Dan Quinn: Been Really Cool To See This Team Connect

This episode is brought to you by Michelob Ultra. Michelob Ultra is perfect for more than just the summer heat this year, because not only is it refreshing and crisp with only 95 calories, but Ultra is also the official beer sponsor of Team USA at the Olympic Games Paris 2024. Celebrate every point, race, and moment with Team USA and Michelob Ultra for the Olympic Games Paris 2024. Stock up on Michelob Ultra and cheer on Team USA.

Enjoy responsibly. Copyright 2024 Anheuser-Busch Michelob Ultra Light Beer, St. Louis, Missouri. Three, two, one. This is the Rich Eisen Show. The depth chart is out in Denver.

Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. It certainly causes you to hit the brakes on Bo Nix starting week one in Seattle, because he's third on the depth chart. Jared Stidham won. Zach Wilson, two. Bo Nix, three. Today's guests. Commander's head coach, Dan Quinn. Fox Sports college football analyst, Bruce Feldman. Two-time Emmy Award-winning actor, Tony Hale. And now, it's Rich Eisen.

That's correct. Welcome to this edition of the Rich Eisen Show. We're hanging out here in Los Angeles, California, right in the middle of the first full week of August.

It's all awesome. Hard knocks already up in the air and out in the ether. Preseason football begins in earnest this very weekend starting tomorrow night. We've got a full-on head coach in the National Football League, Dan Quinn of the Washington Commanders joining us in less than 20 minutes time.

So much good times here in our neighborhood. Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports will talk college football, which is closer to being around the corner. And one of our favorites, Tony Hale, laugh out loud, funny dude from Arrested Development and Veep. He's got a program that is out there right now, exclusively on Netflix called the Decameron. And you could see that right here on the Roku portal.

Here's you at 844204, Rich. Call us up whether you're watching us on the Roku channel or listening to us on our patchwork, an affiliate list of terrestrial radio stations across the country, and also Sirius XM Odyssey. And tune in and more. Our podcast listeners, hello to you.

We appreciate you taking the time to hit us with a follow button to get all three hours whenever you want to. Good to see you, Chris Brockman over there. Sir, how are you?

Rich, what's up, man? Did you feel that earthquake last night? I did not. You didn't?

I didn't either. Oh, wow. Really? Mike's just very well grounded. Legit 10 seconds of just- You were shaking. Rock and roll.

It was- Rock and roll. It wasn't like scary, but it was like, oh, this is happening right now. But everything good? Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Good. Nothing moved or anything, but it was just like, whoa. I just thought, you know, I don't know what had happened. Somebody won gold or, you know. Philly scored again.

Philly, it could have been- Against the Dodgers, yeah. Good to see you over there. Good morning, Rich. How are you doing? Mike Del Tufa, how are you? I'm good, Rich.

T.J. Jefferson, candle's already lit. Good to see you, sir. It's good to see you, man.

I had to jump out of my car yesterday to stop a kid from running into traffic. So it was quite the afternoon for me. Okay. We'll talk about that on this program. Good to see you and good to you being a good Samaritan, T.J. Jefferson. Oh, good. Let me tell you. Good to see you.

844-204 Rich is the number to dial here on this program. As we're starting, Brandon Aiyuk is still a San Francisco 49er. The news again popping on Monday night into Tuesday that the 49ers had reversed course, or at least it had come out on Monday night, reversed course in letting Brandon Aiyuk seek trades and other contracts.

They already, according to Matt Mayoko of the NBC Sports Bay Area organization, agreed to deals with the Patriots and also the Browns. And it's now up to Brandon Aiyuk to choose. And then we got Tom Pelissero on the back of his Lyft on the way from the airport in San Francisco to Santa Clara. He's sitting in the back, getting ready to jump out and jump on NFL Network, NFL Media Group. Shout out Victor the Driver. Victor the Driver.

Pedal to the metal. Got him there. He was all set to go. And he's just like, there's more than two teams that they're talking to. And it's not just the Browns and the Patriots. Previously, it was the commanders and the Steelers who were also in this mix, commanders out, Steelers also apparently out.

But those two teams were still in. And Dan Quinn joining us shortly. So I'll try to ask him.

I know I won't get an answer, but I'll still ask him anyway. Is Brandon Aiyuk on your radar screen? Well, we know who's not on Brandon Aiyuk's radar screen. Adam Schefter tweeting out last night, sources after inquiring about Brandon Aiyuk's availability, the Patriots have decided not to explore any further trade possibilities with the 49ers regarding their standout wide receiver. Patriots are excited about their young receivers and want to focus on them. So Patriots are sitting there. There's two things about this.

One thing. Either the Patriots are saying, if we bring in Brandon Aiyuk now, this is going to stunt Pop Douglas's growth. So we're just pulling the plug. Or maybe, just maybe, Aiyuk said, I'm out. Not going to a spot that's got a shot to win six, seven wins if they're lucky. Not going to go there.

Don't want to go there while you're waiting for your rookie quarterback's Huggies to drop. So the Patriots, according to Schefter, telling Aiyuk, it's not you, it's us. And we have Rich Eisen show exclusive sound. We have the soundbite of Brandon Aiyuk's response to that. You're giving me the it's not you, it's me routine? I invented it's not you, it's me. Nobody tells me it's them, not me. If it's anybody, it's me. George, it's you.

You're damn right it's me. It's very strange that the Patriots would refer to Aiyuk as George and that there would be people just laughing while they're talking. But our sources say that was the response. Interesting.

Yeah, makes sense. Hey, sorry, but I know you were hoping. Look, bummer, but at least they took a shot. Had to.

They were in it. You know, Mike Reese was saying they were prepared to offer him most money, apparently make him a top five, paid at the position. And you got to go for it when you got the rookie QB, you know, in his early window. So I respect going for it and I look forward to Pop Douglas's development. It would have been stunted if Brandon Aiyuk was there, Matt. You know what I mean?

It would have definitely totally get it. Patriots are just looking out for their youngins. That's what I mean.

Damn right, it's me. So where's he going? Could it be? Could he stay? Could he stay? Because I'll tell you what, if there's any organization where this would get put back together and he stays and he gets what they give him a little bump, this I don't know where they figure it out and he stays just when everybody think there's no way. It's got to be a Niners franchise that once upon a time took Jimmy G's playbook from him. And then by the end of that month, he was signed as a backup and then wound up playing, put him in position to make the playoffs, then got hurt and birthed Brock Purdy into existence.

And he's in line for a 60 million dollar a year contract now. So if there's any team that can actually put Humpty Dumpty back together and make it real again, it's the 49ers. The head coach, Kyle Shanahan, spoke to the media shortly after we went off the air yesterday and spoke about the timeline of all of this. Do you think there needs to be a resolve pretty soon? No, I mean, you always want it to be badly, but this stuff does take time and every day I hope it gets resolved.

But I have no timetable on it. It didn't surprise me coming into this, going about coaching our team, getting them ready for week one and hopefully you'll get resolved those sooner than later. Would this team be better if you traded Brandon? You see us in an area where you're better because of that?

I mean, Brandon's a great player. So it's real hard to be better when you lose a great player. So we got to look into anything. We got to understand the situation we're in, what that looks like.

And that does take time. So hopefully it'll all work out best for him and best for us in the long run. Yeah, he's not going to sit here and say, oh yeah, we've envisioned a scenario where Brandon Aiyuka is gone and we're better. You know, I mean, he has no idea what's happening right now or how it's going. I mean, he has an idea what's happening. He has no idea how it's going to resolve and he doesn't need it to happen right now. Again, it's top of August. This is a franchise that got Jimmy G back in the fold and then needed him and used him.

When you thought there'd be no way to put Humpty Dumpty back together again. And then, you know, let the young'uns get the reps right now. And if Aiyuka winds back up in the fold, great.

If not, who do I got? Like that's what a coach is going to say. And then comes the news this morning that the Steelers aren't out.

And I guess anything's possible. Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in. The question is, is what's happening there? So of course, let's ask Mike Tomlin. Stay by your phone, man.

I may need you. Well, guess what? He was by his phone. I guess he did a local radio hit this very morning.

WDVE radio. Oh, yeah. Is that where Venus Flytrap also spins his records?

Now, that's a good time for me. I'm sorry, that's Cincinnati. My bad. That's a rival. That's an in-studio rival.

Pittsburgh right now. Okay, by the way, could I sound any older? Respect that, Stacey. Coach, are your ears burning? Because we were just saying, you know, if Coach T isn't here right now, when we were expecting him, there must be some stuff going down right now that's got him otherwise engaged. I'm going to allow you guys to continue to speculate. Come on.

But I am here. Any early morning phone calls? You know, it's a little early on the west side right now. So probably not. Did he say on the west side of the United States? I was assuming.

It's early on the west side. All right, so that's the radio shot at it. Let's have the TV and print reporters shot at it, because Tomlin then had a press conference later on in the day.

I'm actually looking to add to that part of your death tour. You know, I'll let you guys speculate on that. Well, there you go.

He's under contract in the San Francisco 49ers. He can't talk about it. So it'll be great when I ask Dan Quinn this very question and probably time it out, maybe about 20 minutes from now.

I mean, it's your duty to ask him that. I have to. Because if the Steelers is supposedly back in, why not the commanders? Right. There's another team that we don't know about.

You know what I know. We all know there's always a mystery team. Yep, always. And we went through it yesterday. We laid it out. Did we? Did we hit the Colts? We said the Colts might be well. Because again, the only NFC team that's even been had a breath of a mention is Washington. Right. And you know they want to send him to the other conference.

Of course. They don't want him anywhere near the NFC. They don't want to send him anywhere, really, but.

I don't think so either. But you know, it seems like they're going to have to. If the Patriots are the ones who offered him the most and he said no to them, then winning absolutely has something to do with it. And one would think winning has something to do with it, obviously. It's not just a money play here for him.

And so there's that. You know, we just need, we need Ayuk to get to the Hall of Fame just so he can tell Devin Hester's bus to hold his beer. I didn't realize he was, you know, stuntin' like that with the lettuce. He is.

You know what I mean? He's good. And the Niners could, could use him. I don't know how they're, they're better without him. They're just, there's no chance that they're better without him.

I don't know how to resolve it. But the crazy thing is, is Dallas and Cincinnati's waitin' to find out how they resolve it. And who, who he says yes to for money. Set in the market and then they'll, C.D. Lamb and, and Jamar Chase's reps will go to work. This is a, this is, this is more than just the San Francisco pond here. This is a, this is gonna have a ripple effect. But the one, here's the only thing that we know out of all of this.

The one thing that we know out of all of this whole 72 hour period is Patriots are really into developing their young wide receivers. So kudos to your team, sir. Thanks. Thank you. Underrated unit.

Do it in-house. Just saying. Homegrown talent. That's what I mean. Oh my God.

It makes sense, you know? Yeah. So AEW's doin' homegrown talent. That's what I mean.

Build from, build from the inside. Don't get it twisted. That's it.

Yeah. Focus on them. Don't get it twisted. Focus on them, guys. Don't get it twisted, man.

Don't. You know what I mean? That's what I'm sayin'. I'm focused on you folks.

Appreciate that. I mean, right now, I'm looking directly at you. Yep. So I'm, I'm, I'm focused on you. I'm not thinking of acquiring TJ.

TJ? Yes, sir. I'm looking at you. Okay. Right now, I'm focused on you and your development. I appreciate that, man. You know?

I'd like to think I've gotten better under your leadership. Yep. Del too far into your workout. Look at it. I can feel it.

You know, you can't tell my nothing, really. You can feel it, right? Yep, I can feel it.

You can't feel it. Look. He shot booty.

He's gonna have a great year. Dude. Say it loud. You know what I mean? Patriot booty. Oh. There you go.

Pirates booty. Yeah. I think.

Why do you have to hit them? That's what he was doing. He was making the. Sorry. Oh my God. All right.

That's some good stuff. Dan Quinn isn't listening. I really hope not.

I really hope not. Stop him with that. Not on top of my time. All right. We take a break. We'll keep an eye on the Olympics. Wow.

And we're covered as only we can like we did at the end of yesterday's show talking about. Mike's got an issue with the Brazilian beach volleyball team right now. I got an issue going on right now. Big issue. Okay. I don't know if we can talk about that on the air.

I want to shout out Gabby Thomas just because. Why not? Yeah. Yeah.

All right. So we take a break. Dan Quinn of the Washington commanders. Why in the world is there a quarterback competition with Jayden Daniels? I've been wondering that on this show for a while. I'm going to ask him point blank in a sec.

The Rich Eisen show is sponsored by Grainger. Does this sound familiar? You're a maintenance specialist and you've been squaring off with a leaky radiator at your facility for hours.

You're both drenched in sweat. You've thrown the old playbook at it, but so far it's got an answer for everything. What you need is a teammate, a pro who's seen it all before. And that's Grainger with support specialists, always ready to chat the product you need plus a million more.

Just give this ringer a ring. Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click Grainger.com or just stop by one of their local branches. Let's talk O'Reilly Auto Parts people.

You love their jingle. You're going to love their friendly, helpful service even better because they're in the business of keeping your car on the road and the parts knowledge they have. It's all you need for your maintenance and repairs.

They've got thousands of parts and accessories in stock, either in store or online, so you never have to worry if you're in a jam. The team at O'Reilly Auto Parts can test your battery for free in or out of your car. If it needs to be replaced, they'll find you just the right battery for your vehicle.

Need your windshield wipers replaced, a brake light fixed or quick service? They'll help you there and find the right part or point you to the nearest local repair shop for help. The professional parts people at O'Reilly Auto Parts are your one-stop shop for all things auto. Do it yourself and you can find what you need in store or online. Stop by O'Reilly Auto Parts today or visit us at OReillyAuto.com slash EISEN.

That's OReillyAuto.com slash E-I-S-E-N, O-O-O-Reilly Auto Parts. There is an update, right? We'll hit that shortly when the radio audience returns. Are you going to move or not at all?

Not at all. Let them look around. Let them see what's what. And then maybe the Niners say, I'm just going to keep you.

How about this amount of money? You know it. I know it, right? I know it.

You know that I know. What's the number though? That's a great question. I can't wait to find out what the number is. You know who also can't wait to find out what the number is? The representatives of CeeDee Lamb and Jim Oches. They're looking forward to the number as well.

Stay by your phone. They might meet. Why wouldn't the Cowboys preempt it?

I have no idea. I do not know what is going on unless CeeDee's like, you know, I want more than Justin Jefferson. Then there'll be a pushback. Back is going to be like, I want five million more than Trevor Lawrence.

And if CeeDee's like, I want five million more than Justin Jefferson. And that story has a moral to it. Better early than late, because that could wind up never. How does that sound? That whole better late than never? I mean, you're quoting Drake right now. Yeah. Better late than never.

But never late is better. Yep. You know. I had no idea I was quoting Drake. I mean, you know. Thank you for that.

Yeah. Did you know I was quoting Drake, Mike? I love Drake. What an answer that is. You're a politician, man. I like everybody.

That was a political answer. There's only one musician I didn't like, but now I like her. It was a yes or no question, and you say, I love Drake. There's only one musician I didn't like, and I like her now. I love the Drake.

I love the Drake. That's a great motel. Big difference. It is. It's going to be part of Mission Impossible, the original. Yes. Back on the Rich Eyes and Show radio network, sitting at the Rich Eyes and Show desk, furnished by Grainger with supplies and solutions for every industry. Grainger has the right product for you.

Call clickgrainger.com or just stop by. Dan Quinn about to join us in a minute or so. Matt Mayoko, who broke the initial story that the Niners were willing to trade Brandon Ayuk, and Ayuk just needed to agree to contracts with the Patriots and Browns, who they have made deals with or struck deals with, you're saying Matt Mayoko has chimed in with something new right now? Yeah, 10 minutes ago, Matt saying that right now the Browns and 49ers have worked out particulars, 49ers and Steelers in discussion. In discussion. And then, of course, Ayuk's got to figure out contraction.

Yeah, the long-term deal. This is now becoming an AFC North balance tilt, potentially, where you get your guy, but also prevent somebody else getting it. The Steelers-Browns rivalry playing out for Brandon Ayuk as we speak. Also sending him about as far away from you as you can possibly do.

That's correct. Joining us now is the new head coach of the Washington Commanders, back as an HC in the NFL. Dan Quinn is here on the Rich Eisen Show. How are you, coach?

Rich, I'm doing good, man. It's good to be on with you. It's cool, man. We're getting ready to head up to New Jersey, so we'll get a practice in with the Jets tomorrow and then a game with them on Saturday. The first part of the camp has gone well, guys competing against one another, but we're definitely looking forward to taking it on the road and heading up to Jersey to visit with those guys.

How does it feel to get the HC whistle back for a training camp, Dan? Yeah, it's good, man. It's definitely something that having the connection with these coaches and the players here and building it all together with Adam. It's been a cool process to go through from free agency through the draft and adding this group together and putting the whole thing. It's a lot of fun, man.

There's a lot of new faces both inside and out on the field, and so bringing all of that group together, man, that's as cool as it gets. So listen, obviously you've got an approach that's successful. We can establish that, and coaches are frequently quite set in their way, but how are you informed by your Atlanta experience as well as returning to the coordinator role? How is that informing your 2.0 version of yourself that there's such a thing?

That's a good question, Rich. It definitely is different, and I think you want to learn from those lessons that you had. Otherwise, the pain of going whatever you learn isn't worth it. So there was definitely some things about Atlanta that I liked. Going to Dallas, I was able to apply some of the things I'd like to try differently, whether that had been teaching or how to change on a scheme or using different players, Rich, in different positions where maybe there's a receiver that can play a running back, a safety that can play down to linebacker, a linebacker to play down to end. So having some position flexibility, Dallas allowed me to do that, that experience with Parsons and Kurst and others, to move them around.

That was a big deal. And then heading back into here as the head coach, applying different things that we started off training camp in the red zone. And so that wasn't anything that we had done before, but it proved to be really valuable both for the players and for the staff to get rolling. So just a couple of small examples, but yes, definitely 2.0, you want to learn from it and then try to apply the new lessons to it. How about philosophy in terms of staff or communicating with players?

Again, I understand you have your DNA there, but I'm just wondering if it's any different here. Yeah, I think for sure the staff part, that's usually... Make sure that the message comes from me through the staff down to the locker room. Usually as a coach, you know you've done a good job when you've heard a player say something or their behaviors or actions or something that you might have relayed in a staff meeting and then it got down to the player. So seeing that connection build between players and players, players and coaches, the staff itself, those take time, but it's been really cool to see these guys connect fast.

We had a Bill Walsh fellow intern that was in recently and he had said, I would've thought you guys would've been together three or four years, not one year. That made me feel good to know that this connection is happening fast and strong. And how about the fact that you are the face forward individual for a new ownership group in a town with a fan base that is eager for a page turn, to say the least. Coach, what about that? It's really cool, man, because the commanders, the organization and football here in the DMV, it's really important, man. For me, growing up in New Jersey, the NFC East and New York and Washington and Philly and Dallas and the battles that went, I can imagine or I can recall a number of Sundays watching John Madden and Summerall calling games that were here. So knowing to be part of this historic franchise, it's a really big deal.

I can even think it back to leaving Dallas and having a visit with Jerry Jones and saying how important this franchise is to the NFL. So when Josh and Adam went through that process with them and they offered me the job, man, it was like, this is the spot and every once in a while in your life you're where you're supposed to be with the right people at the right time and I certainly feel like that's this place here with me and Josh and Adam were at the very front of that. We're right around the same age. I'm from Staten Island.

You're born in Morristown, New Jersey. I remember Summerall and Brookshire calling the old Washington-Dallas games with the Dallas offensive linemen would get up and get back down again. I remember those days, Dan. Yeah, I remember going to training camp and staying for two sessions just to watch the guys compete and sometimes I think of that when you see the fans here. I was that kid in high school or something staying over at Barley Dickinson to watch both practices and seeing Lawrence Taylor and others and it was just like, yeah, come pick me up at five o'clock. I'm just going to stay and watch football for today.

So to be back in this area and with this organization, it feels really cool, Rich. Wait a minute, you hit training camp as a kid in Jersey? Was it the Parcells era? Yes. Early Parcells? 100%. Yeah. Leonard Marshall and Harry Carson and LT and Bovaro and Sims, that whole crew, Joe Morris.

Seeing those guys and going to practice as a young kid and watching that, that was kind of where it first started to love football, yeah, so seeing Parcells coach and the toughness, like I remember Romeo Cornell and Belichick and others just watching the whole thing, man. And now you're somebody who could break the hearts of a kid that age now up there, Dan. Twice a year. It's your job to do that. Exactly. So it's never lost on me, man, how cool it is and the opportunity here. So having a second laugh at it, you're not going to miss it and I'm not going to miss it.

I'm going to make sure all parts of it, man, go kick ass and have a lot of fun doing it. Dan Quinn, the head coach, the Washington commanders here on the Rich Eisen Show. When did you see Jayden Daniels and go, okay, that's it for me? When did that happen for you?

Yeah, that's a good question. Like, probably it started even before that, like finding out about Adam, he might've been the first player that we watched together. And so knowing that he had already done all of this work on him, watch this game, watch this moment and to see his ability to identify, you know, the talent. So after that, you know, we're watching something LSU, he goes, wait a second and he put on like a game from ASU for maybe it's like freshman year, Rich, where he was battling his Oregon or something.

And it just kind of showed the competitor. And so he had done so much work on this player that he kind of said, look back to here, look back to here. During the interviews processes, it's harder to get to know the guys. So, you know, meet him at the combine first connection and then down to LSU.

We made some. But up here, you know, when you have the guys come on the 30 visit, you knew the ballplayer was the right one. That was easy to see, Rich. A lot of us could see that what you didn't know was what's the man like. And I was so impressed by him, the competitor, what he stood for. He's got the humility of a young rookie who's, you know, on the way up with his work ethic and hunger. But he's also got the confidence and swagger of an older player, guy who's been seasoned some. So all that experience you saw from ASU and LSU and into here and the work ethic, it really comes in. But I thought, what a good balance that he has of confidence and humility.

And Marcus Mariota is here and he has a lot of that, too. And so to see these guys work together, that's been really cool, Rich. So it was early to see the talent, but getting to know the guy under the helmet, that's what sealed it for me. And how has he taken reigns leadership wise, because, you know, that's got to happen here.

Yep. And I think that's what I saw, like that work ethic, like early on, he just didn't miss it. And so the other players were just noticing that this guy was on it, you know, it was correcting a formation or making the correct read. And there's a difference between throwing it well and playing the position well.

And I think everybody recognizes he can play the position well. That's checking a protection, you know, the ball going to the right spot based on a coverage. And so that's really what it is. We've seen plenty of pro days look good when a guy's throwing onto air, but playing the position, the checks, you know, in and out of pocket, good decisions.

That's what it comes down to me. And so the other players saw that. I thought Zach Ertz said it well, he said, you know, people were saying, this guy's going to be good. Zach said, he's already good.

And I thought that was really well said by Zach Ertz. So then when it comes to drafting somebody second overall, certainly for a franchise that is searching for a long term answer at that position and you having been in your previous stop of Atlanta, knowing the value of somebody at that position and you can win an MVP with them and go on to a Super Bowl with them. The question stands, the reason why, why are you having a competition at all? And obviously that's an outside in question. I'd love for the top of the flow chart inside out to answer that, if you don't mind.

It's a, it's a fair question and it's a good question because it's also my first experience going through it with a first year quarterback during my time in Seattle, Russ was young, but he was going into his second year, a time in Atlanta was Matt and then back in Dallas. So with Jayden, we just didn't want to miss one step. That's all it was, Rich, to make sure we're going through the process. He's getting plenty of reps and, but we wanted to go through the practices against another team. And so going through all those steps, just making sure we're not missing one of it along the way. So that's really what it's about, Rich, just making sure we hit every marker for him. And he's the type of competitor that wants to do that. He gets a lot of the reps with the first group, but we just weren't going to mess with that process.

We really believed in it. And we wanted to make sure he was just hitting all the markers, Rich, so that, nothing more than that. And I heard you say he earned the right to take on the Jets as the starter this week? And based on the performance, you know, through the spring and into training camp.

And so when people do that, you want to give them those opportunities. And the practice, Rich, against the Jets, those count too, you know, where you get some chance to go compete, he'll actually likely get more reps at practice than he will in the game. And so having those practices before you play a game, they can add a lot of value.

It's different looks. You know, the Jets are going to play excellent defense. I certainly know Jeff Ulbricht and a lot of their players well. So what a great opportunity for us to take it on the road for a couple of days up the jersey and play against those guys, both at the practice and at the game. And again, I know this might be a question Dan Quinn better posed to the general manager, Adam Peters, as opposed to you. But the concept of adding a weapon, say, for Jayden Daniels that he might be familiar with, they might have gone to college together.

Any truth to that idea that the commanders are in that front? Dan Quinn? Like you said, that would be a better question for you. I shouldn't have answered that.

You do it. But you have to take your shot. You took the bat off your shoulder. That's true Staten Island way, you know, like you don't take your shot for guys like you and me, you know, Staten Island, Wu-Tang Clan, everybody else. I'll give you one from your past then, I guess. I'm just competing. I'm all I'm trying to always compete with my with people here, Dan, you know, that's how it feels. It doesn't feel very good when you do that. My wife calls it. Don't Dan Quinn me, you know, with the question back to it. So it's like, OK, my fault.

So wait a minute. If your wife says to you something along the lines, are you going to pick this thing up when you come on the way home from work? You could say to her, I don't have a crystal ball. You could say that sort of stuff. You could use that coaching cliches with with your wife.

It does not work after twenty nine years. Yeah. Don't Dan Quinn me. Let me have facts. Yeah.

Very nice. OK. And then defensively, what can you tell commanders fans what this unit is going to look like coming up? Yeah, I think, you know, for the fans and for the people watching, I'd hope what they would see, you know, is the identity, you know, beginning to take shape and the speed of the defense, the physicality and really the ball hawking mindset. And in our game today, you better be a good tackling team. There's so much space that happens. So against our offense, they create a lot of space of practice so that the tackling the ball hawk, the speed of the defense, those are the things over these next three weeks.

I'm hopeful that you start to see that identity take shape. And so it's good matchups, man. We got the Jets this week.

We go down to Miami and go with them for a while. So getting to get tested against speed and establish, you know, quarterbacks and systems for the defense. I think it's a great opportunity over the next couple of weeks for us to really, you know, go battle and see where you stand. I asked this question of Doug Peterson, your colleague in Jacksonville yesterday, and there's a lot of discussion going on amongst the head coaches in the NFL about the new kickoff rule. So let me ask you the standard questions, if you will, that's going on right now, which is the idea that nobody's going to show a single hand or a single play in the preseason.

No one's going to do that. Then there's a question of how to figure out how this is going to work out in the regular season. Sean Payton's already said he thinks placing the ball in the 30-yard line for a touchback is not, it won't cause you to think twice if a game's tight, that you'd rather just give up that field position. He wants to move it to the 35 to make things a little bit more risky for a touchback late in the game.

I've just placed all that on the floor. What do you think about this, coach? I'm excited for it, Rich. I think it adds a lot back to it, and you've seen the games where, for instance, the Super Bowl, it's kicked off, touchback. It almost became like, hey, this is just how we'll start it. So there's going to be game-breaking plays on the return.

There'll be some hits and some turnovers on the kickoff and the covering team to go. So there's a lot to learn, but I think it's going to add stuff to the game. As we're working through, will it look the same this year as moving forward? Are there rules and things to tweak? Yes. Does it hit the ground?

Is it in the air? Those are the things, I think, as you go through the preseason and into maybe the first quarter of the regular season, that you'll see a lot of different techniques. And as the return goes, some people think, hey, this is going to be more like running backs where it's a zone play and you can hit a crease and go.

Others are going to find different returners who have the traditional return side to them using it. But at the end of it, man, it's space and speed, just like special teams mostly is. That's what's going to make the big decisions on those plays. So do you agree that we won't see much in the preseason?

I would agree, yeah. I think it'll be more traditional, more standard, and quite often, there's usually a little bit less game planning that goes on in the preseason, Rich, just to get the evaluations on the players. Can this guy run? Can he cover? Can he make tackles?

So I do think that you'll see less and it'll be like a big uptick once we get to the regular season. But what about Sean Payton's idea that maybe you should put the ball on the 35 for a touch back because late in the game, again, you're a defensive guy. You'd rather, I would imagine, say, let my defense handle it than run the risk of somebody hitting a crease and getting a cheap seven on me to try and tie this game up. And I'll just let my defense play 70 yards, no?

Or tackling inside the 20. Okay. Sean's right that I think just the nature of it, Rich, that we're going to have more returns than we've had in a really long time. So I think big picture-wise, if you're looking at it from 10,000 feet, that's what we're trying to accomplish. Now, last two minutes of the game, onside, how we're doing those things, kickoffs after a safety, these are all things that, well, how is that going to look?

So we're still going through those. But by and large, I think there's going to be a lot of energy that comes from this. And I think the returns, like just recently over the weekend, to see Devin Hester, I think players like Devin, now that opportunity for really big plays is back. And I think that's a really significant thing because there would have been a significant portion of his career that missed on some opportunities for all these kick returns.

And so I think it's really cool for returners who have special traits that it's back and how do we go use them. Yeah. I mean, Devin Hester going into the Hall of Fame was incredible. You coached him, right? In Atlanta, a remarkable player. And I can tell you, even coaching against him, when you went to punt or kickoff and you're like, just hit it out of bounds, man. We'll take it.

Like, this is a super risky one. And so when you have another weapon that's at your disposal to use, a guy like Devin, like, he was an incredible player, man, incredible competitor. And he changed games, Rich.

He definitely did by his returns and not just on the touchdowns, you know, like he had a thousand more 25, 50 yard returns that, you know, caused points and field position changes. So I'm really happy that we're going to give this a real go and let guys, you know, hopefully that are as talented as Devin to make their mark. Last one for you at Tampa, week one, you put the headset on, what do you think you're going to be feeling?

What do you think? Yeah. Well, I think one, a lot of gratitude, you know, to be back into this spot with these people and going for it. There's a lot of new players at Rich and so to build those connections with those guys and to go do, you know, this program together with them, like I have a real appreciation for how hard everybody's going for it.

And so I think more than anything, probably gratitude to be in this spot with these people at this time. And before we close, it'd be wrong to say how well your fellow Wolverine is doing here too, man. Oh, yes. Well, listen. Fantastic start, dude. He's really a rare competitor. You know how to reach me, Dan. All right. I was going to let you go, but now I refuse. Tell me about him.

What do you think? What, what, what, what, what made, first of all, what made you fall in love with him and what's he going to do for you this fall? Mikey Sanders. He, he's got like football instincts well past, you know, his ability. I think part of that may come from his receiver background early on, but you see the ball skills, the ability to go track it, the tackling him and Jayden have similar traits that they're very confident, but they also have the humility and the hard work of the younger guy. So it was very cool to see separate people like who have similar traits about him as ballplayers and as men to say, they're going to stand for really high standards and go. So for years to come, those two are going to have incredible standards, you know, of what we're wanting to be about here.

So I just wanted to share that with you, man. This guy, he's like a, as for a young guy, I've got really high standards and he is right near the top of that, of what he can be. So I'm really pumped to see what he can do.

One of my favorites, honestly, in I, I, I went to the school starting in 86. I would put him in the top 10 of my favorite Wolverines because of his beginning, his decision to, to, uh, go to defense, to make what he's made of himself. And it's not just balling out. It's he was a leader. He, he was, people followed him and he knew that and he took that on as a responsibility. He oozes it. It's just every part of his fiber of his being. And I'm thrilled to hear that you consider him a pillar because I, I, he certainly was at Michigan, man, like I think early on when, when we're younger, we think of leading. It's like about us. And then now as I'm older, it's really finding and developing the leader within others.

And so Mike's a great example of that, that, um, he's got leadership stuff to him in such a big way and it's hard to lead as a rookie, but he has those traits to do it based on his humility, work ethic, talent, you know, performance side. So, um, yeah, we're really pumped to have him here. That's great. Uh, you know, thanks for the time. Greatly appreciate it. Is Adam Peters walking down the hallway and maybe you can pull him in so I can ask him the question.

No, no, I don't see him. Just taking another shot. All right. Just took one. Oh, he's on the phone to the West coast.

Maybe that's what he's doing. All right, coach. Thanks for the time. Greatly appreciate the time. Good luck to you. And we'll speak during the season.

I hope. And, uh, and it's great to see you back as the HC Dan Quinn. I appreciate it. You got it, HC of the Washington commanders, Dan Quinn DQ with the LFG behind him right here on the Rich Eisen show. Good chat, man. Now, you know why the Cowboys loved having him there, right? Yeah. And, um, it's just great. And I love hearing that about Mike San Restil and the man that he became all because Jim Harbaugh gave a couple of kids a cheeseburger and the NCAA showing him. So we'll take a break.

8 4 4 2 0 4 rich number to doll here on the Rich Eisen show. Let's talk about sleep number people. We all know in the NFL, there's no margin for error. A single mistake can change the outcome of a game. We all know that and proven quality sleep.

Yeah. Believe it or not can boost reaction time, recovery time and overall performance. You know that probably in your real life, the same thing goes in the national football league, which is why sleep number is in fact, the sleep and wellness partner of the national football league partnering since 2018, eight out of 10 players have a sleep number smart bed.

You should too. My sleep number setting is 60. My wife's is 70, just 10 numbers apart, but it is the world of difference because being able to adjust your bed's firmness after working out for recovery, that is game changing. So right now during the sleep numbers, biggest sale of the year, you can say 50% on the sleep number limited edition smart bed, plus special financing for a limited time only to sleep number store.

Or you can go to sleep number.com sleep number is the official sleep and wellness partner of the national football league. See store for details. Shopify is the global commerce platform that helps you sell at every stage of your business. Shopify is there to help you grow. Shopify helps you sell everywhere from their all in one e-commerce platform to their in-person POS system. Shopify has got you covered. Shopify helps you turn browsers into buyers with the internet's best converting checkout, 36% better on average compared to other leading commerce platforms and sell more with less effort thanks to Shopify magic, your AI powered all star. What I love about Shopify is how no matter how big you want to grow, Shopify gives you everything you need to take control and take your business to the next level. Shopify powers 10% of all e-commerce in the US and Shopify is the global force behind Alberts, Rothy's and Brooklinen and millions of other entrepreneurs of every size across 175 countries.

Plus Shopify's award winning help is there to support your success every step of the way because businesses that grow, grow with Shopify sign up for a $1 per month trial period at Shopify.com slash Westwood one all lowercase go to Shopify.com slash Westwood one now to grow your business no matter what stage you're in Shopify.com slash Westwood one. I mean, and that's why I'm wondering why you would go by the name of Matty Ice, Matt. That's why I'm, I mean, that's a beer infused nickname and it doesn't fit anymore. Would you agree?

It doesn't fit anymore. Matt, are you the natural coming back or are we making a push for the natural here? No, I'm, I'm, well, I'm pointing out that certain nickname that you've had for a long time. I like beer, I do like beer, right?

So when it comes to it though, you just, you're not, you're not slamming them back, right? Is what you're saying? No, I'm, I guess I'm, I'm drinking responsibly. Okay. Something that would be a natural light of some sort, Matt, are you, what are you drinking?

What are you drinking? It's been a long time. You keep making my point. Why won't you take the natural from me, Matt? Just why won't you do it? I mean, how many times do I have to ask?

How many times do I have to ask? There's just, nobody else wants it. Are you aware? I offered it to Stafford, your buddy. Is that right?

Yes. He didn't take it either. Well, I mean, he... That's a no, Matt. Excuse me.

Hold on. He, I, I gave him full disclosure that it was a retread and that you had rejected it because I know you guys talk. I know you guys, you guys are tight, right? He forgot to mention it to me the last time I saw him.

I can't believe that wasn't top of mind for him. Okay. So just, just on behalf of all my loved ones who are cringing right now, just tell me to move on, Matt, and I'll move on. Just tell me to move on. Rich, you got to move on. You got to move on. I love you, but you got to move on. Thank you, Matt.

Thank you so much. Even if I gave you a t-shirt or anything? All right, Matt. I can take a hint after nine years or so. Back here on the Rich Eisen show.

Okay. So let's go to the phone lines. Terzo in Iowa.

You're here on the program. What's up, Terzo? What's up, fellas? How are you guys doing today?

Hey, buddy. What's going through your... Would you say the most diehard 49er fan that's one of our regulars, Christopher? Yes. That's number one.

Yes. Not counting Jordan Sherrow, who works for us diehard 49er fans. Well, I mean... Collar. Jordan doesn't call as much as Terzo does either. It's not Jordan's job to call. So what's going on, bro? Well, Rich, you know, back whenever... And I got to agree with you. Back when Jimmy G was going through all that stuff, I was the one that said we were going to bring him back, and look at how that worked out. I was talking with my cousin, who's also quite a diehard fan, last night. And we both talked about how Boston really didn't... New England didn't really seem to be the place for him, because you're going to a lesser team.

And yeah, you're getting the money, but if you're just going four and winning four games, five games, that's not any fun. And so the Browns seem likely, but if we're the Niners, are we getting Amari Cooper back? And if we are, it's a little bit better with me, but I'd still rather see Ayuk in a Niners jersey. And I'm sure the Niners would as well, but the reality of it is twofold.

One, we have no earthly idea what the numbers are. We just don't. We don't know what he's demanding. We don't know what the Niners have hit. We don't know if where they're going is... Like to say, put it this way, if they're not even going above what Devante Smith is making in Philly, then you'd understand why Ayuk's holding firm. If they're coming in where AJ Brown is making in Philly, then you'd have to wonder, where does winning stand in Ayuk's world? But then again, we're also sitting here saying, why won't you take 30 million a year? You know what I mean?

We're putting ourselves and our real world-ness in his shoes, and he's a prideful, terrific young wide receiver who wants to be slotted where he feels respected. We have no idea where he is, Terzo, and thanks for the call. Sorry, go ahead. And that's where I was at with it too, Rich. And the one thing that I was just thinking about is, on Thursday, I don't remember where I heard it, but there was an offer on the table that was something that he was really thinking about. So where that changed, I don't know, but this is a lot of drama and it's fun to watch.

And again, thanks for the call. We don't know a lot. Like again, Tom Pelissero told us from the back of his car, as he was going to work yesterday at Niners Camp, where by the way, it was revealed Christian McCaffrey is out for the next two weeks with a calf strain and not going to play in the preseason, by the way, which is potentially the bigger news, if he's going into the season with a soft tissue injury that he's recovering from, that may be a bigger news than what's going on with IUC in terms of their ability to win the Super Bowl this year, depending on who the Niners get back, or if the Niners eventually make a deal with IUC, which doesn't appear to be likely right now. Because if you're Brandon IUC, and this is also about money as well as winning, right? Because it totally makes sense, and this is not being disrespectful, that he told the Patriots, I'm not interested, because the Patriots are rebuilding in a way that the Browns and the Steelers are clearly not.

And if you are, because I said, this is a twofold situation, one that we don't know at all the numbers that are on the table that are being exchanged or rejected by either side and multiple sides, we don't know that. The other thing that I think we do know is that in terms of the money front, boy, howdy, if you want a good spot to be in, you want a bidding war between two longstanding division rivals. That's what you want. Oh my God, do you want that? Ask any baseball player, do you want the Yankees and the Red Sox to be interested in you when you're going to free agency?

Hell yeah. Like that's what agents try to do. They try to rope one of those teams in if they're not, if the other one is. Browns and Steelers right now going for the same guy who can be a difference maker significantly for you. And you want to talk about the Steeler fan base being ignited, they've already indicated that they're doing things differently by A, bringing in an offensive coordinator outside for their world in B, going and just totally shaking up a quarterback room, including sending away their first round draft choice from a couple of years ago, who everyone knows from his time being a Pittsburgh guy.

Sia, we're totally doing business a different way. How about trading for Brandon Ayuk right now? And the question is, though, if Amari Cooper is the one coming back from Cleveland in the Cleveland deal, you look at their... We assume.

Right. Let's just say if that's the guy and he's making over 20 million per, it would kind of make sense. And again, Ayuk's coming in, I would imagine this year at a 14 million deal.

Whatever deal he gets will be after the season with a ton of guaranteed money, so he'll be happy and comfortable playing for 14 million dollars this year, way below market value. But you take a look at their roster, and if I'm John Lynch, I'm saying, I want George Pickens back, man. And you look at the rest of their wide receiver roster, who is in Amari Cooper's range? If again, that's the standard, Van Jefferson, Calvin Alston, the third, my guy Roman Wilson, and he's dealing with an ankle injury right now, why would the Niners accept somebody despite being... I mean, he's a rookie, too, they already have one of them. Ricky Pearsall. And if you look at it from the Pittsburgh point of view, why would they just do a one for one, Ayuk for Pickens?

Pickens is on the come up, man, and it's cheap. I don't know. Again, we're just speculating. Great question.

Great question. But right now, if you're Ayuk and you have the Browns and the Steelers battling it out? Let's go. Okay.

That's hot. Yeah. Bruce Feldman talking about show causes and college football coming up.

So hell yeah, you're Ayuk. You want Eagles-Cowboys going after you. You want Packers-Bears going after you. That's what you want.

And it helps the Niners, too. Yeah. Sure.

I imagine. Also Pittsburgh as well. Hey, Pittsburgh, we'll just trade them a Cleveland. You cool with that?

No. Also Pittsburgh, too. They would have to give up draft choices, which is something they don't normally do.

Trade away draft picks. Not the Steeler mantra. Well, you know, they're on Costanza Day.

They're doing everything differently. They did it for Minka Fitzpatrick, and that was a total outlier for them. But that was a no brainer, too.

Yeah. Well, you can get somebody that good that early in his career, you'll flip them a one. It was like it was a late September trade.

It was way before the trade deadline, too. Man, oh, man, oh, man. In Pittsburgh, I know Steeler fans are just... You could just see it online. They're all like... They're all very excited. Yeah. All the photoshops of him and Black Hole. Oh, my gosh.

They are flipping out, because that is bonafide. And if they could keep pickings at him, man, would that just be... How do you like us now reverse on the offensive side of the ball? New offensive coordinator, new quarterback draft room. We keep our kid, and we add Ayuk. How do you like us now? Expectations are high now.

Always are in Pittsburgh, though, right? Because it's high on my damage. Former Navy SEAL Sean Ryan shares real stories from real people from all walks of life on The Sean Ryan Show.

Tucker Carlson, what is it that you think that people gravitate towards? I'm not self-aware. I refuse to be self-aware. I don't even look at mirrors at all, which you can probably tell from my appearance. I don't have a crazy high IQ, or I really don't have that many skills. I would say my main skill is I believe my instincts. I don't hesitate to follow my instincts ever. The extent that I have, I've gotten in trouble. The Sean Ryan Show, on YouTube or wherever you listen.