Hour 3: NFL Week 16 Higher Register, Jaxson Dart Concerns, plus Actor Matthew Lillard In-Studio

23:18Rich Eisen:I'm sitting here gloating. For New York. All in New York. Not so much. By the way, between, I mean, what is the deal with New York teams? They are just in a bad funk all the way across. Well, I mean, all right, Mr. Mariner fan. Are you a Mariner fan? I'm not a Mariner fan. Well, you're a Dodger fan. I became a fan with Alex. Yeah, I'm a Dodger fan. All right. Go in for the close-up. Go in for the close-up. Dodger, two-time champion. I was at the stadium yesterday picking up a gift. I will tell you. Wait a minute. You were in Dodger Stadium yesterday picking up a gift? I was there yesterday. Picking up a gift.

23:47It's Christmas time, so I was going to pick up a gift. There was literally 60 people at 2 o 'clock in the afternoon at Dodger Stadium picking up gifts. What? Yes, two-time champs. Picking up gifts? Yes. Wow. The people love the Dodgers. Don't you love the Dodgers?

24:02Rich Eisen:I would go to Dodger Stadium now just to see what it's like to go in and out with no traffic. Oh, yeah, yeah. I can't even, that would be like, like the apocalypse is hit. You go 70 miles an hour. They're just going in and out. You fly to that place. However you want. Park anywhere you want. Stroll in and do anything you want. The line is like two people to get a hat. You get out in 10 minutes. That must have been euphoric. It was so good. Oh, my God. I've never even been to this side of the park. But you have to admit, best game seven, best sporting event. Yeah. Maybe of my life. This past year.

24:43This past year.

24:43Rich Eisen:This World Series was the best World Series, I could say, just in terms of the level of expectation going in, not knowing, and coming out, and the insanity of some of the games, maybe the best of my lifetime. And I'm in my mid-50s. And I honestly, I've seen some great ones. I'm a Yankee fan. So seeing the Yankees win for me was off the charts. But this seven game World Series was insane. You tell me, am I off best one of your life or what? Cubs Indians was pretty good. Yankees Marlins was pretty good. Yankees Diamondbacks was pretty good. Well, that one. I'm just thinking about seven game series.

25:30It came down to kind of the last inning. You just pulled all those out of your... His orifice? Yeah, I'm just kind of thinking. 97 Indians, Marlins is pretty good. Now you got dates? Who are you? There is some good ones. I'm just saying we've had a good seven-game World Series.

25:44Rich Eisen:But this stuff, like that seventh game where, again, we've talked about it so often. But no, I'm not saying that I don't want to talk about it. I'll talk about this all day long because it was that great. For Isaiah Kiner-Falefa on third base. This is, by the way, after Rojas ties it. That in itself. because you're like okay Shea is coming up there going to be two outs but they're going to walk him and then you're like oh god for him to hit that bomb and also who he is and if you're not like a Dodger fan you don't really know the role he plays like coaching Mookie like he's like he's the salt of the earth great teammate to be in that position to hit that bomb was ridiculous and also just going back to Toronto down two games yes correct and you're like oh well we've lost all the we're done because again you know i'm a yankee fan when freddie freeman hits an extra inning back breaking home run to win a world series game the yankees folded the blue jays came back and won the next two yeah after that game three that lasted twice as long as you know any other normal game that was crazy that was crazy as well by the way it's just a little appetizer for what we saw later on in the world series yeah and so game seven rojas ties it then isaiah kiner falefo is on third base with less than two outs that he's for you know slides in feet first you have to go you have to go bit by bit yes frame by frame and we spoke back up that call and we spoke to will smith just a couple weeks ago and he's talked about how about those few seconds were the longest hours of his life where the entire season, Matthew, is in a replay machine.

27:27Rich Eisen:Who is winning the World Series could come out of instant. And depending on how you look at it, he's either out or safe. I think he was out. There's no doubt in my mind he was out, that Will Smith's foot was on the plate. I think they would even have to admit it. And then the next batter hits one to left center field, and Kike Hernandez falls down and gets knocked over by Paz, who's in the game for whatever the hell reason, And Dave Roberts decided to put it in. That was insane. That was insane. I mean, that's just the ninth inning of game seven. And we obviously saw what happened after that. And then, you know.

28:05Rich Eisen:Look at all the pictures. Every time a tear comes to my eye, I can feel the tear coming. It was so beautiful. The tear comes to my eye here on the Rich Eisen Show, Matthew, because my friend across the way here, who likes to be referred to as the Rich Eisen Show audio executive, Mike Del Tufo of Livingston, New Jersey, right over there. And however you think of anybody from New Jersey, he's that. I see it. When we met earlier, I was like, he obviously is from New Jersey. And I've known Mike since NFL Network began in 2003. And so I've known him this long. And we would always chop up about the Yankees this, Yankees that.

28:38Rich Eisen:We share that. Put on your new hat. Go ahead. Put on your new hat. My new hat? Put on your new hat. Oh, boy. Put on your new hat. It's pretty terrible. It's not acceptable. No, pick one, bro. Pick one. That's terrible. What are you doing? Right now I'm a Dodger fan, so I'm wearing a Dodger. Just keep it back on. Put it back on. I can't be made to wear it in front of a real Dodger fan. That's disgusting. Thank you. Who are you? Which man are you? You must be from Jersey. This is like a transplanted organ that deserves rejection from the body of the Dodger fan. You're just... This guy. You're despicable.

29:14He's a sweetheart. I went high on that. Did you hear that? I heard it. But you didn't have to go high. You could sit in the night. That could have been full-throated. Dodger fans. There you go. Way better. That's not acceptable, right? Dodger hat's good. We like that one. The Dodger hat. I mean, two seconds. You can't do it. Dodger hat. That's how you get shot. No, no. It's a safety issue, Mike. Someone puts a cap in you. You're not even talking about the fandom. He's talking about safety. I went to a couple of games, and I wore a Dodger hat this year. This man's in a horror movie of the first variety.

29:48He knows all about safety. So many horror movies. A few of them. As a matter of fact, Scream. Scream 7. I'm in it. I'm going to tell you all about it. Can I come back for Scream 7? This is my favorite. I just like these interviews. Please do. I'm not trying to talk about sports than me.

30:03Rich Eisen:Hold on a minute. You could say we're all that. Listen. Hey. Scream. Scream 7, yeah. 7, right? Yeah, yeah. Crazy. And so you're in that, correct? I am. I'm having a bit of a moment right now. It's very fun. Daredevil. Daredevil's coming up. season cross. Am I allowed to talk about other things? Cross is coming up. It's on Prime Video. Daredevil is on Disney Plus, which is obviously the home of our show. It's great. And so, alright. Part of your filmography too as well. Two baseball movies as well. Summer catch. We spoke, speaking of, I guess, horror movies. I know what you did last summer. We had Freddie Prinze Jr.

30:46here talking about summer catch.

30:47Rich Eisen:He was on Drive Time here in L.A. And he's Mr. Wrestling Pod as well, just like TJ over there. Summer Catch. So you were in New England doing all that stuff? No, that was movie magic. North Carolina. But it did catch. You did catch? Yeah. It was actually one of the best movies I've ever experienced I've ever had. On a work day, I would either be playing baseball, acting, or hanging out with my wife. We'd just gotten married at the time. Dude. That's life. It was as good as it gets. No kids yet either, right? No kids. She really found me attractive at that point in her life. She loved you. She liked me back then.

31:2625 years. She's earned the right to sort of wane her interest. I keep trying to show every day. I'm like, this is all yours.

31:35Rich Eisen:She is not impressed. The price is right. This could be yours. And trouble with the curve as well. Yeah, Clint Eastwood. Do you have any Clint Eastwood stories? Yeah, I said to him at one point, you know, he only does one take. He's very famously only does one take. So you'll, as an actor, come in and you'll watch your stand-in do your blocking. Right. And then you, you sort of go and emulate them and nobody rehearses. So that the, the first time it comes out of your mouth is the first time, you know, no way it's on film. And so it's a hair for, it's a harrowing experience. I am not that smart.

32:06And I know that half the stuff that comes out of my mouth is going to be wrong. Okay. But I said to him, you know, at some point we're at lunch and I was like, you know what? because a lot of times in a movie you'll take multiple takes in case you need to change the intonation or the scene needs some zhuzhing, right? And I was like, well, what happens when you get in the cut and you find that you don't have any choices? And he looked at me and he kind of looked, I would have changed the script and looked at me like I was the dumbest man on the show. Oh, no. He looked at me like I was like just an idiot.

32:41So he would do one take. One take. So he has zero options. I mean, he'll get close-ups and stuff. Sure. Yeah, it was a really interesting thing. The other funny thing about that...

32:53Rich Eisen:But you're having lunch with him? Like, you're just... Yeah, at lunch, I was like... You're having lunch with Clint Eastwood. I was like, I couldn't understand how you put together these incredible films with no options. Right? And his whole thing is, I would have fixed it in the script. And looked at me like I was so dumb. And I am. Fair enough. That's a fair assessment. Punk. Go ahead, punk. The other thing that was funny is there was a party one night, and we were watching the Final Four, and Justin Timberlake, who's in the movie, rented out this floor in this bar in Atlanta, and it was packed.

33:24And I didn't really know anyone on that floor, so I just kind of went and took a look around, and upstairs amongst like 10 ,000 kids is Clint Eastwood and his driver, and they're just watching the game. And none of these kids have any idea who these old dudes are. Come on. And I was like, this is crazy, right? That none of them understand that here is a legend just chilling.

33:50Rich Eisen:Do you remember what Final Four it was? I guess we could figure 2011 it must have been because the movie came out in 2012. We can ask the Oracle over there. You're watching the Final Four in a bar that Justin Timberlake put it together. Yeah, that's Butler, UConn, Kentucky, VCU. I think it was. It was a terrible. No. UConn won the year before. that's amazing and so he's wow he's just sitting there anonymously because there's a generation of people in there no idea it was really interesting is that you know fame is such a it's such a it's such an interesting interaction like i've i've done movies now for 35 years yes you know the the reality is that you only have impact on the people that care about what you do and the work that you've done and sometimes it just never resonates yes i mean five nights at freddy's i I could, you know, you'll never see it.

34:40Nobody in this room will ever see it. But if there's, you will not see it. And I don't, you know, listen, but there's a, there's a world of kids out there that will wait nine hours in a line to shake my hand. Thank goodness.

34:52Rich Eisen:Yeah. Well. Right. Yeah. Thank goodness. I mean, that's what keeps the roof over the head and the lights on. Right. I mean, it's for sure. Yeah. Next thing is. I'm just not much of a horror guy. You know what I mean? Like I never, that's not my, I shouldn't say that to somebody who's here to promote a horror movie. This is over. There he goes. There he goes. Out the gate like you hope you saw him. You saw him a bitch. But that is just, I, you know, I'm on the edge of my seat for some of it. I am not a horror fan either. Okay. So we're together. It works for you. It pays the bills. But I would, I don't know.

35:28Rich Eisen:Obviously, you're a professional and you've been in films as you're in your fourth decade of being in films, as you just said. I would just fanboy Clint. you know i would just want to talk with him yeah obviously you talk with him about process that's one thing but like on like going down the road of unforgiven you know what i mean that movie is perfect it's a pretty fantastic it's a perfect movie you know like that's the sort of thing i've got to show my kid like my kids in the film right now he's the 17 year old he's sort of coming up and that's what you know we started with shock that's it that's one of the great that's his that's his number one.

36:01Rich Eisen:I love that movie. That's his number one. That's perfect. Yeah. Perfect. Perfect movie. That's his number one. Unforgiven might be tough for the kids right now. Yeah. It's tough for adults, bro. Yeah, it's a tough adult. I mean, it's dark. It's pretty brutal. But it's perfect. It is a great film. It's perfect. The funny thing is, so he's notoriously quick for shoot, like he shoots really fast. And so flags of our fathers, right? Every single day he shot, he finished before lunch. so you know and if you know if people aren't familiar film and television you know we regularly do 14 to 15 hour days and it can be grueling at times as a job I mean you're out you're not out there digging ditches but 15 hours stuck doing the same scene is you know has its own so if you do a Clint Eastwood movie you can set a tee time you're playing golf and I think that's the idea I really think that's the idea.

37:00Cunts there for a good time, not a long time. Yeah, yeah.

37:02Rich Eisen:That's better than being in a Clipper email chain with somebody. That's not what I said. Did I say that? That is out loud. That's so funny. That was out loud. He says, I wonder, did you remember we were on that Clipper email chain? Like, why wouldn't he? Like, how many Clipper email chains exist? No, I said, I'm not sure if he'll remember me because it's been so long since I said. Why would he? You're a member. I think of you every day, dude. Every single day. Every single day. I haven't seen you in 10 years, and yet here I am. My dreams come true. Every now and then I'll pop the curve in, watch it on Tubi.

37:34The curve. Oh, my Lord. I'm not leaving, by the way. Who's on next? I'm saying.

37:41Rich Eisen:It's the end of the show, actually. What are you talking about? We're going long. We'll have them do higher register with us. Do you want to do higher register? Yes. Yeah. Yes. You want to stick with us? I have nowhere to go and nothing to do. That's what I want to do. Okay. So here's what we're going to do. We're going to take a break. Okay. Benoit Benjamin. No, we'll take a break. Was that part of the event? Was that a subject matter? Benoit Benjamin. Keith Koss, we talked about him. Lob City, bro. What's that? Lob City. Yeah, the Benoit Benjamin email was sent with the urgent tag. Like, we're going to market urgent.

38:18Eric Pajkowski in the build. So here's what we're going to do. By the way, we had great players. I mean, go ahead.

38:23Rich Eisen:No, no, here's what we're going to do. I'm going to lay out what's happening. Because if you want to stay, please. We're not kicking you out the door. It's our last segment. We're going to do our weekly Thursday segment, Higher Register. Each one of us have already pre-planned it, so we've come up with it. A statement about this upcoming National Football League week, or if you want, you could take whatever sporting event you want, and you come up with an opinion, a take, that you have to go higher register to believe. Oh, up here. Okay, yeah. You've got to go up here. Oh, my God. You know what I mean?

38:53Yeah, yeah. You know? Yeah. Should we give just a quick example so we can give Matthew some food for fraud? Yeah, what was your one last week? I understand the game. I got it.

39:02Rich Eisen:I think Chetua Sanders is going to do well in Chicago. Right. Didn't work. No. You know what I mean? No matter how high you go. I think it's going to turn out okay for him. Because you always have these conversations. You can do it right there. You get it. I know where we're living. We got a guy who does voices, too. Zoinks.

39:23Okay, when we come back. Okay, Ricky. First time we've ever done this with a guest who's sticking around for a higher register next on the Rich Eisen Show. Look at him.

39:39Rich Eisen:Rich Eisen here with some advice. If high interest credit card debt is grinding you down, it might be time to call an audible with a SoFi personal loan. It consolidates your debt into one low monthly payment with no fees required. And with as soon as the same day funding, you can make the right play fast. Call an audible on your debt today at SoFi.com slash debt play. Loans originated by SoFi Bank N.A. Member FDIC. Terms and conditions apply. NMLS 696891. Fast funds. Terms apply at SoFi.com slash debt play. A bandwagon fan. The biggest insult in sports. But this summer, during the FIFA World Cup, it's an invitation, America.

40:19Never 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.

40:36Rich Eisen:Lay's, the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup 2026. Rich Eisen here. Take a second and look at your city's calendar. Everywhere I go, there's always something coming up. Games, concerts, conventions, tournaments, the kind of events that bring people in from all over. And when that happens, you can feel it. More energy, more fans, and a whole lot more people looking for a place to stay. So here's something to think about. If your city has that kind of buzz, if big events are on the way, listing your space on Airbnb could be a great opportunity. If you're already planning to be out of town or you've got a trip coming up, why not make your place work for you while you're gone?

41:14Rich Eisen:You've got the space and you're not using it. It could be earning you some extra cash. I know when I travel for these big events, I'm not just looking for a place to crash. I want something comfortable and safe, a place that allows me to experience the city like a local. And that's exactly what you can do by offering to list your space. No big lifestyle change, no long-term commitment, just making smart use of the space you already have. So the next time your city draws a crowd, think about listing your space on Airbnb. Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at Airbnb.com slash host.

41:52Rich Eisen:The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. Ladies and gentlemen, back here on the Rich Eisen Show. ESPN Radio is presented by Progressive Insurance, supporting you every step of the way. Progressive.com. Matthew Lillard is here on the Rich Eisen Show, hanging with us to do high register. Before we do that, you want to pop that up, Mike Hoskins, because we started the show about Puka Nakua, what he said about officiating. And then there was a touchdown celebration that his live streaming hosts was teaching him to try and knock out if he scored tonight on Thursday Night Football. And Puka Nakua on his Instagram said, when I appeared the other day on a social media live stream, it was suggested to me to perform a specific movement as part of my next touchdown celebration.

42:37Rich Eisen:at the time. I had no idea this act was anti-Semitic in nature and perpetuated harmful stereotypes against Jewish people. I deeply apologize to anyone who was offended by my actions, as I do not stand for any form of racism, bigotry, or hate of any other group of people. And interesting, he's got the stand up to Jewish hate logo at the bottom there. As you know, that is Robert Kraft's organization that is so crucial in this day and age. And I'm glad to see that from Puka. Write two thumbs up, Puka. And that's exactly what I was hoping to see and that happened already. So I just wanted to point that out, to just tie that one off before we get to Thursday Night Football between the Rams and the Seahawks who's, I guess, shall I call you a number one fan just because you're sitting here, Matthew Lillard?

43:22Rich Eisen:No, there's way better your fans. I am a run of the mill. I love them. What are you, 13? Number 13 then, if you want to? The 12s? Are you 12A? 12B? Jeffrey D. Morgan's calling right now to get that number one spot. Jeffrey D. Morgan's like, wait a minute. Yeah, yeah, he's a big one. Did you just go higher register? Yeah, it's Thursday. That's what we do around here. Matthew Lord gets it. He gets it. All right, it is time to wrap up this show with our Thursday higher register. Hit it, hit it, hit it. There's a chance. The Rich Eisen shows. There could be. Higher register. Take of the week. All right, Christopher, what do you got over there?

44:01You know, we've been talking about this team a while. They're the number one seed in the AFC. So, yeah, we should be talking about the Denver Broncos. And they got a big game against Jacksonville this week. And I think Jacksonville beats Denver. And after they do, we've got to take the Jaguars seriously as Super Bowl contenders.

44:14Rich Eisen:Okay. Wow. I think it's time. Okay, you really do, huh? I think it's time. So far, they're not a Super Bowl contender, too? I don't think so. So if they beat the Broncos. Man, now they're in that conversation. higher register means you're still being a little bit disrespectful you're not sure i don't think i mean you notice i'm not going higher register on that a little bit tj what do you got with t this is tough for tj because he's always lower register this is yeah it's so sultry all right so you know it's it's it's weird that matthew lillard sitting here staring at me after me watching him so much and i was watching me and i hope i get this right so we've been talking about these guys a lot and that's the Pittsburgh Steelers right?

44:54And I tell you what, after what I saw last week and I put a lot of thought into this all five minutes not only will the Steelers take the Lions out this week, they're running the table the rest of the season. Wow. Which means they would win

45:12Rich Eisen:the AFC North and then after everything, who knows how far they would go? Who knows? I hear you. I'm going to also go for a rest of the season situation and even beyond um when you look at the standings right now at who's sniffing it which is the phrase of the rich eyes and show for you know the teams that are outside of the playoffs looking it's always in the hunt when you see it on other shows we call it sniffing it sniffing the playoffs okay and so it was me in the 80s Ravens are sniffing it right now in the AFC and the NFC there's three teams currently sniffing it with the Dallas Cowboys and the Lions and the Panthers.

45:49Rich Eisen:I'm saying it's my high register. At the end of the day, I think multiple teams currently sniffing it are making the playoffs. Current multiple sniffing it teams are making the playoffs at the end of the day. More than one. All right, you have the floor. Matthew Lillard going high register. The Seahawks-Rams play tonight. Yes, they do. We lost the last game with four turnovers. That's not our game plan. We don't usually roll like that. It came down to a kick. They missed the field goal after four turnovers. Tonight, we're going to win the turnover battle. And then we're going to win the game. And then we're going to win the Super Bowl.

46:26Rich Eisen:Okay. Wow. So you went lower register for the last part. But you think, you know, because sometimes Sam Donald, Sam Donald might not have a turnover problem tonight. He's got it, man. That sounded like shagging. No turnovers for Donald, dude. Wait, dude. Oh, boy. Oh, boy. Okay, Raggy. See ya. Oh, baby. That's how I register. Thanks for listening to the Rich Eisen Show podcast. You can watch and listen to the Rich Eisen Show live weekdays from noon to 3 Eastern on ESPN Radio, Disney Plus, and on the ESPN app. The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast.

47:13The right window treatments change everything. Your sleep, your privacy, the way every room looks and feels. At Blinds.com, we've spent 30 years making it surprisingly simple to get exactly what your home needs. We've covered over 25 million windows and have 50 ,000 five-star reviews to prove we deliver. Whether you DIY it or want a pro to handle everything from measure to install, we have you covered. Real design professionals. Free samples. Zero pressure. Right now, get up to 45 % off site-wide. Plus, get a free professional measure at Blinds.com. Rules and restrictions apply.