REShow: Joe Banner/Ian Rapoport - Hour 2 (2-1-2023)

This message is sponsored by Discover. Did you know you could reduce the number of unwanted calls and emails with online privacy protection? The latest innovation from Discover. Discover will help regularly remove your personal info, like your name and address, from 10 popular people search websites that could sell your data. And they'll do it for free. Activate in the Discover app.

See terms and learn more at discover.com slash online privacy protection. Alexa play the Rich Eisen Show. Here's a station you might like. This is the Rich Eisen Show. Could you make the case that Jimmy Garoppolo is the most healthy quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers? Could they possibly turn around and say to Jimmy G, hold the phone?

We want you to stay here. Earlier on the show, Pro Football Hall of Famer Howie Long. Coming up, former NFL executive Joe Banner. NFL Network insider Ian Rappaport.

Writer and comedian Sarah Tiana. And now it's Rich Eisen. So much going on here in hour number two of the Rich Eisen Show on the Wednesday before Super Bowl week right here live on the Roku channel. This Rich Eisen Show terrestrial radio affiliate Sirius XM Odyssey, our podcast, and so much more.

844-204-Rich is the number to dial. Ian Rappaport is going to join us from Mobile, Alabama shortly. Sarah Tiana will join us in studio in hour number three. We'll have some laughs. And I'm sure she'll have an interesting take on Tom Brady, what with her being in Atlanta Falcons die hard. That'll be great conversation later on.

Chris Brockman, Mike Del Tufo in their spots. TJ Jefferson, where he is stationed here on the Rich Eisen Show every single day in his favorite corner that he personally appoints. I love himself.

I'm glad that you do. 844-204-Rich, as I mentioned, number to dial right here on the program. Longtime executive in the National Football League from the Philadelphia Eagles way back in the day. And so with Andy Reid making it to the Super Bowl for a second time with the Chiefs, taking on the Eagles, and then the Chiefs being generally managed by Brett Veitch, who Andy Reid brought in as an intern back in the day in Philadelphia, and he's the general manager there, and Howie Roseman's still the GM in Philadelphia. The man at the top of this flow chart is named Joe Banner, who's back here on the Rich Eisen Show longtime executive and friend of the program. How you doing, Joe? I'm doing great. A lot of Philly talk.

Isn't it though? A lot of Reid, a lot of Philly talk, but before we jump into that, Joe, I want to hit you on the topic of the day, and that's Tom Brady, you know, who once stood on the field in Jacksonville, Florida to prevent the first Philly Super Bowl. Well, I guess the second opportunity for Philadelphia to get to the Super Bowl from happening for a championship. What do you remember that day, or anything about Brady coming into the league? You got a good Brady story, Joe Banner?

No, other than, you know, it causes my blood pressure to rise. I'm sorry, Joe, but I mean, he chose this day to retire. I mean, I don't think there's any question that we have to say he's the greatest of all time, and had the success that he deserves, and unparalleled, and unfortunately, we got in his way one time, and at least the one time when I was there, he kind of ran over us. They got a chance after I left to get back at them, which they did, but that was a very, very painful day, I gotta tell you. We had come so close, finally got there, and here we are on the short end of the stick, which people may think still, hey, I made it to the Super Bowl, but that's not how you feel.

You feel absolutely horrible, indescribably horrible. Even years later? For real, Joe? It doesn't subside? I mean, knowing, you know, what you built there, and what Andy's gone on to do, and what everyone else there has gone on to do.

Joe? You know, honestly, the fact that we achieved those things for me is a great source of internal pride. The fact that I finished my career without having that opportunity to stand in that podium and hold that Super Bowl trophy, and share that moment with people like Andy, I worked 14 straight years with, I've been friends with Jeff Lurie since we were 14 years old. I'm afraid that hole is going to be there forever, and therefore the moment that we came close enough to overcoming that pain also stood still pretty close to the surface. So I'm incredibly lucky I got the opportunity to do what I did, worked with great people, take great joy in the success they're having.

But for me, having got that close and dreamed about being part of a parade so many times and never getting to actually do it is still painful, I'm afraid to say. Joe Banner here on the Rich Eisen Show. Let's hit this, Joe. When did Andy Reid first appear on your radar screen, Joe? So we were trying to find out what was most common in the head coaches that had most success, which we defined as playing in two Super Bowls. And interestingly, it had nothing to do with the football part of the job, and had everything to do with all the other parts of the job, which were about leadership, and hiring other coaches, and managing coaches, and having a really unambiguous philosophy that allowed you to be a strong leader because it was obvious where you were trying to take everybody. And we started just literally doing research or coaching change and asking people those kinds of questions to produce names instead of the traditional, who's the latest, most creative defensive offensive coordinator. And we started asking questions about who's a great leader or who is somebody that drove everybody around them crazy because they were so obsessed with every kind of detail. And Andy's name started to come up. It was a very short list.

It was actually David Shaw's dad, Jim Hadwin and Andy were the only names that we got back when we started asking for this non-traditional list of names. And Andy walked in the room, and I can't tell you, he has stories about people at love at first sight. It was very quick upon meeting him and listening to him start to talk that I didn't need the other five hours he spent that day and then six hours the next day. You know, for me, it was just really obvious that what we had identified as likely great success. He checked every box. Why is he so great at what he does, Joe?

What do you think? Well, first of all, he's very real. And that's an incredibly valuable quality if you want to be a leader, especially a leader of such diverse people from diverse backgrounds.

And, you know, you're literally managing people who are making, you know, $20,000 and $40,000 in startup positions in your personnel department to quarterbacks that now making $45, $50 million. You have to be real. You have to be honest. He is influenced by his past, but he's totally open to change. And it may be subtle in some ways, but he has changed and he's evolved in his time between Philadelphia and Kansas City. He's just a good person. He's just smart.

He does his hard work and he shall find. I mean, I can go a long time just throwing adjectives at him. And what I'm telling you is something you know, and everybody who knows him, it's not like you got a net to normally great. I worked with him every day for 14 years. But I'll bet the first time you met Andy Reid, you had just a positive gut reaction to him. And that's who he is.

And that's what people have. And it gives him a chance to kind of start positive and just build from there. First time I ever met him live television at that Super Bowl in Jacksonville, Eagles versus Patriots. He came and appeared live on NFL network in our second Super Bowl that we're covering. And we decided to go live during the day.

It was first time that we ever decided to have wall-to-wall coverage, non-stop, hour after hour after hour. And he came in a Hawaiian shirt and shorts. And I think sandals, you're chuckling because that's him, right? And he just sat down and did that man spread thing he does with his legs and just sits there and he just talked.

And time's yours, like you basically said. If we could get a picture of his office right now, I'm going to bet he's wearing what you just said. I'll bet he's wearing that. And it's 20 years later, you know. And now here he is with Mahomes and hooking him up with Mahomes. Again, I know you weren't part of that decision, but clearly Brett Veitch was. What do you remember about him, Brett Veitch first coming into the Eagles world that Reid brought with him? Yeah, first of all, Brett was somebody I immediately liked and saw a lot of potential. And even though he started at the very lowest level, they can bring somebody into that area.

Hardworking, likable guy, very smart. The thing that most quickly impressed me about Brett was he had enough confidence to kind of start speaking up early and fighting for what he believed. Some scouts almost oozed towards the back of the room.

They almost don't want to have to make an absolute declarative statement about who they like and who they don't. And some can't wait to get to the front of the room because they have such strong conviction, self-confidence. But that wasn't the latter guy. And he was right enough that it started to get noticed.

And the fact that he would eventually be a general manager and be really successful would not surprise anybody who was working with him back then. And look what they've built right now. And you take a look at this team right after they lost to Tampa. They're like, we got to hit this line. And then when they wound up losing to Cincinnati, they decided we got to hit the back end of the defense and supplement the front. It seems like year after year Veatch has kind of hit what the weakness is and try to fix it. How do you see the building of this roster, Joe, right now? Listen, they've taken the tried and true, what we did, philosophy of building a team, which is get a great quarterback and dominate both lines of scrimmage. Now that doesn't win you a Super Bowl.

You still got some work to do. But, you know, if I can steal the title of the famous book, Good to Great, you know, you are now guaranteed good. But John, getting good to great is large, but at least you've solidified good once you've been dominant on both lines. And, you know, I think the most impressive thing they did was when they lost to a bunch of lawmen a couple years ago, Schwartz and Fisher. And before you knew it, they had a good or a better line than they had, you know, when other guys were there. Defensively, you see them go out and get a guy like Clark that people were staying away from a little bit. They were a lot of scuttlebutt about his character, how badly he loved the game. Well, you know, he's been there whatever five years now and, you know, he's a major contributor at what they consider to be a crucial position.

So I don't think there's a lot of time. I mean, by the way, if you look at each decade, you know, so Aikman, Jimmy Johnson went to multiple Super Bowls. You know, Bill Walsh and, you know, Steve Young and Joe Montana went to multiple Super Bowls. You know, Brady and Belichick, you put together a top quarterback with a top coach.

Before the decade's over, you know, I think the Chiefs will have that, say, three Super Bowl decade like we've seen each of those combinations have before. Joe Banner, former NFL executive, longtime Eagles front office man and, of course, team president for many a year right here on the Rich Eisen show. When did Howie Roseman first cross your radar screen, the current grocery shopper and general manager of the Eagles?

Joe? You know, this is a, I started getting letters from this complete stranger who identified himself as a recent graduate of Tulane Law School and University of Florida undergrad about his desire to work in the NFL and actually broadcasting and leading with the fact that he had never played football, coached football, been the ball boy for a football team, but he was absolutely sure that if given the opportunity, he would be a great general manager. And the only thing that was conspicuous about that was that he sent these letters every single day for years. Come on. Yeah, every day. I got a letter from Howie Roseman every day. And I don't even know how, but I was on the phone one day with Mike Danenbaum. Yeah. And he said, I don't know how it came up that he was writing both of us a letter every day.

Come on. And we started wondering if he was literally writing like the 32 letters every day. So anyway, we had a funny conversation, but whether he was driven or crazy and, uh, you couldn't, we couldn't tell from the letters. So at one point, Mike calls me up and he says, he's not going to believe it. I said, I'm going to meet this guy. I just got to meet a guy who actually, I'm going to meet this guy. I just got to meet this guy.

I just got to meet a guy who actually is writing a letter every single day. He wants this job so bad. I just got to meet him. And I joked, I said, well, do it in a public place.

You don't know what you're dealing with. And he had kind of that laugh. And he called me up and at the watch, he said, listen, he said, I'm not going to hire him because with the opening, I have that. I was thinking he could fit. He doesn't fit, but if you get an opening, you should talk to the guy. He's smart. He's driven.

He's not crazy. And I'm not sure whether he can be a general manager or not, but he's certainly good enough and smart enough. He deserves a chance. And so sure enough, I had an opening maybe six months later, somebody to help me with mostly research and stuff around the cap. And I called him and brought him in and interviewed him and saw what Mike saw plus. And that's what started his career.

I'm not sure. I'm like Andy who would have gotten a chance someday somewhere and been great. I'm not sure of how he ever would have had a job in the NFL had we not kind of joked about it. And then Mike met with him and then I interviewed him and felt like, wow, resume doesn't say it, but this guy actually could be a really good hire.

Amazing, amazing story, Joe. That's unbelievable. And then, you know, I guess his, his fortitude in writing all those letters, um, he needed that, um, with what, what happened, you know, with the Chip Kelly hire and then finally getting his gig back and, and, and, you know, it is a rarity to go to multiple Super Bowls in such a short period of time with a different coach quarterback combination as the Eagles are doing. It was just a few short years ago, it was Peterson and Wentz slash obviously Foles, and now it's Sirianni and Jalen Hurts. And this team is built all around it. It's not just coach quarterback combination. They are stout at every position. It's unbelievable, Joe.

It really is. Yeah. Well, they put together a great team and you're right to do it, you know, with the turnover that they had. Um, and listen, you know, I know Doug Peterson well worked with him for a long time.

I felt bad when they fired him, but I understood why it happened and it may end up proving to be the right thing for both of them. You know, as we look over the next few years, um, but just to think that it's only a few years ago and the length changes that obviously the highly visible and most important ones you just mentioned, but go through that roster. I mean, it's almost all from scratch. I mean, there's a group of Cox's and Graham's and Kelsey's that have been there since I left a decade ago. And I, I was actually there when we picked, but they're actually now a very, very small percentage of this team and a smaller piece of the guys that are actually responsible for winning. So they really rebuilt this from ground up in a fairly short period of time and have a team that, you know, I've actually said to a couple of people who are like, can you ever, could you believe that Andy is playing the Eagles in the Superbook?

Did you ever imagine this? And I said, not only can I imagine it, but I'll bet it's not the last time they played each other. Look at their teams on this roster. You know, they're incredibly young, they're well coached, they're smart, and they get people making the personnel decisions that haven't started, you know, doing smart things, haven't stopped doing smart things.

So not only are they in it, I actually think it won't be the only time the two of them are matching up against each other in the Super Bowl. Isn't that amazing? Do you want to take a bite at this one? Jalen Hurts saying after the NFC Championship game that there are certain people that didn't want him around when he got drafted there in Philly. What does he mean by that? Joe, what do you think he means by that? I think he means by that there were like, what, 55 guys picked in front of him?

I guess he meant Philadelphia though. I think he said when he, when I was drafted here, he made it sound like some, you know, that's the way I, that's the way I took it. I don't know what you, what you might, anything that you might know about his drafting there that we could read into the fan base?

I know they, and this is what I thought he was talking about. I know that they had a great interest in drafting him and I think they, Holly and others have told the story. We were dead set on drafting Russell Wilson. We actually had two twos. The second two, we thought about picking them in.

In fact, now we'll be able to get them in the third run and we waited. And the Eagles are really, and obviously get picked by Seattle and we never got them, but the Eagles were really worried about repeating that. And they were really wanted their interest in Hertz to be unknown by anybody and be confident in that case that we're not going to wait, you know, indefinitely here, we're going to go get the guy because there were people that still, but now they back then that that guy can't, you know, lead or start an NFL. You had to think non-traditionally about him to think he could be a guy that took somebody to the Super Bowl. So, you know, I just took it as they hadn't had much contact with him. He had no indication from them that we're going to pick him.

But now that you say this, I guess there's multiple ways to hear it. Yeah, I know. That's why I'm asking what, so clearly he can't mean Howie in the front office because they liked him.

Was it, I don't know, that benching in game 256 years ago and the final game of the year was just weird to see what you have in Nate Suddfeld. I mean, that was just the whole thing. I was wondering if he was referring to anything that was going on behind the scenes there or was it just the fan base that was still into Wentz? I don't know what he was referring to, you know. That's interesting.

I guess I had thought of it in a different light but you could easily be right. Okay. We're all doubting him. He deserves a good I told you so. I agree. I mean, and look at what he's become.

He is truly remarkable. So, do you got a first blush thought how it's going to play out between these two before I let you go, Joe? What do you think? You know, I just think the key to the game is how Kansas City decides to play defense. I mean, the 49ers had a really good defensive game plan in the first half of this game and they may have wanted, if it hadn't been for the quarterback injuries, all of the above. Kansas City usually plays a four-man spot with two linebackers and a lot of nickel and that's actually the defense against which hurts his head his most success. So, the question for me is the Chiefs going to be like, we're going to do what got us here, in which case I think the U of R offense will do really well. They're likely to win the game or they're going to say, no, this is a unique opponent and we have to do something very different. What the 49ers did was they had five or six guys on the line in scrimmage. Now, they dropped plenty of them. They weren't forcing every play, but it created an opportunity to stop the run with five or six guys on the line and confuse as to what they were going to drop into as its own.

Was it man-to-man and who was covering who? And I think that's the right way to play him and if the Chiefs do that, I actually think that, you know, Mahomes has a chance to carry the day. So, I don't have a pick.

I can't even decide who I'm rooting for, but if you want to watch for a key factor, I think watch whether the Chiefs are playing the usual kind of 4-2 defensive nickel or if you see them playing more guys on the line of scrimmage at the snap, I think that's the key to what's going to end up happening in the game. Joe Banner, I greatly appreciate it. Look for more of my calls, man.

I can't wait to get your opinion on the quarterback carousel and how the contracts inform what's going to happen. You always have that insight and I love bringing my listeners and viewers and enjoy the Super Bowl. You have a lot to do with it. Enjoy it. Well, I very much appreciate you saying that and it's always a pleasure coming on the show.

Thank you. That's Joe Banner, longtime executive. Only hired Andy Reid. Hired Howie Roseman. Watched Andy Reid hire Brett Veach. Come on now. I love it.

Howie Roseman's story is amazing. Isn't that great? So, hey kids out there, send letters. Write letters, man. Keep going. Keep going.

Write letters. I'm dying to know if he sent it to all 32 teams. Well, when we chat with Howie Roseman next time, we will ask. Mike Tannenbaum, he's writing you too? Love it.

All right. 844-204-RICH. Number to dial right here on the Rich Eisen Show.

Ian Rapoport still to come right here on the Rich Eisen Show live from Mobile, Alabama. Rich Eisen here for Sleep Number. People who get enough quality sleep have more energy, better muscle mass and improved muscle memory. That's a fact.

Those are facts. Did you know, however, that eight out of 10 couples prefer a different mattress firmness? I know it because I know my sleep number is setting. It's 60.

My wife's is 70, just 10 numbers apart. But our Sleep Number Smart Bed lets us adjust the firmness on each side and change it to whatever we like. Sleep too hot or too cold?

You're not alone. Sleep Number has innovative solutions also from temperature balancing bedding to the new Climate 360 Smart Bed that actively cools and warms on each side to keep you sleeping just right. Why choose proven quality sleep from Sleep Number?

So you can be at your best for yourself and those you care about most. And now it's time for the ultimate Sleep Number event. Save 50% on the Sleep Number 360 limited edition Smart Bed plus special financing only at Sleep Number stores or at sleepnumber.com slash Eisen. Subject to credit approval, minimum monthly payments required.

See sleepnumber.com for details. Want a smoother contour and more youthful looking cheeks? Rediscover a younger looking you by adding volume to the cheeks with Juvederm Voluma XC, part of the number one selling collection of dermal fillers based on January 2022 provider survey data. With help from Juvederm Voluma XC and a licensed specialist, you can achieve a more youthful cheek look completely customized for your goals. For important safety information and to find a licensed specialist, visit juvederm.com.

That's J-U-V-E-D-E-R-M dot com. Not for people with severe allergic reactions, allergies to lidocaine or the proteins used in Juvederm. Common side effects include injection site redness, swelling, pain, tenderness, firmness, lumps, bumps, bruising, discoloration, or itching.

There's a risk of unintentional injection into a blood vessel, which can cause vision abnormalities, blindness, stroke, temporary scabs, or scarring. Talk to a licensed specialist to find out if it's right for you. Sitting here at the Rich Eisen Show desk, furnished by Grainger with supplies and solutions for every industry, Grainger is the right product for you. Call clickgrainger.com or just stop by. Ian Rappaport is going to join us in about 14 minutes time from Mobile, Alabama. So much to talk about with him, especially since he just tweeted out that Tua has just cleared the concussion protocol. And also Jerry and Steven Jones are talking to Mobile, Alabama. And Steven confirms that Mike McCarthy will call the plays and said that there was a philosophical difference between McCarthy and Kellen Moore and how plays were called by the Dallas Cowboys. And thus Kellen is now coordinating, one would say, a generationally talented quarterback that's younger than Dak.

You could sit here and say he's in a better spot, although the state taxes exist. Is he? Yeah, I know. Is he? With the Chargers?

I don't know. Dallas Cowboys came close. The Chargers, as we know, did not. They got just as far. They got a great halftime. They got just as far. No, the Cowboys made it to the... The Cowboys ended Tom Brady's career. Don't forget that.

That happened in the wildcard. And you forgot that the Chargers blew that second half lead. Wouldn't you rather be with the Chargers right now?

Why? You could say that Justin Herbert has a bigger upside than Dak Prescott. I think you can safely say that. Dak would push back and say, I've just gotten started. But that's a conversation that it will be fascinating to me, play out, see what happens. But I told you, if you are going down potentially and you think it's time for you to take the full control of the operation while you still have it, the owners are like, go for it. Then Mike McCarthy is saying, if I'm going down and I'm going to get criticized or I'm going to get some sort of heat coming on me, I'm calling the plays. I'm not handing it off to anybody else.

Get out of here with that nonsense. And here it is. He's calling the plays.

So there you go. Just like the old times in Green Bay, you'll see Mike McCarthy get in Dak Prescott's helmet and this is it. The team said that they are committed to drafting a quarterback, but they're also open to extending Dak's contract. Every year, Jerry says that they're going to start drafting a quarterback every year. You know who used to do that? I think, didn't Green Bay used to do that? Billy used to do that too. You have to draft a quarterback every year. Right.

Because you can't have enough of them as the 49ers point proved. I think Jerry called Tom Brady. I don't know who called Tom, you know? I wonder if we're ever going to find that out. I wonder if Ian maybe has some insight, if anybody lobbed a call to Tom in the last week or so.

Yeah. I don't know if his decision-making process had anything to do with options that he would have on the table. You hear he was interested in playing other places. You hear he was either Tampa or retirement. Who the hell knows? It's also funny that yesterday morning, Rick Stroud literally wrote a column and said that people close to Brady were saying it was likely, that was the quote, likely that he returned for 2023 and a 24th NFL season.

I don't know, man. I think he was planning to do it. I think his family knew about it. That's why they were there in the tunnel and they gave him a kiss goodbye. He acted, when he said goodbye to the media, players thought that he was done. And then he sits down on a dune in South Florida and turns his phone around and says, I'm out. You think that was this morning because he was here in LA yesterday for the 80 for Brady premiere. I don't know.

He could have had it in his phone and he recorded it before he left and he knew he was out and he knew he was going to do it this morning and he popped it out. And I have no problem if he is using this, if you will, to promote his movie. Way to go. Content is content.

It's yours. Last year was a total mess. He didn't like it. I don't blame him for being upset the way it all went down last year. This year, it's just him and his close circle and his phone. And thankfully his iCloud didn't get hacked. And he popped it out there and, hey, everybody go see 80 for Brady in a theater near you this weekend.

Go with God. God bless him on that. And there's one other thing I just want to point out here about Brady's career. Let's hit this because we kind of touched on it with Howie Long.

And I know it means a lot to you, Mike, because you were involved in the Super Bowl. I mean, we were talking about him in his 40s. That's the way I was drilling down on his greatness.

Right. And then obviously his 30s was the for the only decade in which he played. You know, of his of his life, he played his full 30s in the NFL, not all of his 20s, obviously not all of his 40s now that he's retiring at age 45. And we talk about this Super Bowl, that Super Bowl, that Super Bowl, this Super Bowl and this moment that he missed or that moment that he was out or whatever. But his is amazing. And it shows off his longevity as well, that his first Super Bowl was the 9-11 Super Bowl.

Yeah. You know, and the planes emanating from Boston, flying into the towers and the Pentagon, and we all know one went down in Pennsylvania and thank God for the heroes on that plane. And and it was just just to speak for a generation that that I think, you know, wasn't alive for it or doesn't remember it. And that includes, obviously, my children, who I'm so thrilled. That's when I woke up Cooper today and Xander today and Taylor today. And I told them each Tom Brady had retired. And I and and for good this time. And and and I was so thankful. I said to each mom, I'm just glad that you got a chance to see him play.

You'll remember it. But the one that he first burst on the scene and shocked the Rams and shocked the world and shocked himself. I mean, this famous photograph we're showing here is his hands on his head. I think he was looking at his family like, I can't believe this has happened. Everything we talked about with Brock Purdy this year, this is it right here.

That's it. OK, like a sixth round choice of the previous year's draft coming out of nowhere, pressed into service and making the most of his opportunity. And that's the magic carpet right against the guy who created the magic carpet right of the Super Bowl and Kurt Warner and and the greatest show on turf. And for him to go into this building with you two in the building half time, I just remember goosebumps, the whole country. I was the security for that Super Bowl was unlike anything I've ever seen before or say crazy.

There were Humvee tanks and trucks, tanks, trucks, Humvee's. It took us we went in like six hours before because Paul McCartney rehearsed for the pregame show that he was performing on that one. And you two did have to do half. I have goosebumps. My entire body. I've chills. To me, that's the most memorable. And my connection, like I say, and I'm posted with Brady is is that and the whole country was tuned in because we all still, even in that February, needed the break. Yeah. Even though it happened then.

Right. It didn't happen. I mean, outs the baseball world kind of got us started. And then the NFL world returned. And then, you know, the season moved along and moved along. And then it came time for the Super Bowl. And I just remember being at the World Series in October of 2001 in November and and being really nervous. Yeah. Being at these games and this event, being nervous for safety.

Like you want to talk about targets, American pop culture targets. These major sporting events were exactly that. And thank God the World Series went off without a hitch. But the Super Bowl kind of dredged it all back up again after November and December and January.

And and the fact that the whole country was tuning in to watch it maybe more than you know, ever before. And Brady goes out there and wins the Super Bowl. And it was the last Madden and Summer all together for Fox. And I remember Madden saying maybe the Patriots should play for overtime because this kid, I mean, what a situation. And then that throw and that throw and that play and that play and this and that kick and taking the profit and not going broke trying to make a profit down the field like he like he like he's a 45-year-old veteran to set up Adam Vinatieri for the field goal.

It is the way like we are clearly focused and rightfully so on his longevity and everything that's happened with the Bucks and what he could have played this year. And we're so caught up in the now. It's amazing that the then started with the 9-11 Super Bowl. And it's two days away, February 3rd. The anniversary of it against the Rams. And there he is as a young pup out there playing way over his age and at the time, no doubt, pay grade becoming what he became after that.

I just kind of wanted to linger about how it started and not forget that amongst the how it's ending. Unbelievable. You're 100 percent correct. And Chris, you are blessed to have that guy. All of these guys all know it. They know it. ESPN is doing the top 12 Brady moments right now. Well, and one that they're showing. And then, I mean, you know, one that they show it is one that I was in the building for at the old metal lands, you know, to beat the Giants.

And, you know, I'll hit that later on the show. But let's take a break here. Ian Rappaport is going to join us. What did lead to Brady, you know, turning the phone around and retiring and hitting send? What did happen with Sean Payton? He reported yesterday that the Texans were all in on D'Amico Ryans and were getting set to get him. I mean, the guy did play for them. And the Broncos tried one last attempt to get him and then went to Payton. And Harbaugh was in the mix, too. Lots of stuff to talk about with Ian Rappaport.

He's going to join us next from Mobile, Alabama, here on the Rich Eisen Show. Monster.com can help you tackle the job hunt and make your next career move in football and in life. There's the regular season and then there's the playoffs. Monster.com knows that scoring your next job, that's a playoff moment. To bring your A-game, you need Monster.com. Looking to change positions and join a new team?

Monster can help. Monster.com has millions of job openings and great coaching and career advice for a strong performance when it counts. Plus, when you upload your resume to Monster.com, you can be recruited by employers before they even post their jobs. Monster.com specializes in building the right teams for employers and knows how to match you with those job fits. When you score the position, Monster.com's salary calculator ensures you're paid what you're worth. The regular season is history and we all know the playoffs are no time for messing around. It's time to get off the sidelines and go to Monster.com and win the job hunt.

Monster.com. This is it. The putt to win the tournament. If you sink it, the championship is yours.

But on your backswing, your hat falls over your eyes. Is this how your running your business? Poor visibility because you're relying on spreadsheets and outdated finance software? To see the full picture, you need to upgrade to NetSuite by Oracle. NetSuite is the number one cloud financial system to power your growth with visibility and control of your financials, inventory, HR, planning, budgeting, and more. NetSuite is everything you need to grow all in one place. With NetSuite, you can automate your processes and close your books in no time while staying well ahead of your competition. 93% of surveyed businesses increase their visibility and control after upgrading to NetSuite. Over 28,000 businesses already use NetSuite. For the new year, NetSuite is a new financing program for those ready to upgrade at netsuite.com slash rich pod. Head to netsuite.com slash rich pod for this special one of a kind financing offer on the number one financial system for growing businesses.

netsuite.com slash rich pod. Back here in the Rich Eisen Show, 844-204-rich-number-to-dollar. Joining us from the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama is my colleague and friend from the NFL network and NFL media group, Ian Rappaport. How are you doing, Ian? What's going on, Rich?

How are you? Excuse the grunts and yells and whistles and horns. I love it. You're amidst the evaluation. I'm sitting on a couple of dummies.

Not humans, but not like not smart people, but I mean actual dummies. I appreciate having this conversation. OK, great. Look, this is great.

I love it. This is you're giving you're giving flavor and calling in right from the middle of everything. So walk me through the Broncos, try to get D'Amico Ryans at the last minute, try and sneak him from snake him from going to Houston and then turn to Sean Payton.

Is that what you're reporting is, Ian? Well, this search has been a winding, winding road for the Denver Broncos. And, you know, it basically started with three top candidates. It started with Dan Quinn, who, of course, eventually went back. It started with Jim Harbaugh and it started with Sean Payton. At various points, they decided that D'Amico Ryans would be their guy because this interview actually blew away Greg Penner specifically. Then they took a secret trip to Ann Arbor to go visit your friend Jim Harbaugh, who told them, yeah, I'm good.

I'm just going to stay in Michigan for at least another year, tune in next year for when we do this all again. And then they went back to D'Amico Ryans, who at that point made it clear, actually, I want to go to the Houston Texans, so I'm not doing a deal, but Houston is where I want to be. At that point, they went to Sean Payton, who obviously was, you know, one of their top choices to start.

But, you know, he is where he is in the pecking order in this instance. Then my understanding is at some point in there, went to D'Amico as well to make sure that, you know, see if his deal was in fact getting done in Houston, and then agreed to terms with Sean Payton to be their next head coach. Okay, 20 million a year? What are you hearing? What's your thoughts?

I don't have firm numbers, but my guess is that's where it probably will land. Wow. Good for him. Yeah, I mean, he was rich anyway.

No, I know, but good for him. You know, yeah, and I think he landed in an okay place. You know, there were not a lot of great, great jobs this year.

Everyone had a little something wrong with it. You know, I feel like the Texans was probably the best because you could build from the ground up. Panthers was also really, really, really good because you just needed a quarterback. But you know, with the Broncos, you have Russell Wilson, obviously.

You have a good defense, but a lot of money in a quarterback who did not play well last year. It's an organization that they probably need some work, and I would assume he is going to get to work on that. But, you know, that's where he ended up. And, you know, I think it was pretty clear that he wanted to be in coaching this year rather than be on TV. So this is, you know, kind of how it transpired. And so D'Amico Ryan's going to Houston.

How did that become so solid? Is it because of his background with the franchise and the city? Is that essentially it, or what's your thoughts there? Yeah, you know, first of all, you know, I would say he was clearly the Texans' first choice. They were his first choice, and this is one that I think just made too much sense. And Nick Casiero, when, you know, you're looking for a coach, and obviously they've done this a couple of times in a row.

From my understanding, the biggest thing here is just, like, who's the best leader? And for those of us who have spoken to D'Amico Ryans or spoken to people who know him or watch him as a player, like, this is a born leader. And it comes at a really critical time in the franchise when they bottomed out. They are in good salary cap space. They got the number two overall pick. They need a quarterback, and their culture is about to start heading in the right direction.

And he's, to me, the perfect guy to do it. And so, what about the rest of the openings, and who are they pegging, tagging? What do you got for me on the Cardinals and Colts right now? Okay, so the Cardinals, Lou Annarumo, who's interviewing today, and Brian Callahan.

Those are the two Bengals coordinators. They're interviewing today and tomorrow. You know, presumably they would come to a decision then. The interesting thing for me is going to be, let's say the Cardinals don't come to a decision. Let's say they just say, okay, you know, we're continuing our search. Well, that will make you think that they are targeting someone who's still playing. And to me, Jonathan Genn would be the one, if they are targeting someone still playing. So that would be kind of interesting to see where that goes.

The DC of Philadelphia is what you're saying? Yeah, someone who I think, you know, was considered to be a really, really, really strong candidate with the Houston Texans as well. So that's one thing. You know, the Colts are going to interview Shane Steichen still. I believe that is their seventh and final second round interview. Pretty thorough process.

Pretty thorough process. And then, you know, they're going to pick someone. And I think the early thought was that, you know, it's probably going to be Jeff Saturday.

I'm not so sure we're there anymore. I mean, I still think he has a chance, but it seems like some of the candidates did really well. You know, Raheem Morris, I've heard, has done very well. I think that's, you know, certainly one to watch.

Sounds like Rich Versace has done really well. And there's, you know, I think there's a lot of guys who have, I'll be curious to see what they pick, but, you know, seven finalists come to know which direction they're going right now. Ian Rappaport, NFL Network Insider, NFL Insider right here on The Rich Eisen Show. Okay. Walk me through what you know about Tom Brady's decision to hit send on that retirement video. So I will say this, you know, I try with what I do to be obviously ahead of things and to know and to talk to people, figure out what's going to happen before it happens.

Right. I did not know that he was going to retire. The people I spoke with, you know, also probably didn't know, but thought that he would play. Now I've since learned, I would say probably yesterday afternoon, I learned about the family obligations he has, his desire to be in Miami, to be with his kids on a regular basis.

And that was the first time yesterday afternoon here in Mobile when I was like, you know what, maybe he won't play because he, you know, he wasn't going to be with the Dolphins. I think that was clear. I'm not so sure returning to the Bucks was something that was really in the cards. You know, that was probably clear last week to me. So then it was retire or go to like Vegas or somewhere else. And that's been away from your kids a lot. I don't think he was going to do that. So he retired and no one asked my opinion, but I do think he made the right decision.

Okay. Well, are you saying that just knowing the personal stuff that you're not sharing because that's not your job to share that stuff? I mean, is that what you're basing that on? Well, I think, you know, being around children, being with your family, you know, if that is the most important thing and it sounds like it is to him, then being across the country, not able to see your kids on a regular basis, just doesn't make a lot of sense. Does not make a lot of sense. And, you know, unfortunately we all know the news that, you know, what happened was his very public divorce with Giselle. When you're not there and there's a, you know, a wife who can pick up the slack, that's a, that's a marriage basically. Right.

You know, when it's not like that and then it becomes very different. So based on what you're, you're saying, he surprised some people close to him by, by hitting send on a retirement video today. Well, I think he's surprised. I think, you know, well, let me say something else.

People close to him have known this was a very difficult year. And with all the discussions I've had about where's Brady going to go? Is it going to be San Francisco? Is it going to be Vegas? Is it going to be Tennessee?

You know, I knew it probably wouldn't be the Bucks. All these things, you know, the one thing that I kept hearing was it was difficult for him to play this year. Like he was going through a lot and to get himself to a point where he could be ready to play focused, fully ready. You know, it goes into every Sunday for these guys.

Yes. It was hard. It was hard. And you know, as I always say, it's important to remember that these are humans and Tom Brady as awesome a football player as he is, he's also a human.

And I think it was tough to play every week. And that's, you know, another reason why I think this was a good decision. Ian Rappaport, a couple minutes left with him. He's in Mobile, Alabama on the field at the Senior Bowl right now covering that for NFL network. So what's the deal with Rogers? You know, he went on McAfee on his usual Tuesday spot. He's going to play golf this weekend, talking about how in a couple of weeks he should have a little bit more solidity on whether he wants to play or not. And then remarked about apparent trades that are being mentioned regarding him that he's not involved with. What do you know on this front here? Yeah, I was, you know, with Aaron, it's tough to really know what he uses words.

He's very specific in what he uses. But it's never quite the whole story. So he said, there's conversations that have been going on without me. Whether I trade conversations, conversations about the future of the franchise, did we need planning that it wasn't involved in?

Like, what did he actually mean? And I don't know the firm answer to that. And I don't know that the Packers have engaged in any trade conversations per se. So I would say to me, you know, is a trade possible? Yeah, I think a trade is possible, sure. If staying in Green Bay, but if you'd like to finish his career there and just kind of ducking it up and moving forward, like, yeah, I think that's possible too. Retirement seems less likely to me, just because it's $60 million on the table. But, you know, I could see it going a couple of different ways, honestly.

Okay. And then just returning to Brady, one last one here, Ian. Is TV, I mean, obviously the contract's sitting right there.

Does anybody know or have you heard what his next move will be? And I know he probably would be just like, let me be, I just made this announcement, chill out. But, you know, there's a Super Bowl on the network that he signed with coming out, you know?

I mean, it's funny. So, you know, we all, we chase these stories, right? Right.

And we try to break stories. And one I've been trying to get for a couple of months unsuccessfully, if anybody knows, they should call me and tell me, if Brady didn't make the Super Bowl, would he be on the broadcast? And nobody would say. So might he make an appearance during Super Bowl week? Who knows?

Right. Anything could happen. I think that would be some theater. That would be some theater. Brady's showing up in the broadcast.

But, you know, we'll see if that ends up happening. Ian, thanks for the time, brother. I know you snuck this one in in between hits from the Senior Bowl on the network. I'll see you next week. Thanks for the call. All right. Sounds good, Rich. Look forward to it. Take care.

That's Ian Rappaport, everybody, right here on The Rich Eisen Show. Okay. Richard Deitch said that Fox execs didn't know. They found out this morning, like the rest of us. Yeah.

I mean, because what is he going to, is he going to tell somebody in the media, by the way, for the same company that owns page six that has been all over him? Right. Come on now.

You can't risk that. Yeah. That doesn't surprise me that the TV executives of Fox, whose parent corporation owns the New York Post and page six.

Come on. I'm sure the accounting department's sitting there going, oh, we got to like, check. Well, as you know, payroll sometimes takes a month to start getting things through. You know, you got to send the invoice, send the invoice. Brady didn't send the invoice. Got to get his direct deposit set up.

You need to, you need to set up like a check to them. I imagine he won't be living check to check though. Not permanently. I mean, you never know what his lifestyle is. So there you have it.

Tom Brady. I think this is it for real. He is done. He is indeed not coming back. Wow. What a world for us to be realizing where he living in the NFL now without Tom Brady, Sarah Tiana and your calls coming up.

So there's all of that right there. Jeff Saturday still in the mix for the Indianapolis Colts job. What happens if his name comes out and he's the full-time guy? I'm sure Twitter will be super rational about it. Well, I mean, Twitter's never super rational about anything. I'm just talking about for real because the teams did play their asses off for him. They did. And there were some moments where man, the challenge flag should come out and he's right.

And it didn't, but he is also really smart enough to make sure you're too, that's all buttoned up. Who's playing quarterback. That is it, bro. But it's been that way.

Will Levis? Since then. Sure. What pick do they have? They got three, don't they?

I don't have the Tankathon page open. I got it. They're four. They're four, huh? Arizona's three, Houston and Chicago. So they're going to have a pick. They're going to have their choice. Whether it's Stroud, I mean, if we assume Bryce Young goes first.

Stroud or Will Levis or they'll have their shot. I think, yeah, unless somebody trades, I don't know. I don't know how this is going to go. I don't get a good sense, but the general sense I have is that nobody's going to come trade up for any of these quarterbacks. I don't think so either. This year. I don't have that sense. Next year is a different story. Different story. Top five teams affected by Tom Brady's retirement coming up.