Hour 1: MNF Recap

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1:25This is The Rich Eisen Show. Oh, my God. You guys are my favorites. This is the Rich Eisen Show. The one and only. Rich Eisen. I know what I'm talking about. That's the headline. The Rich Eisen Show. With guest host, Brian Weber. I mean, honestly, he's brilliant. Brian Weber. I've got a long resume. Google me. It saves time. From the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. And now, sitting in for Rich, it's Brian Weber. To the program, and yes, I am just that delusional and self-important. It is always a pleasure to sit in for Rich and the guys. We're presented by Progressive Insurance. We've got all the fallout from that wild Monday night game won by the 49ers.

2:08As they continue, their unlikely push to be the top seed in the NFC, Phillip Rivers turning back the clock in a losing effort. because I am older than Phillip and you're never supposed to be transparent about your age when you work in sports media, especially in these challenging times. But I'm going to be upfront with you. I'm a couple years older than Phillip, so management has decided to put me on a pitch count. We're only doing an hour and a half version of the show today before we hand it off to our college football coverage coming up at 1.30 Eastern. it's Toledo taking on Louisville in the Bush's Boca Raton bowl of beans.

2:51Meaning I speak quickly. I try to be self-aware and not too narcissistic. This is a lot of mentions of me before we jump into the takeaways from on the night football. I'm under extreme pressure. I have to be as compelling as one of the most skilled broadcasters in our industry. Plus rich roles with the fellas. and I got to do all of this by myself. So I read the phone number like a carnival parker because I'm a radio veteran. You know by now, 888-SAY-ESPN. In all candor, since we only have an hour and a half together, today is not a phone call day. If you want to get interactive, hit me up on the X platform.

3:31My handle is BWWeber, Weber with two Bs. In 20 minutes, we've got the fallout from DK Metcalf's Metcalf's two-game suspension for his altercation with a fan in Detroit later in the hour. We'll focus on the NBA. I'm back with you tomorrow and Friday as well as we supersize the coverage. And it really is a distinct honor. Anytime I can keep the chair warm for Rich. I love the NBA as much as I love the NFL. I said it. Probably why I'm a film and hack and not a full-time host. So in addition to getting you fully lined up for the five games on the hardwood, Of course, available across the ESPN family of networks and here on ESPN Radio.

4:16Coming up in about 40 minutes, the Warriors did not show much holiday spirit last night. Dream on green and Steve Kerr getting into it. We'll hear from both of the principals. Plus, is Thursday going to be the last time we see LeBron play on Christmas Day? We will hear from the king. Let's jump right in with what stood out to me from that wildly entertaining Monday night game. Now, as a broadcaster, I don't root for teams. I'm looking for compelling things to talk about. And even if that game had been a dud, and thankfully it was not, if you like offense, you came to the right place. Monday night football delivered in a major way.

4:59We knew, irrespective of the outcome, that Phillip Rivers would be a major talking point. I'll get there momentarily. If you didn't have a chance to watch the game or the highlights, he certainly looked much better than he did a week ago, although some of that I think was a byproduct of scheme. And I'm not breaking down the all 22. But since everybody now follows the NFL so closely, you're well aware of the defensive strength of Seattle. So for Phillip Rivers to be pressed into duty after a five-year layoff, It was the right call. I think the consensus of opinion would agree to have him focus much more on the short passing game.

5:41You don't want to test the secondary of the mighty Seattle defense, which, in my opinion, has them in position to be the top seed. I think ultimately they're going to beat San Francisco next week to wrap up the regular season. But I will run through the scenarios because there's nothing better this time of the year than a fill-in host giving you the loss plus a tie. Okay, then we go down to the tiebreakers. It's going to be common opponents. So I think a lot of what we saw from Phillip Rivers last week was not only the predictable rust. It was a function of Shane Steichen, who's had the relationship with Phillip going back to their time together with the Chargers here in Southern California.

6:20as I come to you from our Regal studios at ESPN LA 710 in downtown LA. Greatly appreciate the hospitality. The question about Phillip Rivers was, would he show some arm strength? And I don't think it was a coincidence that they dialed up a deep ball on the very first play. Now, unfortunately, Phillip underthrew that pass because he's 44 years old and was coaching high school players a couple weeks ago. But in no way does that diminish what was just a spectacular watch. And I will not belabor being the old guy, but all of us can say, my goodness, and we're not potential Hall of Famers. I think Philip does get in.

7:03Remember, he was a semifinalist this year. Now the clock restarts for another five years because he's back on the field. He got five more years of NFL insurance to help take care of that brood of children that he has and the grandkids. But just from a human interest standpoint, to see him out on the field slinging it, making those checks on the line of scrimmage, it was compelling content. As for the 49ers, I don't understand how this team is winning. Now, let's take the Colts out of the equation. And I'm Brian Weber in for Rich. It is a Tuesday edition of the Rich Eisen Show here on ESPN Radio.

7:42We're presented by Progressive Insurance. You can start a conversation with me on social media. It's B.W. Weber, Weber with two B's. And in the attempt to not only read my bio, because after all, I'm a talk show host. It's all about me. I'll give you some context. If you've not heard me, enjoyed me over the years on other platforms, filling in for other hosts, a couple of the Brian Weber shows only last about six weeks. But I have been around for more than 10 minutes. I used to be a local sportscaster in the San Francisco Bay Area. I am well-versed in the history of the San Francisco 49ers. I have strong opinions about that proud franchise, and I want to let you know my bias.

8:25We strive to be objective, but we're human beings with emotions and feelings. I'm not that big a Brock Purdy supporter. Now, it's the wrong day to be that up front because he was brilliant last night. the caveat on a big word Tuesday is have you been tracking what's been going on with Indy in terms of their past defense and especially the sauce Gardner injury as he's still been sidelined with that calf issue after the Colts took a big swing and gave up all of that draft capital to bolster their secondary but in terms of what I thought might happen coming in because I do like to jot out ideas on pads and I don't try to approach this forum like an account numbers are important but I'm terrible at math so maybe it's my own weakness I don't want to just sit here and spit stats especially since we only have 90 minutes and less than that now as I'm filibustering here but I knew the Colts had a good run defense and I looked it up just to confirm coming into that game they were number one in the league against the run if you're looking at the yards per carry given up metric so i was skeptical if the 49ers could run it and i'm the biggest christian mccaffrey fan you'll meet if you care we went to the same college a million years ago well once more that guy was dynamic 117 yards on the ground two touchdown receptions and essentially as purdy balled out career high five touchdowns he did throw the pick because remember it's a little known FCC guideline.

10:08If Rock Purdy plays on Monday Night Football, he has to throw at least one interception. Now, wasn't as bad as that debacle against the Ravens during the holidays a couple years ago, or even the issues he had with turnovers earlier this year against the much improved Carolina Panthers on Monday Night Football. But for those of us who have doubts about Purdy, he shut me up, at least temporarily. The five touchdown passes, but I think the larger takeaway for the 49ers offensively is so long as McCaffrey and Greg Kittle are healthy, they have a chance based on their head coach. Now, something to track moving forward is the availability of Kittle.

10:50Because if you watched the game last night, you saw him leave with the ankle problem in the third quarter. Before that, he was hugely impactful. Seven grabs, 115 yards, and a touchdown. And I don't want to be that simplistic just to boil it down to a couple of players. But when you consider how decimated the receiving core for the 49ers has been all year long, the fact that McCaffrey has remained healthy changes everything because of his versatility and because of all the touches that he gets. And McCaffrey being on the field, I think, was a huge reason why Mac Jones was so effective. Remember, one of the reasons why the 49ers are in position to be the top seed is they have a head-to-head victory over the Rams on the road on a short week, a Thursday night game here in Southern California with Mac Jones under center.

11:47They still won that game in bizarre fashion because as long as we're not talking about the Super Bowl, either as a play caller with a 28 to 3 lead, you see where I'm going here, or having a 10 point lead in the Super Bowl as a head coach, Kyle Shanahan is your guy. He's won with T.J. Beathard. He's won with Nick Mullins. He's won with Jimmy Garoppolo. I mentioned Jones. And he's coaching up hurt. So as we look ahead, it's all in front of the 49ers. Win, out, and there's only two games left. They're the top seed in the NFC. But if you want to talk about degree of difficulty, they will start the countdown to kick off now in preparation for a marquee matchup on Sunday night against the first-place Bears.

12:35Both teams have already clinched playoff spots. And then ultimately could all come down to the regular season finale. in Santa Clara, a rematch against the Seahawks, who the 49ers beat week one, setting the tone for this unpredictable season. I'll be as honest as I can be. When I saw the combination of Warner and Bosa going down, coupled with all of the injuries at the wide receiver position, I thought the 49ers were dead. That's bad on me. And it should teach me, after all these years of barking into a microphone, the value of coaching. And we're seeing it across the league. Why is Bo Nix in position with all of his liabilities, as we saw again against Jacksonville in that hugely important game on Sunday?

13:26Bo with a couple costly turnovers. Well, why is he leading Denver, potentially being the top seed in the AFC? I think the coaching acumen on the Big Word Tuesday of Sean Payton has a lot to do with that. We're seeing it in Chicago. Ben Johnson and Caleb, a brilliant partnership. We're seeing it in Jacksonville. Liam Cohn got crushed for saying Duval. But this guy might be a miracle worker because suddenly now Trevor Lawrence is the premier touchdown machine in all of football. So to boil it down to the 49ers, I don't think they're going to win their last two games. If you care about my opinion, I think Seattle gets them to wrap up the division and the top seed.

14:09But the fact that this team is in position to have a shot at being the number one seed has already clinched a playoff spot is just a phenomenal coaching job. Once more by Kyle Shanahan getting more from less and they're just healthy enough. Although we're looking for the update on Kittle, he said after the game, he did not believe it would be the dreaded high ankle sprain. If you're a 49er fan, let me know your thoughts. I didn't crush your team. I try to be balanced and open-minded other than, I throw out my bias, that I'm just not a huge Brock Purdy believer. But you got to give the money to somebody in this league with a salary cap.

14:50And Purdy had done enough to quote-unquote deserve that high-level compensation. We could have the conversation on the X platform. It is B.W. Weber, Weber with two Bs. I have much more in terms of takeaways from Philip Rivers' performance last night. We'll use that as a device to kick off our number two of the program. We'll keep the NFL conversation going. I hit on the NFC, at least the top of that conference, so we'll shift our focus to the AFC straight ahead, plus with the NFL announcing a two-game suspension for D.K. Metcalf after his altercation with a fan, did the league get it right? Just getting warmed up on a jam-packed Tuesday.

15:30I'm Brian Weber, and for Rich and the Guys, it's the Rich Eisen Show on ESPN Radio.

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18:33The Rich Eisen Show podcast. Not a special edition of Headbangers Ball. It is the Rich Eisen Show. Brian Weber with you. 888-SAY-ESPN. But as I do my best to take it beyond just the normal sports talk radio machinations, probably not a great call day. If you want to express an opinion, slide over to the X platform. Don't slide into my DMs, but hit me up on, I'll say Twitter. I don't get paid by Elon. My Twitter handle is BWWeber, Weber with two Bs. ESPN Radio is presented by Progressive Insurance. See why over 43 million drivers trust Progressive to stay protected on the road. See for yourself at Progressive.com.

19:22Coming up in 20 minutes, I do want to talk NBA because Rich, while he is the face of NFL Network, first employee, my former colleague. If you have any idea of who I am, it might be because I hosted the show at 3 o 'clock in the morning here in Southern California. So clearly my career has taken off since then. But what I really respect about Rich, and I'm not just throwing out these platitudes because he's kind enough to allow me to guest host. He doesn't just talk football every hour, every day. And I'm not going to be naive. I understand the NFL crushes everything in its path. But if you want a thermonuclear hot take, the NBA has a better schedule on Christmas than the NFL.

20:10Have you looked at the games? Just give you a quick little preview. It's Dallas against Washington. Both teams, of course, eliminated from playoff consideration. Detroit is in free fall. Slight chance of still making the playoffs against Minnesota, already eliminated from playoff possibilities. In the third game, because now it's a triple header because we just can't get enough NFL in our lives, the Kansas City Chiefs, and I do this for a living, and I have no life. It's probably coming through so far. I watch preseason football. It's my job, after all. So I am aware of who this guy is, And I know we have Chiefs fans as part of our production team.

20:49So when I blow this name, I'm going to get some snide reaction. Chris, say quickly, Oladokun is the third-string quarterback. It's been a rash of unfortunate ACL injuries. Down goes the American hero Gardner Minshew after Mahomes limped off the field. At last, there's meaning, though, because Denver now has made things much more interesting atop the standings in the AFC, but if they can't beat Kansas City with nothing to play for in a third-string quarterback, then I can do the, you think I have doubts about Brock Purdy. I am not a Bo Nix guy at all. Nothing wrong with being a system quarterback, but we're seeing, I think, especially if you contrast the inconsistency from Nix.

21:39Again, I don't get bogged down by numbers, but I look at the basic overall efficiency ratings, far less efficient than last year. Yeah, they're winning like Chicago because they're finding miraculous endings, but if you're just going to line up the resumes or the eyeball test of Drake May next to Bo Nix, who looks better to you? Talking much more AFC coming up and a quick footnote to the Philip Rivers discussion, which is going to be the focal point of the start of the next hour. It is interesting to me, and if you're a Niner fan, And here's where maybe you have a few more concerns. Phillip Rivers was able to dissect that secondary fairly well.

22:19Even when he underthrew the ball, you look at the numbers, 277, a touchdown to late pick. That sealed the Niner win when Dee Winters took it the distance for the 75-yard pick six. But if Rivers, in start number two at the age of 44 after a five-year layoff, could do that against the 49ers defense. And again, context matters. No Warner, although Fred's a warrior, gladiators trying to get back for the playoff push. I think as importantly, no Boso, the Warner really the heart and soul of that defense. If you're from the San Francisco point of view, we already saw what Matthew Stafford did not too long ago against the Niners.

23:01That I think is the key concern, but somehow, some way they're in position to win the division and maybe with that lock up home field advantage throughout the playoffs in the nfc in 15 minutes we'll make the move to the nba draymond green another incident this time his coach was involved we've got all the particulars i was amazed at the production that cbs was able to pull off sunday i'm here in southern california like many of you i ride the red zone but when there's a game i'm primarily interested in i'll make that the second screen experience so i had the steelers and lions on we got that as our local game and i'm glad i had it because i had to figure out that insane ending and i i'm a recovering wrestling fan okay and you don't need to know all my foibles but in a pre-internet world and i was semi-intelligent as a kid i knew it was choreographed never say script it is sports entertainment but what i loved was the theatrics so the wwf then they can sue me if they want because it was the wwf had a ring announcer named howard finkel and one of his cool moves would be when the title appeared to change the winner of the match and they'd pause by disqualification and now there's no championship change.

24:30That was the same thing as the ending in Detroit when the referee said the ruling on the field is touchdown and they went wild. And then he finally was able to spit out that that was a correct offensive pass interference call against Amon Ross St. Brown. I didn't love the first OPI, as we say in the business. Remember, that happened not once but twice. I thought the pick play is just what happens in football. A little bit too heavy handed by the Zebras. But as CBS is documenting everything that had happened in a game that was filled with twists and turns. Credit the cameraman who saw something developing with DK Metcalf.

25:07Now, my concern is this, and I've worked in sports broadcasting long enough to know, especially with game coverage, we're talking about the top 1 % of production people. If you are part of that A-team on CBS, as much as Tony Romo is regressing, you are brilliant at your job. Not only do you have the dexterity to get the camera shot you need to anticipate things. So somebody saw DK going to a spot he should not have been at. My question is, where was security? And we've all seen that Internet meme from the soccer match with the geriatric guy who's pretending to frisk fans coming in. I understand.

25:50I'm a fan of the working men. If you're not making big money, you're not going to put your body on the line as a security guard. But I was just surprised nobody in a yellow jacket came over to prevent what occurred from happening. And by now, I think you know what I'm talking about, because the whole nation saw it happen live. Andrew Brandt is a terrific sports business analyst, former member of the ESPN team. And I want to give attribution because there's too much stealing going on in our business. He tweeted at halftime, given how, and I'm paraphrasing here, hands on, the league office has gotten with video review because now we get all of these things from New York, as was the case with that absolutely insane two-point conversion review.

26:37I'm not going all the way back to Thursday in detail, but you should know what I'm alluding to. with the lateral that nobody realized was a lateral in real time until the teams were lining up for the kickoff and then New York buzzed. Andrew was saying he was surprised that New York did not let the officials know what the whole world saw, and they didn't kick out Metcalf at halftime. But I think that would have probably gone beyond the guidelines that the league has set up, although it feels like now they're completely making it up as they go along when it comes to the replay assist. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich Eisen.

27:13Let's have a conversation on the X platform, B.W. Weber, Weber with two Bs. In less than 15 minutes, we make the move to the NBA. We'll get you fully lined up for Thursday's slate of games. I realize it's Christmas, but when you work during a holiday week, I'm mentally reminding myself what day of the week it is. And we'll hear from both Draymond Green and Steve Kerr after they had a little bit of a dust-up last night in the San Francisco Bay Area. The news broke predictably late yesterday afternoon, East Coast time, that the NFL dropped the hammer on DK Metcalf after, and I'm trying to choose my words carefully here.

27:51I'll go with the wire copy. An altercation occurred with the fan. Now, if you want to tell it like it is, DK threw a punch at him and he grabbed his shirt. Now, we don't know what that fan said. We also have the reports that this same individual DK has apparently a history with that Metcalf reported this person to Seahawks security a year ago. So we don't know the backstory. We don't know the particulars of the conversation. We can guess he said something outrageous and I can understand the reaction. but you see the league's response because, and this is not a deep penetrating observation as a film host, you can't throw a punch at a fan.

28:36Now, background and perspective are important. This was not the malice at the Palace, even though it was close geographically to Auburn Hill. This was not Vernon Maxwell losing his mind back in the day going into the stands. I'll go old school. 1979 because i grew up loving hockey rangers ooh la la actually went to the cup final that year losing to montreal i can close my eyes and see ron dugay in a pair of sassoon jeans i hope you're not closing your eyes while you're driving but that year the rangers and the brewers went all for wins went all time incredible fan involvement when they had a brawl that spilled into the stands at MSG, and one of the Bruins took a shoe off a fan and started hitting him with it.

29:29So I'm not hoping those days come back, but I'm just trying to give you the overview. We have seen a lot worse, but in no way am I justifying what DK Metcalf did. You're a professional. You have everything to lose. You have to control your emotions, even if this guy said something reprehensible. I thought it would be a one-game suspension, especially with the wave of suspensions this year for things that in the past would have typically warranted a fine. I think ultimately we'll get to that single game because the NFL, with the two-game finding, has left themselves some wiggle room because with the appeal coming from DK, the third-party independent arbiter can say, let's split the difference, make it a game.