Hour 2: Brand-New NFL Power Rankings, Jets’ Still a Mess, Russ vs Payton

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0:56Rich Eisen:This is the Rich Eisen Show. Hey, everybody. Can't get enough of the Rich Eisen Show? You're in luck. You can find us everywhere. Watch us weekdays on Disney Plus from noon to 3 Eastern. Miss the show? We've got a podcast so you can listen anytime. But here's the best part. Our YouTube channel. Subscribe at youtube.com slash Rich Eisen Show and you'll never miss a moment. Now, on with the show. Curry with five on the shot clock. Deep three. Got it! This is the Rich Eisen Show. Kating and Thunder Moneyball. Gilgis Alexander and Holman collaborate. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles.

1:39If we could just complete a pass, it would look good. The Rich Eisen Show. Earlier on the show. Pro Football Hall of Famer, Kurt Warner. Coming up, Rams head coach, Sean McVay. Comedian, Tom Papa. And now, it's Rich Eisen.

1:56Rich Eisen:hour number two of the rich eisen show is on the air no guests this hour just you 844-204-rich number two dial sean mcveigh the head coach of the los angeles rams will join us top of hour number three and tom papa the comedian will be back here in studio it's been a while since we've had him uh that's an hour number three i hope he brings bread uh he's talking about it 844-204-rich is the number to dial. Man loves bread. It's so good. Bread is good. He's got the Breaking Bread collection with Nambe. He's got the Breaking Bread with Tom Pompa podcast. The Grateful Bread tour. Ooh, I like that. Yeah.

2:38Rich Eisen:844-204-RICH is the number to dial here on the show. We'll take your phone calls in a moment. So, listen, when Justin Fields told all of us that um he was his own worst critic on our broadcast team is what he told us in the pre-broadcast meeting but prior to jets broncos in in um in london and then he threw for negative 10 passing yards when you uh account for the sacks he took or he suffered um net yardage minus 10 and um so there's lots to uh be your own worst critic about and then the next game against carolina panthers not much better because garrett wilson got hurt in london and he didn't play in the return from london and both the jets and the broncos decided to not take a bye after the london game against each other you you can choose to not have a bye yeah uh the rams said okay we'll take the bye after london and that will help get puka back on the field for instance helps out the jets uh did not take the bye nor did the broncos it looked like the broncos were on a bye for the first three quarters of that game against the giants and then the jets uh are now essentially at 0-7 bye-bye and um fields didn't finish the game against the carolina panthers and it seems like you have to wonder did the owner of the jets just finish fields anyway because when he's basically saying about the head coach hey he's you know fixing some things around here but with a quarterback that looks like that uh any coach is gonna look like aaron glenn which is not wrong not wrong um you don't usually hear an owner just come out and lay everything at the feet of the quarterback in this quarterback driven league but Woody Johnson is in charge of the Jets, and he was as brutally honest as I guess he was.

4:42Rich Eisen:And so it's Tyrod Taylor time, right? Except for the fact it looks like he's day-to-day with a knee injury. Come on. So he might not be ready to go, and it might be Justin Fields, the starting quarterback of the Jets by default? After the owner says that about him? Rough. And the head coach now has to take the podium today and say, hey, did you hear what the owner of the Jets had to say at 0-7? Which is part and parcel of being an 0-7 head coach in New York City, which I'm sure Aaron Glenn knows all about, as he took to the podium today for the Jets. We know how he feels about Justin. Clearly he does not want to play.

5:25But does that impact your opinion? What made you say? Did he say that? Well, he was very critical of him. What did he say? He said he couldn't complete a pass. Did that say he doesn't like the quarterback? Did that say the quarterback's not playing? No. No. Well, I said before that Woody puts that in my hand as far as who plays. And I don't see that changing. He trusts me to make that decision. Again, he made a comment, and he has every right to his comment. And, again, that comment was actually said by a number of guys, including our quarterback, as far as the efficiency of how we play. And we're not going to fight that.

6:07We understand that. We have to get better. We do. But I don't think there's anywhere in that comment where he said he doesn't like Justin. I don't think there's anywhere in that comment where he says that Justin's just – I don't think so. Yes, is he upset that we haven't completed a pass as far as what you just said he said? I didn't even read it, so I don't know. I mean, that's what he says. But overall, overall, we're on the same page when it comes to that. What's your confidence level in Justin? I have all the confidence in the world in Justin. I have all the confidence in the world in Tyrod.

6:41I have all the confidence in the world in Brady. He's a rookie, and he still has to improve as far as how we're doing things. But I have all the confidence in the world in those guys. And the reason why I have confidence is because I have confidence in the coaching staff also, be to help those guys navigate through what they're going through right now.

6:57Rich Eisen:Wow. Okay. well handled um first things first the reporter who said that Woody doesn't want him to play um Woody didn't never said that he implied all of it um it seemed kind of obvious but no no but Aaron Glenn did the right thing is which is to jump on that when a reporter says something that's implied as if it was said he's going to jump on that and try and flip a table or a script but woody absolutely implied it i mean when you say that the jets could look good quote unquote if we could just complete a pass um means that you don't have of any confidence in the quarterback that yeah that the front office that you just hired said we should bring in and for 20 million bucks a year just to see what he's got and what he had in week one was a winning stat line and a winning effort that went down the tubes on a 60-yard field goal and he had a couple other good games that the Jets couldn't finish off in Tampa um that well I mean Terod Taylor started that game because Fields was out but he had a couple other good games that the Jets couldn't finish off

8:20Rich Eisen:but the owner has no confidence in the in the quarterback right now and nor does the city i might add and nor does any jet fan that i know they go oh yeah put put fields is the guy we don't have to worry about who's i don't have to watch college football at all this year to see who's coming next i mean hey seriously every jet fan is going to be locked in on saturday right now to see who is actually performing well enough to be chosen first overall

8:46Rich Eisen:and that's fair enough fair to justin fields but that's just the way life is in the big city and the owner of the jets has basically said i don't think he's the guy around here but aaron glenn is right to say i make the decisions here woody's placed that in my hands he has every right to say what he said and he is also doing what every coach of an owen 17 has to do which is like i believe in everyone here i believe in everyone here and you don't see the team quitting on them you don't see the guys just like oh laying tackles you don't see that and the way that you see that is if the coach starts throwing players under the bus and instead he's coming in in the same manner that he comes in week after week which is what you want to see out of a head coach was just like i believe in everyone here i mean he was just he was the same way like that in our pre-broadcast zoom as well i believe in everyone here and that it looks exactly carbon copy like the detroit lions here that he and dan campbell were part of the staff that started 0-10-1 but the owner basically he didn't say it but boy did he imply it justin fields ain't the guy and guess who's the guy this week it's gonna be justin fields if tarod taylor can't go and you know taking on a cincinnati bangles team that's feeling really good about themselves right now oh yeah i mean that's the only answer aaron glenn can give i thought he handled that very well because other other folks might not in the new york area but this isn't his first such rodeo oh uh and speaking of their the jets co-tenants the giants

10:34Rich Eisen:so let's go here on this front okay jackson dart clearly is the guy which by the way might be adding to woody johnson's uh frustration irritants being irritable that the giants say oh you know what we're gonna do we're gonna take a swing at the quarterback, drafting a quarterback in the first round. We'll take that swing. And guess what? We're going to hit a home run. Yeah. Can we say at least a double or a triple before we say a full home run? He's the guy. He's got the jizz, man. It helps to also draft Scadaboo, which the rest of the league's like, they didn't watch Arizona State tape. What, he's too little?

11:23Rich Eisen:Get out of here. Well, you think he's whatever. We were all on it. A white running back. We were on it. Peyton Hillis, I don't know. We were on it. I don't know. We were on it. I have something to say about that two-leaguer, but just remember that. Dart. That might make Woody a little bit irritable as they're going through it. Makes sense. We could look good if we could just complete a pass, and Dart is doing remarkable things at the position in his first month there, making the entire building believe, as opposed to his head coach and Aaron Glenn trying to breathe belief into everybody. It's the quarterback that needs to breathe belief into everybody, not the head coach, just by his lonesome.

12:10Rich Eisen:So the Giants have that going for him. And Sean Payton gives voice to that.

12:19Rich Eisen:after pulling, you know, victory out of the jaws of defeat in a manner that the previous 1 ,064 teams down by as many points as they were as late in the fourth quarter as it was could not pull it off a win after losing the lead with less than a minute to go. And he spoke a little bit of truth. about the Giants quarterback situation, sending a verbal, pull the pin, throwing the grenade in the direction of the quarterback that Dart replaced. You know, they found a little spark with that quarterback. I was talking to John Mayer not too long ago, and I said we were hoping that that change would have happened long after our game.

13:13Rich Eisen:Okay.

13:17Rich Eisen:Meaning you couldn't start Russell against us? Now, the thing about Russell Wilson is when you hear his sign-offs, right? Right. Broncos country. Let's ride. Go Big Blue. That one. I mean, he was a giant for like five minutes. Right. And so a lot of people think that Russ isn't being straightforward, honest with folks. That there's a facade. You see the facade. You don't see the human underneath.

14:00Rich Eisen:Forget about the fact that he always visits kids in hospitals and things like that. But in terms of the football leadership abilities, you're wondering, who is this guy really? That's the criticism for Russ, right? Well, there's a guy underneath, and we got a taste of it. Because he saw that sound bite from Sean Payton. And an actual Russell Wilson clapback emerged. You got it, folks? You want to pop that one up? Classless, but not surprised. Didn't realize you're still bounding hunting 15-plus years later through the media. Hashtag let's ride. So he went back to his Broncos hashtag. to lob the bounty gate reference in Sean Payton's direction.

14:49Rich Eisen:I'm wondering if Sean would just like see this and just nod his head and do sort of like... Oh, he has no comeback. Well, no, just like, all right, I see you. Like, okay. Like, that's... Could have used some of that guy. You know? Maybe. But I like seeing it. The salty rust. You've got to be salty underneath there and just showing that side. I think it's healthy for him to do something like that. Yeah, there's still a fire in there. Right. Because the last we saw of Russ was his current head coach breaking blue tent protocol to find out if he can get Russ back out of the game. Tootsweet. Is that a working Mission Impossible title?

15:40Rich Eisen:Blue tent protocol? Blue tent protocol. Yeah. It is. He broke blue tent protocol. Which, by the way, the league is apparently still investigating. Really? Yeah, because the coach isn't supposed to go in there and just, you know, while you're giving some sort of a concussion test to your quarterback, go in there and go, are we done yet? You know what? Can we get this concussion protocol thing sped up a bit? Keep moving. Because my quarterback out there is killing me. Throwing dirt balls and getting food. That was the implication. That was the implication. And Russ can't like that either. Can't like any of it.

16:23Rich Eisen:I said, I think it's kind of healthy. Russ, it's, yeah, man. Let's see more of that. Let's see more of it.

16:33Rich Eisen:Because, yeah, Jackson darts turn things around. You don't think they've hit a home run, TJ, with him? You need to see more before you're... No, no, no. But I said this last week when you were gone. I was like, if you're a Giants fan, you are excited. You got your quarterback in the running. But a home run is like, you know, I don't know. Well, I mean, we thought Jane Daniels was a home run. And then you see year two. He was a grand slam. Yeah, so I'm just like, maybe it was a triple. The bases were jacked with him. No, I feel like if I'm a Giants fan and I got dirt and scataboo, Yeah, man, I'm excited.

17:09Rich Eisen:What I mean by home run is the Giants fan base was just like 0-3 watching Russ, you know, fump around with the exception of that game in Dallas. He looked terrific in that game. Yeah. And you're like, what are we doing here? We drafted the rookie. Let's see what we've got. Oh, and against the Los Angeles Chargers, I was leading the brigade of like mistake to start him against this team, and he won. And then he beats the Eagles. you know five turnovers in a row and five possessions against the saints killed him including dart dropping the ball that's the only time he's kind of looked like a rookie am i wrong when he just dropped the ball on a run untouched in new orleans and and dude giants fans are like i think we got our guy and they're believing and they're showing up they're psyched and you could also see that the kids got a a flair about him that the team is all in him and you're sitting you know what i'm sitting here wondering i'm like man if malik neighbors was only healthy what that would kind of look like too you know what i mean so the future is bright i picked up dart and guillotine last night by the way i you picked up everybody in guillotine you spent half your money last night you know you gotta be in it to win it i'm i'm wondering if that has something also to do with Woody Johnson going, we can't complete a pass.

18:31Rich Eisen:We can't complete a pass over here. And I'm sure he's sitting there seeing everybody talk about Dart and the Giants and Dayball. Did you see they cut the kicker? I saw this stat. I couldn't believe it. The kicker they cut was the first place kicker in NFL history to miss two extra points unblocked, just flat out missed them both, and the team lost by one. Did you see that stat? That's an interesting stat. I've never seen that one, but I don't know how you could figure that out. Was the kicker out on defense giving up a three-score lead? No, no, no, no. And I get it's a team effort, and Dart did throw that.

19:14Rich Eisen:I guess that's the other rookie moment I should bring up. Terrible. The throw right to Sternad that turned the game, or at least gave the Giants gave the Broncos new life where they needed possessions. And your thought is on defense, if the Broncos do get those possessions because the offense sputters, at least you're going to make them go with the field length. Not give them the ball with momentum on your side of the field, deep in plus territory. True. So that was another dark moment. But yeah, Giants fans should feel good. And Jets fans are going to be wondering what's going on. and kids are losing their hope.

19:56Rich Eisen:I hate this team.

20:00Rich Eisen:It's like Whoville. Wow. Courtney, here's a Whoville. I wasn't expecting a Whoville. You didn't expect a Whoville? Certainly not in October. All right. 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. One of our favorites, Tom Izzo, gave another soliloquy on the state of college basketball based on an NCAA mind-boggling decision that you're going to have to hear. And we're going to play most of it for you in its full glory. Because there's a new development in college basketball with that basketball season coming around the corner.

20:40Rich Eisen:That is kind of shocking. And then I got my power rankings, which I don't think will shock. But I never know. That's coming up. before Sean McVay joins us, hour three.

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22:22Rich Eisen:Back here on Rich Eisen Show air on Disney Plus and the ESPN app. And we're welcoming back in our ESPN radio audiences. ESPN radio is presented by Progressive Insurance. 844-204-RICH, number to dial. We'll get to my power rankings in a second. You wouldn't trade Del Tufo for Giannis. I would never trade Del Tufo for Giannis. You're not wrong. We would just immediately cut him. guys you may have missed cap that's true you may have missed this guys you may have missed this story on monday because i was flying back from london colleen wolf was sitting here obviously in the aftermath of week seven sunday prior to a week seven monday night football double had such a monster game like bucks and lions you may have missed the fact that a former four-star recruit and three season G League player London Johnson announced his commitment to play college basketball at Louisville Louisville now look at your face Chris I'll describe it for the radio audience you're like wait a minute somebody has played three years in the G League and I would assume got paid to play those three years in the G League right because that's what the G League is there for players who aren't ready for the nba fully just yet but want to get paid in a way that college can't pay them right the league basically said let's get this instead of kids coming to the league too soon let's get them the seasoning they want right and the money that they're looking for at least some form of fashion of the money like that's what the g league is for that sort of nether region.

24:03Rich Eisen:Sure. That's what the money is for. Correct. As Don Draper would point out, the G League, that's what the G League is for. Okay, and so you're firing your brown like, wait a minute, somebody's playing the G League? How is that happening in the NCAA? I'm curious as well. And you know who also is curious? Tom Izzo, who is, we all know, my favorite Michigan State Spartan spartan uh i don't have many of them um just like him and magic um sure and uh you'll hear magic's name invoked in tom iso's response to all of this you know i'm gonna get myself in trouble but i i listen to people talk about kids changed kids aren't the problem we're the problem this was sprung on us again yesterday where a guy can be in the g league for two or three years and then all of a sudden he's eligible most of my people knew nothing about it i don't think our commissioner i mean uh i am not real excited about the ncaa or whoever's making these decisions without talking to us just letting it go because they're afraid they're going to get sued so you're right.

25:26I said that this really bothers your coach, if you're Michigan State fans, but if you want a silver lining in the cloud, I am going to call Magic tonight. I'm going to call Jaron Jackson, Miles, Gary, Max. You know, this just goes to show you how ridiculous people people that are in power make decisions I mean you know and I'm going to get killed because someone's going to say well if they go pro it doesn't work out shouldn't they be able to come back well what about the freshman you recruited there that's somebody's son and he thinks he's got himself a good place and all of a sudden shazam they pull out of their hat and bring a 21 or 22 year old in.

26:17To me, it's ridiculous. To me, it's embarrassing. And I love my job. I don't respect my profession. And I don't respect who's ever doing that. Whoever made those decisions because they're afraid that a lawyer's going to sue them. Sooner or later, you've got to fight the fight.

26:42What did he just say that's wrong?

26:44Rich Eisen:Can he just run college sports? What did he say? Listen, we may just be old school, just like him, but at some point, like, what are we doing here? What are you doing, NCAA? And you know I'm not a fan of the NCAA. You know, certainly with my alma mater and their pursuit. But Izzo couldn't be more right. And then, you know, I saw this earlier in the month. There's a kid named Tyon Grant Foster,

27:24Rich Eisen:who missed two seasons at DePaul with a heart issue and then wanted an eligibility waiver to play for back in the NCAA. And the NCAA said no. They told him no. I have no, you know what I mean? like uh jay billis tweeted out uh the ncaa shows it has no heart or sense oh so on it but i i don't know the details of everything so obviously i shouldn't wade into waters without being completely buttoned up on facts i'd like to be that having not one but two degrees from big ten institutions journalism but um you gotta be kidding me what are we doing a g-leaguer is playing in college basketball you're supposed to not play college basketball to go to the g-league you know what i mean like the g-league is there for those who don't want to play college basketball and aren't ready for the nba and now somebody's going in the reverse direction well what's up with that and it's always right so there's a kid who's a senior in high school that wants an opportunity sorry kid you're not gonna play here at louisville because we're taking a g leaguer and it's just like well what's the point of setting up the athletics department in college.