you know, an interesting choice right there, Green Bay at Pittsburgh.
LaFleur and the man he replaced. Who's now replaced Mike Tomlin, who he beat in the Super Bowl with Aaron Rodgers, who's now his quarterback in Pittsburgh? These are storylines. I'm just threading tapestries together for you. That's on NFL Network Thursday night.
Uh You know, because we're going to start moving around here. Uh Titans at San Francisco. Where Mike Evans is still not practicing with a quad injury. Don't expect to see him out there on. On Thursday night?
The Bengals taking on the Lions. Who's playing?
Well, it seems like the first time we were wondering Can Joe Borrow be protected? It's coming on Thursday night. Could have had the sergeant play, but I'm not there yet on. Um on everybody. I know, you know, um Joe will play.
Um Jamar and T, but again we'll Kind of announce everything for tomorrow at some point, probably. Do you have an idea of how many series we'd like to jump? Um, limited series, so it won't be a ton of time, but you know. For our fans to come out there, they're gonna see Joe and Jamarantin, they're gonna see Dexter.
So they'll get a chance to enjoy some of our players there, but how long I keep them out there remains to be seen. Dexter Lawrence, the guy who they. Acquired from the Giants. Rather than picking tenth overall. That's the guy and And all you got to do is just open up your social media feeds and see this guy has been a load.
He's been blowing up plays. They haven't been able to practice too many times in Cincinnati without 97 showing up.
So. That's why I have the Bengals as my sleeper team of the year.
Okay, Rich. How can I have a sleeper team when you got the best wide receiver and Joe Burrow and Sexy Dexy and T. Higgins and Chase Brown and Yada and Yada and Yada? You tell me if you think the Bengals are making oh, you tell me if the Bengals are making the Super Bowl. And if the Bengals make the Super Bowl, that's a sleeper team.
So That's where I'm going with that one. I also have the Browns as a sleeper team, and it seems like the quarterbacks are asleep right now.
So all you're seeing is that Deshaun Watson and Shador Sanders aren't really. taking the reins here. You're also reading about false starts and illegal motions and Todd Muncen potentially throwing something in the Practice yesterday. We heard about their fight, right? I heard about their fight, too.
You know, Jared Verse and Spencer Finogo. They're going at it. Yeah. I don't want to fight Jared Verse, just saying.
Well, and again, that's another reason why I have the Browns as a sleeper team, because outside of the quarterback spot, they are really talented. And Jared Verse wants to show everybody the Rams made a mistake. That'll take a lot of doing, to be honest with you. For sure. But There's that.
Oh, and Chris, Patriots taking on the Colts, the Vincent Airy Bowl. Oh, I've been watching it. Hey, or the Deflator Bowl. I don't know. Will the Deflator come down from New Hampshire for that one?
Or was it Vermont? Where did the Deflator live? I don't know what you mean.
Okay. Um You ready to see Tommy DeVito? Want to see some cutlets out there? Oh, I was watching A.J. Brown cook Sauce Gardener and some clips.
Very good. Get ready for Tommy DeVito, sir. Rick May has already reached that status. Go ahead. Plan on playing Drake Thursday or I wouldn't anticipate seeing Drake out there on Thursday, so.
Yeah, but that's all subject to change. That's kind of where my mindset is right now standing here today. Um You know, really, it's just important that we get the work in and get, you know, get things accomplished that we're looking to get accomplished.
So, but that, yeah, that can always change, but I wouldn't anticipate that happening right now. Great. Cutlets for everybody. It's Cutlets night Thursday night at Gillette.
So they're doing this. Remember, he was doing all that. Oh, sure. Doing a lot of that. Yeah, let's go.
Doing a lot of this stuff. Tin breaded. Let's go. Did you call him inbred? No, inbred.
Wow, I said thin. Inbred. I thought for a second there. I was going to be like, I know his DeVitos, man. Yes.
I'm friends with his mother. That's why I wouldn't say anything. The game of DeVitos. You know the DeVitos, don't you? His mother is very good.
I'm very good friends.
Well, say hi to his mother for me. I totally will, Rich. Just like. I bet he doesn't, Rich. He says he will, but he won't.
Okay. Dude, it just was so close.
So close. We're so close. I mean. Uh Patriots in Seattle to kick it off. Thank you.
What, three weeks from tomorrow? I don't love that, but I don't think you should love it. I think that is a terrible first assignment. I think the Bears dodged a bullet. I thought the Bears starting there would have been a better game, actually.
Oh, I don't know about that. The Patriots are better than the Bears, let's be honest. Really? Come on. Do we want to do this?
I don't agree with that. You are the biggest bears hunt out here that has no skin in the game, like our call screener and Adam. You don't have to like, oh, Caleb's going to have 4,000 yards. Oh, the Iceman's going to be an MVP candidate. Better defense, better run game, better wide receivers, better quarterback.
I don't so what are we doing? The run game is better, huh? Yeah, okay.
So, you would say the Patriots have more wins this year than the Bears? Oh, sure. In terms of two breakout teams from last year? Oh. One team broke out all the way to the Super Bowl.
One team broke out all the way to the Super Bowl, and the Bears almost made it to the NFC Championship game. Yeah, I think both teams are going to be good. Both teams are in that 11-12 win range. Right. We talking proteins can win the division?
Mm-hmm.
Okay. I think the Bears would have been a better matchup, to be quite honest with you. You know. Ted bears. Mm.
That's a good one, man. It is a good one. Who's going to have a better season? Patriots or Bears? Sports Talk Radio?
Go. Because I was ready to react. What do you got? Go. He got me thinking.
Go. What do you think? I'll put it up. Or do you want to treat this like an after-party where you got to wait six more hours to answer it? What's wrong with him?
I don't know. What's wrong with your boy? It doesn't affect you. Not at all. I'm waiting to draft until that boy.
You're 10th and he's first. I know that. And you wear bed.
Well, I know that. Oh, who took six hours to draft? This guy.
No, no, actually, Brockman did because he drafted. We were sleeping. He put Chris on a clock. He put Chris on the clock at 1:30 in the morning. You're sleeping.
Mike, can you get some sleep? Tell Tufo. You can't wake up to something. They always give me crap about never going anywhere.
So I went somewhere last night and I was out a little bit late. Oh. You know what I mean? I have no problem with that, with TJ getting out of that. And I was with your boy O'Shea.
Even though? Yeah, and Come on on his way. Our boy. Both of you. That's just your boy.
Tomorrow. All right. We digress. Albert Breer is sitting down from the Vikings camp. I believe he's found himself a really nice spot with all sorts of purple.
It's like he's going to Northwestern all of a sudden.
Okay. Albert Breer is next. He's going to give us the latest on what's going on in Vikings camp because he is there. Boots on the ground, Rich. Boots on the ground.
Back on the Rich Eisen Show in a matter of moments. There you see, there he is. Yeah. Very purple. Yep.
Mm-hmm.
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The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. Yesterday, Albert Breer here on the Rich Eisen Show. Our radio audience has just returned. Our colleague Albert, you're there in Vikings Camp. Our colleague Adam Schefter just reported.
That Kyler Murray's been told he's the quarterback.
So when you go out there and see him out there in practice, He's been told he's the quarterback, apparently the starting guy there. Albert, I'll give you the floor on this subject matter. Yeah, I think this is the way it's been trending for a while.
Now. Like, look, I think it hasn't looked great in camp. And I know that there's been ups and downs. And I also know Brian Flores' defense is a really challenging one for a quarterback to go up against in a practice setting. I think the main thing for Kevin O'Connell, you know, going into this year was going to be whoever lands the job is going to have to earn it.
And look, I think it's very. It's simple and plain. Two years ago, they came into camp and it was like, we want to give J.J. McCarthy a chance to learn. And we're going with Sam Darnold.
And like, JJ kind of made a push and then he got hurt.
So Sam's the quarterback. Last year, Because they failed to re-sign Sam Darnold or Daniel Jones, they tried with both. It was J.J. McCarthy, our first-round pick. We're all in.
Let's see where it goes.
So this year, They wanted to make sure, like 100%, whoever we put out in there in the field is going to best serve the veterans in the locker room because those guys have been through a lot the last couple of years now. And so, like, it's it was always going to be the best Option for today, for right now. And, you know, obviously, Kevin O'Connell feels like Kylo Murray is the best option for now. And this will allow them some time, of course, to ramp up and build towards the season.
Well, the only question is when he says something. Is there a mail? Let me just ask you this. Is he going to be made available to the media today based on your knowledge of the day's events? Yeah, I don't have the schedule yet, but I would assume that probably happens.
It wouldn't shock me if there's an adjustment. Again, this is my 16th camp in 16 days. I'd hitch up on that.
So the question is: the for now, will he say the for now, or he'll just say for the season and just go with that one? Oh, Kevin, you mean? Kevin, I believe would be. Yeah, I. My guess would be it's going like You don't want to pin yourself in.
And look, look, I think part of this too, you know, because I think JJ's made strides too, Rich. I think part of this is. And they'll never say it, right? Like, but it's sort of similar to the way I've talked to you about the Cleveland situation. I think if you go with J.J.
McCarthy now. It would be tough to go back to Kyler Murray. Whereas, if you go with Kyler Murray now, I think it's easier to go to J.J. McCarthy if it doesn't work. Uh now that said You're going to want to project confidence, and you're going to want to project to your team that we're behind the quarterback, and we believe in the quarterback.
And so. Um, you know, of course, like Kevin O'Connell is going to get up there and say, like, yes, we're. We're going forward with Kyler Murray as the quarterback of this team. And then if people ask, is it that for the whole season? I'm sure he would probably answer, well, a million things can happen.
And that's true, too.
So my guess would be you get something along those lines.
So is this going to be something similar, you think, playing out in Atlanta, where the veteran? Um Who's on the inexpensive side at 1.3 million in tour? Is going to have a thumb on the scale placed by the head coach to see what he's got as opposed to the. The rookie with an injury-marred season the year before, who was chosen just a few choices before J.J. McCarthy and Penix?
Is it a similar thing? You think? I think that one's a little different, just in that. Like, I think for the new regime, for Matt Ryan and Ian Cunningham, and the head coach Kevin Stafanski. Um There Look, I think you look at the two of them.
And you sort of know what Tua is. You're not sure yet what Penix is because of everything that he's been through. And he's had some real flashes of brilliance, right? But this isn't the first time he's gotten hurt either. It's not his first ACL.
I think it's his third ACL, right? Or maybe fourth. I you know, he's been hurt a lot.
So, you know, I think part of it is assessing where he's at coming back off of injury. It's assessing what he can do for the team. I think it's different, Rich, in that, like, the Vikings, again, their roster is so leveraged for right now. And the guys in that team, Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Christian Darasaw, you know, Brian O'Neill, I go down the list, TJ Hawkinson, Byron Murphy. There are so Aaron Jones.
There are so many veteran players in that team that were part of a team that won 14 games two years ago. And then last year was kind of sabotaged by the quarterback situation. You know, I think. For the Vikings, it's like we have to give those players the best answer for right now, period, end of story. Whereas with the Falcons, I think there's a little bit more of.
If you're in year one and you're Kevin Stefanski, again, something they probably wouldn't say publicly, but you want to come out of this year knowing where you're at at the quarterback position. And I think part of that's going to be gathering more information on Michael Pennix over the course of the year, whether he's the starter week one or not. And then what's happening in Cleveland, best you can tell from there in the up north?
Well, Todd Munkin's been pretty colorful talking about this. I don't know if you've noticed. Oh, it's been great. Listen, Munkin has been a delight in terms of a soundbite. If you just put the things that he said out of Bill Parcels's mouth, It would be surprising.
You know what I mean? Like that, if it was the part, if you AI'd what he said coming out of a Parcells. 80 60-year-old Parcels, it would sound like it. But he's got a little Clint Eastwood Nel Camino vibe there, you know. See coaching from the front porch.
So you're saying, okay. Sure. All right. So well done. What's going on there?
Um Yeah. Again, like I think in this situation, it's another one of those where it's like If you go one way, then you probably can't go the other, you know? And so, look. Deshaun Watson. The team has invested three first-round picks in them.
They've invested $230 million in them. And I think what would be worse than just chalking that up as a sunk cost. would be chalking it up as a sunk cost and then watching him go somewhere else and ball out for another team in twenty twenty seven and be like, oh my God, maybe we should have played him in twenty six.
So I do think there's an element there of wanting to see If there is any shot. any sh any glimmer of hope. That the player that we all watched for the first four years of Watson's career is still there. And if it's not, it's not. But I think it's much easier to try that and go to Shadur Sanders than it would be to start with Shadur Sanders and then that doesn't work and then go to Deshaun Watson.
So, like, I've felt all along like there's a little bit of a like, let's see what we have with Watson because this is the last year of his contract and we've already invested so much in him. And I mean, I look, like, Dylan Gabriel was a third-round pick. Shador Sanders was a fifth-round pick. This guy, Deshaun Watson, was the 12th pick in the draft and was one of the best quarterbacks in football for an extended period of time.
So I don't know. Why so many people think there's so much more upside with the younger guys than there is with the veteran when we've seen the veteran do it in the past.
Okay. So. Hmm. I'm with you. I I I've been saying all along that I think Exactly what you said.
The amount of capital and You know, actual capital and blood, sweat, and tears that they've put into Watson. And this is the last chance saloon. They got to see what they have. But. If Shador's outperforming him, how does Moncan.
You know, not say he's the guy. What are you hearing about Shadur's camp?
Well, then it's simple, right? Like, then it's simple. If Shadur is the guy, and I haven't heard that, like, if I had to put my finger on it right now and say Deshaun's a little ahead. But if Shadur proves to clearly be the guy, then it's black and white. I think what we're talking about here, Rich, when we're talking about the order of things and everything else, right?
is is if it's close. Right, if it's close, and if you go into the meeting room and you have three coaches saying this and four coaches saying that, and there's a disagreement, and then it's like, okay, like now we take a look at the big picture. But if one guy clearly beats out the other, then we're talking about something else, you know? And so I don't think that's the case right now, but I think if Shadur. Like, clearly, beat out Deshaun Watson.
I don't think, I mean, I The way Todd Munkins projected his short time as the head coach there, it doesn't seem like he's afraid of much.
So I don't think he'd be afraid to pull the trigger on that. Albert Breer here on the Rich Eisen Show, joining us from Minnesota Vikings Camp, where again, Word is that Kyler Murray has been told he is the starter, and that announcement is coming from the Vikings prior to their first preseason game as well, right here on the Rich Eisen Show.
So you know our segment, we played it with you the last time that you were here. It is now time For is he back yet? Without request. AA Ron! Is he back yet?
Where is AAR right now? All right. Is he back yet, Albert? He's not, but I think we're getting closer to that. I think it's in play at the end of the week.
I think I said to you guys the last time I was on that it was my belief that once they broke camp at Loyola Merrimount and went back, I think they're in Woodland Hills. Is that right? That is the name of the town. Yep. The practice facility is.
So once they get back to Woodland Hills, I think this is in play. You know, I know, you know, he's done some work, and that was why they did a report the workout with Giff Smith, one of Sean McVay's assistants. And again, like, I think so much of this just rides on, like I told you before, whether or not Aaron Donald feels like he can go out there and be himself in 2026. And the tricky thing about that is the bar for Aaron Donald to be himself is like higher than the bar for almost any interior defensive lineman in NFL history.
So, can he go out there and feel like he can be himself? But I do think he's got in the mindset to play. I think he will wind up playing. You know, and I think. You know, we get to the end of the week.
I don't know when their preseason game is this week, but you know, maybe like after that, like then we're squarely in play. You know, again, they're back in Woodland Hills now. And, you know, I personally think he's gotten himself to the point where he thinks he can do it. And, you know, I can tell you this too: he and Sean McVay are very, very close. And they already have a detailed plan for how this is all going to work if he does decide to come back.
So some of it's based on how they ramped him up in 17 and 18 when he missed training camp because he was holding out. You know, notably, he was defensive player of the year both of those years. You know, and there's going to be a plan for the season, too. You know, they've got Kobe Turner and Braden Fisk and Puna Ford and Tyler Davis.
So they don't need to overwork him. You know, my guess would be he'd be part of a rotation, playing 30, 40 snaps a game. And that would allow them to keep him in position to be at his very best when it really counts.
So when he shows up in a helmet with Giff Smith, and that's why he winds up on the NFL wire, and everybody notices that he's getting a step closer, or the video comes out with him going through things with Braden Fisk. And Josiah Stewart. It's not just him saying, you know what, I'm going to try this today. It's something that he and McVay. days ago, weeks ago, came up with And there's an even plan for what it would look like.
Between the time he does, in fact, come back in the beginning of the season, what it looks like week one, week two. Like, that's already mapped out, best you can tell right now. By putting some of the puzzle pieces together and what he's doing now, I think it's testing to see if he can get back to that level. It's pushing. It's like, okay, what do I feel like the next day?
It's, you know, can I explode off the ball fast? Can I move with bodies around me the same way? It's all the stuff that, you know, You know, and you can't simulate it, it can't be perfect, you know, but it's Do I think I can go out in an NFL game and be myself? And so that's what he's testing, you know, and that's what he's working through. But yeah, like if he decides at the end of this week to flip the switch and go, there is a plan in place.
And it's a detailed plan. And I think they feel good about the idea that he could come back. And again, like, I think another thing that's important to point out here, too. Like Sean McBay, Les Snead, Chris Shula, those guys aren't texting him and calling him, like, hey, are you coming back? They want this to be his decision, right?
Like, they want to allow for him to make this decision on his own. They've let him know he's welcome, they would love to have him back. But I think the last thing they want, Rich, is for him to be sitting there and he doesn't feel good in November and be like, I wish they hadn't talked me into it. You know, they don't want it to be that. They want this to be solely his decision.
And I think he's getting closer to making that decision. Albert Breer here, a few minutes left with Albert, who's in the Minnesota Vikings camp. Right here on the Rich Eisen Show, the Breer Report, right there on Sports Illustrated's YouTube channel as well.
So let's hit on some of the names of guys that we're wondering: will we be back in week one? We're now getting set for preseason action here, and it's rubber meets road time. The first depth chart was released by the Kansas City Chiefs, and Mahomes is sitting right there at the top. Is Patrick we're going to see him week one, Monday night football against the Denver? I think there's zero chance he's not back.
I asked Andy Reid directly. Andy Reid gave me the answer you'd think. We'll see. Like he doesn't want to put that on his Um on his player. I I think If you've talked to people there over the last like two months, two, I think this is going back to like May and June.
Um There is no question. I was told he's taken a regular, like during the offseason, right? Like, so in April and May, like he didn't go away. He was taking a regular season approach to the rehab.
So the intensity with which he was rehabbing was as if I need to push this so I can get ready to play a game this week. He badly wants to be back out there. He's got a PT in Kansas City who was a huge part of getting him ready to play in the in the Super Bowl a few years ago. You remember when he had the high ankle sprain? Julie Freimeier is her name.
They've been diligent about it. He was cleared to participate fully in training camp. And this is the interesting thing. I was talking to people there, they were all, well, yeah, we think he's going to be clear for the start of training camp, but we're going to be smart about it, right? He's taken every first team rep in training camp.
So I think that tells you where he's at. Here's the other thing. He has heard everything. That everyone has said about him. He has heard everything that everyone has said about the chiefs.
He has heard everything that everyone has said about his rehab. And There are a lot of people in that organization that are really interested to see. What this super motivated, and he's always motivated, right? But like to see what this version of Patrick Mahomes looks like. Mm-hmm.
Noted You know, the man who uh You know, said this. He'll get handled when he gets handled. When the Raiders rookie came out with like a Muppet. Remember that a couple of years ago? They made fun of Mahomes.
He's got edge to him. Because he's such a nice guy, but he's got edge to him that I don't think people really recognize.
Well, we saw it in the quarterback series on Netflix. We saw that. Was it Crosby he's barking at? You know? Okay.
What happened there too before I continue on with Crosby and and uh Cousins. And Kirk? Yeah. This is sort of, I love Max. Like, this has sort of been an issue with him, you know, like where he practices pretty intensely, and you sometimes have to put a governor on him.
So I I think if you put together a list of five players on the defensive side of the ball in the NFL. That um That might be involved in a situation like this. Max would be on the list, and I don't think he'd be fifth.
So, you know, it's just sort of like how he gets himself ready to play, part of his, you know, his routine, and how he gets himself to the level that. You know, that he thinks he needs to be at to be at his very best. And sometimes it spills over.
So, totally understand why Clint Kubiak did what he did, makes sense. You know, it's, You don't want guys fighting in practice. You don't want fights to break out in practice. And you can really send a message when two of the most prominent players of the team are being sat down. And look, there's a benefit to this too, right?
Like, they got a free look at Fernando Mendoza with the first team for a day, so that's not bad either. No, it isn't. All right, now returning to the injuries: the two Achilles, Daniel Jones, George Kittle. Do we see both of them week one or no? What do you think?
Um I think so. I'm sure on Jones. I don't think. I mean, Jones is another one where. It just when you watch them.
So here's an interesting anecdote. Like they had a scrimmage the other night and he And this is one of those things where like, okay, he looks good, but it's not really a game speed yet. And He pulled the ball down and scored a 40-yard touchdown and hit 19 and a half miles an hour on his GPS. And some of his teammates, he told me, some of his teammates were giving him crap that he didn't hit 20 or 21. But, like, he feels really good about where he's at.
And I think the. The Achilles for a quarterback, like It's going to be explosion. It's going to be like, can you can like, especially because it's this plant foot we saw out with Cousins a couple years ago, like, can you get as much on the ball?
So it's worth watching all of that. But my expectation is he'll be out there week one. You know, and then Kittle, I think, you know, that's a little trickier because, you know, it's an older player. It's a tight end. But it sounds like he's in a good place, too.
What about Micah? We don't know not many people talking about him. When do we expect him? He's 100% going to be on the pup list. And so that means he'll start the season.
Uh missing the first four games. Like, it sounds to me like part of the reason they made that decision as early and with as much resolve as they did was because they knew, like, under the new rules that changed a few years ago, they're going to be able to get him back on the practice field after two weeks.
So, like, the ability to get him back on the practice field after two weeks will give them a chance to ramp him up. He'd be eligible to return week five. I think it's going to be somewhere in that window, you know, in October, somewhere. And I mean, we wouldn't be doing the audience a service if we didn't mention, Rich, that they play Dallas in week six.
So I would think that he'd probably want to be out there for that one. Albert, thanks for the time. Go forth. And, you know, obviously there's some breaking news in your spot right there about the Vikings and Kyler Murray as the quarterback for at least week one, one would think. Thanks for the time, brother.
We'll chat again soon. For sure. Thanks for having me. Albert Breer must follow everybody right here on the Rich Island show. All right, let's beat it and get our ducks in a row.
Lots of happening. Trent McDuffie, our number two from the Rams. Um Rich Eisen here with some advice. If high-interest credit card debt is grinding you down, it might be time to call an Audible with a SoFi personal loan. It consolidates your debt into one low monthly payment with no fees required.
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Our friends at LinkedIn would like to let you know that you should hire right the first time. And the best way to do it, hire right the first time with LinkedIn Hiring Pro. Get started by posting a free job at linkedin.com. Slash Eisen. Let things settle for a second here, and then at the top of the next hour, we'll revisit.
Uh I hit uh chefty during the commercial break here. to say, you know, hey, anything you you can add? to you know your breaking report that The Vikings have named Kyler Murray their starting quarterback. I'm like, did they just tell Kyler and they're going to announce it later? And he said, uh They told the team it's official.
Ooh.
Okay. That's what Shefty just hit me up on right there.
So keep an eye on his Twitter feed at Adam Schefter as things go along today. But. Again, we'll hit that at the top of the next hour. Um You know, one thing I didn't hit here is the um over the last couple days because there's been so much football stuff. Uh the ABS system in baseball.
I kind of dig it. I dig it a lot. I love it. It goes fast. You get an answer, you get an immediate answer.
And, you know, I saw some footage the other day of. I don't know how I came up with some on my Twitter feed like Kilbourne, because I'm getting all sorts of old sports center stuff in my algorithm. Obviously, from this was Sports Center, I imagine. And Kilbourne did a highlight of a game where the home plate umpire Was way off, and the Dodgers were flipping out over the calls, and it was ball night.
So fans were throwing baseballs on the field, and Lasorda came out to complain, to argue with a bad call like Raul Mondes. He had a strike two call on something that damn near bounced in the left-handed hitters' batters box. And he'd lost his mind and fans were throwing baseballs and the uh umpires called the game. They called the game. It was the first time the Dodgers played a forfeited game since the.
Like 1916, or something like that. It was a whole highlight and whatever. And I'm like, see, this is what the ABS is preventing. You know, Monday could have just tapped his helmet, and that would have been the end of it. Oh, but that's way cooler what happened.
Listen, I understand that, but. It's awesome. I'm really enjoying it. It is good. But the thing that's beginning to piss me off is umpires not giving the ABS challenge to the batter because they think the batter has taken too long to ask for it.
It happened to uh I believe Julio Rodriguez in Seattle the other night. Did you see this one? Where he tapped his helmet and the umpire said, You didn't do it in time. Dan Wilson gets ejected when all of his former teammates are there to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Mariners.
Okay. And And I'm thinking to myself. Why? Like he tapped his helmet even if if if it wasn't On the spot. I understand they want it on the spot because they don't want them looking.
I'm now looking into the dugout, and somebody's like, absolutely, you should challenge that. It's supposed to be left to the player. On the field. They don't want somebody. to help out.
It's not like the price is right where they're screaming at you to say, you know, bid this, bid that, higher, lower. You know what I mean? They don't want that. Right, right, right. But if it's so obvious that it's still just a second afterwards or two seconds afterwards, now what are we going to do?
Make this a reviewable thing? Like I tap my helmet in time. Like they're not using common sense. And it's infuriating. But you do want to take away that possibility of dugout.
Right. Yeah, cool, cool, cool. But the dugouts got an even worse vantage point.
Well they might have a monitor. Yeah. No they don't. Those days are over, pal. Monitors.
Oh, they don't have that. They have to call somebody to say, Do I challenge something? Oh, the Astros took care of the monitor. You took care of the Apple Watches. And my Yankees probably took care of something else, too.
Yeah. You know, so there's no monitors. Maybe it's better than the other. There's not. And the dugout is an even worse vantage point of whether something's outside or not.
It's just like common sense. Just if it's been a second or two later, plus, they might not be looking at the player. And plus, if it's a ball or a strike, what if an umpire takes forever to actually say the word strike three?
Some of them used to. Mary, was it McClellan who just basically like, yeah. Strike. I'll just eventually raise my arm and tell you it's a strike because I can't be bothered to just do it fast. It's just infuriating.
And then, so just give it another beat, give it two seconds here. And then There are some players, like Jazz Chisholm is terrible at it. Like Aaron Boone should tell Jazz, you are not allowed to challenge anything anymore. Exactly. You know, in the same way that Keith Alberman told me back in the day, stop making too many jokes.
Pull back. Stop challenging. Or at least you're not allowed to challenge until you're last at bat. It's just infuriating. But to me, Some of these challenges from players are so far off.
So, my fix is: if you are challenging a ball, And it's a strike, but it's at least an inch in the strike zone. or you're challenging a strike. And it's an inch outside the strike zone. In the umpire's favor. You lose both challenges.
You have no challenges in the rest of the game. If your challenge is so far off by an inch, there was one last night in my game. If you lose by an inch, not like some of this stuff where the ball barely cracks the corner. If you lose your challenge by an inch. You lose every remaining challenge, doesn't matter how many you have left.
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