Hour 1:  NFL Divisional Round Previews, Kyle Tucker to Dodgers, plus NFL Insider Tom Pelissero

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24:24Rich Eisen:The Rich Isis Show Podcast.

24:53Tom Pelissero:actually celebrate what would be the biggest win for that franchise in a very long time.

24:57Rich Eisen:Tom Pellicero joining us here on the Rich Eyes and Shore. Our radio audience just rejoined Tom coming up with all the conditional phrasing he could muster about the John Harbaugh Giants contractual conversations that it's not done yet. So let's ask you about Mike Tomlin, because I'm a little surprised by Rondé Barber, who absolutely would know. his statement on his own show saying that Mike Tomlin, he doesn't believe is ever going to coach again. Now, we haven't heard a single word except the report from The Athletic about how emotional it was for his players to receive the news from Tomlin. What's the general sense?

25:43Rich Eisen:Because we're certainly not hearing him about being available in this current coaching cycle, Tom. What's the general sense about what Mike Tomlin's next steps are going to be?

25:52Tom Pelissero:I would tell you that what Art Rooney said publicly accurately reflects what Mike Tomlin has told people privately, which is this was more a family decision that it was a football decision. He is not entered into any agreement to go to TV. He is not secretly going to do the old unretire in two weeks and try to come back with a different team. He truly intends to take time away. There have been teams that have checked in on Mike Tomlin, and they have been told the same thing, which is he does not intend to coach in 2026. We all know plans can change, Rich. If plans change with one of the most respected coaches in recent NFL history, there certainly would be teams that would have an interest in bringing in Mike Tomlin.

26:41Tom Pelissero:The Steelers still have him under contract. It would have to be a trade at this time if they were to move down the road. Art Rooney has not spoken specifically on what that would look like, but there's precedent for it in terms of the Sean Payton trade a couple of years ago. That, though, occurred a year later after Mickey Loomis had hired Dennis Allen and gone through an entire year. There was a coach in place, and at that point, the way that Loomis approached it was, here's what historically these trades have been. It's a first-round pick and more. we are going to tell other teams if you want Sean Payton you got to agree that that is going to be the compensation if you're on board with that then you can talk to him about potentially going there Sean made several different visits he talked to Carolina I believe he talked to Arizona ultimately talked to Denver and is now the head coach of the team that's the number one seed in the AFC it is much more complicated to trade a coach who has just walked away in other words because of the contractual piece of this, because the Steelers have not even hired a coach, it would raise a lot of questions.

27:47Tom Pelissero:And Art Rooney, as he said, would have to cross that bridge when you come to it. It doesn't sound like we're there right now with Mike Tomlin. I can't tell you what the future holds. I did not personally see a guy on the sideline, the way that he interacted with players, beating his chest after that win right there over the Ravens, who looked like he is just done and he's out of gas. He felt it was time for a change for himself. for the Steelers organization? How will he feel in 2027? We don't know, but he's a very competitive guy. He's going to need an outlet for that. And certainly one of the driving storylines over the next year will be, will Mike Tomlin come back to the NFL?

28:25Tom Pelissero:And if so, who potentially, who's coaching in 2026, could end up having their job taken by a guy who's coached 19 seasons and never had to lose in one.

28:34Rich Eisen:What is happening with Matt LaFleur and Green Bay right now, Tom?

28:40Tom Pelissero:There have been extensive discussions about a contract extension. That was the plan going into this phase of the offseason. That was the plan even before the game in Chicago. That probably, frankly, didn't make things easier in terms of the negotiation. The fact that not just that they lose that game, but the way they lost that game. I would repeat something I know I told you, Rich, a week or two ago, which is Matt LaFleur at 46 years old in the middle of his coaching career is not just, I would fairly say if you poll people around the NFL, a top 10 head coach, he's also a top five play caller in the NFL.

29:18Tom Pelissero:So if you moved on from Matt LaFleur, you would have to essentially replace both positions. The Packers recognize that. They do not want Matt LaFleur going anyplace else. The question has been about what is the level of the commitment? What are the contract numbers? Where should Matt LaFleur rightly fall among other head coaches in the NFL at a time that the market is exploding? If Matt LaFleur would become available, there would be no shortage of teams that would be lining up to hire him. There's already eight vacancies. There would be a strong chance that Matt LaFleur would be a candidate for the majority of those vacancies.

29:54Tom Pelissero:But there's still several steps here. Can they work out a deal? That's been the focus for both sides. If they can't, then the options are he coaches out 2026 and then becomes a free agent. You could attempt to trade him, which again, complicated things. The coach has to be on board. It's not like players. You can't just send them wherever. He'd have to agree to a new deal with that team in order to work out the compensation. Or you fire him. I don't see that being an option. I don't see the Packers firing Matt LaFleur. I believe Matt's preference is to being Green Bay and to continue to compete in that division with a roster that he loves.

30:29Tom Pelissero:He's developed two quarterbacks there, not just Jordan Love, but Malik Willis. He won games with Malik Willis. Matt's built something in Green Bay. He has lived up to the standards they have at Lambeau Field. He just has not put the Lombardi Trophy in the case yet. Can they find a path forward? I anticipate we'll get answers in the not too distant future on that. We'll see exactly how the rest of this plays out. But that's where they've been throughout this week, Rich, is trying to figure out if they can find a path forward do an extension that locks in matt lafleur for multiple years to come

30:59Rich Eisen:well i think you make an excellent point tom and the fact that he's not just a head coach he's also the play caller and i appreciate you multitasking right here on the rich eisen show do you need you need you need to return that text we're good we're good yep just tell me if there's no no i

31:13Tom Pelissero:understand here on you this is that's all right no this is the way i'm typing but i do hear you telling me what I need to make for dinner tomorrow.

31:21Rich Eisen:I'm used to this, Tom, because this is the way I talk to my children. You know, honestly, their faces are in their phones and I'm like, are you hearing me? All right. So it's an interesting point that you make about that LaFleur is the offensive coordinator and play caller as well as the head coach. And in that regard, there's a ton of OC jobs open where the candidates are also applying for head coaching jobs. How do you see this playing out? Do the head coaching gigs need to be filled first? Or is there going to be somebody who's also talking about a head coaching job saying, you know what, I kind of dig this OC gig more.

32:05And they're going to jump in and turn down a head coaching job.

32:10Rich Eisen:What's the timing on all of this for the Lions fans and the Chargers fans? all of them were wondering who their next offensive coordinator is going to be just as an example.

32:20Tom Pelissero:It's a great point because I honestly have had multiple conversations today with coaches in the NFL, some of whom are on lame duck staffs. Remember, over a quarter of the league fired their head coach. So you currently have nine staffs. Some of the owners have given those people permission to interview for other jobs. Other owners, GMs have said, we're holding on to you until we get the next guy. We're not just going to let our staff get raided. So people start to get antsy. But it is January 16th. We can't even do the in-person interviews with currently employed coaches until Monday. And so what I've been telling everyone is just exercise some patience here.

32:58Tom Pelissero:Because you're talking about the OC jobs that are open rich. So we've got Tampa, Detroit, the Chargers, the Eagles. The Chiefs don't have Matt Nagy under contract. The Commanders already hired David Blau, promoted him from within. And that's because Detroit was willing to hire Blau, who used to be a quarterback there. So that's six. You have nine staffs. That's 15. You can count on two, three, four offensive coordinators getting jobs. Now, all of a sudden, you're talking about 17 to 19 new offensive coordinators in 2026. There is so much movement that needs to take place. And one thing that you're seeing, this has become more commonplace in recent years, is teams conducting head coaching interviews with candidates that realistically are probably more likely to be offensive or defensive coordinator candidates.

33:43Tom Pelissero:Take Tennessee, who now I believe as of the end of this weekend will have interviewed like 18 candidates, 13 or 14 of which are former NFL or in the case of Jeff Halfley, college head coaches. So it's very clear they are prioritizing experience. They want people who have done it. Is Brian Dable really going to be the head coach of the Tennessee Titans? Is Jonathan Gannon going to be the head coach of the Tennessee Titans? In both cases, with respect to those guys, I would say probably not. But they certainly, in Dable's case, could be the OC. And Gannon is going to be a hot defensive coordinator candidate.

34:17Tom Pelissero:Mike McDaniel is interviewing. He's interviewed for four head coaching jobs so far. I believe there's going to be a fifth interview for Mike McDaniel. He simultaneously is interviewed for the Lions offensive coordinator job. And I believe that between the Eagles, the Bucks, the Chargers, There's a bunch of teams that would like to hire Mike as their OC as well. So those decisions you're talking to are real things that need to be worked through here. But because there are so many OC jobs out there, and there are so many of the candidates for those jobs that also are interviewing for head coaching jobs, the coordinator jobs are probably going to fill a little bit more slowly.

34:52Tom Pelissero:In other words, a Mike McDaniel is going to want to know he doesn't have a head coaching opportunity before he just goes and jumps and takes, let's say, the Lions offensive coordinator job. These are all moving parts, Rich. There are, of course, issues under the Rooney rule in terms of qualifying interviews that need to take place before you can hire. The only three teams that, as of today, can hire their head coaches are the Giants, the Titans, and the Falcons. Those teams are in position to move swiftly as we get through this weekend and into the start of next week. But a lot of teams have an interest in at least speaking to some of those candidates that, by rule, If you are employed by an NFL team, you can't interview until this coming Monday.

35:32Tom Pelissero:They at least want to go through that portion of the process. I believe that you will see the hires really pick up, probably not Monday, but as we get into the middle to end of next week, you could see a bunch of these vacancies, Phil.

35:44Rich Eisen:All right, Tom, before I let you go, Sam Darnold's oblique. What the heck? That's a simple question.

35:51Tom Pelissero:Two sides to this. So Sam Darnold feels something.

35:54Rich Eisen:You mean of his body? Yes, he's got two obliques, I believe. I'm not even sure what oblique is. Sorry, I didn't mean to go dad joke on you when you're dispensing information. Sorry.

36:01Tom Pelissero:I like that, yeah, oblique has many different definitions. He felt something in his side throwing the football in practice yesterday. He pulled himself out of practice. He talked with reporters, and when he was asked about the percent chance that he doesn't play, he basically said it is near zero. That's not a surprise. I believe that Sam Darnold, barring some type of a setback, will be able to play tomorrow night against the 49ers. but oblique injuries always are concerning when you're talking about a quarterback dice it is much like a pitcher in baseball oblique injuries in baseball that guy's going on the the 15-day disabled list right because the torquing motion the way that you're it's the pain tolerance and the fact that you can make something like that worse and so this is a situation where again barring some type of setback i'm not under the impression that sam darnold is not going to be able to go but it's going to be worth keeping an eye on how functional is he is he in pain are the things that they can do to numb him prior to the game it's a muscle injury and so inevitably if you tweak that thing the wrong way you're going to be feeling it in the game it's not what the seahawks wanted to be dealing with as they get set for you know probably the biggest home playoff game that they've had since the legion of boom over a decade ago um so keep an eye on it over these next 24 plus hours here they'll continue to monitor he'll receive treatment i believe that he is going to be able to play but he's listed as questionable we just have to see exactly what that looks like against the 49ers defense that despite all the injuries robert sala has had humming and attacking people this entire season and then what other injuries should we keep an

37:33Rich Eisen:eye on nico collins and the concussion protocol same thing with christian gonzalez just as a for instance um what what else you got for me for the entire weekend before i let you go tom do not

37:42Tom Pelissero:believe that you're going to have Nico Collins on the field. He's not practicing again today. Based on the concussion protocol, you kind of got to progress from limited to full and then get clearance from the independent neurologist before you're able to be cleared. They're running out of time with Nico Collins. I don't believe that he's going to play. They'll probably rule him out today. Christian Gonzalez, on the other hand, went from limited on Wednesday to full on Thursday. that's a very positive sign as of this morning i was told he is still in the concussion protocol but that's stage five once you get past full participation which is clearance by the independent neurologist is the last step if that comes today which is probably when he'll see the doctor or as late as tomorrow he'll be available which would be huge obviously uh for a patriots team that you know as much as they're gonna have to deal with that texans defense the texans offense if cj strow can handle a snap this week um they can be dangerous as well tom thanks for

38:36Rich Eisen:the time, man. You're free to go. Appreciate it. We'll chat over the weekend on NFL Network, obviously. Take care, bud. Sounds good, Rich.

38:42Tom Pelissero:Thanks.

38:42Rich Eisen:That's Tom Pelissero. Multitasking is only he can. See you, buddy. Right here on the Rich Eisen Show. That's odd that the Texans, one of their best players is not going to be fine, but the Patriots do have one, and then weather might come and level the playing field for, on behalf of the Patriots, in their home. I'm sorry you're so broken. That's really weird. That's really, really, really weird. That doesn't happen for New England, so it's an interesting break for them. All right, we'll take a break right here on the Rich Eisen Show. I don't like your tone, Rich Eisen. No, no, no, that's not a tone.

39:07Rich Eisen:I'm just telling you, good for you. I don't like your tone. Okay, let's go break. Christian Kirk, by the way, joining us in hour number two.

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40:51Rich Eisen:The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. Back here on the Rich Eisen Show, 844-204-RICH being the number to dial. Give us a call. We'll have a chat. Christian Kirk, hour number two. Hour number three, Blake Corum. Blackie. What's more likely? Coming up, I've got a top five list. Oh. And do you know what it is yet? Or do you tell you what it is? Well, there's only four games, so it can't be anything. Can't be the usual of me, the top five games I'm looking forward to seeing. No, I don't know. I'm anxiously awaiting. Coop came up with it. So it was a great idea, and I decided to employ it. There you go.

41:26Rich Eisen:That'll be later on.

41:31Rich Eisen:So sitting around last night, and I hear Kyle Tucker signs with the Los Angeles Dodgers. And my first thought was, I really can't say anything as a Yankee fan since birth. You know, Cooper texted me, couldn't believe it. He's pissed. as the rest of the free baseball world is, that the team that, you know, is already top of the food chain with all their stars, half of them deferring their salary like they got a deferred comp policy there in Los Angeles, which allows them to go ahead and give Kyle Tucker four years$240 million. By the way, he's deferring$30 million of it. and I kind of want to say to him, listen, I can't complain because back in the day, Steinbrunner had more money than most and the Yankees built quite a team.

42:31Rich Eisen:That's why I'm a Yankee fan because they started winning when I was six, seven years old, an impressionable young man in Staten Island, New York. So I can't really say very much, but that would make for any good TV or radio. So screw it. I think this stinks. I think it absolutely stinks. The only thing that actually gave me pleasure was Steve Cohen was tweeting out, hey, white smoke's going to come out of Queens. And whoop, got egg on his face. Until he signs Bo Bichette this morning. No egg. Which is, you know, good for you. That'll be great. Why do you say it like that? It's good for you. It's great.

43:07Rich Eisen:Am I wrong on that? He's like, eh. No. Soto's got a running mate now, along with Lindor. And it's a heck of a signing. He's pretty damn good. I don't know, man. Your tone right now tells me you're not happy for me. But at some point, you know, SpotTrack, I think it's not SpotTrack, right? It's SpotTrack. We always have that conversation. SpotTrack. It's like Giff and Giff. The Dodgers have committed on their books of guaranteed money to baseball players, including all the deferred stuff. $2.1 billion. Yeah, that's a lot. Is that even legal? It is. It's a lot, bro. It is. It is. And so, you know, what are you going to do?

43:57Now, the only thing that I could sit here and say is that even with all of that for the Dodgers last year,

44:05Rich Eisen:they needed everything to go their way in order to stave off the Toronto Blue Jays, who, by the way, are third on the list of most committed guaranteed dollars. Yeah, they're spending. You know who's two? Padres. Padres are two. So it's not like the usual have-nots, unable to keep up with the haves. I don't know. But it's, once again, the Dodgers world. We're all paying rent. I don't even know. Where does Tucker hit? Fourth, fifth, sixth? Is that where he goes? You know what I mean? That's how it's going to happen. Was he even good? It wasn't even that good, though, the second half of last year.

44:45Rich Eisen:They're paying him$60 million a year. Which makes the Soto deal look like a mere bag of shells. Looks like it's cheap. Yeah, I would have signed that deal, too, if I was him. I'm glad we got it. Who, Kyle Tucker? Yeah. He also gets to opt out year two and year three also. So the Dodgers are like, we'll give you opt-outs. We'll pay you$60 million a year. We'll give you signing bonus of$64 million. You want to defer$30 million so you've got a nice little 401k plan for yourself? Great. Why wouldn't you sign that sort of thing? To be with the back-to-back champion Dodgers with an outstanding manager who's not going to treat you anything but like a person and an adult?

45:25Rich Eisen:And get to play with quite possibly the greatest player of all time? Yeah. I mean, it's kind of crazy. I keep mentioning it. Last year, Otani on first. Oh, no, sorry. It was Otani on second, Betts on first, Freeman hits one in the gap, and they're all running. They have as a shot from behind home plate watching the base paths move of Otani come around, Betts first to third, and Freeman go to second. And all of that sat there and think, like, is that a billion dollars on the base paths? Easily. I think it was. And so, again, you know, baseball fans, it'll be, you know, for you to vote with your remotes or your feet or whatever, or you're going to sit there and root against your Dodgers, you know.

46:08Rich Eisen:I don't know. But honestly, it was the Yankees in the 70s and the 80s and the 90s, and now it's the Dodgers of the now, where they have more money than they know what to do with. They're willing to spend it, and they're also able to spend more money than they know what to do with because a bunch of players are like, we'll take it 10 years from now. We don't care. So you're down underneath the luxury tax. You can use it to your advantage. And I just hope Bo Bichette's healthy for you. That's all, because last year, I mean, he could rake, and then he was limping around the bases. I imagine he'll be just fine.

46:41Tom Pelissero:You kind of got to wonder, man, when he hit that three-run homer off Otani, like had they won, what his present would look like, you know?

46:49Rich Eisen:He wouldn't be a man. He's awesome. I don't know. Maybe he would be. Maybe he would be. I don't know. The Blue Jays are still spending like crazy. And at some point, you know, Brian Cashman's alarm will go off. Same thing with your Red Sox over there. but you did sign Rangers Suarez. Yeah, we did get Rangers Suarez, which was great. You got two nice lefties coming out to start. Baseball hot stove heating up. The Ridge Eisen Show Podcast. Monster Energy. Everybody knows White Monster, Zero Ultra. That's the OG. It kicked off this whole Zero Sugar Energy drink thing. But Ultra is a whole lineup now.

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