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Speeds slower above 40 gigabytes of details. We are live. We'll do it live on this holiday Monday. Hope you're enjoying the long holiday weekend.
If you have to work at a minimum, I hope you're getting time and a half. If not, mail it in. Uncle Brian gives you permission. Stick it to the man. It is Labor Day, after all. I don't have to go Samuel Gompers on you. That is obscure reference.
Dennis Miller on line two. The whole point of this holiday is to celebrate the working man. I'm trying to put that into focus by delivering. Now just two more hours of scintillating sports talk radio.
Rich and the fellas enjoying the well-deserved holiday off. Back with you tomorrow. They will continue to count down the kickoff in addition to what I've been striving to do. Because we're just three days away from the marquee matchup to get us underway. The NFL is back with Kansas City and Baltimore squaring off again after the Ravens forgot they could run the football.
Had an allergy to it. I don't know what happened in that AFC Championship game in Baltimore. Chapter two coming up on Thursday. And don't forget, and I realize it is streaming only. I'm going to tread lightly because one of these years I'm demonstrating to management what I can do on holidays. And hopefully I'll be back with you on Thanksgiving Day. I was with you on July 4th. I was with you on Memorial Day.
Any holiday that ends in Y. I was here on Christmas Day as well. I need to get a life one of these years. But the goal is to break through and before I retire, I've got a few good years left.
Or at least a few years left. Be a part of the phenomenal simulcast on the Roku channel. So I am not anti-streaming at all. In fact, this very show has been Emmy nominated. It is so outstanding. But if you're not paying attention, a very good game on Friday.
What else are you going to do on a Friday night? Eagles and Packers both coming off conflicting runs to the playoffs. Because remember, when the Eagles started 10-1 matching what they did the year before on their way to the Super Bowl. Anybody who actually watched games knew they were a shadow of themselves. And we saw the way they limped down the stretch.
And then one and done losing to the Bucks in the postseason. In contrast, Packers got better week by week. If you look at the splits, first half of the regular season to the second half.
Jordan Love and obviously the Packers know the numbers better than we do. They wrote him that massive check after all. Saw enough in their play in the second half. And the playoff win on the road in Dallas. And the way he performed in defeat on the road in Santa Clara, California. That they believe they have found a new franchise quarterback going from Farb to Rodgers to Love. Put all that together.
If you want to watch that game in Brazil on Friday, it is streaming only. 844-204-7424. The number to call. We've had a good time so far on social media. Keep it going.
Don't be too chippy. I'm going to be taking you across the league with the new A.W. Weber. Weber with two B's.
On the X platform. And coming up in 40 minutes. Beyond the NFL, I'm going to talk here. To kick things off in the second hour of the show. We will take you across the league with one of the best in the business.
That's Josh Alper or Pro Football Talk. I'm going to call an audible. I know you're hanging on all my forward promotion.
I did not leave myself enough time to wrap up the last hour of the show. Stock Management. Another contemporary reference. What I was focusing on college football. So we're going to split the segment here. More thoughts on what happened across the country on campus. And then we'll shift our attention to NFL rookies coming up. I was going through, as rapidly as I could, My issues, and maybe I just need to be more open-minded. I do my best to self-critique. And yes, as we get older we get more set in our ways But I was so lucky to start my career at a very young age at a big market primarily because of my affiliation with my alma mater because all my smart friends were a student enough not to go into sports media and Now they're retired, but this was my passion.
This was my dream. So I'm saying all that to tell you for decades I love college football far more than the NFL and if you know who I am And you probably don't if you do it may be because I worked at NFL Network That's how I know rich or I did an NFL daily radio show for three years and covered drafts on site NFL owner meetings on site. My point is the NFL has been the single most important part of my second chapter of my career, but I all Everything that happened early on I owe to college sports and I feel very passionately about college football Maybe I just need to adjust to the new format I realize nothing is going backwards and the whole motivation to go to 12 was driven by TV money and Now there were a dozen teams, you know, what's coming 16 teams is on the horizon but in terms of the negatives of this 12 team playoff, we're already seeing the implications because the strongest asset of college football while it had many flaws namely it was Subjective and naming a national champion and a million years ago We would have split national champions on occasion UPI and AP again. I'm going back decades here, but for all of the challenges the sport had its greatest strength was The integrity and the meaning of the regular season so for example if you watch that wildly entertaining game last night between LSU and USC and a couple general takeaways if You just process the evolution of the depth charts there You have Caleb Williams moving on to the Bears He's been named the captain in Chicago telling you that the narrative somehow that because he walks around with a Hello Kitty Backpack means he's estranged from his teammates is complete garbage You have Caleb Williams moving up from USC You have Jayden Daniels moving up from LSU after he won the Heisman and went number two overall He'll start for Washington as they try to accelerate the rebuild and he'll make his pro debut Coming up this weekend on the road Tampa Bay That's a sneaky good game with Baker Mayfield getting the validation of the long-term contract extension But you would figure even with the transfer portal and the ability for traditional powers who have won national Championships like LSU and USC there might be a drop-off under center that didn't happen at all Now you feel badly Objectively that if you think about the closing sequence It was Garrett Nussmeier throwing the pick that sealed the USC win But he played very well taking over for Daniels and Miller Moss if you care about the inconsequential Bowl games who now are gonna face the dilemma and I don't have any empathy For the old guys in polyester jackets who have made outrageous sums of money off college athletes for decades Running those bowl games paying themselves handsomely as quote-unquote Nonprofits, but if you didn't watch the Holiday Bowl Maybe you weren't aware the Miller Moss has the goods for USC He certainly demonstrated last night with better than 370 passing yards came up with some critical throws and that game-winning drive Good stuff to start the year Now you got Brian Kelly facing the can he win the big one to open the season dilemma? because he's still winless since Taking even more money to go from Notre Dame to LSU With that fake southern accent and Lincoln Riley if we're just gonna talk about expectations The reason the USC boosters who run my alma mater for grad school at least in terms of athletics through generational wealth in his direction was to have wins like last night and Finally, I realize it's a small sample size. It appears with the massive shakeup long overdue Because Lincoln Riley was too loyal to his crony Alex Grinch new defensive coordinator Upgrade some key positions on that side of the ball.
It wasn't perfect But they played well enough as embodied by coming up with that pick to clinch the win That USC's outlook now is far more interesting with the understanding. They have an absolutely murderous schedule because now they're in the Big Ten which naked it just It makes no sense because it was driven by naked greed USC has no financial issues UCLA does they're a public university But for USC to destroy the Pac-12 just to make more money by joining the Big Ten To me was outrageous and I can't have any connection to a school. That is so overtly crass and grabbing every dollar they can when they already have a Gargantuan endowment and have more money than they could spend But that's the reality of modern college football. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich eyes in a four four two Oh four seven four two four is the phone number coming up in a half hour We talk NFL in addition to what I'm gonna tackle coming up when we check in with Josh Alper a pro football talk So here we are at a 12 team playoff meaning whoever lost that game last night or for example The loser of Notre Dame Texas A&M and that featured a lot of drama as well I was surprised the Irish were more physical than the Aggies because if you know anything about Mike Elko a new head coach in Aggieland his teams always have strong defenses think about what he did transforming Duke of all programs a former Notre Dame and LSU Defensive coordinator and what a great twist it was not everything That's related to the changes of college football as a negative to have Riley Leonard Who played for Elko at Duke now beating the starting quarterback for the Irish? What a wild twist that was Another quality watch so I have no issues with the games themselves I'm talking about the implications that have been lowered in a major way Because there's a larger margin for error with the expanded playoff and look at Notre Dame schedule the rest of the way They have a bunch of neutral site games coming up in addition to their home schedule Notre Dame is a virtual lock to make the playoffs and remember They're still the subjective component of the selection committee Beyond the automatic bids that go to the conference champions the top five terms of the ACC The SEC the big 10 the big 12 don't get into the actual numbers of teams in those conferences It gets rather confusing and the best from the group of five.
They're all automatically in the field of 12 Irrespective of their record you put Notre Dame in there and then we know the rest It's gonna be a boatload of SEC teams and a bunch of teams from the Big Ten and what do we get in return? Sacrificing what used to be the best and most meaningful regular season of them all So two things can be equally true. I watched a ton of college football Going back to Colorado's narrow win over North Dakota State and Dion's act Was tired a long time ago If you are picking petty fights with the media that says more about you Than about quote-unquote us as a member of the sports media that columnist is doing his job If Dion feels like their personal slights sit down and figure it out man-to-man but you ban a columnist because you don't like his copy is The reflection of what a bully would do because he's got that entire university under his spell Dion has become the single most important figure in Colorado and you could do that when you win but you remember what happened after the 3-0 start last year and Did you watch that game on Thursday? The defense is still abysmal They can't tackle anybody in the offensive line is a sieve I have no idea how should or Sanders Dion's kid is gonna navigate the entire year Upright and Travis Hunter is a remarkable story, but he should make a business decision and I understand he wants to be Unique as a 60-minute man playing both sides of the ball But there's a finite number of hits your body can take he should pick one whatever he thinks he's better at I'd pick wide receiver because you can get a much bigger second contract in the NFL and wait till you get to The real money beyond NIL the life-changing money in the pros and save your body But I can't fault somebody for following his passion and that's part of the motivation So we have all of these interesting games is Miami back No, because Florida's terrible and Billy Napier hopefully Rented I didn't buy because I'd be surprised if he survives the entire season Good games all across the country and it was the tonnage nothing better than sitting down at nine o'clock local time here in Southern California and knowing you're gonna ride college football deep into the night UCLA escaping with the win at Hawaii Deshaun Foster already facing questions about his unintelligible remarks at Big Ten media days that could have been a Death blow in his head coaching debut, but they snuck away from the islands with a W Phenomenal games That's part one of the outlook It's balanced by a regular season that just does not have the same meaning now because of the watered-down Nature of the sport due to the 12 team playoff But I am tilting it windmills here when I realize the vast majority of you disagree You think more playoff games are always better. I think you got to dig deeper and have a little bit more context I'm Brian Weber in for Rich Eisen eight four four two. Oh four seven four two four couple thoughts on NFL rookies because we were just talking about LSU and USC moving on without the top two picks in the draft Jay Daniels is Dynamic and if you didn't watch him starting his career at Arizona State hard to miss him last year with the monster numbers He put up at LSU on his win on his way to winning the Heisman the challenge for Daniels is the lack of support offensively and again I'm not doing the fantasy alert fantasy alert, but beyond Terry McLaren.
Who do you really believe in that can? Move things be a difference maker at the whiteout position for Washington still if we're just looking at the Individual upside of Daniels think he's gonna have a long and productive career if we're talking about the impact this year. I Think we forget some of us do that Chicago For all the drama surrounding Justin Fields last year won seven games This is not your typical team to have the number one overall pick.
Thank You Carolina who's gonna be atrocious again so you get the team coming off a respectable showing last year they got better down the stretch a Defense that will punch you in the mouth and a collection of playmakers contrast what? Daniels has to work with in our nation's capital to the abundance of riches the Caleb Williams operates with in Chicago and If you're just thinking about young guys to watch since I wanted to make Rookies the focal point here Rome with doosnay if you didn't track his outstanding career With Michael Pennix jr. At u-dub Reaching the national title game losing to Michigan Rome also as a sparkling personality This guy's gonna be a star on and off the field balanced by picking up the veteran at Keenan Allen Chicago if you're asking me right now, and you're probably saying who are you and why are you posing yourself rhetorical questions? I'm Brian Weber in for rich eyes in Chicago on That short list of teams that didn't make the playoffs last year that will this year in fact I have three teams coming out of the NFC North all along with The Lions win division again the Packers going back to the postseason But I think the most interesting quote-unquote rookies this year come from our profession what Bill Belichick is doing Beyond the hypocrisy is Straight out fascinating a guy whose entire brand was built on being antagonistic with the media and I realize it was an act I Understand his motivation. I watched him with rich on NFL Network in which Belichick was honored with an Emmy nomination during the 100th anniversary celebration of the league Belichick was Fascinating he was outgoing. He was charismatic charismatic and to me That's what makes his decision to be that surly and that brusque and that Antagonistic with the local media all the more fraudulent Hey bill, would it have killed you just to be a normal human being and given those people?
Who are just doing their jobs? something more than mumbling and we're on to Cincinnati, but if you think that perhaps Belichick is Motivated by more than a check. He wants this to be Something that he's impactful in as much as he was as coaching. He's gonna have a lot of opportunities He's gonna be everywhere Pat McAfee show contributor Manningcast I'm sure he'll be filling in for rich on Thanksgiving. He's got some fantasy show so it's gonna be all Bill Belichick all the time and Tom Brady also is going to be ubiquitous on a big word Labor Day my interesting Thought with Brady and this might be too inside sports media But I have friends and I have relationships with people who call NFL games What they'll all tell you and this is not some grand secret They learn so much by attending practice schmoozing the coaches and then they have production meetings with the head coaches often the coordinators and a star player or two and Not everything they learn is for attribution or they're gonna use it on the air but it's deep background that informs their opinions and Tom Brady because he's still on track to be a partial owner of the Raiders has been banned by the league and I think undeniably this is the right choice because of the Appearance at least the optics of a potential conflict of interest Brady is barred from other teams Facilities and cannot attend those production meetings if we've learned anything about Tom how did he go from being pick 199 to the goat because of his maniacal focus and Meticulous preparation and unparalleled driving determination. Don't you think that's gonna bother him?
Don't you think that's gonna limit him to a degree and beyond that? Has Tom Brady ever said anything interesting? I Realized the roast was entertaining That was because he was the target and because it was so unbelievably over the top Brady is gonna be a star because he's Brady. He's walking in. He's playing the character of Brady I just don't think he's gonna be that interesting and I do think this prohibition from the league is a really interesting Move, I think they're trying to get him to pick between the roles All right, Tom either you're gonna be a vastly overpaid broadcaster by Fox or a partial owner of the Raiders You can't do both But I do think it's gonna impact him when we watch and we'll be watching his debut coming up on Sunday When the Cowboys take on the Browns, I'm Brian Weber Infra-rich coming up in 20 minutes back to the NFL with Josh Alper a pro football talk if you want to hit me up On the X platform you can do so with BW Weber Weber would to bees straight ahead Because I once more ignored the clock this will work out Well, though for those of you who are gonna go know when I mentioned baseball it is Labor Day. I am old Labor Day still has significance for the grand old game Will spotlight Aaron judge and Shohei Ohtani Can you make the argument that Ohtani is not only the most transformational player in the game? Currently and judges right there.
Is he the best athlete of this century? Weber in for eyes him we're live on this Labor Day. We roll on here on the rich eyes and show You Let's talk door-dash people if your family's like mine it probably is you want something to eat your kids want something else to eat How do you handle it all? How do you make sure everybody's happy door-dash?
That's how you make sure everybody's happy The food delivery app is the most awesome on-demand delivery platform that you can go get to make sure That food comes to the places you like right to your table. It's awesome Especially now that football is finally back Which means it's time to order your favorite game day food snacks and drinks on Door dash without missing a single play and here's how I can help you use my promo code rich eyes and 24 For 50% off up to a $10 value when you spend 15 or more dollars on your first order A limited time offer terms apply promos not valid for orders containing alcohol door dash your door to game day Greatness your door or more download the door dash app now to order your game day favorites and use my promo code rich eyes And 24 must be 21 or older to order alcohol drink responsibly alcohol available only in select markets This episode is brought to you by FX is the old man starring Jeff bridges and John Lithgow The hit show returns as the stakes get higher and more secrets are uncovered The former CIA agent sets off on his most important mission to date to recover his daughter after she's kidnapped FX is the old man premieres September 12th on FX stream on Hulu The rich eyes and show is sponsored by Granger. 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 whole 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 Granger with support specialists Always ready to chat the product you need plus a million more. Just give this ringer a ring call 1-800 Granger Click Granger calm or just stop by one of their local branches Welcome back to the rich eyes and show radio network I'm Brian Weber and I'm sitting at the rich eyes and show desk furnished by Granger with supplies and solutions for every industry Ranger has the right product for you.
Call click Ranger calm or just stop by You can always hit me up on the X platform During your apps for the program. It's well established by now if you're a longtime Listener even to a fill-in hack like yours truly that I got plenty of time when the program is not on the air I'll be watching Florida State BC later today So tweet at me BW Weber Weber with two B's we will go with brevity here because coming up in Less than 15 minutes. We head back to the NFL when we check in with Josh Alper pro football talk Just over an hour from now to 40 Eastern Time more college football When we are joined by P for you tech of college football news calm quick footnote to the rookies conversation We had wrapping up the monologue so hit on Jay Daniels hit on Caleb Williams Remember JJ McCarthy lost for the year with the knee injury in no way could you ever say? Well, that's a positive development it's a knee injury after all the only small byproduct that could have a relatively positive Consequence is remember JJ's is 21 years old He was gonna learn behind Sam Darnold for a while Assuming a full recovery and he's 100% when he gets back. There is a school of thought that he'll be learning and Trying to pick up the nuances of playing in the NFL as he's rehabbing and part of me does root for Sam Darnold given the adversity of Where he's played if you play for the Jets and you're not Aaron Rodgers and you play for the Panthers You have no shot and the 49ers believed in him enough Although Kyle Shanahan, I get the feeling that if Kyle sees you playing a pickup game Do Sandlot still exist?
That's another old-timey reference but if Kyle sees something in you, he fully believes he could turn you into Brock Purdy or Nick Mullins or CJ Beathard. He is all about the system and In fact are in Drake May who was not ready to start in New England. I know There's been a lot of consternation in Patriot land Clearly Jacoby Brissett is the right choice for now on a team that's going nowhere The Williams gonna win three or four games this year back in the conversation To have a top three pick and I am interested to see what Bo Nix does in Denver I realize he's 140 years old but saw an interesting piece in the athletic Quoting Drew Brees and Drew certainly knows what he's talking about based on his Hall of Fame run as a quarterback Drew believes you need 40 to 50 starts to feel fully comfortable in the NFL and he Would parse that with a combination of college and NFL Well since Bo has been playing since Johnny Unitas was around remember didn't work out for him at Auburn Phenomenal success at Oregon.
He certainly has a track record and let's see how well he fits in Sean Payton's Offense after Sean said, thanks. No, thanks to Russ who's looking to jumpstart his career in Pittsburgh I have left myself merely five minutes to talk baseball which for many of you is the right decision even if you have no interest in baseball anymore and look I'm Of the mindset that if you say what you mean, and you mean what you say you never have to worry about Authenticity you're speaking your mind I don't follow baseball as closely as I used to when I hosted TV Pregame shows for the Oakland A's on their way to Sacramento and the Giants who are scuffling once more but I I appreciate greatness if I think about my motivation to get into this business decades ago beyond Wanting to have mr. Microphone I could shout into this and you have to listen to me it was the search for something bigger than mundane life and be on the Physical attributes like Aaron judge who was literally bigger than life. It's excellence It's doing things.
We don't see every day. Although in judge's case. He's on his way back towards More than 60 home runs and he's doing it in a year in which he has a legitimate shot at a triple crown although Bobby wood jr. Is having a Remarkable year and before I get to Oh Tani if you're not following baseball and I'm not telling you what to watch I think Rob Manfred is an empty suit. He's made a series of atrocious decisions namely not penalizing the Astros for their cheating scandal because of course you can't penalize the players and After all the World Series trophy is what what do you say just a hunk of metal? But even Manfred realized the game needed fundamental change the pitch clock and limiting the shift has made it a much more Watchable product and they've stumbled upon a class of young talent that I can't come up with the comp for Right now if you flip on MLB Network You're gonna see a young star of virtually every team and I realize Paul Skeens is fading a bit Maybe he's hitting that rookie wall But you remember his instant impact The minute he was called up starting the all-star game in July as a rookie I mentioned what Bobby Witt jr. Is doing it's obscene statistically la de la Cruz With the Reds and if the goal is competitive balance while the Yankees can outspend everybody combined They're still in a real battle with a young real team that won the division last year loaded with young stars like Gunnar Henderson Baseball has never been healthier from a standpoint of competitive balance in fact Unless something radically changes over the last four weeks of regular season we're not gonna have a team with 100 wins for the first time in a decade speaking to the balance and the possibility around the league and Otani is Doing something that we haven't seen since what Babe Ruth or never before? If you're not paying attention, and I understand it's football season. Let me just give you a couple numbers 44 home runs and 43 steals Let Me say that one more time. He's six home runs away from 50 and seven stolen bags away from 50 He's got a real shot the first 50 50 season We've ever seen and that guarantees the Dodgers nothing because of all their injuries in the pitching staff Meaning we should have a wild and fascinating October and I realize virtually, none of you care Maybe I just felt like it was a public service here on a holiday I'm Brian Weber couple reminders do not drink and drive ever especially on a holiday secondly watch some baseball you're missing Tremendous achievements out there, but I realize the audience is never wrong and we did that in four minutes and change sometimes I stumble into a degree of competence coming up more NFL So speaking of aging quarterbacks, I think Bo Nix is actually older than Aaron Rodgers Entering year 20 in the league coming back from a torn Achilles Aaron with something to prove certainly and the Jets with a lot to prove if they don't make it to the playoffs Robert Salah is gonna be looking for a job.
Are they legitimate Super Bowl contenders? We'll find out when we're joined by Josh Alper a pro football talk. That's straight ahead I'm Brian Weber in for Rich Eisen on this Labor Day installment of the Rich Eisen show Three two. Hey everybody.
There's a great new podcast that just launched I want to tell you about it's called throwbacks and I know the guys who are doing it It's hosted by former entourage star Jerry Ferrara and former USC quarterback Matt Leinart The 2004 Heisman Trophy winner who then went on to play in the National Football League for the Arizona Cardinals so Matt has a ton of experience to tell you about playing for an iconic college football team winning that trophy and then of Course all the behind-the-scenes stories from his time in college and professional football while Jerry is one of the leads of an iconic television series He's got you covered on what it was like being a young guy star in a show that everyone was talking about and he's also the voice of the fans So Matt brings that former player expertise and Jerry brings that voice of the maniacal sports fan Enjoy hanging out with your new favorite pair of throwbacks every Thursday follow and subscribe to throwbacks on YouTube Apple Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts Are you struggling to close deals Business to business selling is tougher than ever and that's why I want to tell you about LinkedIn sales navigator LinkedIn sales navigator is a sales intelligence platform that helps professionals effectively prospect and engage high-value Customers drive higher revenue and increase sales performance sales navigator helps you target the right buyers Surface key signals such as job changes or which accounts you should prioritize And shows you hidden allies so you could find those buyers that are most likely to convert fueled by LinkedIn's 1 Billion member platform sales navigator gives you the most up-to-date first-party data enabling you to unlock Conversations with the people that matter right now You can try LinkedIn sales navigator and get a 60-day free trial at LinkedIn.com Slash direct that is LinkedIn.com slash direct for a 60-day free trial Let LinkedIn sales navigator help you sell like a superstar today Just go to LinkedIn.com slash direct and get started I'm Brian Weber in for rich and the guys you can be a part of the program at eight four four two Oh four seven four two four or hit me up on X BW Weber Weber with two B's We appreciate the company on this Labor Day in 60 minutes We're talking college football in the final hour of the program with P view tech of college football news calm now Let's keep the NFL conversation going always a pleasure to be joined by Josh Alper or pro football talk calm Josh It has been a minute. How are you? What's going on? I'm great. We got football this week. What could be better? You have said it.
Well, my friend Well, since it's Labor Day, there's nothing more scintillating than a conversation about labor and management But I will piggyback off the item I saw him pro football talk reminding the young people world old enough to remember that The NFL used to control Labor Day weekend. It was the kickoff of the season How far away do you think we are? Is it three years? Is it five years to the expansion to 18 games a regular season and do you think the players will get anything in?
return in addition to an additional game check I Think it's going to be sooner than five years. I think it'll be within that window I think that that it's just the natural next growth point for the league. It's another Set of games to sell to broadcasters You have all these streamers obviously now involved and and and just I think a lot of options there for the league to explore My guess would be that that they give back for the players is going to be That extra buy, you know that Joe Burrows talked about a second buy week something something in there to make the schedule a little easier and I and I would think of further curtailing of the offseason work I don't know if it'll be exactly the idea that was bandied about this offseason where basically you would get rid of the offseason program all together, but It's going to certainly be less offseason time. I agree with you I think within three years when I'm sitting in for rich and we're talking about whatever is going on The NFL will be talking about actual games over the course of Labor Day weekend But now we have the game coming up on Thursday. What a blockbuster matchup It should be between the Ravens and the Chiefs of course a rematch of last year's AFC title game so many different ways to dissect this game Josh if I had to Force you to isolate a component or two. What do you find most intriguing about KC versus Baltimore? I Think that obviously the familiarity between the teams But I I think the most interesting thing to me about this is what Derek Henry is going to mean to the Baltimore offense I think we saw a Different looking offense from them last year with Todd Munkin and you know Lamar Jackson obviously put together an incredible year But once again in the playoffs it became too one-dimensional.
It was they got away from what they were doing because the Chiefs were able to Stop Lamar Jackson from from doing anything with his feet and and you really made them a one-dimensional team Because they didn't have a running back who could take that You know weight off his shoulders. And so I'm curious to see if Derek Henry can be that difference maker for them he's been very successful against the Chiefs over the course of his career and I I think that's the big X factor In you know two teams that otherwise look pretty similar to what we saw in January Josh you have any concerns that Henry's going to turn 31 during the season I thought one of the more revealing parts of the Giants being on hard knocks was the Giants letting us into the school thought that now what 27 28 could be that line of Demarcation for running backs or although maybe they were just trying to spin things would say Quan leaving Yeah, I I think it's a real concern I think it's a concern for for a player that has been Used the way that Derek Henry has been used and and you know to continue the analogy the way the Giants used Saquon Barkley I think Henry has generally been a little bit healthier than Barkley's been and I Think that there's a little bit of something to this, you know They've had a couple of rough years there in Tennessee that to kind of juice things back up for a team. That's that's really in the mix and and You know, really really to play with a quarterback like Lamar Jackson is not something Derek Henry's ever done before And so I think that you know, I think that those things bode well for this season I don't know what what will look like beyond 2024, but I think that this Looks, you know, it feels like a chance for him to you know, fully You know fully grafting his Hall of Fame future and all of these things in it And you know with a team that isn't isn't gonna sneak up on anyone, but it's gonna be front and center all year I'm Brian Weber in for Rich Eisen we're taking across the NFL with Josh Alper a pro football talk since we Hit on Saquon Barkley with the splashiest free agent move made by the Eagles if in fact Whatever was going on internally Including reports of the disconnect between Jalen hurts and Nick Sirianni has been repaired Where do you slot the Eagles this year get ready to take on the Packers in Brazil on Friday among the premier teams in? the NFC well, I I still have them as the number one team in the NFC, but it doesn't feel like The way it did last year where they you know, felt like a team cut you know, obviously had come off a Super Bowl and a tough loss and So, you know felt like they might be ready to take that next step I I think that the way things ended last year was so rough that it's hard to not You know not take that into account and and I think losing Jason Kelce is probably you know Somehow under the radar given given his personality.
It's hard to fly that low under the radar but I don't think there's been enough given to to what he means meant to that team in terms of their offensive plant game planning and strategy and everything else and and the idea that you're turning that over to a good player in Cam Jurgens but Not one who's going to be able to run the things on the line the way Jason Kelce did I I think that you know, that's my biggest pause to thinking that it's just all systems ahead for them fair assessment Of course, we never talk about the offensive line in part because they're not drafted in fantasy football Brian Weber talking NFL with Josh Alper the pro football talk media empire here on the Rich Eisen show since you took us in the direction of the NFC East Let's talk cowboy football Josh understand that in a collision sport like the NFL Injuries are a massive risk. So you want your guaranteed money as soon as you can get it that said Now the word September and Dak Prescott still does not have a new deal Why would he not play out? The last year of the contract get the free agency and get Powerball money with everyone having a chance to bid on the open market.
I Think that I think that's where we're headed. I don't see a deal coming together before the start of the season. I think he saw You know He saw everything that happened over the last really the last two off seasons and we've been talking about this and that the Cowboys Haven't been willing to make that deal and take that off the table I think it you know behooves him to go out and see who might do that Even if it winds up being the Cowboys at the end of the day And for all of Jerry Jones's bluster, you know, he does pay he paid CD lamb. He gave CD lamb the same deal He could have given him six months ago though. And that that's the part I think for Dak Prescott why you know, why do that now why not go and see if somebody else if the Giants or the Steelers or you know, we'll go too deep down that road now, but they're gonna be some Pretty neat franchises in the market for a quarterback and and you've never really had a quarterback like that Prescott hit free agency Assuming he doesn't get hurt this year I I think what you know what we saw with Kirk Cousins would would just be the beginning of it Yeah, I I think you're right in terms of the financial dynamics would be fascinating to see what he would get on the open market Let's jump over to the AFC.
You're based New York tri-state area. You've seen Many abysmal seasons for the Jets, but there's hope with the return of Aaron Rodgers coming back from the torn Achilles Josh if Rogers can stay healthy. Do you view the Jets as legitimate Super Bowl contenders this year?
Yes, absolutely. I they won seven games with the worst quarterback play in the NFL I think that if you know, it's it's funny when you run down a list of NFL, you know Every quarterback that could have gotten them in the playoffs last year You had to get real far down the list to get to Zach Wilson and Tim Boyle to be the ones that couldn't even get Them there Yeah, I think for sure they do. I think they're better Across the board on offense offensive line is better Reese Hall's and another year removed from that sport ACL Mike Williams and Malachi Corley give you more receiving options than you had last year and obviously Rogers and then you bring back that defense and it really is now because After this year, you're gonna have to pay Garrett Wilson sauce garden or Jermaine Johnson Reese Hall You have to make a decision on Robert Salah You have to see what Aaron Rodgers future is like this is hurt paper team That's been out of the playoffs since 2010 This is as all-in as you can be on a season is right now and there's every reason to think they can be a big Winner it and it's the biggest if in in the AFC for sure But if Aaron Rodgers is healthy and if he's still Aaron Rodgers There's no way this team should win anything less than 10 games got a couple minutes left Let's wrap it up with the big picture If I asked you to choose a team that didn't make the playoffs last year that you would put in the postseason this year And I don't allow you to pick the Bengals.
I narrow the field. Who would you go with? Well, I'll give you two from the NFC that I'm choosing between for my last playoff spot when we were doing our picks Wednesday It's the Seahawks and the Bears.
Those are my two. I Think one of them's getting a wild card I could find to find myself picking both of them but I think that you know to use the Jets analogy the Bears with Halfway decent offensive play last year probably win eight nine games and they should be Much better offensively. I know Caleb Williams is a rookie but these rookie quarterbacks coming into the league now are different and I think that what they've done to build around him is really impressive and I think Mike McDonald is the If you eliminate Jim Harbaugh from the conversation since he you know We know what he can do as a coach Mike McDonald's the most intriguing coach to me this year and and it's a Seattle team that I think is getting a little bit slept on because I Really do think it just got tired and got a little bit stale with with Pete Carroll And and this is something that turns things back in the other direction Josh coincidentally I went through that exercise myself a half hour ago, and I also picked the Bears So occasionally great minds think alike my friend. I appreciate you taking the time on a holiday Look forward to chatting with you down the road and enjoy the start of the NFL season You too Brian. Have a great one Josh Alper pro football talk Be sure to check out his outstanding work. If you're a regular listener, of course, you know, mr. Florio Mike is Josh's boss and he's a regular contributor to the program Seahawks Intriguing. I think my pushback would be the division because while I do not believe in the Rams as much as other people do even though I'm based here in Southern California because I Think Matthew Stafford is just a guy a stat compiler to use the baseball terminology Do not tell me Matthew Stafford is the Hall of Famer I have no time nor inclination to go through the entire list of reasons why but he's not even close to being a Hall of Famer he's in the Hall of very good.
The numbers are empty calories. Yes, they are gigantic because think about the body of work for all these quarterbacks now All we do other than a handful of running backs is throw the ball But I still think the Rams would be a playoff team And my other thought about Seattle is how much are you buying Geno Smith? Who is a Remarkable story you want to go into the essence of comeback. What was his line on Monday Night Football?
They wrote me off and I didn't write back He was buried after getting punched in the face for a Wager that went unpaid Reportedly, and I love the tenacity. I love the resilience I just wonder where he's at at this stage of his career But glad to see that Josh and I are on the same page in Chicago win or lose The Bears are gonna be a good watch because there's a lot of talent on both sides of the football They won seven games almost in spite of themselves last year, and there are some big Personalities in a city that is drawn to bigger-than-life sports figures. I'm Brian Weber Not that big well physically maybe but I'm not on the simulcast big voice Which I'll try to use with even more alacrity in a big word Monday as we head into the final hour of the program Digging deep into the NFC contenders and pretenders. That's next here on the rich eyes and show The Rolling Stone music now podcast gets inside the biggest stories with Rolling Stone senior writer Brian Hyatt movie director James Mangold I'd want to turn Bob Dylan to a simple character with a simple thing to unlock that then makes you go on now I get him first time I sat down with him. He said what's this movie about Jim? It's about a guy who's joking to death in Minnesota and reinvents himself in a branded place because phenomenally successful Starts to joke to death again and runs away and smile. He's like, I like that Rolling Stone music now wherever you listen
