Hour 2:  NFL Insider Tom Pelissero, plus Chris Webber Talks Final Four & NBA

From 30 for 30 podcasts

Ryan Patta senior defensive lineman from Miami gunned down

The key to this case. It's blind

Our before he died he was on a phone arguing what's about this might be a hit you want to truth

We had a killer monster murder at the U listen now

This is the rich eyes and show hey everybody can't get enough of the rich eyes and show you're in luck

You can find us everywhere watch us weekdays on Disney plus from noon to three Eastern

Missed the show we've got a podcast so you can listen any time

But here's the best part our YouTube channel subscribe at youtube.com slash rich eyes and show and you'll never miss a moment

Now on with the show

How do you think ABS is being taken in batters challenge in the fence it's entertaining

The rich eyes and show from the rich eyes and show studio in Los Angeles earlier on the show

14 year NFL veteran Levante David coming up basketball hall of famer Chris Weber NFL Network insider

Tom Pellicero actor Wilson Bethel and now it's

Rich eyes

All right everybody our number two of the rich eyes and show is on the air Kirk cousins is signed with the Raiders a lot of head scratching going on for

That one you gave my two cents at the top of our number one

Thinking it's a really smart move don't have to start from and oh Mendoza right off the bat. They might do it anyway

Not forced to do it

Tom Pellicero is going to be joining us in 20 minutes time to give us

some

considerable

Meet on those bones eight for four two or four rich number to dial phone lines roll it because Raider fans are kind of the same way

But lit with excitement or curiosity not the other way up. It is Vegas anyway all the

Joining us right now is a basketball hall of famer and one of my favorite humans on the planet makes me happy every time

I see certainly that block M in the middle of this man's Jess Chris Weber back here on the rich eyes

This week we spot what's up. See what?

Where are you?

You know, I don't did you hear a lot of our conversation about DuCaiton and you that come back to you because it certainly came back to me when we talked last week

You know

I saw so many other

Publications taking that kind of that argument. So I didn't even know it was that I didn't know it's out there

To you told me so it's out there and you and I chapped it up

And were you were where were you watching the end of Duke Yukon?

I was sitting on my couch and just screaming and

Everyone came out from the other room to see if dad was okay

It's crazy. I was with some family of friends and I missed it and

That happens I ran up and every almost tell me what's going you know going on but I was just

Man, I was just an incredible play. You know, you got to feel sorry for

For boozer after playing so well all year

You know, I know he'll fight back through that and have a great career

But you know he has to you know just be just be down right now

But you think it just not to give it up coming back and you know pressure defense late in the game can cause turnovers

And I was a great play by Yukon to get that shot

Now no doubt about it, you know and cariban having you know the presence of mine to not force it up himself and get it back to the

Freshman to shoot the three

And win it like that was a really savvy move in crunch time

But that's what happens when you've played in the final four, you know two out of your first three years of your college life Chris, right?

Yeah, I love it

You just made a great point and I'm trying to make this to young players all the time

And I talked to them about hero ball the best player should always always take the shot

But when you're in the game a time winning situation

The best shot needs to be taken and that's when you really trusted team

We've seen stories from Phil Jackson on Michael Jordan talking about it all the way up to today

It's a common theme and passing it back from the best three-point shooter in the conference

Because two guys was in his view

He would have the right to take it

But if he didn't feel that confident and that doesn't mean not trusting himself for being ready for the moment mean

And like oh, no, this is not the time passing it back

I just thought was a really unselfish and selfless play and just as important as the shot because he had the right to take a bad shot

and then now it's you converse is the

fighting a line-eye and in that

Parts portion of the final four and Chris, you know, I

Obviously am over the moon about what our school is doing and that Arizona game is going to be nuts

And we'll get to that in a second for many reasons since you will be working it. We'll talk about that in a second

that

That you converse is Illinois is just for the right to be the Washington generals to use a phrase that you were using a little bit a couple of

Weeks ago on your spot here that that the Arizona Michigan game is the de facto national championship game

I kind of think that's ridiculous. I'll give you the floor on that though. Chris. Yeah, you can't you can't buy into that especially if

Michigan were to win and go up against Illinois

You always know that and the conference play as a different familiarity with that

And so you really could never just say, you know, Dave is gonna be alive

But when you look at Illinois, I've been preaching. I've been preaching about I feel like I've been preaching about eight cuff Illinois and

San Antonio all year no because it was just themes that I thought was coming out and the fact that you know

You have if you really think about not only the bloodline

Not only the relationship to go kitchen this agent not only

The unity of that Illinois team. Why wouldn't they continue?

What why wouldn't they they they're playing better on the defensive end and they have some great scores on their team

They have guys that have lineage to the league so they're ready for big moments. They want more. I loved it

You know, I look at Stuyaka, which is a

De facto nephew and I guess so proud sometimes just from the little things and you know what I was most proud with him is when they made it to the final

Before it was an interview in the locker room with him and he expressed our joy for it was but he was like we're not done

And I still mentality you have to have and when you have players that truly have that mentality

And are in the process and enjoying the moment

Um, you know, it's it's always tell

I told my brother this the other day. You know, you never want to fight. I do this already crying before you fight

That's if if you don't know that that's a rule trust me. You never fight a guy to scryen before the fight and I feel like you

Never really want to go up against the team

That

Believes more in themselves and in the moment. It's not satisfied than one that is just being giddy and happy to be in the process and this team is saying

You know, we we got a lot more work to do so I really trust in the noise

We're going up against you, Kyle. That's gonna be a slow first. Yeah, no, it's not a given

It's not a given for anyone getting to that championship game. Of course not. I mean anybody could take it now

So let's get to the Michigan Arizona game

I'm not gonna lie

a little nervous Chris. I mean that Arizona team has been a wagon

Obviously, we have been as well certainly leading to up to this point. How do you how do you see Arizona and Michigan facing off on Saturday night Chris?

I'm like I like the end others. I was nervous for every game I played

That doesn't mean I'm scared. It just means you know our juices are falling so I'm with you on that

Um, but you know, that's because Arizona's good and you respect sport and you know that anything can happen in sport

As I said before I like Arizona a lot because

They're tough. They're big. They play defense

They don't just rely on the three-pointer because I think that

you know

Three-pointers can come and go and so they have a steady play. They play inside out. They can get you in a foul trouble

And you know, I think the coach has done a wonderful job and they have some wonderful players over there

And that being said

You know, I really like what coach may has done. I think that

Um, the player or the big I mean Mars started off the game the other day when he dribbled to this right

thought he was gonna jump hook came back spent left and dumped it and so once one thing

I really like as I see the player development

I don't know if he would have been able to do that move earlier in the year and still be great

And what I'm saying is that as great as Michigan play they always get better

Even if it's coming out of some bad play and that's what I look forward to and this to consist the consistency of yaks

So um the great play of our guards. Um, we can't turn it over

Um, and we got to play great defense like we've been doing it shoot the heck out of the ball

So I'm excited. It's a great game for us and from great teams your best player

You know your best player stuff up is so it's gonna be exciting man

But I feel good about uh, I feel good about the Wolverines. Mill me too. Uh, the reason why I'm um nervous just uh, you know

I guess turn this into a little bit of a support group

Conversation is is Michigan's superpower in many ways this year has been um, it's versatility

And we saw that on display in in the rounds of 16 and in the elite eight where they you know beat Alabama and Tennessee

Two teams from the SEC that do two different things one in Alabama shooting threes playing as fast as they possibly can

They did in fact take Mara out of the game literally literally dusty made removed him from the game because you could see

The type of game it was was not a Mara game for his for his um his talents

And then here comes Tennessee totally different

Totally different and Michigan, you know, punked them to use the phrase and and that's what you need to do to survive in advance

Certainly in a tournament where you have to do it in such a quick turnaround

Our zone appears to be a team that can play in the same way, right?

And so here we go

Here we go. That's my level of concern

No, and let me add to you know we're concerned to make it you know to get you you know to to make you think more but

Is these are the games were foul trouble and uh

Two files early let's say in the first ten minutes and it's gonna sit out a great player for the rest of it for the for the half

And affect them during halftime and get them cold and maybe take about two minutes to come back in the second half and

You know, we're gonna and we're gonna see uh how players handle, you know, how the refs are gonna call it if they let allow it to be physical

Because you have two physical teams and then who takes advantage of the momentum

Early and so yeah, man

I think they're gonna fill each other out, but again, I'm worried that the fact that you know

Arizona gives a lot of body blows and body blows may not show up until the end of the fight

So we're gonna have to you know get out in the passing lanes and get some easy ones early

But you know, that's that's what I think we can do

Chris Weber here on the rich eyes and show speaking of support groups

Speaking of groups speaking of this game Michigan and Arizona

Chris, I am so excited that you are here right now

So we can talk about what was announced quite literally when we came on the air in this hour and started our conversation

Is that you and the rest of the fab five are going to get together and conduct an alt cast coverage of

the Saturday night

Final four game between Michigan and Arizona you jalen juan jimmy king and ray jackson on the call it is happening

Holy crap, man

Wow, that's awesome and I'll give you the floor on however you want to talk about it. How you feeling about that?

I feel great, you know, we've been excited

I'm working on this for some time now

You know, it's been great working with jalen back at turnon

You know glad to be doing this with juan and jay and jimmy and ray so excited man

You never know what you're going to get with eternal

And so I love the turn of family for doing this. So I one thing I would say is going to be fun as Adam left goes

I'm going to be hosting these these are cool dudes. So I know it's going to be fun

But I don't know what to expect when you work with such great producers and all that but I'm excited

I don't even know what to say like you said is announced today

I know it been talking everyone is you know made sure that that we could be together. This is the first time

You know, I know that you know, I've been with the guys publicly and and

quite some time and so

All five of us are being together and quite sometimes. So it's going to be fun

but

Hopefully the fans enjoy it like we do and we're going to be rooting on Michigan

But respecting both teams and and all the players that are there, but yeah

I'm just gonna keep wrapping it because this is something I mean, what do you say you get to be

And watching the game. I mean, I mean, I mean everybody at home should be able to relate

hanging out with your boys watching the game and sharing them with the world. It's pretty cool

That is awesome

And I was going to ask you that so let me follow up on it

See if you can jog your memory one was the last time the father you were together

at all

period

We all worked together a couple years ago

When we went to the Michigan game and ate dinner and hung out and we're on a text read

We're always talking all of us communicate

So it it isn't that I just mean being able to really hang out in front of the world

Maybe the Michigan game when we came together. Okay

When Jerome was coaching to support him

But it's it's been some time but the funny thing is that everybody

When we get together everybody's goes back to being 18 so it's

Is a lot of fun a lot of a lot of a lot of a lot of a lot of a lot of talking a lot of talking

So it'll be fun. So there's a text chain of you Jalen

Jimmy and right that's it. Oh, yeah, everybody's on oh, yeah, that's that's been forever

I mean, I think you know kind of to go back

You know, I don't think most people remember that when I came out of the NBA and I went to go to the state after

That situation there

I was in control to choose any team I could go to right and so my bright idea was to go to the worst team in the league

Which is the Washington wizards at the time to hang out

My boy Chihuahua and play with him. And so our tech chain has been going on since

You know since phones, you know since we have cell phones, but if you go back and see the silly stuff

We talked about it with players or how this guy you couldn't check this guy

This team would have beat you just a kind of you know down came the relationship and just throw something to add to start

Some good arguments we have and so man. I love those guys. It's a it's a lot of fun

We talk about everything from you know family to

To favor basketball plays where it's sincerely and true friends Jalen. I've been friends since

About 12 years old's one. I've been really good friends since about 14 years old and so you know

It's all it's all genuine and that's why it's fun to be able to share this moment

You know with the world and again, Turner for let us do is that crazy and it's going to be fun

It's great. I couldn't be happier. So Polinka's not a lot on the text chain

Chris

Stealing Luca from teams. Yes, I mean that's what he's doing

I was going to mention on so no dougan five and five on this on this you were gonna go do again five and go do again

Well, we have our old chain, but I was talking to Freddie Hunter who runs Detroit power the other day

We're gonna do something then

Texan trying to find Bosco so James Bosco hit me up

But you know, he's an astronaut. So he's probably watching the moon. Yeah, the artist too

You know

Right exactly. I mean, so yeah, we all have our relationships and now but it's really cool because again, you know

It's fun and then we get the broader publicity and you know, we did a lot and we deserve it however, you know, we talk about

Banners or anything like that it would be unfair to put a fat five anything because we would not be us without

Chip armor and all the players that we play with San Mitchell and other players and so

Yeah, we have Texan's with everyone else to get to end the day. We are Michigan and but the fat five is

Is it pretty funny Texan and hopefully people can see that come to life

This weekend now, you know what but Chris. It's it really is the

Dream of you know, anybody fortunate enough to go to college and have experiences with friends and meeting friends and knowing friends

And I know you mentioned how you've known

Some of the fat five since you know teenage years prior to college

But everybody wants to go back to school at 1.1 day

Just go back in time and live like you did and have fun times and

and and and connect and reconnect and keep that thing going

It's going to be a moment for the five of you at a final four getting miced up getting ready to sit down looking around

There's the crowd, you know the Yukon

Um and and a line i fans are you know, just saw that game

But you're about to sit down and do your job like this for Michigan, Arizona

It's going to be awesome and you deserve it you guys deserve it

You deserve it

Thank you brother and you know, it's funny when coach Hall ball brought me back to Michigan to go to the football game

I didn't want to go to the team breakfast and everything else because I didn't want it to be a distraction

Right because I knew if I were on the other side

I'd be like oh, he's here watch what we do and so we're gonna have fun and was great

Is that we have a team that's already aligned and doing their thing and by us having the presence

We're not taking away from them but actually saying how fun it is

To honor this team and to come together for this team that we love that we believe in and we're excited for this team

And yeah, we're gonna get a lot of the line like we're just going to be cool supporting

So looking forward to a brother and definitely be texting you and be laughing all the time

No, but Richard Jefferson's jealous bibbies jealous

There's only one all cast for this

Chris have a blast. We'll chat about it next week. Take care

Thanks appreciate

The reason why I got into Michigan or I started looking at Michigan is because of the movie The Big Chill

Which is again

It's an older film

But it was about Michigan graduates getting back together after the death of one of their friends

By the way played by Kevin Costner who got cut out of the film

He's only in the first scene in the coffin right?

You just see his wrist that's it and any rate

There's tons of Motown music to it and it was written by Lawrence Caston

Who you know went to Michigan and it's all about college friends getting back together and realizing how they've grown apart

Still trying to remember about why they were together to begin with and it's it

It's a brilliant film and Lawrence Caston spoke at my college graduation inside

Uh, Chrysler arena as it was known at the time, which was

The home of Michigan basketball still is and his speech was essentially, you know

Hey everybody your college relationships that you have made are so important

You need to realize later in life if it's for a wedding

It's for a bot mitz for a bar mitz for for a confirmation or for whatever

Make the time and go and reconnect

You know and and it was a beautiful speech that really you know hit me hard

And the only thing missing was the Motown soundtrack as he was delivering that speech

And he's been on the show and I've told him this because it's you know

He's written a million other things and directed a million other things like every great star wars and Indiana Jones film

but um, he

gave a message and I'm thinking about that right now. Yeah, that these guys, you know, they got back together for a college friend when he was coaching

And now they're all going to get back together

I was you know, I'm going to have to peek in on this. Yeah for sure during the game. I mean on a far smaller scale

I'm in about three weeks. I'm going to get that guess personified at when we had the Pittsburgh and do the show

Yeah for the draft right and thinking about like just my personal story and just like

For us to be able to go to Pittsburgh where I you know, I was born and raised in Altoona

But obviously I grew up in Pittsburgh is where I learned to become a man, you know how I learned everything

You know, my boys are still my boys

So when we go back there, man, that's gonna hit me like a ton of bricks for us to be able to come by the set

I don't know if you want them at the center of the rowdy

That was a different message than I got on my graduation day from Rudy Giuliani

Which was

Wait a minute. He spoke it's your graduation. It's circus. Yeah, okay for real

Let's take a break

Tom Pellicero next turn here in the rich eyes and show

The rich eyes and show podcast

Tom Pellicero joining us here on the rich eyes and show joining us still in Arizona after the owner's meeting

It's good to see you Tom. How are you sir?

Good to see you rich doing great. What's up to my boys in the studio?

What's up, baby?

Tom, you look like you're standing up super. Yeah, you look very tall. Very tall. Yeah, like you're long neck

I currently have one tables the two there's two tables the room one is stacked on the other

So I could angle it away from the mess to my children have created on this side

I think I did a pretty good job. By the way, awesome. It looks like you're already a Disney world, Tom

All right, let's get into it here

Where did Kirk cousins to the Raiders come from? Tom

The Raiders were pursuing Kirk cousins ever since the Falcons released him

The issue that they had to work through was Kirk cousins was due 10 million dollars fully guaranteed in 2026

Even if he was sitting on the couch

He was not going to play in his mind for free

Which means that he was going to need to make more than that 10 million dollars if he was going to play somewhere

The Raiders and cousin's agent Mike McCartney came up with a pretty unique structure to work around that issue

And I know there's a lot of numbers the people have seen on social media

Let me break it down to you this way that there's really two ways this contract can go the most likely one is for cousins

This is a one-year 20 million dollar deal of which the Raiders are paying 11.3 million

The 10 million he was all by the Falcons is subject to offsets

He took a minimum salary this year from the Raiders so about 1.3 which leads the rest on the Falcons books

But then to increase his compensation for 2026 they put a 10 million dollar roster bonus on the third day of the league year

In this coming March in 2027 which differs the cash and cap until March

But effectively means he makes 20 million dollars to play this season

There is more to the contract though the other version of the deal is this potentially could be a three-year

100 million dollar deal because if cousins is still on the roster on the fifth day of the league year

next March

Then he is going to have an additional two years and 80 million dollars in the 2027 and 2028 season become fully vested

It's basically a team option and as much as it seems unlikely right now that they could pick that up rich

I would say this

Kirk cousins had one of his best seasons playing with Clint Cubiak as his offensive coordinator

In Minnesota. It's where cousins won his first playoff game over the Saints

They were in the game the following week against the 49ers before they kind of ran out of gas

Cousins has played well in this system. He's 37 he played a lot better once he got his opportunity last year

That he had coming right off the Achilles back in his first season with the Falcons in 2024

So let's say

Hypothetically

Cousins plays really well. Of course the Raiders have the number one pick. We all expect them the draft Fernando Mendoza

But Cubiak is set himself a couple of days ago at the league meeting in a perfect world

You'd like the rookie to come in and sit behind this is Clint's words a grown adult and see how he runs things before giving his opportunity

Let's say Kirk plays so well. They don't need to go to Mendoza at all in

2026 there is a scenario here where cousins plays really well and all of a sudden now

You've got a two year 80 million dollar deal or two for 90 prior to the third day of the league year

That maybe could be tradable for the Raiders. They have an exclusive negotiating window to maybe try to work out a

Restructure. They also have the option of a tape. You played really well, but it's Fernando's time. Let's move on for me

There is a scenario where they could trade Cousins and oh by the way the other thing that I just learned about the way

The steel is structured that additional 80 million almost all of it is in

2028 he's on the books for minimum salary again in 2027 of course in addition to the 10 million dollar roster bonus

So 78.5 or whatever is pushed out into 2028. It really gives the Raiders time here to figure out exactly how they would want to proceed

All this presuming that cousins comes in plays really well

It does give some optionality really to both sides because they don't pick up the option

Which I would say is most likely and cousins is right back in the same spot except this time with no offsets

And he's a free agent again next March and obviously agents and front offices need to parse everything now to the final syllable for a

Contract and of course again run the traps about how it could all work out in success in the long run

Which is what you just laid out for us and that all has to be figured out now

get it

But let's not put for the the salary cap in the extra years cart before this horse

Which is what happens in September what has based on your reporting or knowledge

Cousins been told about a week one possibility this year Tom. What's he been told

Everything that Kirk cousins from my understanding was told behind the scenes

This was not a recent thing. This was going on for several weeks now

Match what Clint said during his breakfast with the media which was in a perfect world

You'd prefer that the rookie sets now

What does that look like through the course of the offseason? How does cousins perform?

How does Fernando Mendoza who by the way is coming from a vastly different system where he hasn't really been under center

Hasn't had to turn his back to the line of scrimmage on play action all those things that are fundamental to the system that Clint wants to run

Does he accelerate quickly enough where it's like hey? We just he's ready. He's ready to go

What this does is this gives them a fallback option?

And really I would say it's more than that the preference for clikubiac is that he's not throwing Mendoza out there in week one

There's still things to go here in terms of the draft. There could be additional free agent moves

There could be trades

But if you look at the Raiders office. Yes, they have Ashton genty. They have Brock powers

Those are two really good pieces to build around they went out and they got Tyler Linderbaum to play center on a deal

That is almost identical to the three or eighty four million dollar deal that cousin signed back in 2018

Which was the massive deal that shocked everybody and now a center is getting that eight years later

Which tells you how the salary cap has gone here

But if you look at the way that the Raiders are building this year

They know they've got more work to do at wide receiver. They got more work to do on the offensive line

Kirk coming in in a way is similar to Tyler Linderbaum coming in which is let's build out as many ways as we can to protect the rookie quarterback again

It's possible Mendoza comes out lights it up in the preseason and they just say hey

We're going to go with Mendoza out of the gate

But unlike the other quarterbacks who granted were or do more guaranteed money rich guys like Tua and Kyler who went in on pure minimum deals

The Raiders are paying cousins 11.3 million dollars to play in 2026

Regardless whether or not he's on the field that means I don't envision Kirk cousins getting cut

I don't envision them trading him this year. I would say standing here right now

And again, we are five months out from this rich

I would say the most likely scenario is Kirk cousins is the Raiders quarterback in week one his play and the progression of Fernando Mendoza

We'll determine exactly how long that lasts

I'm going to tell Sarah here on the rich eyes and show and the other

Aspect of this that I was pointing out in the first hour time

I want to hit you on is the Rogers part of it was cousins ever on the Steelers radar screen or they are just all

It's Rogers. We're just waiting on on his timing and that timing is eventually going to

Result in him saying yep on play for the Steelers in 2026

Tom Kirk cousins was on the Steelers radar just like he was on the Steelers Steelers radar a year ago

They did call and check on his availability while waiting for Rogers

Which remember didn't resolve itself until June last year

They were checking on a bunch of different contingency plans cousins was one of them the Falcons regime at the time

Just didn't really make cousins available

But they certainly had a level of interest and this time around if Rogers didn't come back

My understanding has been that cousins was one of the possibilities that they could go out and pursue

You're talking about a really short list at this point of experienced veteran quarterbacks

Who are still available on the market you have Russell Wilson the Steelers have already gone down that road

I don't foresee them doing it again Jimmy Garoppolo if he's on a team in 2026

I would think especially with cousins off the board that it ends up being back to the Rams

You got Tyrod Taylor is still out there

But I don't envision Tyrod at this stage in his career being a you know walk in the door day one starter

It's really Aaron Rogers or these Steelers potentially are going to roll with Will Howard and Mason Rudolph

And you know sign or draft another one to fill out the depth chart having said all that

Aaron Rogers has not

Committed to the Steelers. He has not given them a firm answer

I know the Mike McCarthy said at the breakfast for the AFC coaches that he talks to him every couple of days

He's all the indications rich if not changed from what I've been told of the last two months

Which is if I had to lean one way or another I would lean toward Aaron Rogers is the Steelers quarterback

In 2026, but at what point does he actually tell them that at what point if at all to the Steelers simply say

We're down the road, you know all those misreps in the spring last year weren't helpful

You know when Rogers was getting frustrated with some of his young receivers during the season and it was you know

Hey, well if you put in more time in the spring maybe it wouldn't be that you know

Maybe it would not be that way they're voluntary even if he's under contract

But from a team building perspective even from a free agency perspective and knowing Aaron Rogers the quarterback

Might have made it easier for them to pursue some things in free agency

But they went on and got Rico Dowdell who I know Mike McCarthy really likes and the fit for him in the backfield

They traded for Michael Pittman

They have made some moves obviously DK Metcalf coming back

It's not as if Aaron Rogers will be walking back into an empty cupboard

I know that Art Rooney said that he hoped to know before the draft

What the decision is going to be from Rogers that begins three weeks from today

I would expect sooner than later. They're going to get an answer

And again if I had to guess if I had to lean one where the another I would lean toward Rogers returning

But this is Aaron Rogers only he knows, you know, what he ultimately wants to do. I know he's out in California

He has been working and training and staying engaged

With Steelers personnel namely his old coach from Green Bay Mike McCarthy

Those signs all point toward him playing

But he hasn't actually said if or when he's going to do that and so once again we await that news

The

Signing of Pukinakua is certainly hit a an interesting turn here usually when you're about to try and hit it

um

You or

He's he's in a rehab facility in Malibu right now Tom. What do you know about this and how it affects the Rams plans to

To pay him long term

Well in the short term the focus is on of course Puka working through the the issues that he has and this was not

I know that the news came out yesterday, but this was known by the Rams

This had been known frankly within the league for the past couple of months that there were some potential issues there

That we're going to have to be addressed

I think that it was much as you don't judge anybody off videos and things like that

There were signs in terms of just you know behavior and decision-making that you could tell something had been a little bit off

With Puka in terms of his long-term future with the Rams

I don't get the sense that they were going to be in any rush

Regardless to get a contract extension done unlike Jackson Smith and jibba Puka was not a

First round draft pick so he's got one year left at a very low number where Jackson Smith and jibba had two years left

With that fifth year option being a pretty big number

The math and the way that you spread those numbers out is going to be a little bit different here

But I would also say you know a player going to rehab doesn't necessarily mean

They're not going to come better back and be better versions of themselves. We see Max Crosby do that

For a long time

When he first went away to rehab something he revealed years later

I mean, I frankly I knew about it other people knew about it

These are private matters and guys are going through real life and death types of things

At times you know bread far of once upon a time one away to get treatment for a vikin in addiction

There's there's all kinds of players and so the the sense that I get is you know the Rams love Puka

He's obviously a phenomenal football player

Whatever he might have been dealing with last season

It didn't stop him from being one of the best players in the entire NFL

The focus right now is get him back

Given the support he needs I have no doubt if he comes back in plays well

That that monster contract is going to be there. It's just not on the front burner right now right now

And again, I don't get the sense that this was really going to be something that was going to get done now

Regardless I mean, it's the first week of April

JS ended his deal in March. There's not many deals to get done

Let's see where we are closer to the start of the regular season. It's exactly how the ramps are to handle this

Handful of minutes. I have left Tom the story of the annual meeting was what

I would say it's the standoff with officials which is really accelerated from oh well

You know the deals coming up at the end of May, but they've always worked it out in the past to you know

It's not a five alarm fire right now rich. We've at least got you know

Some things a flame at this point namely the flame throwing back and forth

Namely from you know the NFL referees association and their executive director Scott green

Who has not been shy about

Publicly which he had not really in the past in his time leading the NFL RA

You know taking public shots and laying things out there

You know the dispute it's multi-layered. There is a financial component to it

And that is the argument that Scott Green made in his most recent public statement

And it certainly has been made in the negotiations

Which is just you guys are all making a lot of money. We deserve a larger chunk of that money

They're offering the NFL is offering the largest year over year

Salary increases that they've ever offered. It's in the five to six percent range the NFL RA wants 10 percent

They also want $2.5 million for marketing rights that the NFL essentially would say what does give you the rights

They're not worth anything nobody's putting a referee on a weedies box

You can have the rights. They don't they're not of actual value here

So that's one part of it the second part of it is a resistance from the official side to anything that would resemble

Substitutive change to how they are evaluated and how they are compensated the NFL's pushes

It's a lot of things that we all as media as fans as people around the game can say are common sense

Which is extending the probation period as you're coming into the league

subjecting under a poor under performing officials to additional work

Including having to work UFL games in the spring if you are one of the very small percentage of officials that falls

Below the line. It is a rewarding performance

For playoff assignments rather than seniority like it is right now if you're a first year official

You're not allowed to work in the Super Bowl right now the NFL would say we're not gonna ban a rookie quarterback

From going and playing in the Super Bowl. Why would we ban a first year official if he's the best for the job

So there's resistance on a lot of those things and for anybody familiar with you know municipal unions

One of the one of they you know protect its wages

It's working conditions. It's benefits and its job security. This is not a traditional municipal union

But they are you know on a fundamental level addressing all those things they want to maintain

The status quo just me talking

I would certainly say there is something to be said for if you're one of the 90 plus percentage of the officials

Who are above the line?

You probably don't like the other 10% of the officials who are falling below the line and giving everybody a bad name

So if the financials got to a certain place rich

I think that the union potentially would be more meldable to some of these other things that the NFL is asking

Right now though. It feels like they're nowhere and the NFL is already

Based upon people I talked to at the league meeting

Setting in motion some of those things that they're more than a warning shot. They're also a direct

Here's what our plan is going to be and we are going to reach a point in no return

That includes they're going to start hiring replacement officials on a contingent basis as soon as next month in advance

Of the deal expiring these are division one division two division three college officials by hiring them in May

Instead of waiting like they did back in 2012 with the fail Mary and all the other things that people remember

This are given June and July to put those officials through a battery of trading

They will then send them to training camps to get the maximum number of live reps possible throughout the course of training camp

So they're best prepared for September

But on top of that you had two rule changes that were approved

At the NFL annual meeting one of them was a permanent rule change

Which is subtle but significant that allows the league office starting this year

To weigh in on

Non-football

Offenses or things that would be ejectable, you know helmet hits

Sweet and helmet hit somebody DK McCaff going after a fan

This would allow even if there's not a flag on the field for the NFL to not only say you're out of the game

But also we're putting a flag on the field that's the first time that's happened

And that opens up a can of worms in terms of the potential expansion in years to come right the second one is on a one-year basis

That would grant the league office the power to overrule anything that is clear and obvious and clear and obvious has been a tricky

Standard ironically enough. We saw it in the passing experience thing back in 2019

But essentially they're saying we can get by with a lesser caliber or less experience caliber of officials

Because if they screw up we're just gonna fix it. We're just gonna weigh in and fix everything

That also rich is gonna be hard to come back from if we go to an environment where the NFL

Is able to fix anything and I know for a factor coaches who brought this up at the meeting

If we're willing to do this on a one-year basis with replacement officials

Why wouldn't we do this with the regular officials part of that it is because those things are collectively bargain

But just imagine if we could even a taste of the full-on big brother and somebody at 345 park

Holding down flags for passing interference overruling the official what he just called on the field

We are into a completely different territory that the competition committee is not gone wanted to go to in the past

Substituted one person's judgment for another

But it does open up the door to a lot of different possibilities that would fundamentally change how NFL officiating works

Tom we got to run thanks to the time enjoy time with your family chat again next week brother

Does good risk. Tommy P everybody. Tommy P back on the rich eyes and show in just a moment

The rich eyes and show the podcast

You

Back on the rich eyes and show

No one likes having a choose and this is why

With America's best lineup of hybrids from Hyundai you get the best of both worlds like the reliable and efficient

Tucson hybrid with America's best warranty or the stylish yet capable son to pay hybrid

With the power to navigate the toughest terrain. It's like having your cake and eating it too, but you know better

Hybrids from Hyundai. It's the best of both worlds visit Hyundai USA.com right now

Or call this number five six two three one four four six oh three for more details

Ben and Columbia Missouri has been hanging on since we said hello. What's up Ben?

Ben for taking my call

I was wondering who you think has the better agent Kurt cousin Sam Bradford or Chase Daniels

Who I believe has the highest dollar per snap out there well chase Daniel

Paid very well as a backup. We know that Sam Bradford was the last quarterback drafted under the previous collective bargaining agreement

Where you paid the first overall pick the most amount of money anybody's ever been paid in the history of the NFL and certainly of your team

So I'll go Kirk cousins 11 straight years

Thanks to the call Ben and thanks for hanging on great. I'll go Kirk cousins. Yeah, and just in terms of overall dollars

He will have now been paid more in his career than Tom Brady

It's not just Tom Brady, but it's it's so well-known. He's saying his boss or you know what I'd love to see

I'd love to see him compared to major league baseball pitchers since he's been drafted

Paid fully guaranteed like a throw a a thrower of the football paid like a pitcher of the baseball

Is there a is there baseball comp off the top of your head Brockman

Uh Mac surezer three hundred and forty five million and how much is cousin Kirk's gonna get to three 41 as the number I saw

Paid like Mac surezer's been paid Justin Verlander the most pitcher of 409

The fact that an NFL player is in that neighborhood. Yeah, that highly respectable neighborhood to use them at night run phrase

You know, that's a pretty respectable neighborhood three twenty eight. It's he's paid like a major league baseball pitcher

A world with no salary caps and everything's guaranteed

An NFL quarterback

It's it's not small. So yeah, I mean that that answers the question right there

You know 100 percent

So it's hard to feel sorry for Kirk cousins and then you say to it. Oh, he's doing all right

No, I I understand that you know

Feel sorry for him. I mean he's he's done really well in his career

It's just he hasn't had the results that somebody paid like that which is like just get to a super bowl

You know Wilson Bethel the man who plays bullseye in daredevil born again

The Ridge Isis show podcast