Hour 2: ‘Overreaction Monday,’ Raiders Analyst Kirk Morrison Talks Cousins vs Mendoza, and More

21:19Rich Eisen:The Rich Eisen Show podcast.

21:26Rich Eisen:Save money on your next oil change with O 'Reilly Auto Parts. Get a$15 O 'Reilly gift card after rebate when you buy five quarts of Mobile One full synthetic motor oil for just$35.95. Stop by your local O 'Reilly Auto Parts. While the world watches the stars of the FIFA World Cup, Hyundai has its eyes on the next generation of talent. Future stars who are already turning heads at age 14. Because Next doesn't wait for an invitation. and neither do we. Hyundai has always moved the future within reach. We did it when we made advanced safety standard on every vehicle and engineered EVs with ultra-fast charging capability.

22:02Rich Eisen:And we're still doing it every day because the future isn't some far-off concept. It's already here. Next starts now. Hyundai, an official partner of FIFA. Rich Eisen here and summer's here too. And that means it's travel season. My favorite summer trip last year was to Sao Paulo, Brazil. With so many fans traveling for the Los Angeles against Kansas City game, they got to see how lively the city is. I love the culture and the amazing food that I'm still craving. Those memories remind everyone that it's that time of year to plan a little getaway. And that's why summer has a way of turning weekends into big events.

22:37Rich Eisen:One minute, it's a normal week, and then all of a sudden, a huge concert, sporting event, or festival brings people in from all over. And And when that happens, visitors start looking for places to stay all across your city. So if you're already planning a summer trip of your own, you could list your space on Airbnb and earn a little extra cash while you're away. Doesn't have to be some big year round commitment. It's about making the most of a busy weekend when your place would just be empty. Otherwise, I can tell you people love finding a place that helps them feel connected to the city that they're visiting.

23:09Rich Eisen:If your city is about to have a big summer moment, this is a great time to maximize your space. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at airbnb.com slash host.

23:25Kirk Morrison:Kurt Warner 55 today. You think about that moment and you mentioned it, Brock, I don't know why you did, but it's like, we're getting old, man. Yeah, dude. You think about it, man. I remember because Kurt Warner and that greatest show on turf, they won the Super Bowl and that was in 99. I was a sophomore in college. That was the one which Mike Jones, Mike Jones, against the Titans. Yeah, man, Kevin Dyson. And that one of the plays that you just remember. There are certain moments that you remember where you were when that happened. My high school coach actually was the NFL high school coach of the year that year.

24:00Kirk Morrison:So he was actually at the game on our behalf. So we were excited. Like, oh, we got coach of the year there. So we watched it with a little more intense focus. And then, boom, right away, that play happens. and Marshall Falk was on that team. I ended up going to San Diego State, so I'm all excited. It was just a lot to that one. So always. But we got a phone call. We got to get to these phone calls, too. 844-204-RICH. 844-204-RICH. Who's on the line? I forgot. I didn't see it. What do you want to do?

24:33Rich Eisen:Yeah. It's up to you. Do you want to get Raiders thoughts? Do you want to hear from a Bills fan? Raiders thoughts already?

24:40Kirk Morrison:Let's go. I always love to get Raiders thoughts. All right, let's do it. We got an overreaction coming up, so let's go. What's up, Derek?

24:47Rich Eisen:What's going on, Kirk? Nice to make your acquaintance, brother. I was going to say, if my memory serves me right, the last time you were on the show, Kenny Pickett got traded to the Eagles, and on that same day, Aaron Donald announced his retirement, if I'm not mistaken.

25:03Kirk Morrison:Yeah, I believe so. Yeah, Kenny Pickett's been traded, what, from the Rams? No, he went from the Eagles, and I still don't understand how we gave him a fifth round pick the Raiders did last year to bring him in to be the backup to Geno Smith. That's a whole nother story. I'm putting the 2025 Raiders season in my rearview. It is no longer in my front windshield. Okay. But yeah, Aaron Donald. Yeah. Hopefully he stays retired. A lot of people want him to come back because if he comes back and he teams up with Miles Garrett, that's like a form of the Avengers. Like, I don't think the NFL wants to see that.

25:40Kirk Morrison:Well, I think fans would, but I'm just saying other players don't want to see those two guys lining up on the same side. These are two massive men who are like the strongest in the NFL, by the way. Like, Miles Garrett already looks like a mutant, and then Aaron Donald is just another mutant. So two mutants together is just basically getting up on offenses. Yeah, that's the X-Men.

26:01Rich Eisen:It's diabolical, and it's pretty much our form of doomsday in the NFL if Donald does come back. But, you know, Kirk, being the former Raider that you are, What are your expectations for the team down there in Vegas this upcoming season? And do you believe it should be Fernando being QB1, or should it be Kirk just because it's just playing things safe, if anything. If he signs in camp and so-and-so, where do we stand with Fernando at this point, do you think?

26:30Kirk Morrison:You know, Derek, I'm going to give you the Clint Kubiak answer, and it's one that I've been using for a very long time. It will all reveal itself. Oh. It will all reveal itself. And the reason it's not a cop-out answer, but I think with a lot of these quarterback competitions that are going on in the NFL, there's a competition in Atlanta between Michael Penix and Tua Tungvaluwa. There's a competition in Minnesota when it comes to Kyler Murray and J.J. McCarthy. There's a competition when it comes to the Raiders quarterback position. And right now the leader in the clubhouse to me from what I've seen with my two eyes has been Kirk Cousins.

27:09Kirk Morrison:He has the resume. He has the knowledge of the offense. He has the leadership capabilities. And there was a story I think that came out today about Fernando Mendoza learning how to be a leader now in the National Football League. That's one of the hardest things for any rookie quarterback, let alone player. Like, I remember as a rookie, you kind of sit back a little bit. You try to figure out, how do I lead? Where do I lead? because right now, Kirk Cousins is able to go and say, hey, hey, no, no, get over here, line up here. No, no, you're the X, get over here. Like, there's a level of expertise that Kirk Cousins has right now that Fernando Mendoza is going to get.

27:50Kirk Morrison:He's going to learn. It's not there yet. So I think as you go into the season, what will reveal itself is who's the guy that can get you to week one and can help you win right away. There's no doubt the future is Fernando Mendoza, but you want to be able to have him go out there when the time is right. We don't want to rush it. We don't want to rush it unless Kirk Cousins is just god-awful. And I don't think that. From what I've been talking with him and seeing what he's been able to do so far, in T-shirts and shorts has looked pretty good. So I'll caution you with that as there's multiple plans that I think will kind of take place.

28:32Kirk Morrison:But again, training camp and preseason, it will all reveal itself. Thanks for the phone call, Derek.

28:40Rich Eisen:Yeah, Kirk, when you look at the Raiders' first schedule, I mean, you know, you open against Miami, and a lot of people are expecting them to be.

28:46Kirk Morrison:Well, they're all on Sunday, so you don't have to tell me about the primetime. At the top of the draft.

28:50Rich Eisen:They're playing on Sundays every day. But then you look at Chargers, at New Orleans, Chiefs, at New England, Buffalo. That's a really tough first. And then the Rams. Yeah. So, you know, week one aside, just because that's based on Miami's expectations. And then the next six weeks are like, whoa. You know, you'd rather have, you know, kind of similar to what New England did with Jacoby Brissett and Drake May. You know, let's have the veteran out there to start the season. And then, you know, we'll see where we're at kind of midway through. And if it's, you know, Fernando time, then it's Fernando time.

29:22Kirk Morrison:Yeah. I always say, like, as a player, you kind of know. And I've been in those situations, too, where you know what you have in front of you. And the guy who is best for that position right now, you'll know. The one thing, you can't fool players on the team. That's the one thing you can't do. You can't fool those guys. We're the ones watching at practice, and all the fans and media writers can speculate. But when you're on a practice field and you see, like, okay, this dude is ready to go right now. He's ready to play right now. Or this guy is the best option for us to go out and win. I'm not trying to waste my years.

29:57Kirk Morrison:I don't want to do all that because I feel like once you put Fernando Mendoza in, he's not coming out. So how long can you resist that temptation before you put him in there? Because, look, we've seen it every single year. Everybody says quarterback's going to wait. He's going to wait. We're going to wait. And all of a sudden you're one and three. It's like put him out there. Put him out there. You know, we saw with Jackson Dart last year. Look, we still don't know how good Jackson Dart is. I mean, he's got a lot to prove this year. We're seeing Cam Ward coming in year two. Now, are they going to have the jump similar to what we saw with Caleb Williams or what seems to be a regression from a guy like C.J.

30:36Kirk Morrison:Stroud who's going in his fourth year? So you've got, I think, examples all across the NFL when it comes to the quarterback position, but that's why we overreact. And that's why I'm going to Overreaction Monday with you, Brock. What you got? Let's do it.

30:52Rich Eisen:That was terrible. That was crap. That was garbage. It's just why it sucks. Overreaction Mondays. Monday. Hey, what's up, guys? Happy Monday. Great to see you.

31:03Kirk Morrison:Great to see you, my man. Everybody good?

31:05Rich Eisen:We got a real hodgepodge. You know, NFL, there's not a lot going on. You know, it's summer break for the league here for the next month or so. So we're just kind of a TJ, you know, you like to use this term. It's a grab bag. It's a mixed bag overreaction Monday. Remember those things? And we got to get to it right away because the hype is real for the U.S. men's national team. You know, two wins. Okay. Looked great in both scoring. We're on it. And we're going to the World Cup final. Wow.

31:41Kirk Morrison:That is the final.

31:43Rich Eisen:Final? Final. The final. Like the last game. The last game. Like winner gets the trophy on the desk. You know what I mean? Nick Spurs. USA versus. USA versus whoever. Probably not going to be Argentina. Messi's out here missing penalty kicks.

31:59Kirk Morrison:So they're out. That is an overreaction right there, man. Seriously. Like, I love the U.S. men's national team. And I like their kits. Let them wear. They look phenomenal. It looks great. Looks great. On television, it's great. The guys look cool. I mean I think like Glendon Donovan said earlier when we caught up with him like they look cool like before when you would see the US Mid-National oh here goes the guys right oh there they go but like now like they look cool we have got swag they got confidence and swagger their confidence and their swagger about them I think I just love that the more and more we see the US team the more and more people are trying to fight for these tickets.

32:49Kirk Morrison:The influencers are out right now. Everybody wants to go. Prices are insane. Prices are crazy. I'm looking. I'm like, wow, what if I wanted to go on Thursday? Can't go. No, you got to sell a kidney. Yeah. Can't go Thursday. I'll tell you that. I remember someone asked me before, like, hey, do you want to go to World Cup? I said, yeah, I would love to go to a match or two if possible. And then they were like, yeah, this is how I said. Wait, hold on. You're asking for Super Bowl prices for one game. Super Bowl prices for one game.

33:16Rich Eisen:Just wait till We're in the final, TJ. Hey, I'm just saying, once in Pittsburgh, I snuck into the Civic Arena for a Bone Thugs in Harmony and Mary J. Blige concert. Now we're talking. Concert. I wonder if I could do the same thing at SoFi. It's right up the street. You're going to try to sneak in? Sneak in? Why not? Put on a, you know, the thing about doing something like that is just look like you know what you're doing. Look like you belong there.

33:38Kirk Morrison:I agree.

33:39Rich Eisen:I agree with that. They might think I'm a rat. A long time ago. I am like 6 '3". You could be a player. All right. Over here. Otherwise, Chris, I ain't going because I can't afford those tickets. All right, fine. Kirk Morrison, though. World Cup final. Okay, I get it. Overreaction. Big money. Kirk. Here's the deal. World Cup. Okay. We got a World Baseball Classic. WBC. We got a basketball version of this, right? It's time for a World Cup version of our football. Okay? I need a World Cup for American football. Let's do it. How? No. With other countries? Yeah. Yeah. Wait a minute. We'll play against Australia.

34:20Rich Eisen:We'll play against Europeans. We know they love soccer. I mean, football. We were over there. I don't think that would work out. The Germans play football, right? First of all, a couple things here. Number one. David Njoku's got a big family. He could play the team.

34:36Kirk Morrison:I think the closest thing we'll see to this is the flag football, right? Flag football in the Olympics. Flag football in the Olympics. Which we already know. we already got beat how we get beat by our own us team remember all the nfl dudes trying to go out there man got beat up it's a different game it's a different game but i'm saying that's just

34:54Rich Eisen:like the appetizer that's the appetizer we're gonna we're gonna throw that out there we're gonna be like hey look how cool flag football is in the olympics let's do real football world cup

35:03Kirk Morrison:style yeah that no one would uh no one would win but i would probably go more conca calf more like a regional thing. Yeah, a regional thing. That's what I'm thinking. U.S. versus Canada. For football? Yeah, like a CFL versus NFL.

35:21Rich Eisen:That can only be, the only way we do this is just in America and we separate out like West Coast, East Coast, North, South. Or like Texas versus everyone. Texas versus Pennsylvania versus Florida versus California. But otherwise, you can't have, no. You don't think it's going to be like the WBC where guys are like, you know, our buddy Vinny Pasquantino, he's American, but he played for Team Italy. You don't think guys in the NFL would dip into their heritage and play for different countries, and then we could do a World Cup for football? It sounds great, but I don't think it would be very competitive, personally.

35:54Rich Eisen:I thought it was a cool idea.

35:56Kirk Morrison:It's a cool idea, but dudes don't even want to play in the Pro Bowl no more. Play in the World Cup. The World Cup of football, I would think it's exciting. Remember, we had the World League, and it was built up with all players. But, yeah, man, that's going to be a stretch, dog. I'm sorry, man. You put$50 million at midfield.

36:12Rich Eisen:Guess what? Okay, now we're talking. Now you piqued my interest. Thank you. Thank you. You piqued my interest. Get a sponsor? I don't know what I'm saying. All right, never mind. I just don't think – I mean, we're so dominant. Like, I can't imagine – We're so dominant we couldn't even beat the flag football guys.

36:29Kirk Morrison:Well, they were all American, too. Yeah. Because it was a finesse game. All right. Now we get to the real game. They ain't got a chance. Yeah, like who's stopping Miles Garrett? Yeah.

36:38Rich Eisen:Miles Garrett might be playing for somebody else, a different country. He won't. Got to make it worth his while. All right. Look at his social media. This guy's been a maniac. We don't really know what he's doing. Real wild card. Okay. But Brandon Ayuk is talking about go commanders on his stories there. He's going to lead the commanders in touchdown catches this year.

37:05Kirk Morrison:Okay.

37:06Rich Eisen:Seems like he wants to be there. Wow. Begging the 49ers to cut him.

37:11Kirk Morrison:He is begging the 49ers. I don't know what. Why are people reporting on it? It's just reporting on it. Yes, obviously there's a previous relationship. Brandon Ayuk and Jaden Daniels were teammates at Arizona State University, so they know each other. They're good guys. They're buddies. All that good stuff. Okay, cool. But I don't see it. Oh, is that live? Sorry. Breaking it. Is that live? Yeah, Messi just scored. Okay. congratulations Lionel Messi the all time leader in goals scored in World Cup history sorry to break in on the overreaction but that's overreaction this is news right here that's breaking news congratulations Lionel Messi I don't know what number that is what number goal that is by the way 17 congratulations man that's huge Argentina's good again he's back he's my version of Pele right?

38:05Kirk Morrison:I never saw Pele play live but Pele, this is my version of it, right? We're seeing it right here because Pele is considered one of the greatest soccer players of all time. Where does Messi, is he not Messi's probably first. Is he not first now? Like now with goals scored? I would need RJ in the back to tell me he's more of a soccer fan than me. So I would need like a real soccer fan.

38:29Rich Eisen:USA, Argentina in the final let's go.

38:31Kirk Morrison:This is like MJ versus LeBron right? Those type of arguments. Because Pele from what we all grew up. Pele was. Who's that dude? The GOAT. He was the GOAT. I mean. Any soccer player we knew of. Any time that you just say. No we knew Maradona. Oh yeah that's true. Today's the anniversary right?

38:49Rich Eisen:The hand of God I think it's today.

38:52Kirk Morrison:Hey. One name guys. One name guys. One name guys. All right. Brandon, are you commanders or no? I think Terry McCoy. Terry McCoy may have something to say with that. Okay. That's a good duo. They picked up somebody else this year as wide receiver. I forget. I don't know. I got to look it up. I haven't put the commanders on my radar just yet. Got a grind of tape. Do the commanders play the Raiders this year? No, no, no. We did that last year. We're done with them.

39:19Rich Eisen:All right, last one. The biggest news of the day. Dusty May obviously leaving Michigan after two seasons in a natty. Go to the Dallas Mavericks. He's going to have Dallas back in the NBA Finals in two years. I said two years.

39:34Kirk Morrison:that's another overreaction right there bro I just want to get them to the playoffs they got to get to the playoffs first Kyrie's back okay Cooper Flagg Cooper Flagg who's the alpha on that team is it Kyrie or is it Cooper that's Cooper Flagg's team that's Cooper Flagg's team now so is Kyrie gonna take a back seat to Cooper Flagg or he's got to I feel like Kyrie's that uncle now they're like I just want to see the young guys do it man I'm just gonna be on the team when you need me I got you but until then you guys got it

40:03Rich Eisen:Is that Kyrie? I like that. They have a top 10 pick in the draft coming up. Derek Lively's nice. Yeah, I mean, suddenly that's a nice free agent destination. Playoffs first.

40:10Kirk Morrison:Because that beast over in San Antonio ain't going nowhere. That beast over in San Antonio ain't going nowhere. And look, Wimby's going to hear it all offseason. How he didn't shake hands after it was over. Poor sportsmanship. All of that. And they're going to feel that. so I feel like that fuels them for the next couple years and then OKC they you know check got pushed around a little bit a lot of it they're going to get healthy so Dallas got a long way to go that's why I'm saying overreacting on that one only because the West is going to be tough tough now Denver what happened to Denver remember Denver won it was like oh it's the new dynasty and then I looked at So like you said, we always search in the net.

41:00Kirk Morrison:We're always looking for stuff. And now it's been what, like eight straight champions? Yeah.

41:05Rich Eisen:And that's why you say that every single year. Oh, they're about to go on a run. They're about to go on a run. Eight straight winners, no repeats.

41:11Kirk Morrison:I love dynasties, man. Like I love a dominant team. Good for sports. It's good for sports. I know people don't like when I hear that, but it's good for sports. Because we need somebody to root for and we always need a villain. We need somebody to root against. We need a villain. We need to root against them. because that's what creates us because we always want to know, are they going to win or go? The Kansas City Chiefs were the greatest thing for the NFL. It got us through that point, and it came off of the Patriots. Right. Right. So it was like Patriots, and it went to Kansas City. Then it's like a partial Eagles right now because it's like you don't want to see them win, but you're going to watch them.

41:45Kirk Morrison:And then now we're in a situation where I don't know how people feel about Seattle being a defending champion.

41:52Rich Eisen:It's like they're just Seattle. People have no thoughts because they're all the way tucked up in the Pacific Northwest and it's an afterthought. I like the variety myself.

42:01Kirk Morrison:You do like the variety? Yeah. Because I remember when the Warriors start winning and you kind of knew for the next five years this is kind of if you're not a Warriors fan then you kind of lose interest in the game. Variety, man, gets everyone interested. You know your team has a chance every year. Every year you get a chance. But you know what? That's why I like the NFL though. We do. It's our thing. It's our thing and that's what we're doing right here on the Rich Eisen Show. More coming Coming up right here on the Rich Eisen Show with Kirk Morrison filling in for Rich.

42:31Rich Eisen:The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast.

42:40Rich Eisen:A bandwagon fan. The biggest insult in sports. But this summer, during the FIFA World Cup, it's an invitation, America. Never watched soccer before? Perfect. Think a corner kick is a karate move? Sure, why not? Prefer sports where players can use their hands? Me too. Just here for the snacks? Now we're talking. So grab a bag of Lay's and jump on the bandwagon. We're undefeated. Lay's, the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026. If we knew more about our sleep, what would we do differently? Would we go to bed at a consistent time? Or take steps to reduce interruptions to our sleep? With Sleep Score, Apple Watch measures your bedtime consistency, interruptions, and sleep duration.

43:24Then, every morning it combines these factors into an easy-to-understand score from 1 to 100. So you'll know how to take the quality of your sleep from okay to very high. Know your sleep score with Apple Watch. iPhone 11 or later required.

43:42Kirk Morrison:With the World Cup, there's so much that's been going on. I've been excited to see all of these new traditions. Or not even new traditions. Traditions that we had no idea about. Watching Norway and their fans take over Times Square has been something that I just never knew. I haven't been to an international game before, so seeing all of this is like, I feel like it's a big, giant college football playoff.

44:05Rich Eisen:Did you see the clip this morning of the Norway fans on the subway? And they were doing the row sitting in the aisle on the subway. That's crazy. It's amazing. That's great.

44:17Kirk Morrison:Yeah, it is unreal. I'm learning way too much, as always. But first of all, if you're running a small business means every hire matters. A bad hire costs time, money, but the right one helps you build, helps your business grow. The challenge, finding that person without sorting through resumes. That's where LinkedIn Hiring Pro comes in. It screens candidates so you can focus on conversations with qualified talent. With Hiring Pro, you can hire with confidence and build the team that you need. So join the 2.7 million small businesses using LinkedIn to hire. Get started by posting your job for free at LinkedIn.com slash Eisen.

44:56Kirk Morrison:Terms and conditions apply. Like, I think when you look at now, this the way that this World Cup has expanded and they allow more countries to be a part of it. we're seeing a lot of these traditions and the rituals and the fandom. Like, you're seeing it all over. You know, I remember I was, I think the U.S. play with Paraguay, the first game. Yep. And I'm over in Inglewood going to the gym, and I'm seeing, like, the Paraguay uniforms. I'm like, just people everywhere. I'm like, it's from all over. And you really, truly understand what the World Cup is all about. It is truly the World Cup. And it really got me thinking last night too, fellas.

45:50Kirk Morrison:Because the NFL will have, I believe, is it nine or seven international games this year? Oh. Is it, I think, nine in this. Four, hold on. Maybe more, right? I had my sheet somewhere. But I'm only bringing that up. Nine. It's nine games. Nine international games. Seven countries, four continents. Seven countries, four continents. This year will be nine. In future, it's going to be every week. There's going to be at least where each team will play at least one international game every season. And why is the NFL pushing, pushing, pushing? Because it's pushing for moments like what we're witnessing right now in the World Cup.

46:35Kirk Morrison:because everybody's like, well, nobody wants to see football. Well, you're probably, if you haven't been, you don't know. I've played an international series game before. Now, not overseas, but I played in a Toronto series. And that was, it just made games bigger. They were just regular non, I mean, non-playoff games. It was a regular season game. But this is what the NFL, I think, is trying to do, guys. They want to have this appeal around the world, Get everybody to buy in. Because if you buy in, more people will watch, more people will buy tickets, and it makes the games that much bigger. That's what the NFL is doing.

47:13Rich Eisen:The Rich Eisen Show Podcast. MLB.TV on ESPN is your home for every out-of-market game, live or on demand. Catch your favorite teams and players, plus MLB Network and ESPN app features like Multiview, syncing your stats, key plays, bets, and fantasy, all in one place. Sign up now for MLB.tv and the ESPN app. Separate subscriptions required, blackouts and other terms apply. Visit stream.espn.com slash MLB TV for more information.