Who Will Be The Most Improved Team In The NFL?

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1:13Bear Ultra, only at the Home Depot. I'm living my best life. Yeah, yeah. This is the Rich Eisen Show. Here's the other surprising part. With guest host, Brian Weber. Yeah, big shoes to fill. Eisen's a legend. Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. The Rich Eisen Show. Do you know who I am? I'm a guy on television. I have my own show. And now, sitting in for Rich, here's Brian Weber. Welcome to the program. Always a blast to keep the chair warm for Mr. Eisen and the guys. Brian Weber with you. 844-204-7424 is the phone number. We've had good interaction on the X platform. Let's maintain that momentum.

1:58B.W. Weber. Weber with two Bs. If you heard the dulcet tones and immediately reached over to hit the button to say goodbye, hang on, hang on, hang on. What if I could interest you in much more football conversation than yesterday? What if I told you this is my last day filling in for Rich? Our long national nightmare is over. I have three hours to cover. As always, at least four and a half hours of content available. I'm going to cram into this window, but I am winding down my marathon stretch of guest hosting. Dan Schwartzman, my buddy, a compelling guest host in Tomorrow Than Rich and the guys back on Monday.

2:44Rich is in the midst of a tremendous week. follow him of course on social media at Rich Eisen he's got millions of followers I'm trying to get the 10 ,000 you can see the disparity there Rich will be competing starting tomorrow in the premier celebrity golf tournament it is the American Century Championship in beautiful South Lake Tahoe Nevada we had a tremendous conversation with a three-time winner of that tournament yesterday. Mark Mulder, the former All-Star pitcher. So before we say goodbye, first I have to say hello to my little friend. But somewhere along the way, I have the odds in front of me.

3:27Because in Nevada, you can bet on everything, including celebrity golf. Here's a preview. Rich listed at 500 to 1. Seems like a long shot, but better odds than Baker Mayfield. Better odds than Larry the Cable Guy. Better odds than Charles Barkley. So coming up in the final hour, I'll put that in context and we'll all be watching the host of this program competing with the biggest names in sports and entertainment. Coming up starting tomorrow, full coverage on NBC over the weekend. If you want to catch the action tomorrow, Golf Channel Peacock, also your options. And I did not have to say that contractually.

4:09As I mentioned, we're going to jump right in talking football. This is astonishing to me, but I'm so glad I still do research. I knew camps were coming up in the NFL next week. And with a quirk in the calendar, early Labor Day means the Hall of Fame game, which we bash, which is unwatchable, which now seemingly every year has a long weather delay, but it'll get a better rating than most regular season baseball games because we are addicted to football, and for that matter, probably better than the Stanley Cup final. It's the Lions and the Chargers, your Los Angeles Chargers. I always have to say Los Angeles because I'm about to say San Diego, even though I'm based here in Southern California.

4:56The Bolts had their rookies reporting in two days. On Saturday, that means football is officially back. Roger Goodell spoke today. Now, in all candor, because I know a lot of you have been hammering me on ex-BW Weber, Weber with two Bs, for talking too much NBA, I was going to open the program using Cooper Flagg playing tonight, making his summer league debut in Vegas. I'm aware Bronny James will be on the floor as well. I don't care about that. I was going to use Cooper as a catalyst to do one more deep dive on where we stand now in the rugged Western Conference with Denver, radically improved, Houston with the headline of Kevin Durant.

5:41Now, I think the second best team in the West. Remember, they had the second best record in the regular season. But to undermine my own argument, the Lakers had the third best record. And what did I get them? Not much. Roger Goodell spoke today. I will give you the particulars and we'll talk about the future of the NFL. And I'm not overselling this because Mr. Goodell rarely speaks unless he's having a conversation with Rich Eisen, the face of NFL Network. Coming up in 20 minutes, much more NFL. As I mentioned, the Chargers will open camp in a couple days. Remember last year, Jim Harbaugh made an instant impact in L.A.

6:21So who's going to follow that blueprint? who are the contenders to be the most improved teams in all of football. Final hour of the program, football analysis from Ted Wynn of The Athletic who breaks down the All-22 video of NFL games. Hour from now, we'll tip things off talking NBA with Steve Ashburner of NBA.com. If you want to participate, the phones work. We proved that on Friday. Happy birthday, America. I took a phone call, 844-204-7424. And I am aware, because I mentioned Rich is the face of NFL Network. He got that job in 2003. In 2003, I decided to join Tennis Channel. You can see how our careers took divergent paths.

7:07But I'm not trying to cram tennis down your throat. A monumental achievement just occurred at the All-England Club. Amanda, say it quickly with me. Anisimova, 23 years old, of Russian heritage. Her family moved to the United States prior to her birth a couple years before she was born in Freehold Township, New Jersey. Stunning the top seat, Irina Sabalenka, who says tennis is dead in the United States in 45 minutes. I'll use that as a device to talk baseball. There's a connection there that may not immediately come to mind. that is on the agenda. So as I hopefully by now have demonstrated, I take this role seriously, but not myself seriously.

7:55And I understand sarcasm is not for everyone. I get it. But those of you who can discern what I'm saying and hopefully get the mental image of a guy smiling as I'm delivering these lines, because I'm part of the not ready for the simulcast players, I do not want to just talk NFL to talk NFL. To me, that is lazy. But as I got up this morning, and I'll be up front with you once more, I'm probably too honest, that's why I'm a fill-in host, I track CNBC now more than I do ESPN or FS1, plus it's a slow week. As I went to the Talking Head shows, they made the wise business decision based on the fact that camps open up in two days.

8:41What do you think they open with? is this the year the Dallas Cowboys finally make it back to at least an NFC championship game? It's been three decades, so I'm not going after the low-hanging fruit. But as I turned on CNBC, because I'm getting closer, four and a half years, who's counting, to having the ability to cash in on my IRA money if it's still there, Roger Goodell had an exclusive interview with CNBC. Not hard to figure out why they got that sit down and how they got access because they are partners with the league from a corporate perspective of Comcast. Roger, the commish, I can call him Raj, I don't work at NFL Network anymore, was in Sun Valley, Idaho, hanging out with the business moguls.

9:30That's a huge conference every year in which the titans of industry gather not only to make deals, but also to give us a sense of where they think their industries are going. So Goodell in the midst of what was a friendly interview, although Jim Cramer doesn't care. He pressed him on the flexibility now for Thursday Night Football. Oh, by the way, the league can do that because you, the season ticket holder, don't get a vote. If you want those tickets, you're going to have to go along with everything it says on the back of the ticket, if physical tickets still exist, as I continue to put myself in a different decade.

10:09To me, the biggest takeaway was, and I was waiting for the question, but it was poorly worded. I'm Brian Weber. And for Rich Eisen, hit me up on the X platform. I review your thoughts during every commercial block. So in 20 minutes, I'll see how we're doing so far. I'm looking for instant feedback. I'm just that needy. B.W. Weber, Weber with two B's. To me, the big question was, Mr. Commissioner, because they're always filled with deference. Hey, Roger, you've been pretty transparent about wanting to go to 18 games. What's a reasonable timetable? That's, I think, one way you could have phrased it.

10:48You don't have to be glib with the hey, Roger. You can have a little bit more courtesy, but I'm a guy on the radio. The interviewer was there one-on-one in Idaho. The problem was the question was baked into something about the international schedule. So Goodell is smooth. People forget he is the son of a senator. Do I have to go back to the lyrics of John Fogerty back in the day? I ain't no senator's son. When you're raised in that kind of setting, you understand how to not answer a question if it's not phrased properly or you just do verbal gymnastics and dance around it. So it got me thinking about the future of this league because undeniably, they're going 18 games.

11:35Just follow the money because the National Football League is the only thing propping up broadcast television. And now it is the foundation for the expansion of streaming. The streamers don't need the NFL because they're printing money. If we're talking stocks, take a look at how Netflix continues to do. Or listen to my podcast, Dollars and Cents with B-Web, wherever you get your podcast. The streamers, though, have realized if you have a partnership with the NFL, Well, it's one more offering that is going to cut down on your churn rate because I don't know about you. I blow through streaming platforms when I'm done with the show.

12:19So, for example, I'm not going to give you my breakdown of season four of The Bear. Quick synopsis. The show rebounded after a self-indulgent and meandering season three. But I've already put the note on my phone. I got it two weeks ago. and two weeks from now, I've already unsubscribed. I'm going to remind myself just to make sure I didn't screw it up. I'm not going to pay for another month. The NFL keeps you ensnared, at least for the entirety of the NFL season, or maybe a one-off because who's not going to have Netflix for Christmas Day because who wants to talk to their family during a holiday?

12:59And as much as I want to ride the five NBA games, I'm not going to miss NFL action. So a shrewd move there. But this league has so much power and so much economic might, it can do whatever it wants to. Now, 18 games to me as a fan certainly would be a welcome addition. But as someone who fills in during the holidays, I try to tell it like it is. The old line I was given years ago by somebody I respected in this medium, especially in radio, because it should be obvious. I am not reading off a prepared script. I have material in front of me. I, in fact, posted on the X platform. You can see horrible penmanship and a lot of highlighting.

13:46So even if I wanted to somehow make my way through this stuff, it would be very challenging because I can't even read my own handwriting. But the fella I respected years ago said in radio, if you say what you mean and mean what you say, you don't have to worry the next day about contradicting yourself. Now, your opinion can evolve. That's not flip-flopping. That is changing your mind with new facts. But I'm up front with you when I'm here in December. Let's just go back to last December. Remember, the last few weeks of the NFL were not that compelling because we had a majority of the divisions with major separation in the standings.

14:26I understand that injuries are beyond control of anyone, but you play 17 games. Now players are out there more beat up at the end of the year. What's going to happen when we go to 18? More of that trend. So I think probably another buy is going to have to be instituted. But if you're playing 12-dimensional chess, the league, I think, has the ultimate goal of making the Super Bowl be pushed back a couple more weeks, get it to President's Day weekend. And then it's a three-day celebration of something that's bigger than religion in many aspects now here in the NFL world that we live in. They own Sunday and Monday and Thursday and Friday.

15:12There'll be a Friday game again, this time on YouTube. I have a Charger fascination today. Well, it's just factual. It's the Chargers and the Chiefs in Brazil. Hopefully, improvements will be made to that sloppy soccer pitch. Because if you watch the Eagles and the Packers on Peacock last year, that was almost unplayable. But remember, the league is all about player safety. That is the most important priority. Of course. But how do you balance that with 18 games? It doesn't make any sense other than follow the money. So if, in fact, this 18-game schedule is a done deal and we're only concerned about the timing of it, don't you think the union would have something to say about that?

15:58I'm not going to do a union rant today. I'm a member of a union by necessity because I'm old. When I got in the business, you had to be a member of the union. If you wanted to be on the air in a major market, a union that has done nothing for me for 30 years, I still have to pay dues, but I don't work enough to get anything tangible in return. And that's my TED talk. The NFLPA, as we connected briefly to basketball, and you've gotten a reprieve, lousy clock management once more from yours truly means no NBA talk until we get to the second hour of the program. When we check in with Steve Ashburner, of NBA.com.

16:36You might have seen yesterday because Adam Schefter, the lead NFL insider for ESPN, put it out on his X platform, which was odd other than he wants to connect everything to football and he's looking constantly for engagement. Devin Booker, the remaining star in Phoenix, agreed to a two-year extension with an average of$72 million. Now, I'm based, as mentioned, in Southern California. For family reasons, I spent a lot of time in Arizona in recent years. I understand what Devin Booker means to that franchise. If you care, he's the all-time leading scorer. He was the primary reason a mediocre roster made that unlikely run to the NBA Finals in 2021.

17:26But if we're just playing the how long would it take you to go through NBA stars to get to Devin Booker exercise, it would be a few seconds. And we don't have to go through all the names. But it just speaks to the fact that I understand this is basic arithmetic. Only 12 dudes on an NBA roster, 53 guys in the NFL. But to me, it's a reflection of a disparity in the unions. Because while the Players Association and Hoops got a bad deal, in my estimation, with this de facto on a big word Thursday, with this impracticality hard cap now, the dreaded second apron that killed the free agent frenzy that many of us loved.

18:16The league doesn't care about getting more traction. They already are crushing things on social media. and the small market owners demanded that new constructs be put in the CBA to prevent teams from spending too much. Basically, they wanted to handcuff themselves because they didn't trust the other owners. So I'm not saying that the hoops union is somehow the paragon of dominating things at the negotiating table, but compared to what's going on in football, They look like it's Norma Ray getting up and leading a walk-off. Another contemporary reference. I will not get into a semi-scandal. Scandal is a strong word, but I'll let you do your own research and fill in the blanks of what is going on on this collusion case between the NFL and the NFL Players Association with the latest detail today provided by ESPN.

19:17the executive director of the NFL Players Association is currently also working as a paid part-time consultant for a private equity group that has been approved by the league to pursue equity stakes in NFL franchises. I know that was a lot of verbiage. What does it mean? That to me, I didn't go to law school, probably should have, sounds like conflict of interest because this league has outwitted and out-negotiated the players' union at every turn going back to replacement players. So if Devin Booker is getting, on average, at the end of this contract extension, $72 million fully guaranteed, why is Patrick Mahomes settling for less?

20:04Same story for Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen. And it's not just the quarterback club. Micah Parsons is due for a new deal. After the market was reset by Max Crosby, and then Miles Garrett, funny how that works, goes public with the statements and all the leaks. No, I do not want to stay in Cleveland. It's not about just getting to Canton, Ohio and getting that gold jacket. I want to win a Super Bowl. Oh, you're going to make me the highest paid player defensively in all of football? Forget about that. I'm staying. So to me, it's just fascinating that the sport we love most that has a license to print money in response to the horrendous Deshaun Watson contract.

20:54I'm with you. Wrong deal, wrong trade for the wrong guy. But in what world does it make any sense that Devin Booker, who is a star but not a superstar for casual fans, is making$72 million guaranteed, and all of those elite quarterbacks, edge rushers, playmaking wide receivers, Saquon Barkley, because you only get paid in a handful position in the NFL, all of those dudes are accepting taking less. I don't get it. I understand the mathematics. I understand the larger roster. I get the football mentality. Contracts can't be fully guaranteed because of injuries, but it is just to me baffling that the league that in many ways is bigger than a lot of corporations now and is propping up legacy media has the hammer so obviously that they use in subtle and powerful ways over the players.

21:59and nothing's going to change until the marquee players decide we're not going to play. We're going to eat game checks for the good of future generations. And I know I'm living in a dream world there. I'm Brian Weber in for rich. We managed to get through the monologue with only two NBA references. 844-204-7424. Hit me up on the X platform. B.W. Weber. Weber with two B's. Coming up in 20 minutes, I'll connect Wimbledon with the big victory today by the American. Amanda, say it quickly. Anisimova. That's my training from Tennis Channel kicking in. That's coming up. We'll connect Wimbledon to baseball straight ahead.

22:39As I mentioned, the Chargers rookies will report two days from now. The Bolts were vastly improved last year, making the playoffs. who are the candidates to be the most important and improved teams to track as we get closer to the regular season. I'm Brian Weber in for Rich.

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23:39Rich Eisen here for gusto on my show. As we talk a lot about what happens in the spotlight, the games, the highlights, and the moments that get replayed and debated. But in any successful operation, what happens behind the scenes matters just as much. Small businesses are no different. Payroll, hiring, onboarding, benefits, and all the details that keep things moving may not be the most visible part of the job, but they still have to be handled right. That's where Gusto comes in. Gusto is online payroll and benefits software built for small businesses. It's all-in-one, remote-friendly, and incredibly easy to use, so you can pay, hire, onboard, and support your team from anywhere.

24:15Automatic payroll tax filing, simple direct deposits, health benefits, commuter benefits, workers' comp, 401k, you name it. Gusto makes it simple and has options for nearly every budget, and it's all built to save you time with built-in automated tools for offer letters, onboarding docs, direct deposit, and more. Plus, you get unlimited payroll runs for one monthly price. No hidden fees, no surprises. Try Gusto today at gusto.com slash rich and get three months free when you run your first payroll. That's three months of free payroll at gusto.com slash rich. One more time, gusto.com slash rich.

24:53Quick break to tell you some game time tips. When you're hosting during football season, you've got to be ready for every kind of craving. Somebody wants fresh pizza. Somebody wants crispy wings. Somebody's asking if they're sliders. That's when you need more than one call in the playbook. Frigidaire offers ranges and wall ovens with over 15 cooking modes so you can tackle hosting with confidence. There's Stone Baked Pizza for restaurant quality pizza in as little as two minutes, Air Fry Mode for crispy favorites, and Air Sous Vide for juicy tender sliders. Plus there's slow cook, no preheat, and more.

25:23Stone Baked Pizza and Air Fry, both built right in your oven. That's the game time MVP combo. So when you're hosting before kickoff, Frigidaire helps you cover every craving. Available at the Home Depot. Outdoers get more done. Only when using stone-baked pizza mode, cook time requires preheat and reheat and may vary based on ingredients. Hit me up on the X platform. B.W. Weber. Weber with two Bs. My last day in for Rich. If you enjoy my approach, I have positive news for you. I'm back on Labor Day. But let's keep it going on social media, your best way to interact with the program. Coming up in 15 minutes, I will link Wimbledon with Major League Baseball.

26:02That's forward promotion. straight ahead a topic many of you will find important and engaging who are going to be the most improved teams in all of football that is coming up but I do give out the phone number for a reason we take phone calls selectively and I pass the buck to get into the rotation you have to get past the marine our technical producer Art Martinez who tells me Jason in Phoenix is passionate. Jason, you're on with Brian Weber in for Rich Ozen. What's up? Oh, well, hi. Thank you so much. I appreciate it. It's a pleasure. Thank you, sir. What's on your mind? You're right about that.

26:43Yep. So I have some breaking news to break, you know, for everybody to hear. Kevin Durant is not a good basketball player. So, and I'm going to explain this to you guys real quick. Can you hear me? Yes, I can. I'm trying to be respectful. I need a little more energy, and you got 30 seconds to make your point. Go. All right. So, you know, everybody brags about this 50-40-90 stat about KD. You know who else has a 50-40-90 since the last two years since they've been here in Phoenix? Bradley Beal does. Do you know how much good that's done? Zero. Beal doesn't technically. Two more percentage points on the free throw.

27:25He's 88%. If he was 90 % from the free throw, he would have 50-40-90. 50-40-90 don't mean squat. Basketball's bigger than just shooting the ball whenever you feel like you've got a nice shot to take. You've got to play basketball. You've got to run. You've got to try hard. He doesn't do any of that stuff. I was big on KD before he came here. I'm out on him now. I'm glad he's gone. We were good before him, and we got worse with him, and we'll be better without him. So hopefully I got him 30 seconds. Now give me an outro and hang up the phone. Thank you, Jason. Now, as a veteran, I can tell Jason has called Sports Talk Radio before.

28:00I was waiting for the I'll hang up and listen to your response. Jason, and I know we can't have the conversation, but you're listening. Where were you the last three days? I talked NBA 60-40, probably too much, with the NFL and college football on the other half of that equation. I just did a monologue about NFL players not being represented well by their union. Now, I appreciate that you were listening actively when I defended Devin Booker, and I admire the passion and your commitment to the franchise. You're not wrong about Durant in terms of where he's at at this stage of his career. Now, you took some unrealistic shots at him, but that's what we do as fans.