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Now, on with the show. The Browns go to one and one. Browns are gonna Browns. This is the Rich Eisen Show. Hey, I'm glad that I can still motivate, although I'm not coaching anymore.
Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles, today's guest, ESPN NFL analyst Marcus Spears. Plus your phone calls, latest news, and more. And now, it's Rich Eisen. Hour number two of the Rich Addison Show is on the air here on Disney Plus, the ESPN app. We're all getting set for Monday night football tonight, just up the road in SoFi Stadium.
It feels like three years since the Rams last played a football game, but they're going to finally play one tonight against the Giants team that looked terrific in week number one. We'll see what happens on ESPN, ABC, and the family of networks. And joining us here in advance of Monday Night Countdown, he's going to be joining us every single Monday on the program. But this time, he is here in person. Ladies and gentlemen, Marcus Spears is here.
Yeah. Look at us. Look at us. My head says happy. It does say happy.
I was so happy to be here. You do look happy. For a radio audience, you look happy. Thank you, man. Happy to have you here.
Thank you for having me. How's it going here? It's amazing. I mean, I walked in, first of all, I got dropped off at the wrong entrance, which is cool. We'll work on that.
Which is cool. No, no, no, no, no. Don't kill the driver. He's fine.
Okay. But then when I got into the green room, you got a lot of snacks in the green room. And by the looks of me, you know, I like the snacks. Yes, sir. The other thing is, you have great drinks in the refrigerator.
Okay. So staying hydrated is very important. I got a long day today.
Okay. But I wouldn't want to be anywhere else than starting up.
Well, by the way, roadies are fine if you want to take them.
Okay. Oh, please. In the mug. Don't tell me those type of things. In the mug, too.
I mean, anything not nailed down. All right, yeah. Yeah, we got it. Marcus Spears is here on the program. Woo!
Okay, so. Um, the best team you've seen through two weeks. Oh. You know what's crazy? Mm-hmm.
Through two weeks. They don't have to be 2-0, by the way. I know it. I know it. Through two weeks, a healthy San Francisco 49ers.
I listen, man, the the game in Australia against the Rams showed me Well, it kind of reminded me. We've been so accustomed to San Francisco losing players throughout the season. That team fully healthy. Is a problem now in the NFC, and I think they got a shot to actually go to a Super Bowl if. They can keep all their guys.
They've been super impressive, man. It seems like the Stingers back on defense. Obviously, Fred Werner being back makes a ton of difference for that unit. And then offensively, they just have so many guys now.
Well, they're going to need it because they aren't healthy at the receiving position. I know, I know. But, Rich, I'm telling you, man, with what they are, when they have their guys, they're going to be tough out. Yeah. And in terms of their defense, Raheem Morris being the defensive coordinator, Atlanta may have done them a favor.
Yeah. You know, and cutting him loose. I've got this stat right here: 20 points allowed through their first two games, second fewest allowed in the first two games of a season in the Super Bowl era. I'm telling you, man. I'm telling you.
They gotta stay healthy though. I mean, I think everybody knows it. It's not a secret. Like, they are super they are as talented as anybody. I think about two, like, the receiver position, right?
Bringing Debo Samuel back gives you a different element to that offense, especially with Kyle Shanahan. Kyle Shanahan and Debo Samuel is like Steve Kerr and Draymond. Right, Draymond probably couldn't play that well for anybody else in the league. But with Steve Kerr and that system. He is going to the Hall of Fame.
All right. And then you look at Mike Evans. If he can stay healthy throughout this season, the red area for the San Francisco 49ers will be devastating with him, George Kittle, and Christian McCaffrey. The elements. of this team offensively is very hard to stop.
with them available. And then Uscheck caught one as well. It's just look, and we know Kyle is going to put them in situations to take advantage of any mismatch that they have in the game. That's what His calling card has been his whole career.
Now, that said, Seattle's 2-0 now. Yeah. With Drew Locke. And Jackson Smith and Jigba. Yeah, brother.
Absolutely crushing it on our Overreaction Monday podcast that Chris and I recorded. We were, you know, the subject matter was JSN through two weeks needs to be talked about. Uh as he keeps moving forward. uh as an MVP candidate. Not not opp not he's already done the OPO Y.
But you got to talk about certainly if If Darnold misses a couple more games, too. Yeah, right? Mike McDonald, to me. He's a Super Bowl champion, winning head coach. But I think at this moment, we got to start talking about Mike McDonald as arguably the best coach in ball.
When you think about what he was able to do last year, going in with a backup this past week, and I know it was Arizona, but Arizona just had a big win week one. And you see what they have. Like at their disposal defensively for a long time, there is going to be a reckoning in the NFC West. I don't think the Rams are going to go quietly into the night, right? We'll see them tonight against New York to see if they fixed anything.
Probably a lot has been fixed since you didn't decide to fly to Australia the same day of your game. By the way, they're arriving at SoFi the same day as the game tonight. Yeah, I'm sure you're aware of that. But they've been in the city, hopefully. Throw that in your rundown tonight.
Yeah, we'll get sure they were there early.
So again, like it's it's uh it's gonna be a gauntlet. I mean, when you look at that division and you think about not only the coaches in that division. Um Sam Dorno obviously got to get back healthy, but Drew Locke looked fine to operate that offense. It's going to be amazing, man. And the defense, too, again, because Arizona showed in SoFi that they have to pay against the Chargers.
They can. Trey McBride is as good as they come, and we're still waiting for Marv Jr. to break out. You got Michael Wilson and the kid at running back and love. The Seahawks held the Cardinals to just 151 yards of offense, their fewest in three years.
That's what they do, though. That's what they do, man. Uh they get after it up front. The secondary is always tied together. Great communication.
Think about Mike McDonald when he was with the Ravens. Right. And the year after he left, how much that defense changed.
Now I know Namdi Matabike was hurt the following year, but Namdi Matabike got a hundred million dollar contract after playing. With with with Mike McDonald.
So I look at I look at it like this, Rich. You have a head coach in Seattle that's a defensive guy. leading A defensive unit that was already super talented, right?
So the mentality of that team permeates on both sides of the football. Which a little bit Shocked me why they let Kenneth Walker walk out of the door. Because I thought he was that lynch pin on offense that kind of simulated the way they like to play on defense.
Now, obviously. It hadn't hurt them the first two weeks of the season. But I think the way Mike McDonald's, McDonald's, runs his organization, his team. From a mentality standpoint, goes into every single week feeling like we the best team on the field. And you go back to last year, like the Rams put up numbers against them in the playoffs, didn't flinch.
That's when the offense showed up.
So they have this ability that you need as a championship football team, which is why I talked about the 49ers. All right, this this unit may not be having a day. We can match it on the other side. And you got to look for teams like that early.
So a lot of it is still being sorted out. But there's a couple of teams where we can look at and say, yeah, they're going to have either unit come to the party every week. San Francisco at Seattle, week five. Yeah, I can't. By the way, that'll be great.
And if I'm not mistaken, let me be sure I got that right. Yeah, that's when you'll be back here in Los Angeles. Week five finishes up with Buffalo here against the Rams. Marcus Spears on the Rich Eisen show here in person. Let's talk about the Bills and the AFC.
You got the Bills 2-0? You got the Bengals 2-0. And you've got The Chiefs 2-0. And the Raiders 2-0. You put your marker on which one?
to go the longest. Which one are you which which one do you put your marker on, Marcus Spears, right now? Sensei. Why is that?
Okay. Defensively, man, like I look, that offense is going to be able to score, right? Even the look, I don't want people to get this misconstrued. I got to give a public apology because I said that this was going to be the worst week to play the Houston Texans defense after coming off of what Josh Allen did to them. And if you look at the game like we do when we deep dive, Houston Texans defense played their ass off.
Like they had a majority of a great game. It's just Jamar Chase and Joe is going to get you at some point with enough opportunities. T. Higgins showed up. But when you look at the other side of the ball, And what Dexter Lawrence is doing in the trenches and creating everything for everybody else, that's going to be a problem for everybody to handle.
Cincey went out and they made a concerted effort. They said, look, we couldn't stop the run last year. We couldn't get people off the field on third down. We couldn't get our offense enough possessions with what we know about Joe Burrow and what those weapons are over there. And they went out and did it, man.
I mean, you look at the amount of possessions that Cincy had against the Houston Texans and for as long as it took them to finally get in the end zone. And one of the touchdowns is going to be arguably one of the top five catches we've seen ever. I say this catch right here is the clubhouse leader for catch of the year and may win that such award at NFL Honors for the Super Bowl here in SoFi later on this year. What's it like to play defense? And see something like that.
I mean, th the the the the corner that's on him is all pro too. Right. I mean it's L S U on L S U. But but but this is this is this is what it takes at times to be a championship football team. We know the Houston, Texas defense wasn't going to come out and give up 30-plus points since he made those opportunistic plays.
And then you have that other element that I talk about all the time, Rich.
Sometimes it ain't X's and O's, it ain't the coach on the sideline, it's guys. And with Jamar Chase, you know it's coming. It's like sitting under a water faucet and it ain't started running yet. But when it starts running, it's gonna tap you to death. And you're just gonna lose your mind because at some point, it's gonna raise up and get you.
If you look at that play. That particular catch. You cannot play better defense as a cornerback. There is no better defense other than Derrick Stingley being able to intercept the ball. In phase, in great position, and we end up with this.
The man towed two inches off. The out-of-bounds line. He's hanging outside the out-of-bounds and he holds on to that football because Joe Burrow and Jamar Chase have done this so many times. First of all, there's a lot of quarterbacks. In the NFL, that wouldn't throw that over there by Derrick Stingley.
But Joe Burrow will because Jamar Chase out there. And not pictured was the stumble before he located the football and stayed on his reach. To get to that point, that was stupid. That was. Stupid.
Yeah. That's what it was. But again, you look at that, and since he comes away with what they ended up with, 20 points in that game, kicked a 60-yard field goal at some point. But that play right there accounted for seven of it. And Houston and Seattle and the Steel Curtain couldn't have done a damn thing about it.
Not that play. Yeah, it broke a scoreless tie with three minutes to go in that first half. But the Bills looked like a wagon and the Chiefs looked like the Chiefs. You're still taking the Bengals right now. You're putting your marker on them.
Well, I can't dismiss the fact that the Chiefs gave up 30. last night. Um So, right now, just week two, it's just week two. And the Bills gave up 30 points together. The Bills gave up 30 points to their first two points.
So, you're taking the Bengals because of their defense. Who look at us? Look at this. We're just in week two, though. We got it, you know, things to sort out.
I know that, but this is the national. But I think the Bengals can score with either one of those guys.
So, right now, you do take the Dengers. We're taking them. And then the team that got shocked yesterday, that you're concerned about the most, the Chargers. You've got the Bucs now at 0-2 and the Ravens. I'm more concerned about the Chargers than anybody.
Why is that?
Offensively, it looks so discombobulated. Outside of Lab McCunky, who are they going to count on? Right now, they got to figure that out. Johnson got to start playing better. Gatson was the tight end was playing well.
He had some spurts. The guy that looked like a go to guy in this game yesterday was Kohler. The tight end.
So again, like it it you got snap. You got snap issues when you're trying to run motion across where it hits off a guy's hip. Is that the new offense? I think so. I think so, but with that, you lose to the Raiders.
And more importantly, you look at the defensive side of the ball, blown coverages for touchdowns. The one in the middle of the field of Tucker, safety just bit on the underneath route. And then the touchdown at the end to Kobe, it was just a bad blown coverage, miscommunication. Kirk Cousins. Can throw the football.
We all know that. Problem is. The Chargers should have known that if we sure up the secondary, we will be able to get pressure on Kirk and maybe put them in a bad way. The defensive line for the Chargers didn't play bad. They were pressuring him.
They were getting around him. Secondary gave up huge plays. And then you got the Njoku dropped that turns into an interception.
So it's just a. Everything that could go bad for the Chargers went bad, but they look super discombobulated on offense. That's the Hampton fumble at the end of the game.
Well, this was. the moment for me where I'm like, oh God. the Chargers are really a hot mess, to be honest with you. Because with all due respect to the Raiders organization and what they have done and what they are pulling off and what they look like in the future, Um a very raiders moment. where they call a timeout.
And it's fourth and inches for the Chargers, and they're going to go for it out of a timeout. They have too many men on the field. Yeah. And they get popped for five yards.
Now, that's old school Raiders foot shooting right there. And then the next play. I think it was Nokobi Dean who got the he got he popped the ball loose from from Hampton, made a play, totally flipped it. Oh, forget that old Raiders. Raiders are going to Raiders thing, to use the Monken phrase, which we'll get to with you in a second.
Yeah, Tom. And then they scored after that. And that's when I'm like, the Chargers are just totally. I mean, you think about Nicobie Dean, who you acquire. He's great.
He played great, man, played out of his mind. But ultimately, you know, Kuvier comes in and it's like, we got to change the identity of this team. And, you know, you love to see a signing turn into what it turned into with Nicoba Dean making that play. Raiders got a long way to go. We all know it.
We all know that eventually Kirk Cousins won't be the quarterback for them long term. But I'm going to give LV a lot of credit for being 2-0 and going in going. Play against the Chargers, to your point. That's a game that they usually cost themselves. And they came up and made plays when it was a critical moment.
Yeah, and the Chargers next month, you've seen that schedule, right? Yes. Their next step is a Lulu, and they're 0-2 going into the stretch. where they're now heading to Buffalo next. And Buffalo's coming off a mini buy.
And they have been a wagon. And then after that, they visit Seattle, welcome in Denver, and visit Kansas City. Three to the next four. Rich, I'm not, I gotta ask you this question for football. I'm not bereft.
What does wagon mean? Yeah. Wagon means that they're a large vehicle that is difficult to stop. I got you.
Okay. I would imagine that's what it is. No? Yeah, I guess so. I mean, I wouldn't.
So, what phrase would you use for locomotive? Locomotive.
Okay. But again, I get it. I get wagon. I get it. They're a mode of transportation.
Mode of transportation. That's what I'm going to do. Yeah, a big physical mode. Different views in the same church. I got you.
That's what we're basically saying. All right. I've got Marcus Spears here for one more segment before we send him off to the rest of his Monday, which ends up with a Monday night countdown tonight prior to a big-time football game between the Giants and the Rams, which we'll preview in a moment. Also, got to talk about your college football program and what that game was like this week. And I could be remiss if I did not talk about that with you.
But before I take a break, I want to tell you about Hyundai Hope on Wheels again because we're so proud to support it. For the past 28 years, with support from Hyundai, they're dealers in every new Hyundai sold. Hope on Wheels has contributed over $300 million to childhood cancer research because did you know every 36 minutes a child in the U.S. is diagnosed with cancer? Which means some of the bravest warriors you'll ever meet aren't professional athletes.
They're the kids in this fight. And Hyundai Hope on Wheels, through all of the programs, have helped save more than 40,000 kids.
So please join our fight at HyundaiWarriors.com. Marcus Spears here. When we come back, Spears is going to Spears. Basically, Spears is a wagon. Spears is a wagon.
Bum bum. The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. Did you know every 36 minutes a child in the U.S. is diagnosed with cancer? Which means some of the bravest warriors you'll ever meet aren't professional athletes or superheroes.
They're the kids in this fight. That's why I'm proud to support Hyundai Hope on Wheels. For the past 28 years, with support from Hyundai, their dealers, and every new Hyundai sold, Hope on Wheels has contributed over $300 million to childhood cancer research, helping save more than 40,000 kids. Join our fight at HyundaiWarriors.com. Rich Eisen here with some advice.
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Because in today's business environment, winning teams don't react to change, they shape it. Learn more at visit. kpmg. us slash velocity. What do you love, Marcus Vere?
I love when people are who they are. Mm-hmm. You got some people that the camera come on, they you know, the world loves them and then they ask Wit is the guy, man. Wit is with every single day of the week. A million percent agreed.
Yep. While we're on the subject, Marcus Spears here on the Rich Eisen Show. Our radio audience has returned. We're on the subject of being authentic. The Todd Munkin soundbite.
We already played it in hour one. We're going to play it again in hour two. We have to. We just simply have to. Because um We all know what's at stake here.
Absolutely. The Browns are going home next week. We all know what the fan base's opinions of Deshaun Watson when he's not winning is. Or even if he is winning. Maybe he wins.
Well, but they really haven't tasted a win like the one that they saw on Sunday, and Watson was exactly what the Browns needed him to be. And then Monken stepped up to the podium with Mike Tomlin talking about Juju Smith Schuster's quote about the Browns as the Browns. Hit it.
Well, we needed it. Right? There's only so much you can talk about things in life, right? Ultimately, we're judged by wins and losses as coaches, and we're judged how we play on the field. He works himself.
Not the name on the back. That's great. Player's name on the back is based on how they play on the field. Not their history. Not what they've done in the past, it's what you do every week.
That's the same as us. At this point now, It's all about winning, and it's them about winning their matchups and the players on the field. That's what it's all about. It's at that point. It's you out there and it's us collectively together.
And I thought our guys did a great job. of hanging together. We had a couple of scuffles Wednesday. Which is good. That's awesome.
'Cause guys didn't like it. Right? They're a little pissed off. Right? You ought to be a little pissed off.
Played awful. That wasn't the standard. Browns are gonna browns. That.
Okay. So the the guys took that to heart. Thank you. Thank you. How's that play in the locker room?
It plays for real. That's like a that matters, right? Like coach, coach went out there and said what he needed to say. He respects us as men that's trying to compete. Um That got me fired up.
I was actually locked in on top of my. I've seen the sound. I didn't hear it because I've been knee-deep in studying games. But that's the first time I've heard it, like the build-up to it. Yeah,'cause we only saw a lot of people just clipped off the end.
The end. That's impressive, dude. He worked himself up. Yeah, that's impressive. Like.
And coming off a wind, you beat Tampa too. That's not, you know. I like that from Todd Monk. I was leery of this, of hiring him. in the beginning because of the Brown situation, not because Todd Muncin can coach.
If you know anything about football, everybody respects Todd Muncin and how he can coach. That message permeates beyond football, though. And I think it can resonate with with with those guys. I mean It was a massive W. Certainly when he's just like, you know, hey, I'm seeing some good things on film.
And, you know, most of the fans were like, really? Rich people, look, man, football is. One of the reasons why I feel football is the greatest game we have Is because you never know. what opportunity or what mishap. is going to cost you from an opportunity to play for a championship.
Or get in the playoffs. And I know we're talking about the Browns right now, and that may not be their. in the cars for them in the future. You have to celebrate these wins, man. I think people just, they are so hard to get.
I think people think, like, oh, we're just going to roll it out there. I used to always say the margin between 1 and 15, and 15 is 1 is not as big as most people think it is. It's a couple plays throughout a game, and in that second half, the plays that. Cleveland was able to make the plays Deshaun was able to make, and pushing the ball down the field. By the way, um, These youngsters, Boston and Conception.
They're going to be really good football players. It's going to matter whatever they do, quarterback-wise, going forward, that they have those two in the clubhouse. But that's a huge win. for the Cleveland Browns. The only issue I have with that win is I love Todd Bowles.
This might be the biggest black eye on anything he's done. In Tampa up until this point.
So there's always, because you like, this is not a game you can lose in Tampa. Especially coming off of Baker signing the contract. the things that it it's just it's just one that they don't think You lose in Tampa. Especially when you got guys and you bringing them to the party. It's not like you had any catastrophic injuries.
It's not like people were missing. Like you, the defense gave up that much. Todd Bowles is a defensive guy. We ain't seen Deshaun Watson perform like that since 1965. And you get that giving up.
with a defensive coach, ass head coach. It's just that's a tough one for me with Todd. That's gonna be a tough one. to get over if you're making a decision about his future going forward. Marcus Spears here on The Rich Eisen Show.
You just said how tough it is to win in the National Football League, and you need to celebrate wins when you get them.
So your message to the fan base of the two and O Philadelphia Eagles is what? Celebrate. but also be op be cautiously optimistic.
Well, cautiously optimistic, I don't think are two words that Philadelphia Eagle fans are thinking right now.
So Rich, here's the thing, right? Like You go to Tennessee, you got to gut it out. You got to win a game late. Jalen got to make a game-winning drive, and he does, right?
So, hopefully. It acquires some of the noise about your quarterback. But they gotta make improvements. Like everybody else. Like, I don't look.
The offensive line in Philly is not the same as the one we used We got accustomed to from three, four years ago. Obviously, you lose Landon Dickerson. That's a big loss for them. Last year, they played a lot. Um, without their five guys, especially lame.
So it's a lot of things that you want to see improve in Philly. I just got a lot of confidence in. The the the franchise Understanding how to win those type of games. And and history gives you a little bit of Leeway. And I think Philly will be fine.
And it ain't like. It's world beaters in the NFC East right now. We'll find out more about the Giants tonight, but I think this division is going to be highly competitive, and Philly is going to be right in the midst of it. And you got to get to the tournament, man. Like, you got to get to the tournament.
And once you get to the tournament, All bets off. What's your opinion of the NFC North now through two weeks? Caleb is week to week. Caleb's week to week. Carson Wentz is now.
basically like technically Colin Murray got the win in week one because that's the way things work in the scorebook of the NFL. But Carson Wentz is. Basically, 2-0. The Packers had a pull one out of their orifice against the Jets. And the Lions we just saw.
They could easily be on too. What's your opinion of that division? I'm so disappointed that Caleb has the missed time because I think the sh I think the Bears were ripened to take. Full advantage of that. They were down 6'3 in the rain, even with Caleb doing before he got hurt.
Which I get it and I understand it, but I'm going to give more credence to what Caleb Williams is consistently. What I think I said before the season, it was going to turn into superstardom for him. I thought we were going to talk about Caleb Williams as a top-five guy after this season. I thought he was going to make that significant of a jump. Give BFLO.
And that defense a tremendous amount of credit. I mean, because in those elements, you gotta stop the run. And they did a phenomenal job at not letting that break the backs of what this team was, keeping that offense in it just enough to go out and make a few plays. I want to get more news on Caleb and see when he can come back. I always get Leary of muscle issues, like, Potential tears and all of that, because we know his movement is a big part of what makes that offense devastating.
But I still believe Chicago is the formidable team in that division with Caleb.
Now, I'm not gonna sleep on Minnesota. And the reason why I won't is because defensively, they are going to perform like that, like they did this week, more consistently than giving up. points in doing all of that. I don't know what you do when Kyler comes back. I'm sure they're going to put him back in the starting lineup.
Hopefully, he can get it going. But Justin Jefferson still plays over there. and Aaron Jones and defensively, they're going to continue to make plays. They're not bereft of weapons on offense either.
So I think Minnesota and Chicago might square that thing out.
Now Micah coming back, how much is that going to change for Green Bay? Um It's still up in the air, but I had Chicago. Going into the season as the team to come out of that north. Yeah. I I hear you.
I chose the Lions and then I Well, defensively, man, and it hurts my heart because Kelvin Shepard is an LSU guy, the defensive coordinator.
Well, what's the scoop? How can they tighten the bolts here? I mean, one. Look, it's similar to Dallas for me. First week, the communication was awful.
Again, week two, it was awful for Detroit as well. Giving up. Uncovered Touchdowns. You got injuries back there. Like all of that stuff kind of rolls into it.
There's reasons and there's excuses. I won't make excuses. For a team giving up Not knowing assignments, not being in the right spots, and that's a lot of what's going on in Detroit defensively right now. Um It's just a it's a mess. You know what's unfortunate about Detroit?
I'm gonna say it. It looks like that window of excitement. Is shedding really, really fast. And it's not because. Offensively, they can't get it done.
Defensively They are far behind. And injuries have a part to play in that, but In this iteration of the NFL, man, you got to be able to get off the field and get your offense back the ball. And I just don't see it happening for them. I got three teams for you: one and one Pittsburgh, one and one Baltimore, 0-2 Houston. Your biggest level of concern out of all three?
Which one are you most concerned about? 1-1 Pittsburgh, 1-1 Baltimore, 0-2.
Well, I'm not concerned about Pittsburgh. I didn't expect them to do much anyway. Oh. Houston is my concern because Houston can't run the football. CJ Stroud has thrown almost a hundred passes in two weeks.
I think he had like ninety six. You can't live like that. Montgomery had three touchdowns the week before. The week one. But again, Rich, like.
Last year, Houston couldn't run the football. And we came into the offseason not knowing if they should pay their quarterback because of dismal performances in the playoffs. You look at Every team that has success They had success on the ground. Every single team. I don't think C.J.
Stroud is a bad quarterback. This is the first last year in the playoffs, when we were in New England for the countdown, I said they should bench C.J. Stroud at halftime. Mm-hmm. I said they should put they should bench him.
Let the backup come in who's played some time, and hopefully, you can get out of here with a win and kind of reprogram your starter. And hopefully, he can come back next week and be better. This past game against Cincinnati, and I'm giving that defense a tremendous amount of credit. In the NFL, when you become one-dimensional, It's damn near impossible to win. And that's what they became.
First, second quarter. It's terrible, man. I'm concerned about Houston. That defense actually played a really good game in Houston. They got the Joe, sacked him, forced pressures, all of that type of stuff.
And offensively, they couldn't move a muscle. All right, before I let you go, we'll talk Monday night, but before we do, we've got to talk Saturday night. Yeah. L S U and Ole Miss. How'd you take that one in?
Where were you? Home? I was home. You watch it by yourself? What do you got?
I felt like some music was about to start. No, no. That's all right. You know what? I am actually.
I am actually still okay. The one the one caveat I have is Levitt is going to have to play more quarterback than being a scrambler. He missed some throws in that game that concerned me.
Well, the one at the end where, you know, the backup tight end is wide open and he kind of nailed it saying he didn't reset his feet for an easy throw. But again, Rich, I think that's because his first mind is to take off. Right? Like you have you have to. You look at Trinidad Chambers.
Quarterback for old miss. He played quarterback. Like Lane Kiffen would prefer you to play quarterback. And yeah, it's cool when you're playing Clemson. Clemson is bad, by the way.
All right. And it's cool when you're playing Louisiana Tech and you're scrambling around and you're doing all of that. Brother, you get the SEC play, you gonna have to make SEC throws. From the pocket, you're going to have to put the ball on people. And I think right now he's so caught up in, let me go make this play, let me run around, be exciting.
You got to make throws. Trinidad Chambliss made throws. It ain't like, it looked like it was about to be a blowout. LSU is uberly talented, though. I got to tell you, I thought you were coming back and winning that game.
I even texted Chris. I even texted Chris. I'm just wondering how many points by how many points is LSU winning? And I think if we could have played a little bit more quarterback. as opposed to wanting to be a scrambler and run around.
And make a few more throws, it could have been that way. Are you happy with Lane? Because it looks better than the Brian campaign. You're happy with him. I'm happy with him because he's embraced what LSU is.
Which is what? Which is culture matters as much as winning games. Brian Kelly was like, nah, to hell with the culture. I'm not about to. I'm not about to.
Come on, he showed up almost cooking gumbo in the half court of a basketball game. Rich, you see, this is why we're going to have a lot of fun. Me and you, like, we like them two kids at school that just sit back talking about people. You talk about his family. Kelly was never a family.
Yeah, the family. Yeah, that's when they lost it. That's when he lost it. He didn't even play again. That's when he lost it.
His first day there. That's when he lost it, man. And I'm I'm you know, LSU is in my heart and I love my school. Yes. So I'm always trying to like.
be a little bit even kill. But you know when it's a problem. And It was a problem. Lane has brought back what LSU is supposed to be. Which is what?
Swagger? Which is swagger, which is big brand, understanding the excitement around the game. He walked out against Louisiana Tech with Lil Boosie and Lil Wayne. Yeah. That's not even a big game.
But it was a big festive LSU the way it's supposed to be, gay. Right. Now, we struggled in the first half, so I was like, don't bring Boosie and Wayne no more. But we finally took off in Wayne. I think we got a lane sound bite.
Here, go ahead and hit it. It was just a lot, you know, um coming in and I'm sure that'll be criticized, whatever, but there's a lot of stuff. Like I said, six years here and a lot of things and a lot of life-changing experiences and a lot of really good people that helped me through some really hard times. I just thought I'd probably be more in like the competitive mode, you know, and just kind of embrace it and it was just a little bit. I don't know, sometimes you can't predict your emotions.
You know, I know that.
Sometimes I don't act like it, but I gotta, I'm a human too. Mm.
Sometimes I don't act like it.
Okay. He's fifty, you know, sometimes you.
Okay. Kinda started doing a little Self-check. A little self-check. Evaluation. Interesting.
I thought Lane was solid in the game. Hey, that was an outstanding football game. It was so much fun to watch, and the atmosphere was off the charts. We got to get better quarterback play from the pocket. That's really what it balls down.
All right, before I let you go, what does Monday night? What does tonight look like to you? I'm excited for the Giants, to be honest with you. I want to see if they can replicate what they did against Dallas.
Now they gonna get a team that The last outing we saw got Physically beat at the line of scrimmage, gave up a tremendous amount of plays, uncharacteristic offensively. I know Puka is out, so how would they compensate from that? But I don't think the Giants and the way they played was a flute. I think physicality travels. I think the mentality travels, but more importantly, The way Jackson Dart played simple football was the most impressive thing to me against Dallas.
Now, Dallas had their issues defensively, and maybe L.A. doesn't, but I got to believe that New York is going to come in here with a lot of confidence about the way their quarterback played and the way they were able to dominate the line of scrimmage. What do you expect out of 99 tonight? I expect 99 to be really good. It's going to take some time.
Like, look, man, these dudes, this is still the NFL. But I think AD is going to have his impactful plays that's going to give us signs that once he gets in rhythm and once he gets going, there's going to be a problem, especially when 95 gets back, Miles Garrett. But I expect him to make some plays. I think I got him with a sack tonight.
Okay. I think fresh legs and his ability, you don't, for him, that's like swimming. Like, you drop back and pass. It ain't like he forgot how to swim, dude. Like, he's gonna, he's strong as an ox.
He's still fast. Footwork's still crazy. He's gonna make some plays that's gonna remind people, like, ah, yes, I'm glad we got him back. It's gonna be, again, there's a ton of transplanted New Yorkers here in Los Angeles, distrust. And, you know, clearly, I'm one of them.
And so, there's gonna be a lot of Giants fans in that building tonight. But Rams fans are gonna show up. And if Donald. Makes one play, sort of like another 99 in Houston, when J.J. Watt made plays, when Marshawn Lynch made plays in Seattle.
It's like a like the Matrix. You're connected by a cable with the rest of humanity. But what I, but to your point, Rich, what I don't want people to miss, like, like, miss with AD coming back. Is that when you get into that huddle? It's like Aaron Donald on our team now.
Yeah. Like that changes the other ten. Right. And we're not even talking about Miles being back yet. That's the excitement level.
So I think more than his play, which he'll be fine, he'll get going at some point. It's just the guys around him are like, man. Aaron Donald really in this huddle right now. And that's going to, Turner, that's going to affect him. Fist, that's going to affect him.
That's going to affect guys around him to play better. It's kind of like what Dexter Lawrence is doing in Scentsy. Interesting. I feel like there are certain guys that not only calm you, but bring something out of you. And I think the reverence that these guys are going to have for Aaron Donald, being back in the lineup, seeing him come back, especially if he make a play or two early.
It's going to give everybody else on that defense a lot of juice. And you may see a different Rams defense than you saw week one. Monday night countdown later on this afternoon, Pacific Coast time. And then tonight, obviously, Monday night football. Marcus.
This is so much fun. This was amazing. I look forward to next Monday when we're just zooming and then back here in week five. But in the meantime, enjoy the double-fisted green room, man. Get in there at both hands.
What was the ice cream again? Oh, it's called CVT. I'll walk you there. I'll walk you right there. Yeah, it's coming up.
It's outstanding. Also, Rich. Yes, sir. Someone who has a lot of peer. Problems with Twitter/slash X, just like you.
Okay. Oh, man. Yeah, I've got an awful lot. I know we might not have time, but we'll talk about that. We'll do about that next time.
You have to. No, this is just the beginning. Yeah. Yeah. Back here on the Rich Eisen Show with your phone calls in just a moment.
The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. Quick break to tell you some game time tips. When you're hosting during football season, you've got to be ready for every kind of craving.
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So join the 2.7 million small businesses using LinkedIn to hire. Get started by posting your job for free at linkedin.com/slash eisen terms and conditions. Apply. All right, everybody. Daniel in Irvine, California wants to chime in.
What's up, Daniel? Hey Rich, how's it going? What's going on? Oh, you got me, Rich. I do.
What's up, Dave? Where are you? Uh, I'm in Irvine, uh I called last week about my chargers. Season C holder had to sit through that again. I know you touched on it a bit with Market Spears there.
Uh When I got home, I don't know if you guys saw that clip. I got home and I saw a clip of Mike McDaniel on the bench talking to Herbert, and Herbert was. staring off into space, never looked over at him. And everyone just looks out of sorts. Very I saw the great Chris Rim had an ex post where in the locker room he asked Khalil Mack.
Hey, what was Coach Harbaugh's message after the game? And Mac was like, to be honest, I kind of was. Not listening because I was just thinking about the game.
So it just seems like all the veterans are in a shock and. I just feel like I need a hug because I don't know. What else to do?
Well, uh a couple things. Here comes the hug, the Rich Eisen Show bro hug, which is I reach around and Give you a crap, and then we separate, you know.
So that's the bro hug. I don't know. Just listen, Daniel and I have just met. We've had the last couple weeks. Last time I spoke with him, I had an appendix.
Now I don't. Oh, you're a different person.
So, yeah, I've changed. But listen, man. How about this, Daniel? A totally new offense has been installed. And They didn't really play very much in the preseason.
And I know the quality of opponents that came in are based on last year.
Something that would cause a ton of trouble for you because you should at least come out of two home dates against them one and one rather than 0-2. But maybe, just maybe, going on the road here to western New York to take on a wagon of a Bills team is exactly what you need. Go on the road, go on a plane flight, let's bond, let's get in the hotel, let's do some bonding stuff, let's change up the routine because the current routine stinks on ice, man. And it's a bad feeling. And obviously, Josh Allen is the last person you want to face when you're feeling, you know.
Um Sub par and the Confidence Department. It can shake you even more. That's what I got for you. Because the rest of it. is just terrible.
You gotta flush and pull. You gotta just flush it. And pull yourselves out of the depth and get on that stage with a let's sequin glove and get get get things going. Daniel, that's all I'm going to say. And thanks for the call.
Greatly appreciate it. Hopefully, you call back next week and say this atta boy worked. You know? Uh Daniel. The way it's gone so far.
Is a hardcore 0-2 disappointment. Thanks for listening to the Rich Eisen Show podcast. You can watch and listen to the Rich Eisen Show live weekdays from noon to 3 Eastern on ESPN Radio, Disney Plus, and on the ESPN app, The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. This episode is brought to you by State Farm. No two football players are exactly alike, and the same is true off the field.
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