‘Football Night in America’ analyst Devin McCourty on the Patriots’ QB Situation

It's Rich Eisen.

Ah, yes. Back here on the Rich Eisen show, Marty Fish just left us. Long-time tennis pro and now champion golfer on the celebrity, what, golf circuit? Celebrity circuit? I mean, he crushes. He's so good.

Yeah, the American Century Championship. And he confirmed I would be able to get a point off of Carlos Alcaraz if I had three cents against him. He gave it to you, man. And he's gonna set this thing up, and I'm gonna get a chance to do it. And you will have a front row seat. I really believe this is gonna happen. I do too.

You could see it in his eyes. He's gonna make this happen. Dude, this is gonna be great.

You need to play a lot. Dude, I'm gonna get a point. Here's what's gonna happen. I'm gonna get a point off of him, and then I'm gonna run a sub 5.940 and just check every damn box and mic drop and be done with it. I would love that.

Non-coachable. I would love it. All right, I'm getting the dates for Indian Wells next year.

All right, figure that stuff out. Hour number two of the Rich Eisen Show. I've got a top five list coming up this hour.

Along with all your phone calls, we see all the phone lines are lit. Must be football season for sure. God, can't believe that we're finally right there. Training camp season's about to open.

I've got a top five list. Top five sleeper teams of the 2024 season. We've reached that point, huh? We've reached sleeper point. All right, we've reached sleeper point. The season's awake.

That's my point, kind of, at any rate. Joining us here on the Rich Eisen Show, three-time Super Bowl champion, also of NBC Sports, Devin McCourty here on the Rich Eisen Show. Good to see you, Devin. How are you? What's happening? I'm coming in on some really lofty goals. This was intense.

I came in, sub 5'9", 40 score points on champions and tennis. Big goals, Rich. Devin, I don't need to tell you the power of speaking things into existence, do I? I don't have to do that.

I'm all for it. One of Jersey's finest. Come on, you understand. Jersey and then, my gosh, you got the whole Amtrak corridor from New Jersey all the way up to Boston. It's McCourtyville.

You know what I'm saying? Plenty of times on that Amtrak. I'm sure you have.

Me too, as a Staten Island resident for 21 years. Hey, Devin, let's just jump right into this here. I don't know if you heard Gerard Mayo talk today about the quarterback situation in New England and how that it's Jacoby Brissett's gig to start, but Drake May, if he balls out, has a shot. What are your two cents on the subject matter there, Devin? It was to be expected for me.

I spent some time up there in the spring visiting a little bit. I think the organization just feels like Jacoby's the guy they brought in for a reason. They signed him. They expected him to go out there and play. I think they feel like they don't just have a guy that can play right now, but they have a great mentor, a leader in the locker room. I think they want Drake May to come in and not feel that pressure just to learn from Jacoby. Jacoby's obviously come to New England and played under Brady and learn from him.

So it's cool to see those roles where he can now play the mentor. But I expect Drake May to come in and just learn. And as that process starts to, you know, really come intact for him and he can develop, maybe there's a time they put him in and they go with him. But I think going into the season, they feel like Jacoby's the guy that can get them, I think, moving in a direction they want to move overall as an organization. Which is just not have the bottom fall out against a very difficult schedule coming off of one of the worst seasons, certainly in recent memory, in New England with a kid that you don't want to throw in too early. I understand that that's the general sense of it, but I don't know if this is overreaction or not, but we got a glimpse of Drake May's at least neck up ability in the hard knock series with the Giants. And the Giants put him on their grease board prior to the draft. What's your sense of Drake May's ability to succeed?

I think high. I think what's interesting right now is there's this big, intense love for him right now, not just from the front office and, you know, the people in the building, from the players. And I think that is something over the last few years since Brady has left, has been a little bit of a roller coaster with Cam coming in. And I think right away Cam won over to locker room and guys went out there and played and that was one year and done. And then Matt comes in and he plays as a rookie. And, you know, we won 10 games a year.

My second of last year I was there and it's like, Oh man, things are looking great. And then you kind of saw at the end of that with Matt, with the team, the locker room, everything just kind of fell apart. And I think Drake May now comes in to fill the future void that they had there. A guy that everyone can believe in a guy that the organization can say, Hey, this is our guy. He's going to lead us. He's going to be the front runner.

He's going to be in front of everybody. And I think the biggest part of that is the guys in the locker room truly believe in that. So I think he's developing that. I think he's already gotten that with some of those young receivers with Polk and Baker staying after practice, throwing the ball, getting used to each other. I think the more he's out there in training camp, those veteran, those older guys will see it. They'll buy into it.

They'll believe in them. And I think that will be the process for him, but I believe, I think he could be a really good player. I thought it was really cool seeing him with Brian Dable with the Giants in there doing all of that work, reciting things, knowing it. And I think that's exciting. And I would be interested to see, you know, when he takes a field, how that goes, but I think the future is bright and I think new Englanders should be happy, but I think they have to be patient for all of this to come to fruition. What did you glean from that hard knocks look-see with Drake May?

What did you take away from that? I get excited because I think that's the hardest part of playing quarterback. I think nowadays you see so many quarterbacks that have this unbelievable talent, whether it's being able to run, whether it's having this great arm talent that, you know, every week we hear people on TV talk about different guys and their great arm talent, but like, what does that actually mean? It doesn't mean anything until you can go into a huddle or sit in front of a board or get on the field and deliver in two-minute situations or a third down over and over again. And the part of that is understanding what the defense is giving you and then knowing what you can get into and what you have to get out of as a quarterback. I always remember Brady always talking about that.

His true gift was being dual threat and it wasn't being dual threat as a runner, but it was being dual threat of not getting, not putting the offense in bad place, putting the offense in place to win, to allow other players' abilities to take over and make plays. And I think when you watch Drake May do that as a young guy coming into the league and being able to do that and process things pretty fast, you get excited. You see that and you're like, all right, that's what I want my quarterback to have.

Yeah, I want them to have those other attributes, but you know, your brain and how you can operate and how you can see things and adjust and move quickly. I think that's what the NFL is truly about. And you've seen when you watch guys like Mahomes or watch guys like Lamar Jackson, as they've gotten better at that, it's just been sky's the limit and it's always impressive watching those guys week in and week out.

Devin McCourty, 13-year veteran, three-time Super Bowl champion with the Patriots right here on the Rich Eisen show, also NBC Sports. The other parts of the comments that really stood out to me with Jarod Mayo talking about Drake May in the quarterback room was a New England Patriots head coach was asked a direct question about a thought process on a roster decision. And we got an answer, Devin, like we got a detailed answer. You know what I'm saying, Devin?

I know exactly what you mean. I think it's those media people up in New England, they don't know how to really react. I think they're just like, he's answering questions, let's just ask more and more questions. He has been very open and discussing things and then I think as sometimes like brutally honest and maybe too honest to the liking of some of the people in the building, but I think he's paving his own path. He's not trying to be like Bill. He's not trying to be like anybody.

He's just being himself. And I think, I think the players will see that and they'll really want to play for him. They're going to really buy into what he's bringing. That's the kind of guy he's been, you know, when I shared a locker room with him as a player, then as a coach, he's been very open. He's been just a straight shooter and tell you exactly how it is. And I think guys will respect that. And, you know, I think he'll still manage and learn, you know, the things he wants to say, he doesn't want to say, I think he'll be calculated. I think he does a little bit of that already. So I'm excited to see, you know, he's obviously a good friend of mine, so I'm excited to see him just perform this year as a head coach and kind of really take over those reins and really get comfortable in that position.

Yeah. Your first year in the pros was his third and then you played six seasons with him. And then obviously he was on the coaching staff in New England until you, you retired. So what's your best guess on what's going to be his biggest difference? What's going to be the biggest difference between him and Belichick this year, Devin? Yeah, I think for this team right now, I think it will be his opportunity to really relate and try to push these guys in a direction that I don't necessarily think we'll see the results maybe right away or all the time, but I think his ability to really get these guys to understand we have to get better day by day, week by week, and we have to progress to something down the line, I think will be his kind of selling point. I think the difference is when you get to New England, you play under a guy like Bill Belichick, there is no progressing to possibly be good next year. Like when Bill Belichick's your head coach, it's all about how do we win as many games this year and have a chance to win a championship, because that's what his aura is.

That's everything he's about. That's what he's established in this league. So I think, I think with Jerrod and his ability to really get to know these players and, you know, a lot of these players are already there under him, especially on the defensive side, they already know and they know how he operates. So I think he'll get this team to really see the future. And I think it'll be very similar to Arizona with John Gannon last year, like, yeah, they didn't win a lot of games, but when you watch that team play each week, they were out there playing their butts off. They were looking better.

They had some big upset about Dallas and Pittsburgh, some big wins in the season, even though the season didn't work out the way that they wanted to. I know they're excited going into 2024 because of what they established a year before. And I think Mayo will try to have that same type of energy and attitude with this team this year. What do you think Bill does in 2025 after a year in the paparazzi? Devin, what do you think? Do you think he's coaches or, or, or we're about to see a Belichick's final act as a member of the media?

What do you think? Yeah, I think he takes a break from, you know, his, his dazzling media career next year and gets back on the sideline and, you know, we'll have to see how far gone he is in the media. If he can remember some of those attributes of being a head coach, like not answering questions and doing things the right way. What's best for the team instead of what's best for his media career. We'll see if he can adjust to that next year, but I'll be excited to see him back on the sidelines in 2025.

I really think that'll happen. Do you think that he's, he's just doing this this year because of, you know, the opportunities that didn't come his way for whatever reason, and he'll get, he'll get back to coaching in 2025, you think? I think so. And I think, I think he was kind of intrigued by the media stuff. I think he saw former players get into it. I think, you know, being, you know, all these games on Sunday and sitting in production meetings and, you know, you got Tony Romo in there, then you got Matt Ryan, you got all these guys you've, you know, drawn up these, you know, crazy game plans to try to take them away.

And then you see them and do media. I think he asked questions. He saw it. So I think he's going to have this year to really see what it's like for, you know, if he comes back for a year, two years, three years of coach, whatever that is, he can then say like, okay, I know I want to do this media or it was great for a year.

And now I'm just going to go and sit on a beach somewhere. I think he'll be able to really know that. But, you know, I think for this season, it'll be funny seeing him on TV, especially as much as it looks like we'll see him. And then just for me hearing all the things he's going to say, you know, watching the draft this year was like sitting in a team meeting where, you know, he'd show you maybe 20 seconds of your good plays.

And then the rest of the meeting would be all the stuff you need to work on. That's exactly how it felt watching the draft. And that was, that was being a New England Patriot for 13 years. That was, that summed it up in what, 20 minutes, 30 minutes of him doing those first few picks in the first round. Devin McCourty here on the Rich Eisen Show. A couple left for you here, sir.

Let's go more macro here. Football Night in America, you're going to be on the air in Kansas City. Ravens versus Chiefs, first Thursday night of the season. A three-peat opportunity on the table.

Last time we saw that was prior to you joining the Patriots by the Patriots. And we all know they made the division round that year and that was about it. So I ask you this, standing in the, the Chiefs way of going three in a row, the entity that can prevent it the most is their own, their own selves or another team?

Devin? No, I think there's plenty of teams that will give them a run for their money this year. I think, I think when you look at the AFC North, whoever comes out of there, I think that's going to be probably the best division in football this year. And then obviously I think, you know, they're opening with Baltimore, so you have them. And then whatever happens, I think with Buffalo this year, I think they have shown to be a suitor to give a problem to Kansas City. They've had, you know, some tough games. Kansas City usually comes out on top.

So I don't know, saying a problem is the exact word. And then I look at Houston, the team that showed a lot of promise last year, second year for CJ Stroud, you had Stefan Diggs, you had Joe Mixon, you had Danielle Hunter. So you add different pieces to make this team even better, I think will give the Chiefs a run for their money.

I don't think they'll get in their own way. I think this team knows how to win. They know how to, you know, start a certain way, but get better throughout the season and always keep their eye on the last game on the playoffs. I think they're always focused on getting to that point. So I think they'll do that, but they'll have to knock off some of these teams that are coming for them. Everybody's gunning for them. Nobody, you know, nobody else in the NFL wants to see a three-peat other than Kansas City and their fan base. So it'll be a tough test, but I think they have a great team. And what they've been able to establish, you're going to have to really go knock them off. They're not going to lose on their own.

So then let me parse it this way. The team that stands in their way the best in the AFC or the NFC? I think it's the AFC right now. And if I had to pick a team going into the season, I start right with the opener. I think Baltimore, I think they fell short last year in the AFC Championship game. You know, you had Derrick Henry, you come back this year and you say, this is what it's all about. You want to start the season off strong with the team that you know you have to beat. And I think they're going to look at it.

This season will all determine if we're able to beat this team a second time, some point down the stretch, if they could get it done open at night. All right. Last one for you, Devin McCourty, before I let you go. Did you see the Brady roast? I did. I did see the Brady roast.

Okay. And what was your impression of the Tom Brady greatest roast of all time, Devin McCourty? I mean, it was hilarious.

I didn't know they were going to that length. I expected a lot out of Edelman and he delivered, but I have to say that the comedians and I will say Drew Bledsoe has been a pleasant surprise. Drew Bledsoe even had a moment at the Brady Patriot Hall of Fame induction where he went up there and he killed it again. So hats off to Drew Bledsoe.

He's a moment in time right now where he's crushing it. Well, I got to be honest with you though, Devin, I was at the Brady roast that night. And then I watched the Tom Brady Patriots Hall of Fame induction ceremony a few weeks later. And to be honest with you, I thought the Brady Hall of Fame induction ceremony went so without awkwardness or incident because of the Brady roast. To be serious with you, that whatever, the Brady roast was kind of like a therapy session. Like let's get it all out in the safe space of you can say whatever you want because it's a roast. And that set up the Brady induction ceremony in New England to be far more without anybody questioning, well, who wants to be there and who doesn't really want to be there and what does that mean?

What doesn't it mean? That was removed by the roast. What do you think about that, Devin? That's definitely a possibility because that induction turned into like this huge reunion of guys, you know, obviously Tom played for so long. The guys that played, you know, really in that first kind of era in New England that he was with and then the guys from the second era, it was just like this huge reunion for two or three days where everybody was together laughing, joking, and having a great time. So that might've been a part of it. And I think guys just having the opportunity to get back together, I thought it was an awesome experience, just so much love. And I think the roast did take away some of probably the hardcore jokes that guys would have had during that induction that, you know, guys were like, all right, that's already been said and done. And, you know, I think Tom got the praise and a lot of the credit and honor that he deserved that night.

All right. And so which joke from the Brady roast is the one that you can't believe one Patriots said to the other Devin, which is that one? Well, I think, I think you have to look back at hindsight now, and you got to go with grump talking about the age of women that, you know, him and Belichick or whoever it was are going for. I think, you know, you look back at that. Now you have to say that had to be the one joke that you never would have imagined somebody going with, you know, if I had to pick, it would have been going a little too far. What was the one of Brady talking about the ring, the, the, uh, the ring camera video. So you're, was that that one again, it's tough to talk about roast jokes outside of the safe space, the roast just becomes totally inappropriate when you and I are having a conversation about it, like seven weeks later now, you know, but, uh, that, uh, and in all honesty, like I thought that just got a lot out there and totally removed any of that stuff from a well-deserved night for the organization, the crafts, Belichick, Brady, everybody that came back that was totally removed from that night.

Um, and made it even more special to be honest with you. So basically anybody, if you're having a tough time, you go with your stuff, just do a roast, get it over with, be therapeutic, skip all the therapy sessions, just do a roast. That's right.

Hire Nikki Glaser or Tony Hinchcliffe and, uh, and then see, and then just roll the dice and see what happens. Yeah, exactly. Hey, Devin, it's great to see you on this screen.

Also on NBCs. Let's do this more often. Appreciate it. Sounds good.

Appreciate you having me. You got it. That's three times Super Bowl champion, Devin McCourty football night in America, right around the corner for the opener of the season in Kansas city.

And then they're going to be in Brazil and then Detroit. What a big first week on NBC for the NFL right here on the rich eyes and show that's Devin McCourty. I love that. Think about that Ravens at chiefs and BC Packers Eagles Peacock next night on Friday night. Then Saturday is college football week for real. Everybody's got their warmup games out the door. Exactly.

Okay. And Texas, Michigan Saturday. I know that'll be a big one in my house. And then week one writ large that wraps up on Sunday night with the Rams versus the lions in Detroit. Then Monday jets 49ers Brady's debut in the booth. Cowboys Browns underrated game, Pittsburgh, Atlanta, early window Sunday.

Patriots bangles. Jacoby preset versus M and M exactly. That's your matchup. Hi, it's too bad. Too bad. Drake. May's not starting would be a may versus M and M. May and M may and M Joe borrow, man. You go on with your best. Oh, look at that.

Okay. Got a little bit of Mr. Rhodes there as well. Start bench cut for me would be hard here. Oh, where's the start bench cut? Cause for the radio audience, we've got M and M and Cody Rhodes and Joe burrow all at the same lid. Here we go.

TJ Jefferson start bench cut. Hold on. Wait, wait, wait. Sit down and be quiet.

Okay. And play the price is right music, please, because that makes TJ comfortable here. More comfortable on his birthday.

This is our birthday punch for him on his birthday. Is this start bench cut. Fantastic.

All right. You have to start one bench, one, cut one. They all have the same haircut. M and M Cody Rhodes. And now Joe burrow, TJ Jefferson, you have the floor. Well, you know, I'm gonna make this quick, man. I'm going to go ahead.

I got to start Marshall Matthews there. Oh, you know, he, he's, he's on the Mount Rushmore of greatest rappers of all time, in my opinion. So I got to give him the start and then, you know, how I feel about wrestling. And if you know, I feel about wrestling, you know, how I felt about the American dream, dusty roads, which in turn will tell you how I feel about the American nightmare, Cody road. So I'm going to keep him around. I'm willing to bench Cody road is going to be there.

And then, you know, unfortunately, you know, no disrespect to the bankers. I'm gonna have to cut Joe burrow. Wow. I thought Cody would have been the start. Fantastic.

First time Joe burrow has been cut since Ohio state. That is so much fun for me. Thank you for that, TJ. That's like a birthday gift on your birthday from you to me.

It was like a spinning curve in the zone. Hey, you have nothing, if not a giver. That was a fun impromptu start bench cut that I made about myself at the very end. Fantastic. This is the Rich Eisen show. We'll be back with your phone calls and the top five sleeper teams. Nice.

Back on this program shortly. We all know about the speed of sound, but have you ever thought about the sounds of speeding? If you drive over the speed limit, there are lots of different sounds that you might hear. Drive too fast and you could hear the sound of your vehicle crashing, the sound of ambulances and first responders desperately trying to free you from the wreckage. You could hear the beeps of a heart monitor. You could hear doctors and nurses in an emergency room as you're being treated for your injuries. You could hear the sound of worried family members in the hospital waiting room, hoping to hear that you're okay.

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Call clickrainger.com or just stop by. Nick in South Carolina, line five. Mr. Feli, what's up?

Nick? Hey, good morning guys. How's everybody doing? What's going on brother? My man. All right, well before I say, I need to apologize to the guys in the room there because last week I called Rich while you were out.

Yeah. And Tommy Pete was in the chair and I did not say hi to the guys and I apologize for that man. I was just so distracted by Pellissero's hair. It's understandable.

Because I'm so flawlessly challenged. Nick, it is glorious. And honestly, you can get lost in the pompadour. Like he comes dressed like a greaser. You know what I mean?

Oh yeah, like 1956. Honestly. Like really, he dresses like he's about to go talk about Grease Lightning.

It's unbelievable. Yeah, it's going to a sock hop in Archie Comics. So it's all good. Happy birthday to Brockman and TJ. Thanks Nick. Thank you, sir. TJ, I will say that I have a pretty good idea how old you are, sir. But for out of my love and respect for the show, I am not going to say it.

I appreciate that, Nick. You know, we'd like to keep them guessing, right? Absolutely.

I got an idea, like I said, but you know, I don't know the exact. So, you know, it's purely speculation, but happy birthday to you guys, man, for real. And I heard you talking earlier about your getting the point off Alcaraz with Marty. Yep. And dude, I think we need to tie that in somehow with Run Rich Run and St. Jude's, you know, get some money going somewhere and get those kids some more money.

And whether it's, he comes out and runs a 40, you know, whatever. Nick, we'll just call it Point Rich Point. That's it. That's it. Point Rich Point.

You know, it's hashtag-o. Thanks for the call, Nick. Appreciate it. Nick, a little bit of odds and ends there. I like it. All right.

I'm going to go here first. Why won't you say your age? I don't understand. Just because it seems to bother you so much. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Don't go that friends versus that friend friend thing.

Like we're just like, it bothers you. So I'm going to stick with it. Well, I'm trying to get, I'm trying to peel, I'm trying to peel back the layers. It's not a layer that needs peeled. Why?

It doesn't matter. It's less than an offensive lineman's number and probably more than a safety's. So let's be honest. We're in linebacker territory.

Safety could wear nine now. So those numbers are old school. I'm showing my age. I'm 55. I'll admit it.

I don't care. I've lived through parts of the seventies, all of the eighties, the nineties, the yachts of the seventies. When you say parts of the seventies, do you mean 1970 through 79 somewhere? Yeah.

Inside of there. Yeah. I was born in the seventies like range finder. It's like the gate.

It's his it's like, yeah, right. We got to find where the rain, you have to hit the stop button and I would hit the stop button. If it's a range finder game, I'd hit the stop button on the fifties. So you, you were born in 69, right? So this is your seventh summer of 69. I've been through six. Now this is part of six decades and I've lived there. I was born in 1980. No, you're fine. You're fine.

I asked you off the start, off the jump. How old are you? You said 44.

Your Syracuse birthday because 44 is the most famous number in the history of Syracuse football. Correct. Yeah.

So I turn to you. Yeah. I mean, I'm junior sale. Yeah. I'm the USC number. 55. 55. Right? Linebacker. Willy McGinnis, junior sale.

Right. What number are you? I'm 59. Oh, are you really? Come on, bro. There's no way you could possibly believe I was a range finder range finder in between our ages.

In between you and him. Yes. Yeah. You're older than me and I'm older than him. There you go.

We found the range finder. Del Tufo's older than all of us. One thing we are not doing is putting this to bed. Del Tufo is definitely way older than all of us. Well, he's in bed.

He's asleep wherever he is. I'm old enough to remember Dr. J playing basketball, you know, and I'm young enough to, you know, admit right now that right now LeBron James is the best dude on that Olympic team. All right. Well, I mean, Durant is hurt and he's the best Olympian ever. And I know that that is heresy to the Mello folks. Well, Durant has passed him in the Olympic scoring.

He has. You know one thing I'm not worried about? The US men's basketball team. I'm not worried about it. More worried about them than the women, I think. Not worried about it. Not worried about it. Yeah, no, come on. Really?

Yeah. I thought that was a good over reaction though yesterday. It was a great over, that both are going to not win gold because the WNBA All-Stars beat the women's national team and the US men's national team is not, they're not. Listen, the days of us blowing out, you know, team Angola are done. It's over.

The action, like here's what I have to say about this and then we'll get to my top five. The days of the dream team are never coming back. And I'm not just saying like you could make the case that this men's national team is more decorated than that dream team. You could make the case. People were saying that this team would beat the dream team. You could make this case. I kind of agree with you. Okay, let's just put it this way. You can make it in their prime though, dream team, that would be.

Right, but not just a dream team. You can make an argument and not get kicked out of your barbershop. Right. Okay. So I'm just saying the difference is everybody else has gotten better.

Yeah. I mean, how many NBA drafts have we had in the last, between the dream team and now, where fans are like, all right, I'll have to go look up who my team just drafted because I didn't watch Serbian basketball. I don't know what's going on in Greece. I don't know what's going on in France. I mean, honestly, when the dream team, we're talking dream team back in the day.

Dream team. They also had the thing where people were, they were mythological figures almost. Like they looked at these guys like they were godlike. Well, I mean, back in that day, the top Frenchman was Frederick Vice. Now it's Wembanyama. Yeah. I think, you know, they've kind of caught up. Yeah. Very different.

So, so the competition is much better and also much better. I kind of believe that LeBron is going to be that last person who I think other countries really look at as like a wow type figure. Oh yeah.

Just strolling up. Well, I think the ranks there too, pal. I don't know if Durant carries that same cache. He doesn't carry the same that LeBron does. I feel like once LeBron's gone, I feel like these other countries are going to look at us like, man, we can beat these guys as well. They can, but the day and age where we're just going to roll out our best players and win by 40 or over.

So don't be freaked out about how close it is. And let's give South Sudan some props. Apparently they don't have an indoor basketball court in the South Sudan. And they've got at least three guys I feel who should be on NBA rosters next season. Well, Dang's doing a great job, man.

Yeah, cleaning a kid going to Duke, who I made a prediction to you and Adam, it's going to be the defensive player of the year in the NBA in about six years. So that's all you need to know is that it's just a different world. Get used to it. Yep. That's all.

The world's evolving, people. All around us. All right. Now let's take a break. I'll come back.

I'll do my top five sleeper teams. We'll take some phone calls. We've got tons of real estate. Ramsey Bolton is going to be strolling. Ramsey Bolton is strolling into our studio. I don't know how I feel about that. I'm a little on edge.

Not the birthday present I was looking for. I'm not going to lie. The man who played Ramsey Bolton is going to be in studio on hour three. Not like Ramsey Bolton.

Those about to die on Peacock. Not a comedy. No. Careful.

He just started drinking his coffee. I got him. Happy birthday to you. Oh, that was so close.

Green tea everywhere. Spat took on his birthday. You got me a few times. All right. Back in a moment right here on the Rich Eisen Show.

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Download Game Time today. Last minute tickets, lowest price. Guarantee. Guarantee. Let's go to Eric in Birmingham, Alabama.

Right there in football country to say the least. What's up, Eric? Uh-oh.

Oh no. Eric, you there? Eric's been hanging on for almost two hours.

Unmute yourself. Come on now. Eric, we got three. I'm here. Hey. I'm here.

You're lucky. First of all, you're lucky that A, we're patient, and B, Del Tufo's not there. Exactly.

He's got fat finger deleted. I know. He's quick, man. But yo, yo, yo, guys, what's up?

Yeah. What's up, kid? Man, birthday's all around today, huh? When's your birthday, Eric? Uh, I'm October.

October 16th. Okay. Great.

Good to know. Yeah, man. What's on your mind? Same day, Suzanne Somers and Bob Weir. Hey.

I got that going for me. Suzanne Somers, Bob Weir, Eric in Birmingham. October 16th. October 16th. Here we go. What a big day.

Start, bench, cut, go. Start with Suzanne Somers. Hey, now. Hey, now. Hey, Rich, I'm Strong Island, buddy. So we got Strong Island, Staten Island, grew up in Huntington, Long Island.

Well, Huntington, Long Island of Birmingham, Alabama. We could fill the rest of the hour to figure out how that happened. But what's on your mind, Eric? Let's embrace the journey. Let's embrace the journey. The journey is let's do this giant thing now.

I'm down. Win-loss for the New York Giants by a strong islander that has gotten him's way to Birmingham, Alabama. All right. The New York Giants. Only I've only have one in here, Allen Dallas. That's all I've got on my dance card here. Okay.

Go for it, Eric. What happens against the Vikings week one? Oh, yeah, we're going to take a loss. 0-1 at the commanders. Win. 1-1 at the Browns. Loss. 1-2, home for the Cowboys on a Thursday night. Win. 2-2 at the Seahawks. Win. 3-2, home for the Bengals.

Joey Burrow. No, we're going to lose. 3-3, home for the Eagles in Saquon's return. We'll take it.

Oh, I can't even. Yeah. Win, win, win, win. 4-3, you only get one in one game. At the Steelers on a Monday night. 4-3. At the Steelers?

Yep. Yeah, we're 4-4. We're going to lose that one. 4-4. We're 4-4. We're going to lose that one.

4-4, home for the commanders. Win. 5-4 in Munich against the Panthers. Win.

6-4 off the bye, home for the Bucks. Win. 7-4 at the Cowboys on Thanksgiving. Win.

Come on. 8-4, home for the Saints. We're going to stumble. I'm going to say loss. 8-5, home for the Ravens. I'm going to win.

That one threw me off. I forgot what his record is now. At the Falcons. Win. 10-5, home for the Colts. Win. 11-5 at the Eagles. Loss.

11-6, says Eric in Birmingham. All right, Eric. Thank you very much. Whoa.

And that's the birthday. Hey, thanks, guys. I appreciate it. You got it. And we'll talk to you. I finally got on, man. Attaboy. Call back again. That's a birthday punch for you, T.J., is that he says they sweep the Cowboys on Amazon Prime and on Fox. They must have that good stuff down in Birmingham.

Wow. The Thursday night in week four. And boy, if they win in Dallas on Thanksgiving, that might be Mike McCarthy's end. Does he know he was picking for the New York Giants? I know that, right.

The San Francisco Giants. No, no, no. Giant man.

Great point. Gentlemen, I have a top five list for you. Eligante. I have a top five list for you.

It's not Andre the Giant. Top five list for you. Top five NFL sleeper teams for 2024.

Hit it, hit it, hit it. High five. One, two, three, four, five.

Richest top five. OK, so it's got to be a team that you're not talking about to do very well this year. Right, right, right, right, right.

And it's got to be a team that did make the playoffs last year. How's that? How's that for? I like those.

OK. I like those caveats. Yeah, those are those are the that's where I'm that bin from which I am picking a sleeper team. I like it. Number five on this list. I like the Las Vegas Raiders to be a sleeper team. The Raiders. Nobody's thinking about it right now. Aidan O'Connell, by the way, if you look up the Raiders depth chart, he's won over Gardner Minshew.

I kind of have a feeling that's going to flip. Look at this guy. Look at him showing up and taking these pictures. It gave him a lot of guaranteed money to not be the back. Look at him taking these pictures in his first official Raiders.

Headshots, these are amazing. I mean, he's got a he's got a little bit of the of the of the the snake. He's got a little bit of it.

I don't know. I just love what Antonio Pierce cooked up last year. And Zamir White, he's going to be available in a lot of fantasy drafts for you to grab. The picture of him recently.

No, yoked out of his mind. He he helped me make a fantasy final last year. OK. I kind of dig him. And then Brock Bowers, I can't wait to see what he looks like.

Unleash. Right. And and Max Crosby and the rest of that defense.

Let's see what Antonio Pierce is cooking up. OK, so nobody is talking about them. You're right.

Number number four. I am very high on them. And and and it's because I believe in Sam Darnold. I like the Vikings here, man. I think nobody's talking about the Vikings.

It's a team that won the division two years ago. And Justin Jefferson's coming back. And as long as Jordan Addison isn't a knucklehead to be straight up with you. I love Aaron Jones, Hockinson and that offense. If Darnold is cooking, I know that's a big yes.

I get it. You know, losing Daniel Hunter concerns me on the defensive side of the ball, too. But they've got some weapons and if Sam Darnold shows up, they can be that's that's why they're sleeping, because you don't believe Sam Darnold is going to show up.

I need to see it. I'm going I'm going I'm going with with with the Vikings on this list. Number three. On this list, we Devin McCourty mentioned them earlier when he was referring to how with Gerard Mayo, he thinks the Patriots are going to be one of those teams that just is in every game, despite their roster, despite everybody not believing them. I like the Arizona Cardinals to be a sleeper team this year. I'm with you on that one.

I like Kyler coming back. Yep. Obviously, Maserati Marv. Maserati. To use the Gus phrase. Hopefully he performs better than Feller's Maserati. Pew, pew, pew. Pew, pew, pew, pew.

All right. Defensively, you know, Sean Murphy Bunting is back there. Max Melton's a couple of years into his career. I like the back end of the defense. They played really hard last year.

They did. They played really well. Zay Jones is also catching pass. Trey McBride is one of your sleeper tight ends. Tight ends this year. James Conner. Yep. And that and that running back room. They're going to be better than people think.

Number two on this list. You don't believe in them. They're asleep.

You were sleeping on them. I like the Washington commanders to really wake up, guys. I'm down.

Okay. Jayden Daniels, despite what the coach is saying, that we need to see something before he's going to be named the starter, he's going to be your starting quarterback. Terry McLaurin is as good as they come in the National Football League. And I love Austin Eckler with Brian Robinson Jr. And you know how DQ Dan Quinn can rile some people up. This team is going to be good this year, folks.

And I think they can make the playoffs. How does that sound? Wow.

That's what I'm talking about. Whoa. Okay. Number one, I don't know if they're going to make the playoffs because they're in a conference that's going to be real tough, but I'm going there. My number one sleeper team for this year is the team that everybody thinks is going to lose to their team in the win loss game. I'm going to Tennessee Titans. You are.

Okay. I'm going to Tennessee Titans. I'm going to Tennessee Titans with Will Levis putting what bananas and mayonnaise in his coffee or whatever the hell it is. Eating banana peel.

Whatever. I think that was all bad. The wide receiver room, Calvin Ridley, D-Hop, and Tyler Boyd. And this guy, Brian Callahan, he's from the McVay Tree people. And his dad's there. And his dad's there coaching up the offensive line, a running game. I know everybody thinks Derek Henry's gone.

It's going to be garbage. Todd, you know, uh, Todd. Spears and, and, um, and Pollard.

Jeffrey Simmons. That's number one. We call that a wide open division.

I don't, I don't know about it, but I just think they're going to be better than you think. I think we need one more. All right, we'll get one more.

Here's the one more. Nobody's sleeping on the team, but they're potentially sleeping on how far they can go. The one more sleeper team of 2024 is the Chicago Bears, making it to the NFC championship game.

My bad. So what you're talking about and why I put them there is because that's one rung up the playoff ladder than CJ Stroud made last year. And if you're talking about strides by a rookie quarterback, and that is the bar that CJ Stroud set last year, a unicorn type stuff. If Caleb Williams can do that and the defense can play the way that they played and the offense can start cooking with Caleb Williams, the bears making the NFC championship game is the sleeper team that I'm adding to this mix.

The bear. Nobody's sleeping, obviously on the bears. They're on hard knocks. Everybody's going to be talking about them crazy, but making it as far as I just threw out there. I don't think people are talking about that. Not saying it's going to happen. I'm just saying, like, that would be quite a sleeper moment.

And that's my top five sleeper teams from 2024 right here on the Rich Eisen Show. Oh, Rich, I love where your head's at. I know.

I know. A lot of birthday red meat for you. I love it. Cardinals and Titans, no, Cardinals and the Bears going as far as they go. Bears win the division three to one. Is that right?

Now, that is nuts. To win the division three to one. To win the NFC, how about this? To be the NFC one seed 13 to one. Okay.

And to win the NFC outright 14 to one. That's nuts, though. I would think, again, I'm not a gambler. I don't play one on TV. Clearly, I'm not allowed as a professional broadcaster. Well, you're not following me there.

I mean, I'm keeping up with this. That sounds those odds don't seem high enough. Lions plus 140, Bears, Packers two to one. Nobody on the Vikings 10 to one to win the division. I don't know if they'll win the division, but I think these are teams that nobody thinks is going to have a good year, and I think they're going to have good years. Vikings to make the playoffs three to one. Isn't that too low?

No, I don't know. Again, I don't know how these odds work or who's setting them, but TJ Jefferson, for somebody to call in on your birthday and say the Giants are sweeping the Cowboys. How dare they? The disrespect is real. It is very real.

Disrespect is real. All right. Iwan Reyon, who played Ramsey Bolton back in the day and is now in those about to die on Peacock in studio hour number three, and there is some holdout news to hit you about in the NFL. Welcome to Talkville, the Ultimate Smallville Rewatch Podcast. Season four. I'm glad that it's over. I'm glad that it's over. As we know now that season five is supposed to be one of our better seasons. Obviously, the tattoo storyline, you know how I feel about that. You were hating that storyline. Probably a lot of joy because I kept waiting to see how it was going to keep going and then how they would somehow settle it. Binge seasons one through four of Talkville before season five begins wherever you listen.