REShow: Kirk Cousins - Hour 2

Something amazing happened to me when I was shopping at Total Wine & More the other day. Not only did I find a new favorite vodka, but I also found the perfect gifts for everyone on my list thanks to Dave, one of their super helpful guides. I'll definitely be visiting my Total Wine & More again soon so I can pick up more great bottles for my holiday party and all at the lowest price. This holiday you'll love what you find only at Total Wine & More.

Spirits not sold in Virginia and North Carolina. Drink responsibly. Be 21. The Rich Eisen Show. What can you do to make that happen?

Work on it. Earlier on the show, two-time Super Bowl champion Chris Long. Coming up, Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins, writer and director John Ridley. And now, it's Rich Eisen. Hour number two of The Rich Eisen Show is on the air.

Great chat. Now we're number one with Chris Long, two-time Super Bowl champion. I asked him which of the three teams atop the AFC if he had to put his marker on one right now. Sports talk radio conversation. I penned him in. And I said which of the teams, Buffalo, Kansas City or Cincinnati, would he put his marker on and he said the Bengals.

He said the Bengals. Yeah, I put that out in a poll actually just now at the Rich Eisen Show. And what do we have so far? Let me get that with a retweet, Chris. Yeah, let's take a look at the early results. I just put it out there. And by the way, we will abide by the results.

What do you got? If you had to pick right now, who comes out of the AFC? Bills, Chiefs, Bengals or the field? Yes, or the field. Yeah, the field. Or the rest of the field.

I don't know. Bills, 33%. Shout out Larry Bird. Chiefs, 28%. Bengals, 28%.

Shout out Marcia Falk. Bengals, 28%. The field, 12%.

Shout out Tom Brady. What are you putting it on? Who are you putting it on?

Who are you putting it on? Who's got home field? I guess I said right now. Buffalo wins out, they have home field.

Then I'm going to take them. Hold on a second. Kansas City wins out, right? Kansas City wins out and Buffalo doesn't. Kansas City is the one seed. If Kansas City, hold on a minute. If the Bengals win out and the Chiefs lose one of their last three, the Bengals are the one seed.

I think I just did that right. Because the Bengals play Buffalo, they'll have the same record as Buffalo. And thus, they have the tie break over Buffalo. They also have the tie break over Kansas City. They're a game behind Kansas City. They've got to catch up one game to Kansas City. Kansas City has home dates against Seattle and Denver before going to the Raiders. The Raiders could stick it in Kansas City going out the door. Spit their last breath at them potentially like the Rafa Khan right at the Chiefs. And put the Chiefs out of the buy and put Cincinnati in.

How about that? Or Buffalo in. I'm going to say Buffalo. You're going to go Buffalo. What about you TJ Jefferson? You, you sir. I think I'm at the point now where Mahomes has kind of reached semi-mythical status.

So much like with Tom Brady, I think I'm at the point where if you've got Mahomes on your team. Then I'm having a hard time picking against you. I mean because he's a bad man. I'm going Kansas City. Do you know why?

Because he's a bad man? Why? I'm going Kansas City because I've already pissed them off so significantly. I'm trying to get back on their good side. Well don't worry about that.

There's a better reason than that. But if you want to go with the one seed, right? I think Cincinnati beats the Bills in week 17 and Kansas City doesn't lose the rest of the way. I mean, I know Kansas City has not played its best game in a few weeks. I cannot see them losing to Seattle or Denver at home and I just don't see them going to Vegas and losing that one. I just can't.

I just don't. You know? Yeah, the Chiefs are a problem. So the Chiefs are going to be the one seed. Now can Cincinnati or Buffalo go back into their house once again and beat them?

Sure. Buffalo would have to just do it in the playoffs for the first time. Cincinnati's like, who cares? We've done it.

Been there, done that. So for the marker, for the one seed to go Kansas City. And then obviously that gives them the best shot to win. But I do love the Bengals, as you know. I love me some Cincinnati Bengals. And the Bengals have a playoff clinching scenario this week.

I've got playoff clinching scenarios. Right here, give me music. It's so great. It's so great.

I've got them for you. Let's go AFC. The Buffalo Bills can clinch the American Football Conference Eastern Division with a simple win. One dub at the Bears.

Or, or if somehow, you know, Justin Fields does his thing. Then they root for the Green Bay Packers to win because a Dolphins loss or a tie against the Packers puts them in in the division victory anyway. So they can clinch the AFCs this weekend is basically what I'm saying. Just a simple win in Chicago. Cincinnati clinches a play on all playoff berth. All they got to do is going to New England and follow up that Patriots hail moron with a win. Or, or if the Jets lose on Thursday Night Football, it's already done.

So they're rooting for the Jaguars in Cincinnati, which is ironic because last time the Jaguars were in Cincinnati last year. Right. I just love taking my shots. It's so simple.

The fruit hangs low, but I love plucking it. As a matter of fact, let's do this. Go ahead.

Give me that sound by right now. Just putting it right there. The little Easter egg right in the middle of this segment. Are we hitting Richard the King level? Oh, yes. In the petty chart. Yeah.

Richard the King. Ray Sean Jenkins who had that pick six against your Cowboys. After the game, you know, everyone's asking, Hey, what's the difference between this year and last? I love these questions being asked to Jaguars who give this answer because it's so obvious.

It's plain as the nose is everybody's faces, but here we go. Roll it. Go for it. You struggled last year and had a tough year. Why?

What has changed for you? I mean, this is, it's not just today. No, I'm going to just be very upfront. No, I'm just coaching. So we're a ray smarter team now. We got information coming to us and, you know, our coaches do a really good job making sure we know what's coming and making sure we're prepared going into the game. Information's coming to us last year. You know what?

The other information that they got last year from urban was I won't be on the plane. I'm not going to be there. You can have my seat.

I'm just going to stay behind and go viral. Let's go home. We know who Aaron Donald is. You guys go home. We know the other team's best players. What's the difference between this year and last coaching? Just going to flat out say it.

And he said it like very matter of fact. Oh my gosh. Why can't we have played them last year?

Oh boy. We would have got that win on Sunday. Unbelievable.

I love plucking that low hanging fruit. And with each passing Jaguars win and each time Trevor Lawrence is as great as he looks. We'll just keep reminding everybody. Oh, playoff clinching scenario for the Baltimore Ravens.

There's 10 of them. We've saved you from six of them because it involves a Baltimore tie. But the Ravens can clinch a playoff spot if they win at home against Atlanta. OK. And it's combined with a Miami Dolphins loss and a Patriots loss. Dolphins lose at home to Green Bay. Then that result combined with either a Patriots loss or a Jets loss. So they'll know on Thursday night football.

What's up? Because they can win and they need three different scenarios to unfold. Dolphins and Patriots loss, a Dolphins and Jets loss or Patriots and Jets loss.

That's quite a path to the basket. So they got a Cincinnati win and a Jaguars win. Just two of the hottest teams in the AFC and they beat the Falcons. They're in a playoffs.

Or the Chargers win on Monday night and the Patriots, Jets, Browns, Raiders and Titans all lose. So what's that? Is that it? That is, yeah.

Thank you, Ed O'Neill. The Chargers have a playoff clinching scenario. Yeah. So bottom line is if the Raiders, Patriots and Jets lose or the Raiders lose. And there's all the other stuff, too, but that's the best scenario right here. Here we go.

I'm not going to bother reading the rest of the ties and the Partridge in the pear tree, but it's the clearest one. If the Raiders lose in Pittsburgh Saturday night and the Patriots lose at home to Cincinnati on Saturday and the Jets have already lost on Thursday night, then the Chargers know their Monday night game against the Colts would be a winning scenario for them. That's possible, don't you think?

Very feasible. You just need three other results to happen before they take the field on Monday night against Indianapolis. Playoff clinching scenario in the National Football Conference.

There's two. One belongs to the New York Giants. That's how big that win was on Sunday night. Because if they go into Minnesota and beat our second, our guest Kirk Cousins is calling in shortly, then combined with a Washington loss at San Francisco and either a Lions loss against, let me get this straight, at Carolina or Seahawks loss at Kansas City.

How about that? So if they beat the Vikings and the commanders lose in San Francisco and Seattle loses in Kansas City, they're in the playoffs. I think they're going to lock it up this week, right? I mean, those are two games that will be tough for the commanders and Seahawks to win on the road at San Francisco, at Kansas City, and then the Giants beat the Vikings. They're in.

That's totally feasible. Last playoff clinching scenario for you. Last playoff clinching scenario for you involves the Philadelphia Eagles. All they got to do is win in Dallas and they clinched home field throughout the playoffs.

The East is one and the entire conference is one with a single win in Dallas. Now they will not have their quarterback, it seems. Jalen Hurts.

Now it's only fair because the last time these two teams played, we didn't have ours. Cooper Rush started for Dak and Jalen Hurts started for Philly and Philly won that. So I guess the football gods are putting their thumb on the scale?

Maybe. By putting Gardner Minshew in this game and taking the MVP, I believe, front runner, prior to this news of his shoulder injury, Jalen Hurts out. Unless Jalen Hurts is still going. But every report says he's out with a strained throwing shoulder. I think he should rest. Suffered in the win over Chicago in which, as Chris Long pointed out in hour one, he still had 100 yards passing in the fourth quarter with it.

With it, yeah. Nick Ceriani today on Jalen Hurts' injury. He's out of sprained shoulder and I do not put it past Jalen Hurts. I don't put anything past Jalen Hurts as far as his mental and physical toughness.

So there's a chance he could play this week. And so he is one of the toughest guys I know. And he heals fast. He's free. His body is not like, pardon me, yours or mine.

And so I'm shaming myself there a little bit too. His body's not like ours. He heals fast. He came back fast from his injury last year. And I will not rule him out.

I will not put a timetable on him. And we'll see. We'll see what happens this week. But both guys, he'll be ready to go if he can play this week and so will Gardner. So there you got it.

There you have it. You got yourself another situation where the Philadelphia Eagles are rolling to the playoffs with an MVP quarterback. And they lose him late in the season. It was week 14 in their championship run where Carson Wentz decided to go headfirst in the end zone in the L.A. Coliseum against the Rams.

And Aaron Donald met him there. And that's when Nick Foles came in. But that was an injury that knocked Carson Wentz out for the rest of the year. So is it Gardner mints you in the role of Nick Foles? Well, you're hearing, though, Nick Sirianni say he might play this week knowing Jalen Hurts. If I'm Nick Sirianni, though, I do not play Jalen Hurts this week. You do not need to play Jalen Hurts this week. You're already in a win and win the whole damn conference scenario entering week 16. There's two more games in which to attempt to do it.

A home date against New Orleans seems a lot better to me. To do that. And so that's what I would counsel. I don't even, you know, I'm not a doctor. I don't play one on TV.

I haven't seen the MRI. But I'm hearing that. But you're already hearing, oh, my gosh, shades of 2017, you know, when Carson was our quarterback and he goes out. Pretty much the one seed was sealed anyway. And Nick Foles starts coming in and the magic happens. And sure enough, we play the NFC Championship game at home against Minnesota, which, by the way, is your two seed right now.

Lots of shades of championship glory. And people are already buying the grease for their telephone poles. Right. And, you know, I counsel twice. Two things. One. One.

I don't believe from what everything I'm hearing that hurts is significantly hurt, but he's hurt enough for them to sit in this week. And I think they should. And what if that happens? Do not take this cheese. Don't do it.

It's going to come. I know it. I know this business.

And I know who people, how people work in this business and I know who works in this business. Do not take the cheese. That Gardner Minshew is the best quarterback for this run if he looks as good as he's going to look. It's interesting that Minshew, if he starts this game, is in the Cooper Rush role of starting in a game against the rival in Dallas in the same way that Rush started in this game in a rival against Philadelphia. But don't make the same mistake so many people made back in that day that Rush was better for Dallas than Dak. Now when Dak comes back, maybe you shouldn't have his job. Remember I told you also back at that time we ran through a whole bunch of quarterbacks in the NFL who's just one long injury stint away from being in that same barrel with fan bases and media chatter? That who in this league would be immune to the behavior from fans and media alike that Dak was subjected to when he was coming back and convalescing from his broken thumb? Who would be immune from it? Like Mahomes would be immune from it.

Herbert would be immune from it. Allen. I mean you know the quarterbacks who it would be.

Yeah, of course. I will find it fascinating, certainly in Philadelphia and nationally, to see if Jalen Hurts is immune to it after being the far and away, despite how Mahomes and Allen had been playing, going into week 15 MVP favored. And the way he played in week 15 as well, despite turning the ball over in a rarity for him. Don't take the cheese. Please don't take the cheese. I love Gardner Minshew. He's so exciting. He's fun. The way he will arrive to work and come off the plane is intoxicating.

It's going to be fun. And Sirianni and him are just going to be like a great buddy buddy cop drama or the cannonball run going across the country. Minshew even looks like Burt Reynolds, not to say that Sirianni is the Dom DeLuise, but you get my drift. Don't take the cheese that will come with Gardner Minshew starting. Jalen Hurts is a superlative talent. He is the MVP of this league.

And I already saw members of the media already say, Minshew was just as good. Well now we're about to see it. Yes, sir. Look it up. Look it up. So 300 yards, three touchdowns. Don't take the cheese.

Then you'll hear Hurts is a system quarterback. Don't do it. Honestly, find something else to do in the holiday season.

You're a thousand percent correct. It's coming. Don't take it. So I should cross that off over Reaction Monday next week?

Well, next week for sure, since you'll be in Europe. But yeah, it's coming. Don't do it. I'm counseling everyone. I'm begging y'all.

Don't do it. Hurts deserves better. But Minshew, I think will be very good in it. And I think he's very, he's got a talented team around him. Certainly if we're seeing Brock Purdy operate the way that he's in San Francisco, Minshew's got a heck of a lot more experience than Purdy. And he's going to make some wild plays and it's going to be fun to watch. And Sirian is going to be yelling at the Cowboy fans and it's going to be a dynamite game to watch.

Either way, don't take the cheese all I'm saying. Take a break. Kirk Cousins of the Minnesota Vikings coming up right here on the Rich Eisen Show.

I wouldn't move. He only came up with a 33 point comeback Saturday. Can't wait to chat with him next. Something amazing happened to me when I was shopping at Total Wine and More the other day. Not only did I find a new favorite cabernet, but I also found the perfect gifts for everyone on my list. Thanks to Dave, one of their super helpful guides. I'll definitely be visiting my Total Wine and More again soon so I can pick up more great bottles for my holiday party and all for the lowest price. This holiday, you'll love what you find only at Total Wine and More. Curbside pickup and delivery where available. Drink responsibly.

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Our members are the mission insured by NCUA. Let's go to Charlie in Montclair, New Jersey. You're here on the Rich Eisen Show. What's up Charlie?

Hey Rich, how's it going? I'm a fan of the show, big fan of you. Thanks pal.

I aspire to be like you in my future. I'm a fellow Jet fan myself. Hold on a second Charlie. Charlie, hold on a second. Charlie, you like that.

Compliments. How old are you? I'm 22. You're 22. Charlie. Your whole life is ahead of you. Yeah Charlie.

Excuse me. He wants to be me. So what does that mean his whole life is ahead of you? I mean he's 22.

He's 22. But Charlie, hold on a second. I'm sorry. I'm sorry to put you in the middle of this. What is happening? You see, he's looking at it the wrong way Chris. You said your whole life's ahead of you like there's more things to aspire to than what you just said.

That is not at all what he meant. That's how I saw it too. That's cute Jay. The Jew connection. The Jew's thing negative about me. Hey, hey.

Every Gentiles are half full. No, I didn't take it. He's just saying, he's just complimenting the fact that Charlie, man, you're 22. Charlie, he's young. He's got his whole life. I'm 42.

It's over for me. I'm a sports media major. What you guys do is what I hope to do when I'm in the industry. Oh, you two kind of lumped them in together. Don't lump them in with your aspirations.

Award-winning journalist. All right, Charlie. Sorry to detour here.

What do you got? Not no sweat. So I said I'm a big Jets fan. My family's been season ticket holders since the early 70s. I've been to every game this year. Oh boy. Except for the week one Ravens game. Okay.

And I don't know if you've been paying attention to these solid pressures the last few days. But more and more, I want to give Zach the time to develop. What he can do compared to what he can't do, you can teach him to be, you can teach Zach Wilson to be like Mike White. But you can't teach Mike White to be like Zach Wilson. So I think this, the instant coffee quotes, I think Zach just needs some more time. And eventually he's going to be able to come into his own. And I think Thursday night's a great first step in that. I'm not saying he should be starting if Mike White's healthy.

But I think Zach Wilson should get a third year just like Sam Darnold did in 2020. Well, the thing that kind of gave me pause, Charlie, if you maybe you missed yesterday's show and if you did, that's okay. You got your whole life ahead of you.

You can catch up on it. That, you know, Daniel Jeremiah, who knows Joe Douglas very well, the general manager. And so he knows everything that's happening right there. He said that the offense isn't, he basically said the offense isn't suited for Zach. That Zach's a home run hitter that's going to, you know, strike out sometimes. And they're asking him to do things that a home run hitter needs to retrain his brain to do. Rather than retraining their offense to suit the home run hitter.

And that kind of freaked me out a little bit, to be very honest with you. But the bottom line is this. It's a week to week league. It really is a moment to moment league. And Zach has an opportunity on Thursday night, Charlie, to light it up against a team that is hot and a quarterback that is hot. And to me, you know, if I had a choice right now, do I want Mike White back or do I want Quinnen Williams back? I would choose Quinnen Williams because that's the guy who can anchor that like, boy, did they miss him. Jared Goff needed somebody in his lap named Quinnen Williams in the same way that Aaron Rodgers had Quinnen Williams in his lap. Like Rodgers was a Santa Claus, a mall Santa Claus, you know, and Goff didn't have that. And so I need to see Quinnen Williams active Thursday night.

Get this done. Let's get a run game for Zach. And then we'll figure out if Mike White is the guy, by the way, going against Geno in week 17. You want to talk about, you know, irony or football gods winking at you.

So, you know, I understand what you're saying. You know, you want to see Zach develop, but Zach needed to sit clearly for a multitude of reasons. The circumstances required Zach to get back out there and his stat lines were eye popping, but his his results were wanting and lacking. I want to see Quinnen Williams out there. And that's what the Jets need, I think, if I had to choose someone who will help them win on Thursday night.

It's it's it's Quinnen Williams over Mike White, in my estimation, right now. You're right. And I apologize for missing the show yesterday. That's OK, Charlie. I apologize.

Like I said, there's there's there's there's the video on demand service on the Roku channel. And again, you've got your whole life ahead of you. Don't worry about it.

Charlie's 22. Thanks. Thanks, John. Appreciate the call. But but but but but Zach Wilson wasn't wasn't suited for this offense.

And why did they draft it? Just one last question. OK, because he made that great throw in the pro day. Oh, yeah. I think that I don't know. Thanks for the call, Charlie.

I appreciate it. Charlie, sorry. I didn't I didn't hear his last thing because Mike Hoskins was telling me that the meeting that Cousins was in was broken. But the leadership council has stayed behind. And Kirk is one of the leaders, so he'll be out soon. Charlie asked if it's true that he was not a fit for the offense. Why was he drafted second?

I mean, if Santiago, why wasn't Santiago packed? You know what I mean? I don't know. No, but I asked that of Daniel Jeremiah yesterday. You know, why draft him if you're going to bring in an offense that he's not suited for. And he's like, well, until you bring someone in the building. You don't know.

Oh, my gosh. Are the Jets running an offense that's not suited for Zach Wilson? Like, are we really doing that?

Like, what what's the answers here? Here was Robert Saul on the quarterback situation on this very day, two days before the Jets kick off a week 16 against a red hot Jaguars squad. Zach is he knows to be like he's the number one.

Anything that else happens. It was this was we were going into this week. And I know I said what I said yesterday, but he was with the mindset of being the starter. Got all the reps yesterday. Mike will be limited in practice, obviously, because he can still practice. He just can't.

He didn't have contact. But so for Zach, it's always helpful to get all the reps and he's had that since yesterday. So I mean, it makes sense.

What else is the man going to do? It makes sense. But here they are. And, you know, and it's going to be on national TV, the Jets only national TV game of the year. And the fans are going to be cold and irritable.

Irritable. You know, I mean, Mike White misses layups, too. But there's a difference clearly in the body language with the receivers with Zach than with Mike White. I mean, Garrett Wilson doesn't get a ball and he'll just run back to the huddle with Zach Wilson.

He doesn't get a ball and he you read his body language and they're you know, they're they're heading for divorce court. Yeah. You know, so do you think there's anything to what Charlie said about Mike can't become Zach, but Zach can become.

I don't know. That's the whole thing. Why I want to see Mike White. If you're going to run this offense, this is the offense you want to run and you're the coach, you're the head coach. I want to play defense and run that offense.

I want to bring basically San Francisco here best I can. You can't blame solid for doing that. Well, then, then, then if Zach's not the right guy, then let's see what Mike White's going to be. If you're not going to switch your system or attune it to Zach. And again, I'm just taking Daniel Jeremiah's cue from this.

All right. As you know, I'm not an X is an all 22 guy, but I see what I see and I can sense what I sense. And then there's the storyline. And storylines matter, certainly since fans show up and vote with their feet and we'll let them know. I mean, if Zach starts missing some layups and Trevor Lawrence hits Zay Jones for score. And Trevor Lawrence runs for a first down and Trevor Lawrence with his flowing hair. Starts fun. You know, Kirk and former giant Evan Ingram hits the end zone and met life in a way that New York fans wish they'd seen more of.

And Jacksonville's up and Zach's taken sacks and Zach's not making the throws. They're going to hear it. And part of the reason why is what is the anniversary today, Chris, that you wanted to bring up? Go ahead, bring up that anniversary. What happened two years ago today, Chris? And this is definitely part of Thursday Night Football.

Go for it. Right off the road in beautiful SoFi Stadium two years ago today, December 20th, 2020, Rich. The Jets inexplicably winless at the time, beat the Los Angeles Rams 23-20 to improve to one in 13. There you go. Two years ago today is when they officially lost Trevor Lawrence.

What am I stuttering? And last year, last year we could handle it. Last year we could handle it because we had our new coach and Robert Sala, who was clearly showing he was different than Adam Gase and previous administrations. Absolutely.

Last year was fine because Trevor Lawrence also wasn't doing jack on top of squat. Thanks to Urban Meyer being the worst coach the NFL has maybe ever seen. Just let me say this.

Is it about Urban Meyer? Yeah. OK, go ahead. Yeah, because I do keep beating this drum here.

I do keep beating this drum. And last year was easier for Jets fans to take because it was so terrible with Trevor Lawrence, so terrible with him. So. Thanks for reminding me of that anniversary, and that's part of Thursday Night Football is absolutely part of Thursday Night Football. And so fans will see that we could have had this guy instead.

We didn't do the right thing. So let's take a break right here. Kirk Cousins is calling in right now.

We'll be back with Kirk Cousins right here on The Rich Eisen Show. You're hanging out with some friends and putting back a few drinks. A few becomes a few too many. As the evening comes to an end and people start to head out, you think of calling for a ride. Ah, you live nearby. You can make it home, OK? It's no big deal. What are the odds you'll get pulled over anyway? And even so, what's the worst that could happen? Your insurance goes up. You lose your license. You lose your job. You total your car. You kill someone. Everyone knows about the risks of driving drunk.

The results are tragic and often deadly. However, that still doesn't stop everyone from getting behind the wheel while under the influence. That's why police officers are out there right now looking for impaired drivers on our roads to save lives. So if you think you're OK to drive after a few drinks, think again. Play it safe and plan ahead to get a ride.

It only takes one mistake to change your life or someone else's forever. Drive sober or get pulled over. Paid for by NHTSA. Back here on the Rich Eisen Show, Terrestrial Radio Outfit has just rejoined our Roku Channel broadcast. Kirk Cousins on the Mercedes-Benz Vans phone line here on the Rich Eisen Show after quarterbacking. The greatest comeback in the history of the NFL. What was that like for you, Kirk, when it was 33-0? Walk me through that moment. Yeah, I think the challenge of being a part of a comeback like that is you do have to get down 33-0 for it to become a great comeback.

And that's the part you don't love. But everything that could go wrong did go wrong in the first half. Turnovers certainly contributed and we were really struggling on offense to move the football. We knew they were a tough defense going into it and they showed that. And I really, at halftime, didn't understand how, you know, because Patrick Peterson was saying all we need is five touchdowns. And I thought, you watch the first half, you know, getting one touchdown to get it to be done, let alone five. So I really don't know quite how or what happened to suddenly enable us to move the ball so well in the second half. But we did and got some help from our defense, only allowing three points in the second half.

And next thing you know, you're looking at the scoreboard and you're tied and going to overtime. I mean, it is absurd when the rallying cries, all we need is five touchdowns. But when was the moment where, to a man, belief shot through everybody's hearts and minds in that game?

Well, I think there were some guys probably who believed earlier than others. But when I was on the bench and looked up and saw that it was a 15-point game with a good half of the fourth quarter left, I felt, oh, this is very within reach. I mean, I had played against the Saints and we were up 15 with two and a half minutes left and we ended up going to overtime and losing.

So I knew that 15 points, being as just two possessions, can be, you know, that leap can be gone fast. So I guess I kind of drew on previous experience, good and bad, to know that comebacks like that can happen. But the key was kind of getting back to within a two-possession game with some time left.

What was it like in the locker room afterwards, Kirk? Well, I think the combination not only of the comeback but then knowing that that also clinched us the division title, which clinches us a home playoff game, sort of created a snowball effect that made the postgame celebration all the better and to do it at home as well adds to it. So, you know, we're all just celebrating, congratulating one another.

Speaking of my boys earlier, I was able to kind of get my son Cooper down from the stands and bring him into the locker room for the first time postgame. So just, you know, try to make the most of the net fun with it. And it was interesting because at the same time there's still so much football left and we have so much still to play for. So you want to enjoy it, celebrate it. These moments don't come around every week. But at the same time, know that, hey, this is not the end all be all.

We got a lot more football up ahead. By the way, my youngest son's name is Cooper. He has Justin Jefferson on his fantasy team. You make him very happy, Kirk.

I'll be very honest with you. He's a smart GM to have Justin Jefferson on his team. He is that.

He is that. So I know you spoke to my colleague Tom Pelissaro after the game when he told you that you had just helped architect and orchestrate the largest comeback in the history of the NFL. And you asked for a minute, which I thought was such a human moment, like, I need a minute here. So now that you've had more than a minute, looking back on that, what does that mean to you? Yeah, at the time when Tom said that, I hadn't quite connected to that. That means that the previous record was the Bills come back against the Oilers in the playoffs with Frank Wright coming in. And that was a game that I've seen so many times on NFL Network. And, you know, you know the history of it. And so to sort of be at that level also meant a lot to me, being a football history buff and knowing what that game meant in NFL history. And I think so much of Coach Wright and all that he's been in the game of football.

So it just sort of was a lot of history there. And I guess it's fun to have such a respect for the game and for this league and then to feel like you were able to be a part of something that might last in this league. I think that's a real thrill. Kirk Cousins, Minnesota Vikings quarterback and the NFC North champion quarterback for this year, right here on the Rich Eisen show, fresh off the largest comeback in the history of the NFL. So what is it like being Justin Jefferson's quarterback? Give me, you've got a story where you... Right, I know. You've got a story of him in the huddle, something in a film room that does somehow, obviously the one-handed grab in Buffalo shows his incredible talent. But give me, you've got something else that we might not know, a good story, Kirk?

Well, Justin's a pretty easygoing guy. And we were fortunate to draft him in a place where there are four receivers taken ahead of him. And so to get a player of his caliber as the fifth receiver in the draft, we were very fortunate. And that was a COVID year where we didn't have OTAs, we didn't have training camps, so to the same level that we normally would.

And so we really didn't know what we had until we got into the season. And it was really week three when we finally made him our starting X and said, all right, let's go, we don't know if he can do it yet, but let's put him in those positions. And I threw a fade ball in the middle of the field to him that's a little under thrown. And he went up and, for lack of a better term, mossed the guy and just kind of caught it over top of him. And I remember thinking, I think we hit on our draft pick and he did fine. And he never looked back. I mean, that game he caught a 60 or 70 yard touchdown pass as well.

And the next week made some great plays. And you just realize this guy's going to be a great player in this league. And my challenge to him now that he's in year three really has been since he had such a breakout rookie year is that you don't have to do anything different. You don't have to reinvent how you do it or what you do. The key is what you've done, you have to do again and again and again. And I said, you'd be surprised how difficult that is for players to pull off.

Many, many players are a flash in the pan, have a great year or two, but then disappear. And I said, your goal has to be, Justin, to be somebody who does not disappear in 10 years from now. We're still talking about what you're doing on a weekly basis. And he understands that. And three years in, he's really been able to hold to that. Well, how does he take that when you say something like that to him?

Well, I think he takes it well. You know, he understands, you know, and he comes from a football family and knows what it takes. And I think this league can beat you up physically, it can beat you up mentally, you have your ups and downs. There's high expectations that at times can be difficult to meet when you play at a high level for a while.

And so there's a lot of forces that come at you that can work against your ability to do it week in, week out, year in and year out. And so I just wanted to make him aware of that. And, you know, to this point, he really hasn't had any downs.

He's kind of been up, up, and up, and hopefully we can keep that going. What do you tell yourself, Kirk? What do you tell yourself? Seriously, I mean, you hear the narratives in this league. You don't have your head in the sand, you know, that it's time for you to get to a championship game or win a championship. Or, you know, I think you've dispelled the can't win under the bright lights of a nationally televised game.

I think that's been dispelled. But you hear that. What do you tell yourself, Kirk? Well, I just go back to what Mike Shanahan said, you know, early in my pro career to our whole team back in Washington.

He always would say, tough times don't last, tough people do. And I just have learned the truth of that statement time and again in this league. And you are going to face tough times. You are going to deal with there it is, and you are going to deal with people pointing the finger.

And that's part of our job in this business, and that's okay. But I learned that they don't last. You know, they come and they go. And the key is that you last longer than those narratives would do, if you will. And so tough times don't last, tough people do for Mike Shanahan. It's kind of always been something that I hold onto if things aren't necessarily going our way for a bit. How has your new coach, Kevin O'Connell, Kirk Cousins, unlocked you a little bit in a way that perhaps you hadn't been before?

You got something for me there? Well, I think he certainly, you know, I think he certainly empowered not only me, but many of the leaders on the team. In just the way that he goes out of his way to, whether it's complimenting in front of the team or, you know, give you sort of a mantle from which to lead. But at the same time, you know, part of my challenge with a new system and new coaches was, hey, we've been doing some good stuff here with Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson. And, you know, hey, let's not change it too much because what we've done has been really working on offense. And so, you know, that's, but certainly we got to find ways to win more because we have been basically hovering around 500.

And so I think Kevin's helped us find the inches to turn some of those close losses into close wins. And really, that's what this league is all about, is find ways to win football games. And it doesn't always have to be pretty. And this year hasn't always been pretty.

But when you can find ways to win, it sure makes for a great year. Well, I'm trying to go, I don't know Mike Shanahan's history off the top of my head. But is O'Connell the first head coach you've ever had that's played quarterback?

Ever? That's a good question. Jay Gruden obviously was a arena quarterback, played college quarterback. So I'd say Jay was as well.

But in college, you know, working with Mark Dantonio at Michigan State, he was more of a defensive-minded guy. And we all know about him. We know about Zimmer. Right. And we know about Zimmer, too.

That's not his. Again, I just find it fascinating watching you play this year. It does seem like you're taking more chances. You're riskier.

And the risks get a lot of rewards. I mean, again, you know, I know that that throw to Justin Jefferson was like a do or die. But I mean, you put it up there.

You actually threw it up there. Like, you seem to be less concerned about making mistakes this year, Kirk. Is that accurate or no? I think that might be another one of those narratives that sounds good to say when you actually study tape. You know, because I think when you look back at previous years, there's still, you know, a lot of production. You look at air yards and all that.

There's a lot of that going on. But what I'm not going to do probably is run around and break tackles and stiff farm people and do all that. So I think sometimes that can make you look like you're maybe less of the air yards guy or putting the ball up than it looks. But certainly in this system and the way I'm being coached this year, I would say there are probably a few more opportunities where it's really encouraged, you know, to give Justin that chance. And I think playing with him a little longer, along with some other teammates, just continuing to learn their game and what they do well.

Probably that time on task together also helps you, you know, trust it a little more and give him those chances. Well, I appreciate the gentle push back there, Kirk. I appreciate that.

I appreciate that. So the general sense around this team coming off that win, three games to go. You know you're going to hear the skull chant for at least one playoff game. So what is the general sense around there? Do you talk Super Bowl openly?

You don't? Just give me something. What do you got on that front before I let you go on the rest of your day? Yeah, I think it's really what it's always been and the healthiest way to approach it is, you know, it's a Tuesday. So it's because we play Saturday, this would be like our normal Wednesday in this league. And I don't even know that we talk much about Saturday or the game. We talk about having the best possible Tuesday we can have here with practice and walkthrough and preparation. Now talking through all our different checks and calls and learning our opponents.

So you kind of just try to take it one day at a time, one week at a time and not get too far down the road. And we also realize that we were down 33-0 last Saturday. So here's plenty of bad football to clean up, plenty of work to do. And we've had a lot of games that we've won, but you just don't walk off the field feeling like you played your best football. So we're still kind of searching for that game where we can really put a four-quarter performance together that's our best of the year and that meets our standard.

And I think we're still looking for that and we've got three weeks left before we get to the dance. Well, Kirk, thanks for the time. I know you know Michael Irvin shows you as his MVP. You like that button on game day morning that he hits all the time. You've been making him hit a heck of a lot more these days too. So I'm enjoying watching that and enjoying watching you.

Thanks for the time. Yeah, that's why Michael's been shooting our horn all year and hopefully we can make him right here as we go down the stretch. But it should be fun and it'll be exciting and looking forward to our game on Christmas Eve. Thanks again, Kirk Cousins. Appreciate the call.

Let's do this again soon. Have a great Christmas with you and your family. You as well. Thanks, Rich.

We'll see you. You got it. That's right there.

That's Kirk Cousins, quarterback, Minnesota Vikings. He's got that you like that button on the desk. He hits it and then the lights go purple and gold.

Great idea. If he keeps hitting it, we're going to make him spell the word jollor horn on the air and that will be great television. Do you know how to spell jollor horn? Does it begin with J? Nope. It begins with a G. There you go. I'm already out. G-J-A-L-L-E-R-H-O-R-N, I believe is how you spell jollor horn.

Hollapoolaviat. That's it right there. Very good. Exactly.

Very good. That was the old Philadelphia Eagle offensive lineman, I believe. Kirk Cousins, baby. Yeah, that's a narrative, the thing I don't take as many risks. There's a lot of film. Seems like he's taking more risks this year. Does to me, but he's like, no, there's a lot of film on it. It's got to help him that, you know.

That Justin Jefferson is amazing. Well, that and his head coach is a quarterback. Yeah. Zimmer's just like, run it. And Kevin O'Connell's like, all right, let's throw it. Let's wing it.

It's got to make a difference, I would say. Yeah. Hour three coming up. John Ridley in studio talking Packers, and I've got a crystal ball coming up.

Still here on the Roku channel. Anything else you pull out of that? I mean, he's very happy to have Jay Jettis. How about, which one of you guys said that there, was that your overreaction? The 33-0 comeback isn't, they should be upset about it or it's not as good?

They shouldn't be too encouraged by it, because they were down 33-0. Well, you did hear him say that there's lots of football to clean up. Yeah.

But you'd rather talk about football cleanup on aisle comeback, wouldn't you? Yeah. I mean, like I said yesterday when you said that, they could have just said, all right, let's, you know, wrap it up for the night. In the same way, again, like the Cowboys have beat the Texans in the end.

Yeah. The same way that they... The same way that the Jags didn't like, they could have packed up. A lot of these teams could have packed up, but especially down 33-dot, like, and you go into halftime, these guys are probably like, let's just get this through and not have anyone get hurt. 33 points, one fewer point than the comebacks mounted by the Jaguars and Bengals combined. First ever week, three different deficits of 17 or more points overcome in NFL history, three times in one week.

That's never happened. And I had Browns 13, Ravens 3. It's great to be on the losing side of that too, let me tell you. Hour three coming up. They're coming more, and they're not. Everybody's gradually losing audience. Not that people will say, well, but AEW is 15% ahead of where they were last year, but there's variables there. Let's see where we're at year from now. We'll be back in 83 weeks on YouTube or wherever you listen.