Hour 2: Maxx Crosby’s Raiders Future, plus The MMQB’s Albert Breer Talks Rams, Chiefs, Kyler & More

17:14Rich Eisen:Ladies and gentlemen.

17:17Maxx Crosby:By the way, there's a direct flight from Vegas to Boston. If he wants to take a direct flight, we could really use him. Let me tell you what nobody wants. I do. How's his knee? Has anyone talked about that? Yeah, I'll take it.

17:30Rich Eisen:I think it's going to be fine enough.

17:32Maxx Crosby:It'll be fine.

17:33Rich Eisen:It's just like nobody wants the Celtics to win.

17:35Maxx Crosby:Nobody wants Max Crosby on the Patriots. Well, except Susie. Who wants the Celtics?

17:41Rich Eisen:Cooper and her entire side of our family? No one here. Let's take a break. Albert Breer here on The Rich Eisen Show. Everybody, let's ask him what he knows. He knows a lot. That's next. This is The Rich Eisen Show.

18:01Rich Eisen:The Rich Eisen Show podcast.

18:08Rich Eisen:If you're ready for an oil change, Trust the professional parts people at O 'Reilly Auto Parts to recommend the best products for your vehicle. Right now, get five quarts of Valvoline full synthetic motor oil and a Wix filter for$35.99 and receive a$15 O 'Reilly gift card after rebate. Upgrade to a Wix XP oil filter for just$2 more. Limits apply. See store for details. Stop by your local O 'Reilly Auto Parts store or shop online at OReillyAuto.com. In my line of work, I'm fortunate enough to travel quite a bit covering the biggest moments through the football season. While I'm on the road, I sometimes miss the comforts of home, which is why when I travel with my family, we always check Airbnb for places to stay.

18:51Rich Eisen:It's our home away from home, providing the comfort and safety that allows us to wind down and relax. Families like mine are looking for homes that fit their needs to make new memories in, and your home may be exactly what they're looking for. If you're looking to save up for a new addition to your house or a once-in-a-lifetime trip to see your favorite band in another country, for instance, hosting your house on Airbnb could help you reach those goals. It's easy to list your home for short trips or extended periods of time, allowing your house to earn you some extra money. Make your home work for you while you're away and enjoy the benefits of hosting on Airbnb.

19:30Rich Eisen:Your home may be worth more than you think. Find out how much at airbnb.com slash host.

20:02Rich Eisen:With Intuit TurboTax, you can match with your dedicated tax expert and hand off everything right in the app. And while your expert checks for every deduction, you'll see real-time updates on your phone so you always know exactly where things stand. Suddenly, you're not refreshing your inbox. You're going for a run, grabbing a coffee, scrolling anything other than a just-checking-in message. Because your TurboTax expert is handling it and keeping you in the loop. So this tax season, get your best possible outcome and every dollar you deserve without the guesswork. Visit TurboTax.com today to learn more.

20:37Rich Eisen:Real-time updates only in iOS mobile app. Only available with TurboTax full-service experts.

20:47Rich Eisen:Back here on the Rich Eisen Show, one big happy family. On Disney Plus, the ESPN app, and ESPN Radio. Ladies and gentlemen, back from the Combine himself, Sports Illustrated's Albert Perger. Good to see you, Albert. How are you?

21:00Albert Breer:I want to apologize. I have like this fancy camera that I just, for one reason or another, it does things on me that are strange sometimes that I'm not qualified to fix. You nailed it. You're good. Good to see you, buddy. We're using my MacBook camera now, which is a little bit less of a professional setup.

21:16Rich Eisen:Did you see the article on Max Crosby from your Combine seatmate? You and Silver were sitting together when I saw you one of those two times going to work. Did you see his article in The Athletic on Max Crosby today, Albert? Yeah, I did. Yep, yep, yeah. Put it all together. What's the reporting on Max Crosby as we sit here right now? Sure.

21:37Albert Breer:I mean, I think I would start here, Rich. To understand this, you've got to go all the way back to the very beginning. And that was him injuring his knee back in October. at that point um you know he he knew the team knew that he was going to eventually have to have surgery um the question was when it was a pain tolerance thing to some degree um so you know he was under enough pain in december that they decided to go back in and have scans a couple days before christmas um at that point after the scans came back uh they made the decision they were going to shut him down he didn't like that he went and sought a couple of outside opinions on the knee and those doctors outside the organization told him he could wasn't perfect but like he'd be okay to play out the last couple of weeks of the season and it was communicated to him that wasn't going to happen and you know the communication issue there I think as much as anything else was more of a Tom Brady Alex Guerrero thing so that's where the disconnects come with Crosby you know I think at this point he's he's fine with the general manager, you know, with John Spitek, he's, you know, I know he's had a chance to meet with the new head coach, Clint Kubiak.

22:54Albert Breer:You know, Rob Leonard, he's very close with his position coach, was just promoted to defensive coordinator. So there were, you know, all of these sort of moving pieces within the organization. But I think the big thing is the door was open to the idea of him being traded and he was able to sort of look around and and see what's out there and so i think shutting that door is is difficult if you're the raiders and saying no we're not going to trade you so obviously calls have come in you know i think you know a quarter of the league if not more is is interested in trading for him at various different prices and now the question becomes which way this goes but you know i i do know there's a feeling that this is an important week and has been an important week all along, you know, for the simple reason that, you know, we get to Monday, free agency starts, and now teams are starting to fill out their rosters.

23:47Albert Breer:Cap and cash budgets are being spent. And so, you know, the teams that are pursuing Crosby would like some clarity. And, you know, for the Raiders, this is, you know, I guess on paper, at least the largest group of suitors they're going to have.

24:01Rich Eisen:Okay. All right. So there's a few follow-ups here. Yep. it's a third rail subject talk about Alex Guerrero and Tom Brady it just is it always has been and you know anytime I see Guerrero couldn't be couldn't be nicer couldn't be more of a good dude right you know what I mean and and Brady is is the goat and everybody no one wants to bring him into a conversation that would piss him off so that said are you saying Crosby was informed by that duo about being sat in a way that pissed him off that he can't come back from

24:36Albert Breer:that red line yeah is that i mean i i think his perception was um you know right or wrong i think his perception was that what was communicated to him was he's being sat down so the the raiders could pursue the first overall pick i mean i mean it's that that's his tale as old as time though right i mean like that can't and and and look like i think you have to understand the psychology of Max here too. The psychology of Max, obviously he's a great player. He's accomplished a lot. He's self-made. A former fourth-round pick who's risen to the highest level at his position. And he's only played in one playoff game.

25:16Albert Breer:And so if you haven't had the chance to have team success over a seven-year career, what are your points of pride? Well, it's all pros. It's pro bowls. It's being able to say that you were there every week for your teammates and you answered the bell for them. And that's stuff that I think Max Crosby takes a ton of pride in. So like the idea of that being taken away from you, you can understand where it would cut you differently. And if you had a great level of loyalty to an organization and to ownership, he's very close with Mark Davis, then the organization taking something like that away from you at the end of the season would naturally chip away at your loyalty to the organization.

26:01Albert Breer:So I think that's sort of how all of this turned into what it's turned into. And it's something I've talked about the last few weeks, but I think that communication issue at that level of the organization and the Brady Guerrero level of the organization, that was problematic for Max at the time. And we'll see where it goes from here. um you know but i i can tell you this like people in that organization love the player um you know i think there's also a recognition of where they are you know and and some thought i'm sure um yeah i don't know this definitively but i'm sure there's some thought like we're going to bring a rookie quarterback in here and fernando mendoza in all likelihood and you know this might take two years three years and do our timelines match up with max crosby i think those

26:48Rich Eisen:are all fair questions to ask no doubt and and it's also fair to say that you one would think one phone call from 12 to 98 would smooth anything over anyway um certainly if if there's a clear clear cut plan with a new coach and Clint Kubiak it's very uh very alliterative here um that that this is all set and he would be taken care of uh in every way shape or form that said uh if there is a trade you mentioned sooner rather than later is best in terms of uh the the scope of of suitors although um micah got traded at the last second in the summer that that wasn't right but that wasn't good for anybody really um walk me through who who who are the guys who are the teams who are the teams that are willing to just go ahead and knock on the door here what do you got i mean i

27:39Albert Breer:think the eagles would look at it um because the eagles look at everything right um they've got a a high profile free agent at the position and Jalen Phillips that, um, you know, is, is, is set to maybe get 20, $25 million per year next week. So, you know, if you're having trouble getting him signed to an extension, is that something that you look at if you're Philly?

27:59Rich Eisen:Yeah.

28:00Albert Breer:the bears have been looking for edge help for a long time. Um, you know, and somebody to put opposite Montez sweat, um, that would be another one to consider the Patriots. I know, you know, Crosby has a stated affinity for Mike Vrabel. and Josh McDaniels is there. So the Patriots are going to have a good, you know, good information on Max Crosby. And, you know, I think that that's probably their primary need is help on the edge. And they've got free agents, you know, like Caleb Vaughn Chase on at that position too, just like Philly. They'd be another one to consider. I think Tampa's hat is in the ring now.

28:35Albert Breer:You know, we'll see where that one goes, but Tampa would be another one. So there's a large group of suitors. There's a healthy market here, which would seem to indicate that you'd be able to get a pretty good return if you can get those teams in competition with one another if you're the Raiders.

28:52Rich Eisen:Okay, let's move on then, Albert. There was an actual trade today that will be made official next week. Field Yates tweeted this out, and it really is so shocking when you see it in black and white. Since 2017, Les Snead has used his own, his team's own first-round draft choice on a player once. There's Jared Verse in 2024. Otherwise, isn't that amazing? I mean, and he nailed it. So and you could see the Jaguars choices were for Jalen Ramsey and the Lions choices were for Matthew Stafford. So it's not just anybody. Right. And the Falcons one that he traded to the Falcons was for one this year that is higher than the one that he traded to the Chiefs.

29:41Rich Eisen:so Trent McDuffie goes there now and walk me through what it means for both of these teams

29:50Albert Breer:yeah so I'd say for the Rams it kind of shows where they're at it's also I think a little bit of a pivot philosophically on where they've been and that if you look at like the time the few years since Jalen Ramsey left there they sort of started to view the corner position as as a little bit disposable you know and that the saying i've heard from from from from that sort of tree is that like we view corners as speed bumps not stop signs in today's nfl it's hard to find guys who can you know really um impact the game because it's too easy to throw away from them so this like i think feels like a little bit of a rollback of that philosophy maybe they took it too far um you know and this is very clearly a need for them they tried they tried to fix it in season last year in trading for Roger McCreary from the Titans.

30:37Albert Breer:I think it's also a recognition of where they're at in that they've got a quarterback who is 38, I believe, right? I think he just turned 38. They've got a team with a ton of players who are on their rookie contracts and won't be cheap forever. They've got some flexibility to do this. That's guys like Jared Verse, like Kobe Turner, like Braden Fisk, like Puka Nakua. They've got a ton of those guys that have become really good players for them at a young age. And right now, with those guys on rookie contracts, they've got the flexibility to go and take a swing on this. And that's a credit to them for drafting as well as they have.

31:24Albert Breer:I think Trent is, anybody who's been around Trent McDuffie knows this is an all-pro player and an all-pro person. So there's not a huge risk here. You know what you're getting. And he's a scheme fit for what Chris Shula wants to do. His college coach, Jimmy Lake, is there. So all that checks out. As for the Chiefs, like this is like kind of the consequence of having a roster that is top heavy. And they're sort of on the other end of that rookie contract spectrum. Right. Like I mentioned that with all the guys the Rams have. well you know like recently the chiefs have started to have started started having to pay their guys so that's trey smith that's creed humphrey that's george carloftis that's nick bolton um they've actually drafted really well they've retained a lot of those guys but you can't pay everybody and you know they they tried to do trent last year and trent mcduffie wanted to do a contract at the top of the market and trey smith was at the top of the guard market and George Karloftis was getting a big deal, so they couldn't get it done then.

32:28Albert Breer:And they went into this offseason with a recognition after Stingley and Sauce Gardner signed that if this was going to get done, the number in the APY was going to have to start with a three. And so, you know, I think the way they look at it is this gives them a chance to restock a little bit, to draft well. It's a position that they've developed incredibly well under Steve Spagnuolo with the secondary coach there, Dave Merritt. But, you know, they develop LeJarius Sneed, Charverius Ward, Jalen Watson, McDuffie himself. And so, you know, they've got confidence they can develop that position. And again, like you just can't pay everybody, you know.

33:06Albert Breer:So where do you where do you where can you cut a corner? Where can you cheat it a little bit? I mean, they think they've sort of looked at this as that's a place where, you know, maybe we can get by with young developmental players on the roster while we're paying guys in other positions. And oh, by the way, this might open up the door for them to go after somebody like Kenneth Walker next week.

33:27Rich Eisen:Interesting. Okay. Now that's a nice breadcrumb right there. So four draft choices, I know that Les F's the picks, but four draft choices means McDuffie's going to get that contract extension here in L.A.? Yep. Do you think?

33:41Albert Breer:Yeah, they've given the Rams permission. Okay. My understanding is they've already talked, and the goal is that the contract is done upon execution of the trade. Okay. um so right now this i think the number is 13.6 or 13.9 one of those two that that mcduffie's fifth year option um that that's that's the number so the goal for the rams would be to have you know a new contract done and um simultaneously execute the trade and execute a new contract i don't know if anything's guaranteed at this point but you know i think if you're making this trade, you've been apprised of what the contract negotiation has been and where Trent McDuffie's camp has been on this, which is, you know, I'm a first team all pro corner.

34:25Albert Breer:I should be paid at the top of the market, which obviously justifiable. And, you know, so, you know, if you're the Rams, you have to acknowledge this is why he's being traded. So if we're going to trade for him, then we have to make this part of it right for him. So I would think that they're on the same page there they've got the permission to to work out an extension over the next seven days the trade can't be executed until next wednesday and and and my guess would be the contract and the trade happen simultaneously although nothing's guaranteed a few minutes left with sports

34:57Rich Eisen:illustrators albert career walk me through kyler murray's market yeah so i think kyler wanted to

35:04Albert Breer:be cut like that was the ideal scenario for him was that um and because of the way offsets work I won't bore everybody with a cap lesson here, but, you know, if if if your guarantee, if you've been caught, your guarantee is at a number that no other team is going to match. Then you have the ability to go play on the minimum somewhere in an offset and hand your old team the the bill. So presuming nobody's going to pay Kyler 40 or 50 million dollars this year, which I think is a fair presumption. You know, he's going to go play on the minimum somewhere next year, the same way, you know, Russell Wilson played on the minimum coming out of Denver when he went to Pittsburgh.

35:48Albert Breer:And this allows for Kyler to make this a pure football decision. Right. Like, what is the best move for me, football wise, not financially, football wise. and I think for all of us like we've all sort of had Minnesota marked as the best destination for a quarterback now and so he'd have the ability to go in and maybe go into a competition with J.J. McCarthy to be the quarterback there and get the chance to do what Sam Darnold did you know a couple of years ago in Minnesota so I'd have Minnesota at the top of the list you know there other teams that I think for financial reasons would be attracted to Kyler.

36:27Albert Breer:You know, and certainly, you know, the Dolphins would be on that list. The Jets would be on that list. But to me, like the Colts, if like something isn't to work, if if Daniel Jones, you know, if if something weird happens there, then the Colts, I think, would be attractive to Kyler. Would he go there as an insurance policy against against Daniel Jones's Daniel Jones's Achilles I don't know but that would be another one to kind of look at but that would be I think

36:55Rich Eisen:where the market would be for him what's the transition tag decision time frame for Jones does it match up for because Kyler's not going to want to sit around and wait for anything like that right so like that that that's a ticking clock there that's one follow-up question and then if you wouldn't mind fashioning into your answer there does that mean a quarterback competition in Minnesota or or is Kyler would go there fully knowing it's JJ's week one gig and he's there is a much better uh option than Carson Wentz from last year Albert yeah I think Minnesota is of a

37:29Albert Breer:mind to create a competition for JJ um and I know um I can tell you factually that like really going back to the middle of last year um they've had you know like an eye on what's our next reclamation project and they viewed that as a potential path for them um because it worked out so well a couple years ago with them taking on sam darnold as a reclamation project so like that's the way i'd view that what was your other question rich my other question was the timing of daniel jones's decision making yeah right i was the asap on that like they so um the reason they transitioned him and the reasoning on it is so like his camp, I think, is right now of a mind that we should be making 100 million dollars over the next two years.

38:18Albert Breer:And that that sounds like a lot, but that's based on and that ask is based on where the franchise tag is. Right. And so the franchise tag, you put two tags together, comes out to roughly 90, 96 over two, which is close to 100. So round up and he's looking for about 50 million dollars per year the transition tag takes that leverage point away from the player side right so you're not working off of that number off of the number above 43 anymore you're working off of a number that's above 37 and it also gives daniel jones a chance to go out and look on the market if he wants to so you know i i like the if you look at it right now like it would be the colts put something in front of him as far as a long-term deal or he can sign the one-year tender at just over 37 million dollars um it gives like i think a little bit more flexibility allows for the player to go and explore the market on his own it's risky of course because you risk losing the player and there's another piece to this that i think is interesting which is the alec pierce situation which they would like to get alec pierce re-signed.

39:27Albert Breer:I think Alec Pierce is going to sign for somewhere between 25 and 30 million dollars somewhere. But Pierce has communicated pretty clearly to them that he wants to know who his quarterback is going to be before he signs. So there are some moving parts there that I think you have to consider. And it's an interesting situation for sure for the Colts. My guess would be that Daniel Jones is back there. I think he wants to be there. The team wants him to be there. you know but obviously putting the transition tag on them instead of the franchise tag does open some new questions all right last one for you the cowboys are clearing the cap space for who what do you think what are they doing i mean i would say crosby would be somebody who'd be on their radar um i i i wouldn't i wouldn't look at like the the the clearing of cap space is necessarily a precursor to a huge move but it does give them some flexibility to work here to fit the George Pickens tag here.

40:25Albert Breer:You know, so like there are, you know, I think a few moving parts with that. But I would say, like, if there was somebody that I'd circle and say, like, yeah, that's who they'd go after. And they'd be interested in as far as just a big ticket item there. It would probably be Crosby, who, by the way, I believe went to high school in the Dallas area.

40:44Rich Eisen:Yeah, Colleyville. He went to Colleyville, Texas. All right. Four Buckeyes in the top ten, Albert? Yeah, do you want to talk about Caleb Downs and that mess? No, I mean, I guess I've got about two minutes if you have. I'm happy to give you the floor on that. Although Sonny Stiles is just, for me, he's the hottest guy on planet Earth right now.

41:03Albert Breer:Yeah, I mean, I think like Carnell Tate and Arvel Reese were kind of, you know, comfortably in that range going into the combine. You know, Caleb Downs too. Sonny Stiles knocked his meetings out of the park. The only question with him is how you value the position. Right. because there are some teams that just don't value off-ball linebackers that high, regardless of how they test or any of that. But his meetings went great. He is an A-plus kid. I don't know if you had the chance to sit down with him, but all the way around, like a really great kid and is going to meet well. And I think the experience in the Matt Patricia defense helps him too.

41:46Albert Breer:you know, Caleb is interesting because I saw out there what you saw out there and, and you know, our text group there with the, the financial advisor to the stars, we, we, we went over this. You know, I, I would say I, I, I try to check everything, you know, and I would caution people to looking at anything that has fake at the beginning of the handle and taking it seriously. I checked with ahead of this appearance because you and I communicated a little bit on this. I checked with five different teams last night on Caleb Downs medicals. I got three. We're not worried about it at all. I got one like minor tendinitis in his knee.

42:32Albert Breer:I got one wear and tear in his knee. So I don't think it's a massive concern for people that are drafting up there in the top 10. I think if he were to fall, it would have more to do with what I just mentioned with Sonny Stiles, which is the positional value argument, but not because of anything that's wrong with him medically.

42:56Rich Eisen:Downs might have been the best player on that team at the end of the day. You know, that's how talented he is.

43:00Albert Breer:I mean, the most impressive thing about him is like when you watch him play and he hits somebody, they stop. I've said that. I mean, you do not get extra yards against him. And he's another one. He's like a son of an NFL player, just like Sonny Siles. And just a plus person who started for Nick Saban as a true freshman at Alabama. So, you know, I think he's he's he's he's another one who I think will have a good long career. And how high you highly you value him in the draft, you know, probably relates directly to how you see the safety position. Albert, you're the man. Thanks for the time. Sorry for the camera issues.

43:37Albert Breer:I know this thing's my Zoom setting. Somebody's going to have to help me. Because my camera was moving up my head there, too. We're on it. I got a lot of things to work out there. We're on it. You got an IT person. Have them give me a call.

43:52Rich Eisen:At Albert Breer, everybody. Check it out. Thanks, Albert Breer, on this program right here from Sports Illustrated. We got to beat it so we can get in some advertisements. Back with more in a sec. The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast.

44:09Rich Eisen:Get into the Hyundai Getaway sales event and get away with a deal so right, it almost feels wrong. Because right now, you can get great deals on our most popular models, including our adventure-ready SUVs like the Hyundai Santa Fe or Santa Fe Hybrid and the Tucson or Tucson Hybrid. Plus, there's our bold and stylish Elantra loaded with the latest tech or go all electric with the Ioniq 5 or Ioniq 9. So get down to your local Hyundai dealer and get away with a deal you'll love during the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event. Visit HyundaiUSA.com for details.

44:40Maxx Crosby:Amazon Hub Delivery wants to partner with your business. Help your business. Help your neighbors. Discover a new stream of income for your business when you partner with Amazon Hub Delivery. You and your team will deliver Amazon packages to customers in your neighborhood on a schedule that works for you. And you'll be paid for every package you deliver. Getting started is easy. There's no delivery experience required, no long-term contracts, and you receive weekly direct deposits. Earn more. Gain exposure for your business. Apply today at Amazon.com slash hub delivery. That's Amazon.com slash H-U-B delivery.

45:16Maxx Crosby:Know a local business that would make a great partner? A local coffee shop owner, florist, automotive shop, dry cleaner, you name it. Refer a business today and earn$500 when they successfully join the program. Visit amazon.com slash hub delivery to learn more or refer a partner. That's amazon.com slash HUB delivery. Now looking for hub partners in your area.

45:43Rich Eisen:844-204-RICH, number two dial. Sometimes teams take a time out to regroup and call the right play. And when it comes to your home, Pella Windows and Doors always has the winning game plan. They're not just window and door experts. They're experts at taking care of you and your home. At Pella, they find the products that meet your needs and their experts install them. They do it every day, and that's why your neighbors trust them. Discover why Pella is a trusted choice for homeowners everywhere. Visit Pella.com slash Eisen today. That's Pella.com slash Eisen. Lots to talk about off of that. So the Cowboys don't think that they're creating cap space for a big splash, although they could.

46:26Rich Eisen:if Max Crosby's coming one way to create the space is apparently they're going to go back and redo some more contracts and have about over 60 million in cap space. That's what I'm hearing the goal and the plan is so yeah he could fit Max in there especially when you're ready to bust the budget Kyle Amari's going to have his choice where to go his choice? yeah obviously he's not going to depose a quarterback who's there but for teams that are in the quarterback market he's going to choose so where do you think he's going to go though it seems like the minnesota vikings are determined to make my guy compete for his job he doesn't like this i mean no i don't no i don't but i wasn't in the building and J.J.

47:17Rich Eisen:McCarthy wasn't available every week and they want to make him earn it, I guess. And so Kyler Murray is, I just don't know if he's going to be the choice. Geno Smith could be a choice for that. But it sounds like Minnesota could be a spot. Miami could be a spot. if he wants to go to the Jets the Jets will start him week one and he will go to New York City and he's got Garrett Wilson there and he's got Brees Hall here and he's got Frank Reich dialing up the offense if he wants to go to media market number one and give the Jets a whirl I think they'll do that in a heartbeat in a heartbeat but then he's got to deal with that media market well I mean he's going to get he's going to get more follow-up questions than he's had in Glendale, that's for sure.

48:14Maxx Crosby:Absolutely.

48:15Rich Eisen:And if a ball hits off his face mask and he fumbles it, he's going to hear more about it than what he did maybe in Arizona. That is for sure. But New York's New York. 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. You've got Strawberry Dreams, Blue Hawaiian, Sunrise, and Vice Guava. And they all bring the monster energy punch. So if you've been living in the white can, branch out. Ultra's got a flavor for every vibe. And every single one is zero sugar.

48:56Rich Eisen:Tap the banner to learn more.