Guests for Part 1 include NBA on TNT basketball analyst Charles Barkley, who discusses the success that fellow former Auburn Tiger Cam Newton is having two weeks into his rookie campaign as quarterback of the Carolina Panthers.

Sir Charles Barkley extends a challange to one of NFL Gameday Mornings analysts

Barkley also lays down the gauntlet as he extends a physical challenge to one of Rich’s co-analysts on NFL GameDay Morning. Its hilarious stuff, and when the challenge goes down we’ll be sure to have the cameras rolling. Next up, Yahoo! Sports NFL writer Michael Silver phones in and is joined by podcast regular Kara Henderson. The early season struggles of the Kansas City Chiefs and Todd Haley’s job security all come up as former Bronco’s head coach and current Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels’ name has recently been discussed as a possible successor in KC… and we are only in week 2. The show doesn’t end there, so be sure to download Part 2, which features the MVP of Super Bowl XLV, as Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers calls in and the podcast rounds out with Emmy nominated actor and huge Baltimore Ravens fan Josh Charles, who also just so happens to be the voice of the NFL Films produced series A Football Life that airs on NFL Network. As always enjoy, and thanks for listening.

SCROLL DOWN to download PART 2: Aaron Rodgers and Josh Charles

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Part 1 Charles Barkley and Michael Silver with Kara Henderson

Guests for part 2 include the MVP of Super Bowl XLV, as Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers phones in to talk with Rich about the big Week 3 matchup against his NFC North divisional rival, the Chicago Bears. Rodgers also gives his thoughts on Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo’s gritty Week 2 performance in San Fran as he played with cracked ribs and a punctured lung.

Emmy-nominated actor Josh Charles sits down with Rich in-studio

Up after Rodgers is the Emmy-nominated actor from the CBS drama The Good Wife as Josh Charles comes in-studio to sit down with Rich and chat about his beloved Baltimore Ravens and his disdain for the organization that packed up a Mayflower truck in the middle of the night and skipped town. If Charles’ voice sounds familiar to NFL fans, there’s good reason, he is also the voice of the spectacularly produced series by NFL Films called A Football Life. Part 2 of A Football Life: Bill Belichick airs this Thursday at 10p.m. ET on NFL Network, and the series continues throughout the season highlighting some of the legends of the game.

Rich Eisen: 'Pig Parker'? Vote now below!

And finally, the podcast ends with the crew doing some house cleaning and Rich getting called out by the fellas for what we’ll call ‘a breach of etiquette’. Be sure to listen all the way through because this is where the show needs your input. Check out NFL.com/richeisen to answer our poll questions for this week and help us settle some of the issues discussed on today’s show. Also, be sure to watch the TV version of the podcast that airs Thursday at 4:30p.m. ET on NFL Network. As always, enjoy and thanks for listening.
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Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Part 2 Aaron Rodgers and Josh Charles

Rich sits down with NFL Network colleague and two-time NFL MVP and Super Bowl XXXIV Champion QB Kurt Warner, who is joined by his lovely wife and author Brenda. Brenda’s memoir, One Call Away: Answering Life’s Challenges with Unshakable Faith, which hit bookshelves on September 6, details her stranger-than-fiction life circumstances both before and during her marriage to Kurt. In One Call Away, Brenda offers real-life advice to single moms, parents of children with special needs, people who are grieving unexpected deaths, and others struggling in the face of difficult circumstances.  Enjoy this bonus edition of the podcast and if you happened to miss this week’s earlier two-part podcast extravaganza be sure to listen… Great stuff in part 1 from Terrell Suggs, Nick Bakay, and in part 2 from Troy Aikman and the RoastMaster General himself Jeff Ross.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Bonus Edition with Kurt and Brenda Warner

Week One of the 2011 season proved that offenses are ahead of defenses and the points flowed unabated on this week’s edition of the podcast, too.

Thus, we felt compelled to split the show into two parts for the very first time. Unless you want to download a two-hour show. That’s how long all our chats ran combined.

Ravens LB Terrell Suggs shares his 'bling' with Rich back in 2004 during his first visit to the NFL Network set

As one might imagine, Terrell Suggs likes to chat. Mere days after leading the 7-turnover beatdown of the Steelers, T-sizzle phoned into the podcast. Yours truly goes way back with Suggs, as the photo seen here implies. Or should I say, as my hairline in the photo implies. Suggs first appeared on NFL Network in 2004 as a mere pup in the Baltimore defense. Now, he’s the Ravens all-time sack leader. In our chat, he reveals what he does pre-snap with Ben Roethlisberger and what used to scare him as a kid. Both are somewhat surprising.

Troy Aikman is also on the show. Who better than the 3-time Super Bowl champion Hall of Fame quarterback and FOX lead analyst to ask about Tom Brady‘s record-shattering performance, Peyton Manning‘s absence and Tony Romo‘s turnover problem? Aikman also just called Rex Grossman‘s impressive Redskins season-opening start and is about to call the big Bears-Saints tilt for FOX, so we ask him about those items, too.

Of all the usual surprises an Opening Week brings, none was more so this time around than the Bills’ dominance of the Chiefs in Kansas City. So I invited the biggest Bills fan I know into the studio: Nick Bakay. As usual, Nick brought props and the funny. I paired him up with podcast favorite and NFL Total Access co-host Kara Henderson and we tried to hit on as many NFL hot-button topics as possible.

The RoastMaster General joins Rich Eisen to discuss the Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen

That’s because I knew we’d talk little football with our final guest: Jeffrey Ross, the Roastmaster General himself. Ross joins the show fresh off producing and starring in another Comedy Central roast, this one for Charlie Sheen. With the Sheen roast not set to premiere until next Monday at 10:30 p.m. ET, Jeffrey provides an exclusive preview of the hilarity along with a behind-the-scenes glimpse of how the roast got put together. He also goes in-depth into what went down on Sheen’s “Torpedo of Truth” tour that seemed quite ill-fated until the Warlock called the Roastmaster General onto the scene.

The last reason why the show cracked two hours in length: There was lots of housekeeping to do on this week’s podcast. First, I’m excited to announce, we have a new sponsor: Bud Light. Second, we had to revisit Brady’s night against Miami because that now makes him 2-for-2 in monster performances the week after appearing on the podcast.

Larry David's 'You're Welcome' letter in response to Rich's ' 'Thank You' letter for coming on the Podcast

And, third, the eighth season of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” that Larry David and crew came on the podcast to promote back in July just aired its season finale. Be sure to listen when we revisit one of the moments of that classic “Curb” podcast because it explains the note I received from Larry himself, seen here.

So, that is all. One podcast, two parts. Download em both. And stay tuned for a special podcast with Kurt and Brenda Warner, coming out Friday. Brenda has written a book, and her — and their — story is incredible.

Download: Pt.1 Rich Eisen Podcast: Terrell Suggs, Troy Aikman, Jeffrey Ross and Nick Bakay

The RoastMaster General joins Rich Eisen to discuss the Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen

Part Deux of The Rich Eisen Podcast includes Fox lead analyst and three-time Super Bowl winning QB Troy Aikman, who phones in to discuss Big D’s debacle in the Big Apple Sunday night as well as his thoughts on the Peyton Manning saga in Indianapolis. And back on the program fresh of the Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen is the Roast Master General himself Mr. Jeffrey Ross who shares some hilarious stories that took place at last Saturday’s Roast that included “Iron” Mike Tyson himself… The Roast will be airing Monday, Sept. 19 on Comedy Central. We had so much fun with this podcast we ran long so we decided to break it up into a two-parter, so be sure to download both parts 1 & 2 as we tie up some loose ends from the Curb Your Enthusiasm Podcast from July. As always enjoy and tune into the TV version that airs Thursday at 4:30 p.m. ET on NFL Network

Larry David's 'Your Welcome' letter in response to Rich Eisen' 'Thank You' letter for having him on the Podcast

Download: Pt. 2 Rich Eisen Podcast: Terrell Suggs, Troy Aikman, Jeff Ross and Nick Bakay

From dynasties to one-shot wonders, from the undefeated to the unexpected, America’s Game tells the stories behind the story of every Super Bowl championship team. So for this bonus edition of the “Rich Eisen Podcast” Rich decided to phone up the man in charge of bringing America’s Game: 2010 Packers into fruition, NFL Films senior producer Dave Douglas. As a 30 plus year veteran of NFL Films, Douglas has seen and experienced a lot, and Rich chats with him about what it was like seeing NFL Films go from a small shop when Ed Sabol first started it to the incredible facility iconic entitity its become today. Dave also shares some  behind-the-scenes stories such as what it was like working with some of the games largest personalities like former Bears coach Mike Ditka on the 1985 America’s Game and Ray Lewis when his Ravens hoisted the Lombardi trophy in 2000. It’s a great and insightful listen so enjoy, and if you missed this week’s earlier podcast with Patriots QB Tom Brady, Dan Patrick and the ‘Ace-Man‘ Adam Carolla be sure to check them out on our iTunes page. Next week, RoastMaster General Jeff Ross in studio, fresh off this weekend’s ‘Roast of Charlie Sheen’…should be fun times ahead!

Download: Rich Eisen Bonus Podcast: America’s Game with Dave Douglas

The day that many of feared would never arrive in 2011 is finally here: kickoff to an NFL regular season in full and, hopefully, the last indirect or direct reference to the infernal lockout in this space.

To celebrate the momentous occasion, your humble narrator figured it would be best to sit down the reigning MVP and three-time Super Bowl champion quarterback of the New England Patriots and pick his brain. Tom Brady is the first podcast guest of the 2011 season. I sat him down about a week ago just an hour before the Patriots annual kickoff dinner and asked him about his work ethic, his now famous competitive streak and the ultimate question: does he think the Patriots have what it takes to win another Super Bowl…and first in that neck of the woods in now SIX years. Of course, like his previous appearance last season, I had to mention Gisele at least once. Tom is one of my favorite interviews in the league and I dare say this one doesn’t disappoint.

Next up is another returning guest: Dan Patrick. My old ESPN SportsCenter compadre joins me from his famed “man cave” on the set of his stellar and popular radio show also seen, like this podcast, on television. You can catch Dan’s show everyday either on DirecTV’s channel 101 or on your regional Fox Sports Net. Dan gives his predictions for who will be in the Super Bowl and to which team he’ll personally hand the Lombardi in his role with NBC’s Football Night in America. As always with an old friend, the conversation tends to wander and the chat ranges from questions as to whether he thinks the Colts are already done because of Peyton’s neck problem to just how many photos of himself does he have on his “man cave” walls?

Lastly, as this show bypasses its two-millionth all-time download, it’s only fitting that we welcome the podcast king back into our midst. According to the “Guinness Book of World Records”, Adam Carolla hosts the most downloaded podcast of all-time. And who are we to argue with Guinness, book, beer or Alec? You can help add to Adam’s download list, by checking out his podcast here.
On this podcast, Adam handicaps the 2011 chances for his favorite team – the Rams — and then, as always, posits some ideas to improve the game overall. He forwards a new concept to expand the scope of the false start penalty and renews his plea to keep games closer by making field goals worth more points by adding, yes, a third upright. In a move that might confuse the mere listener to this podcast, we take the final portion of the segment to a different television stage where the makeshift field goal posts on our demo field get a little more makeshift based on Adam’s new rule proposal and attempt to hit the third upright. The key word in that last sentence is “attempt” because guess who attempts it. And you’ll never guess who holds it, either.

To make sure that those who can only LISTEN to this podcast, see the video of the final segment embedded in this blog post. It’s all good. Lots of fun to kick off a new regular season for this show, which debuts at 4:30p.m. ET on NFL Network with repeat – or shall I call them “encore” – viewings at 11a.m. ET on Kickoff Thursday and 1:30p.m. and 12:30a.m. ET on the Saturday before the big first Sunday of the season. Enjoy.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast Kickoff 2011: Tom Brady, Dan Patrick and Adam Carolla

NFL Network insider Michael Lombardi joins Rich to discuss the latest happenings from around the league and which teams he thinks will be in contention for a trip to Indianapolis in February to play in Super Bowl XLVI. Next up on the podcast Rich phones up the former three-time Pro Bowl linebacker and current D.C. sports radio personality LaVar Arrington to discuss what he’s been up to of late as well as what’s going on in our nation’s capitol and who will be under center come Week 1 for the Redskins. Arrington gives his thoughts on head coach Mike Shanahan and how the relationship between former QB Donovan McNabb and offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan might have been what ultimately led to McNabb’s benching and subsequent trade. The former two-time All-American linebacker at Penn State also shares jabs with Rich about the state of his beloved Michigan Wolverines and the legendary Joe Paterno. Finally the show wraps up with the darling of the podcast as Kara Henderson makes her return after a few weeks away from the show. She’s joined by former NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser a.k.a. ‘The Worm’ as a myriad of topics are covered by the trio.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: LaVar Arrington, Michael Lombardi, Kara Henderson and The Worm

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Fantasy Football with Michael Fabiano

Watch REP: Hasselbeck talks CJ2K and more

Watch REP: Paul Rudd joined by Joe Buck

Watch REP: Asomugha chimes in on dream team chatter

Guests include Eagles CB Nnamdi Asomugha, who talks with Rich about the progress the Eagles are making with all of their summer acquisitions, as well as QB Vince Young‘s infamous “dream team” comments. Next up is another NFL veteran who moved cities during the free agency period, as Titans QB Matt Hasselbeck comes back on the show from Titans TEAM CAM in Nashville. The podcast wraps up with the star of “Our Idiot Brother” as actor Paul Rudd stops by our NFL Network studios to discuss his newest film and his beloved Kansas City Chiefs. Rich surprises Paul with a special guest phone call from mutual friend Joe Buck as the trio shares stories of the past — including what went wrong on the first-ever episode of “Joe Buck Live,” on which Rudd was a guest. As always, thanks for listening and catch the TV version of the podcast on NFL Network Friday at 9 a.m. ET. There will be two other NFL Network airings of the podcast on Sunday at 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. ET. Let’s call them “encore presentations” just, you know, because.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Paul Rudd with Joe Buck, Nnamdi Asomugha and Matt Hasselbeck

Watch REP: NFL GameDay Morning crew talks CJ2K, Ocho and more

Watch REP: Coach Mora knows his Diddly-Poo’s

Watch REP: Bonus Mora, Tirico and more

With the first week of preseason games under our belts and the season just a few short weeks away, all of us here at the NFL are preparing for another dynamite season of pigskin. In anticipation of this Rich decided to round up his Emmy nominated “NFL GameDay Morning” colleagues fresh off their day long photo shoot in Los Angeles.

As expected, it’s a riot when all six of the fellas sit down and chat. It’s not all fun and games, though, as business is tended to when the crew touches on such topics as Chris Johnson’s holdout and how long (and ugly) things just may get in the Music City. Proctor and Gamble would be pleased as the topic goes from one Johnson (CJ2K) to another as rumors surfaced this week that the artist … errr, receiver … formerly known as Chad Johnson may be on his way out of Foxborough before things even get started. Rich and the crew gives some solid insight as to how things may play out for Ochocinco and Albert Haynesworth in New England.

Next up on the show is the voice of “Monday Night Football,” Mike Tirico, who phones in for his second visit to the show. It’s a stroll down memory lane as Mike tells stories of the old days in Bristol, CT and how much they all looked forward to the pleasantries of a Tuesday morning Bill Parcells press conference and the unbridled enthusiasm for the media he brought to the table. Rich also asks Tirico for his thoughts on Ndamukong Suh and the recent criticism he’s been getting for being a dirty player thanks in part to his rough treatment of quarterbacks, in particular Bengals QB Andy Dalton.

What better way to wrap up the show then with the “Rich Eisen Podcast” resident movie critic, coach Jim Mora, Sr., joining us in studio. The last time he was on the podcast Rich introduced a one-of-a-kind movie rating system in which coach Mora handed out “Diddly-Poos” as opposed to stars. To say that the new rating system has caught on would be an understatement as coach Mora tells a great story of a recent trip to New Orleans where it came into play.

It’s fun stuff and as always thanks for listening. Be sure to follow the podcast on Twitter @TheEisenPodcast as we look to continue our fan contests and giveaways. Be sure to catch the TV version of the podcast which airs this Friday at 12:30 p.m. ET on NFL Network.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Faulk, Deion, Mooch, Sapp, Warner plus Mike Tirico and Jim Mora, Sr

Rich Eisen is joined by ESPN Monday Night Football analyst Mike Tirico on the “Rich Eisen Podcast” as the two discuss the much talked about Ndamukong Suh take-down of Bengals QB Andy Dalton. Go to NFL.com/richeisen to download the full podcast or subscribe on iTunes. This week’s Podcast airs Friday at 12:30 pm ET on NFL Network.

An all new “Rich Eisen Podcast” will be available for download on NFL.com/richeisen and iTunes this Wednesday by 6pm ET. To view the full catalog of podcasts check out our iTunes page

What a spectacular weekend it was in Canton, Ohio as seven legends of the game found themselves adorned with gold jackets and bronze busts as they entered the sport’s most special of fraternities.  So we decided to take the podcast on the road for the first time for this special event and were able to catch up with some of game’s greatest.  Rich first sits down with HOF quarterback Jim Kelly who is absolutely fantastic as they hit on such topics as Scott Norwood‘s infamous missed Super Bowl XXV field goal, the future of football in Buffalo and his remarkably passionate Hall of Fame speech from 2002 that he dedicated to his late son Hunter, who suffered from a nervous system disorder known as Krabbe disease.  It’s a must-listen as Kelly touches on the state of the current Bills team and whether or not QB Ryan Fitzpatrick is the answer in Buffalo.

Next, we catch up with one of pro football’s biggest icons as John Madden sits down with Rich fresh off a meeting with NFL commish Roger Goodell and others on player safety.  Coach Madden shares stories from his Raiders days as well as his hugely successful broadcasting career and the redonkulous football viewing setup he currently enjoys as a retired coach/commentator/video game legend.

Following Coach Madden is class of 1998 enshrinee OT Antony Munoz, who addresses the current state of the Cincinnati Bengals and the hostile situation that his former franchise is facing with quarterback Carson Palmer‘s pending retirement.  It’s not all serious chatter, though, as Munoz shares a hilarious story about his struggles with one particular piece of golf equipment.

The podcast wraps up with former L.A. Rams teammates Jack Youngblood and Jackie Slater. The two dig deep as they reminisce on stories of the past, what it was like playing in the NFL in the late 1970′s with the Hollywood scene as their backdrop and if a return to L.A. is a good thing for the NFL. As expected the stories are great and put a cap on what was an even better weekend as the NFL Network family saw three of its own enshrined in Ed Sabol, Marshall Faulk and Deion Sanders.

Lastly a special thank you to Joe Horrigan, Pete Fierle & Matt Waechter of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton for their efforts this week and assistance in making this inaugural on-the-road podcast possible.  Also be sure to check out NFL AUCTION if you’re interested in obtaining any of the Hall of Fame autographed memorabilia you see on the TV version of the podcast.  One hundred percent of the proceeds go to such charitable organizations as the Player Care Foundation, NFL Play 60 and many more.   This week’s podcast airs Wednesday on NFL Network at 9 p.m. ET.  As always, enjoy and be sure to follow the podcast on Twitter @TheEisenPodcast.

Download: Rich Eisen HOF Podcast: John Madden, Jim Kelly, Anthony Munoz and Jack Youngblood with Jackie Slater

Deion Sanders checks in during ”The Rich Eisen Podcast” Thursday to reveal his plans for his Hall of Fame speech and post-induction plans that include rappers Snoop Dogg and Nelly.

Listen to the full Hall of Fame podcast featuring Deion Sanders, Richard Dent and Joe Horrigan

Check out Rich’s latest Podcast with the Voice of Sunday Night Football Al Michaels, actor Jason Bateman and friend of the podcast actor Hank Azaria
Subscribe to the Podcast via iTunes

And I think the Eagles just signed another player.

By the way, if I hear one more person say the Eagles are the NFL’s version of the Miami Heat, I’m going to go batty. Yes, I know one of the Eagles many new hires Jason Babin actually tweeted out that they’re the NFL version of the Miami Heat and Vince Young called the Eagles a “Dream Team” but let’s hold our horses for a moment. Just because Babin became the umpteenth athlete to pop off on Twitter and V-Y is learning that the Philadelphia media is bit more intense than what he was accustomed to in Tennessee, it doesn’t mean that they’re speaking for the entire organization. Nnamdi Asomugha did not hold and produce his own announcement show nor did the Eagles en masse act like they just won a title.

Plus, if they really believe they’re the NFL’s version of the Miami Heat, best of luck to them. Last I heard, the Heat didn’t, you know, win it all.

At any rate, a lot got packed into the first seven days of post-lockout madness and we attempt to talk about it all with the play-by-play voice of NBC’s Sunday Night Football, the legendary Al Michaels. The five-time Emmy Award winner has been there and done that in the NFL for a quarter century now and has as good a grasp on what’s what than anyone else walking the football planet. It’s an honor to have Al back on the show and he showed in person.

So did my good buddy, Hank Azaria. The die-hard Jets fan and longtime voice of “The Simpsons” currently plays Gargamel in the hit movie “The Smurfs” (don’t you dare just call it “Smurfs” apparently) and was also the creative genius behind the brilliant Funny Or Die video about the fictional announcer Jim Brockmire. We talk about all that with Hank, who has an interesting take on exactly WHY he hates the New England Patriots.

In between, Jason Bateman made his first of what I hope will be many appearances on the podcast. Bateman has not one but TWO summer movies to promote: “Horrible Bosses” and “The Change-Up,” which opens in the proverbial theater near you this weekend. The lifelong Los Angelino waxes nostalgiac about his Raiders (don’t you dare call him a Rams fan, apparently) and, like Bryan Cranston did two weeks ago, grilled yours truly on the possibility of the NFL’s return to his hometown. Of course, I could not let Jason hang up before grilling him on the possibility of the return of “Arrested Development,” for which he won a Golden Globe in 2005. If you have never seen the show, do yourself a favor and Netflix it immediately. Certainly, you need to get yourself up to speed if the show returns on the silver screen as rumored. Bateman gives us the latest update.

Enjoy this show, the second of two podcasts this week. If you haven’t already downloaded the first, it’s a great primer (or Primetime primer) for the upcoming Hall of Fame weekend. My guests on that show include 2011 enshrinees Deion Sanders and Richard Dent. In fact, the chat with Deion is an instant classic. So please do give that one a listen if you already haven’t.

In the meantime, I’m off to Canton where I plan to interview as many immortals as I can for next week’s podcast.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Al Michaels, Jason Bateman and Hank Azaria

Listen to the show and I think you’ll agree.

In fact, of the three principles from the upcoming Hall of Fame Weekend included on this show, I interviewed Joe Horrigan first. At first, I thought he would be just another guest in this week’s regular podcast with Al Michaels, Jason Bateman and Hank Azaria. But the chat with Joe was so enjoyable, so informative and so darn good that it kept going and going. And lasted over 40 minutes.

So, it spawned an entirely new and special podcast dedicated solely to getting the juices flowing for another Induction Weekend in Canton. To that end, once I hung up with Joe, I texted my good buddy Deion Sanders and asked him if he’d be free for a few minutes to chat in his lead-up to the big weekend. You see, Deion isn’t just packing up his own wife and kids and taking the flight from Texas to Ohio when it’s time for the enshrinees to arrive. No, sir. This is Deion Sanders we’re talking about. He’s the same man who showed up to the Canton Class of 2011 Announcement ceremony at the Super Bowl in Dallas fresh off the youth football sidelines, still wearing his coaching whistle and the Under Armour sweats of his team -– The Truth.

Deion is in the midst of a week-long multi-city barnstorming tour with his youth football team that will finish up this Thursday in Canton, Ohio, where his entire seven-busload caravan will disembark for the weekend. Indeed, Deion will have over 400 kids as part of his Hall of Fame entourage. Not that Deion won’t bring the usual Primetime flair to which we’ve all grown accustomed. Listen to who is performing at the post-Induction party that he and Marshall Faulk are throwing together. Please also keep an ear peeled to his Hall of Fame haberdashery quandary that he asked me to help solve. In between, the soulful Sanders lays out the parameters of his Induction speech (which has not been put on paper, by the way) as well as the long-held family secret he plans to reveal during that speech.

It’s brilliant stuff.

But back to the cobbling of this special podcast. Within minutes of Deion texting back that he was game for a chat, podcast producer Chris Law sprung into action and tracked down the one contemporary player of this year’s class who seems to be lost in the Deion/Marshall/Shannon Sharpe shuffle -– Super Bowl shuffler Richard Dent, who, oh by the way, just happens to be the only person walking planet Earth who can say he is a Chicago Bears Super Bowl MVP.

Another fabulous conversation ensued. What was it like playing amidst the Buddy Ryan-Mike Ditka feud? When did he know the ’85 Bears were a special team? How about all the goal-line carries that The Refrigerator received, especially the one in the Super Bowl that did not go to Walter Payton? And what about now finally being placed in the same Hall of Fame Gallery as his teammate Sweetness? Good times with Dent here.

And, then comes the star of the show from behind the scenes in Canton –- Joe Horrigan, the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s vice president of communication and exhibits. This man touches virtually every aspect of the Hall of Fame weekend, from organizing the announcement ceremony at Super Bowl weekend all the way to the Enshrinement Weekend. Joe deals with the television networks and media outlets covering the events and he deals with every need the Inductees and numerous returning Hall of Famers require. It is a massive undertaking and Joe undertakes it with such calm, humor and grace. Representing the brilliant 4,000-strong cast of local volunteers who give their blood, sweat and tears to make sure the show goes off without a hitch, there’s no one better equipped to let you know all that goes on leading up to and during Hall of Fame Weekend than Joe Horrigan.

Football is back, people! And even though Canton is without its game this year, it is not without its spirit and love of the game. I hope that comes across in this special podcast that I’m glad we put together.

Please do stay tuned for the regular show that will post early Thursday morning on iTunes and NFL.com and premiere on NFL Network Thursday night at 10:30 p.m. ET and then re-air Friday night at 10 p.m. ET. On that show, we’ll talk all the free-agent moves with the voice of NBC’s Sunday Night Football in America, Al Michaels. We’ll discuss the fate of Los Angeles football and the brilliant TV show “Arrested Development” with its star, Jason Bateman, whose film “The Change-Up” opens this weekend. And bringing it all home is Hank Azaria, who returns to the podcast fresh off a big weekend for his movie “The Smurfs,” and a lot of exciting moves by his beloved Jets.

Enjoy the two-fer this week, people.

Download: Hall of Fame Preview: Deion Sanders, Richard Dent and Joe Horrigan

After 136 long days the doors have finally, finally opened back up and football is not only back, it’s back with a bang. The free agency frenzy that was predicted on last week’s podcast with Peter King has come into fruition and is in full effect. So what better way to start off this week’s podcast then with two of the best inside men in the business. NFL Networks Jason LaCanfora and Michael Lombardi, who have broken the news on a plethora of the free agent moves that have taken place thus far, join Rich to share some of the latest team moves and the reasons behind them. If their infinite wisdom doesn’t drive it home for you enough we get the perspective of a man who is going through it firsthand as Rich phones up our resident podcast GM from the Atlanta Falcons Mr. Thomas Dimitroff to find out what the past 72 hours have really been like from the inside. The scene then changes from the friendly confines of the NFL Studios in Culver City, CA to the rainy streets of New York City and Bryant Park where the 2011 EA Sports Madden Pigskin Pro-Am event was taking place. There Rich sits down with his fellow co-host of the event Dan Patrick to discuss the latest news and touch on some of the memorable moments of the past week. Next up from New York is a sit-down with two of the greatest running backs to ever play the game as Rich sits down with Hall of Famer Barry Sanders, and soon to be Hall inductee Marshall Faulk. It’s a must listen and great lead up to next weekend’s events in Canton. The podcast wraps by tying up a few loose ends from last week’s podcast and our Breaking Bad DVD giveaway via the official Twitter page of the podcast @TheEisenPodcast. Be sure to listen all the way through as our 5  winners Twitter handles are announced and we explain how to claim your prize. As always, thanks for listening.

Download: The UNLOCKED Podcast: Barry Sanders, Marshall Faulk, Dan Patrick, Thomas Dimitroff plus Lombardi and LaCanfora

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Peter King, Jeff Fisher and Bryan Cranston

iTunes

Thanks to last week’s record-breaking (at least for us) edition of podcast with the cast of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” we (that’s the royal “we” I guess) set the bar pretty high.

We (there it is again) can only hope to reach that bar, if not leap over it, with the latest edition of the show. At the very least, I think a new high-water mark in terms of variety has been set. This week’s guest list: Plaxico Burress, fresh from a 622-day stay at the Oneida Correctional Facility in upstate New York; Jim Mora, Sr., fresh back from a USO-organized trip to the Persian Gulf with his son Jim Mora, Arizona head coach Ken Whisenhunt and Houston head coach Gary Kubiak; and, lastly (but certainly not least) the popular co-host of ESPN2’s “SportsNation” Michelle Beadle, who was fresh off from a night at the ESPY Awards in nearby Hollywood.

As for just how “fresh off” Beadle was when she kindly paid the show an in-studio visit, well, you’ll just have to listen.

First up, however, is a deep, heavy, one-on-one chat with Burress, who needs to get permission from his probation officer to travel out-of-state, as he did for this in-studio visit. I had tons of questions for Plax, who I last interviewed and saw when we were both picking confetti out of our respective hair moments after his game-winning, Patriot-killing catch in Super Bowl XLII.

The first and most obvious question is this: How is he different person now than the last time we met? The answer was insightful; the conversation only got more so from there. What was he thinking when he took a gun with him into a nightclub in New York City on that fateful night? Did he really turn down a plea bargain because he refused to serve even a day in prison … and then wound up serving longer? How did he cope with not being at the birth of his daughter? What are his thoughts on serving more time than Casey Anthony? And, moving to the future, where does he go from here, professionally and personally?

Next up is Jim Mora Sr., and we run the gamut with him. A former Marine, he just spent five days visiting our troops in the Persian Gulf and, guess what: the number-1 question the troops asked Mora is also the number-1 question on everyone’s mind here in the States. For those who can’t guess what it is, download and listen! And, uh, for those of you who CAN guess what it is, please download and listen anyway. I guess that was a silly tease and promotion, but please forgive me. My mind turns a wee bit to mush when an NFL lockout passes 120 days in length.

At any rate, when Mora isn’t overseas boosting morale he’s either on a golf course or in a movie theater. Regular listeners of the podcast will recall that Mora is a major, big-time film buff and came on the show back in February to give us his Oscar picks, nailing three of the major five award winners. So, with the summer movie season in full swing, Mora imparts his Siskel-and-Ebert like wisdom on such flicks as “Horrible Bosses,” “Hangover 2,” “Midnight in Paris,” “Water For Elephants” and others. But before he does so, I propose a special rating system that coach reluctantly implements. It’s a classic Mora moment.

Lastly, we finish up the podcast with ESPN’s funny and talented Beadle, who stopped by on her way back to Bristol after spending ESPY week here in Los Angeles. Before she hit LAX, I review the latest ESPY broadcast with her and try to elicit some quality behind-the-scenes gossip that I know MUST be going on, being a former ESPYs veteran myself …although my invitation has mysteriously gotten lost in the mail the past eight years. Hmmm. We also talk NFL with Michelle, as well as how in the world she gets through her workday wrestling with such a live-wire as Colin Cowherd.

It’s a fun talk, especially since chatting with a current up-and-comer at the Worldwide Leader in Sports sparked some nostalgia within and led me to spin a couple of Bristol tales that I might eventually regret telling for all to hear.

That’s it. Enjoy the show! And, oh, one last thing: please Lord let this be the last podcast I ever have to do with a lockout hanging over my head. Should a CBA get struck over the weekend, it WOULD be perfect timing for this show, what with Sports Illustrated’s Peter King and Jeff Fisher on the guest list for next week.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Plaxico Burress, Jim Mora and Michelle Beadle

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After weeks of promoting and self-promoting (I have a podcast?), the show of shows has finally arrived.

And just in time to take our minds off what we can only hope is the final throes of this infernal lockout.

It’s the much ballyhooed “Curb Your Enthusiasm” podcast, also just in time for the return of an eighth glorious season of one of the funniest programs on television this Sunday night at 10 p.m. ET on HBO.

Larry David makes his second all-time appearance on the podcast, but the very first in-person, and kicks off the show with a superb 20-minute chat that ranges from his love of (and occasional frustration with) his New York Jets to his smash years with “Seinfeld” to the all-important question of whether his eighth season of “Curb” will be the last. Of course, I try to pry some details in regards to the upcoming season of “Curb.” In between, David gets quite a bit off his chest as only Larry David can –- his demonstrative hatred of the prevent defense, his disgust with zone defense in general and his bold and brash claim that, even with only the slightest bit of preparation, he could be a highly successful offensive or defensive coordinator in the National Football League. For real.

And matters only improve from there.

After the LD one-one-one, I dial up the three executive producers of “Curb,” who also serve as the writers of the show –- the same exact roles they happened to share in one form or another for the last four seasons of “Seinfeld.” I’m referring to David Mandel, Alec Berg and Jeff Schaffer, who phoned in from the New York City location of their latest project: “The Dictator,” the next film from none other than Borat himself, Sacha Baron Cohen. So, in other words, over the last 15 years, Jeff, Alec and David have only collaborated with and provided the words/stories for Jerry Seinfeld, Larry David and Sacha Baron Cohen. As the great Jack Walsh once said: That’s a pretty respectable neighborhood.

Needless to say, I plumb the comic depths with this trio and do my best to pull back what goes on behind the comedy curtain in order to create such iconic pop culture greatness. This portion of the podcast is a particular piece of candy for the “Seinfeld” fanatic. Want to know who was the inspiration for the “Man Hands” episode? How about the origin of the first name of “Jacopo” for the J. Peterman character? What is it like to pitch an idea to Larry David? Or Seinfeld? How in the world do they come up with this stuff anyway? All of that –- including a fantastic story about what happened the one time that Seinfeld himself stopped in and ordered from the original “Soup Nazi” -– can be found in this all-timer of a segment.

But, would you believe, all of the above is just the appetizer?

The podcast finishes with a prett-ay, prett-ay, prett-ay good bang –- a roundtable chat with Larry David, Jeff Garlin, JB Smoove (the uproarious Leon on “Curb”) and Bob “Super Dave” Einstein, who plays Marty Funkhauser. My goal for this chat was to let the guys do their thing and recreate the feel of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” in the chat. I don’t know if I succeeded but I most certainly lost control of the first 10 minutes or so of the conversation. Eventually, your humble narrator corralled the group back to attempt as in-depth a chat on a particular TV show by a large chunk of its cast as you’ve ever heard. I truly don’t want to give too much of it away, but you can guess -– this was a perfect capper to a podcast that will be tough to top moving forward.

But, as you know, I will try. Anything for a listenership that made this podcast the No. 1 sports podcast on iTunes this past week -– right in the middle of July smack dab in the 15th week of an NFL lockout. As Coach Norman Dale once said: I love you guys. Enjoy the podcast. I hope you have as much fun taking it in as I had putting it together.

Editor’s note (alright, it’s really my note but I think using the words “editor’s note” makes this sound more important): For those scoring at home (or not), a 30-minute version of this show will appear Thursday, July 7, on NFL Network at 10 p.m. All the good stuff that can’t make the TV version can be seen here on this page after the first airing of the show. Let’s call it a bonus video, shall we?

Download: The Curb Podcast: Larry David, Jeff Garlin, JB Smoove Bob Einstein and the Curb writers

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Check out these behind-the-scenes photos as “Curb Your Enthusiasm” creator Larry David and the rest of the cast visit the NFL Network set for “The Rich Eisen Podcast.”

Good times seem to be a-poppin’ here at the very first official podcast of the National Football League.

First of all, optimism abounds now on the labor front. The Commissioner and DeMaurice Smith are travelling/breakfast buddies, the lawyers are exchanging proposals, and everything may soon be coming up roses.

And we’re now just ONE week away from the biggest and most entertaining podcast this show has ever produced: the “Curb Your Enthusiasm” podcast with Larry David, Jeff Garlin, Bob Einstein and JB Smoove all in-studio. That show posts next Thursday, July 7th, and also debuts that very night on NFL Network at 10 p.m. ET.

In the meantime, we only put together a show with one of the funniest guys in film who has a new movie coming out, along with a nine-time Grammy Award winner currently on tour in an arena near you. That would be Kevin James and John Legend.

Legend makes his second appearance on the podcast, but the very first since his beloved Ohio State football program got turned upside-down and inside out. We talk about that with Legend, who happens to be a big fantasy football player and also believes in the optimism ruling the labor front right now.

As for James, whose new movie “Zookeeper” opens in a theater near you on July 8th, he makes what I hope is the first of many appearances on the podcast. It offered a great opportunity for James to opine on one of his greatest passions: New York Jets football. What does he think of his team’s chances of finally getting over the AFC Championship hump and into the Super Bowl? Does he like Rex Ryan’s coaching philosophy? We talk about it all. Plus, James also tells a funny story from the set of his new movie that involves a wolf and a bottle of shampoo.

In between those two guests, we find the Renaissance Man of the NFL, veteran linebacker Dhani Jones. We get along swimmingly for many reasons. First, we’re both University of Michigan Wolverines. Secondly, we’ve known each other for years due to his frequent appearances on NFL Network. And lastly, but most importantly: Jones may just be the only person I’ve met who is more self-promotional than me. He appears in-studio to promote his new book: “The Sportsman.” But, I frequently felt compelled to interrupt his self-promotion to bust his chops on several fronts and get his forthright thoughts on all things Bengals, including Carson Palmer’s future in the Jungle, as well as his own and that of Chad Ochocinco. What ensues can only be called a rollicking good time.

But all of that only sets the table for the latest podcast appearance for NFL Network reporter/host Kara Henderson, who returns after a few weeks away of rest and relaxation all the while trying to hook up her son’s kindergarten teacher with NFL Network and television-version of the podcast producer Spandan Daftary, aka “Spoon.” Throughout the past few weeks, no topic discussed on this podcast has garnered more curiosity and reaction from the listenership than this potential burgeoning love connection. So, we get the latest from Spoon and Kara on this front … before getting the actual kindergarten teacher on the phone to try to ensure a second date for Spoon. Just call me Chuck Woolery.

Of course, we also discuss some hardcore football in that segment with Kara and Michael Lombardi to suss out if all the optimism swirling around the labor front is warranted.

It better be. I don’t think I could handle the alternative.

Either way, enjoy the podcast. And the Fourth of July. And then next week’s podcast fireworks with David and friends.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Kevin James, John Legend, Dhani Jones, Michael Lombardi and Kara Henderson

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When NFL Network launched eight long years ago (eight long actual years, not the eight long figurative years it feels that this blasted lockout has lasted) one of the biggest stories in the NFL ether surrounded Michael Strahan’s chase of the single-season sacks record in January 2002. And, as I’m sure you all recall, Strahan broke the record by essentially touching Brett Favre as he took the fetal position in a meaningless Week 17 game. There were many howls of criticism for the, shall we say, unique way in which Strahan recorded that record-setting sack and questions as to whether Favre did it for a fellow warrior for whom he had respect. One of the more full-throated critics was none other than Warren Sapp.

So, when “NFL Total Access” was born in November of 2003, our savvy producers wondered if we could run a weekly segment pitting Strahan and Sapp against one another on their respective Team Cams and let the fireworks fly. When both players agreed to take part, it touched off a celebration of sorts. What ensued was, quite simply, the best player-involved weekly segment we’ve ever produced on NFL Network. Sadly, it lasted only two seasons. But the two seasons worth of segments were instant classics.

Thus, when the powers-that-be decided to take this podcast on-air to NFL Network, I knew what I had to do: gather Strahan and Sapp together for a long-awaited, much needed reunion. That’s exactly what takes place on this program.

We re-live the Favre sack that started it all and then recount the time Steelers running back and future Hall of Fame candidate Jerome Bettis guest-starred on the segment only to be summarily dispatched by the two stars of the show. It led Strahan and Sapp to demand a much better guest, and when we produced one of their requested guests – the hot poster girl of the day, Vida Guerra – only one of the boys got to behold her in person while the other had to watch from his seat in his Team Cam studio very far away.

It was one of the best moments of the early Total Access years, bar none. Of course, we had to relive that with Sapp and Strahan before we hit on more current topics of the day – Tiki Barber’s comeback, Rashard Mendenhall’s tweets and which analyst has the tougher Sunday morning job – Strahan on FOX or Sapp on NFL Network.

In other words, instant classic.

Then we welcome in another old friend of the program: Jacksonville running back Maurice Jones-Drew, who has performed touchdown celebrations in honor of this humble host on not one, not two but THREE different occasions. And, yet, MJD still owes me another after having promised to do a fourth dance during the 2010 season, only to renege at the last moment. Needless to say, there was lots to talk about with Jones-Drew, including the state of his surgically repaired knee, the status of David Garrard and whether he thinks his coach-on-the-brink Jack Del Rio really and truly wanted to draft rookie quarterback Blaine Gabbert. Needless to say (but I’ll still say it), one of the most entertaining and honest players in the sport did not shy away from a single thing.

Lastly, we finish up with Jason Sudeikis, one of the many talented stars of “Saturday Night Live” as well as the upcoming film “Horrible Bosses,” which opens in a theatre near you on July 8. I’ve always wondered how much work it takes to write and perform in one single week of SNL, so Jason helps pull the curtain back on that. A die-hard Kansas Citian, Sudeikis also talks Chiefs football as well as his beloved Kansas Jayhawks and reveals the answer to this question: Who is the most horrible boss he’s ever had? Hint: it’s definitely NOT Lorne Michaels.

As always, please listen to the podcast to the very end, as there’s some more exciting news about this podcast and how you can follow it (literally) on yet another platform. Enjoy. Only two weeks to go until the special “Curb Your Enthusiasm” podcast with Larry David, Jeff Garlin, Bob Einstein (Funkhauser) and the great J.B. Smoove. The television version of that podcast will air Thursday, July 7th at a special time of 10 p.m. ET on NFL Network.

Download: Old Friends Podcast: Michael Strahan, Warren Sapp, Maurice Jones-Drew and Jason Sudeikis

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It’s official. The podcast has gone primetime.

Well, I know that we’ve had primetime players on the podcast before. For instance, the first guest on this edition is Hines Ward, the 8th different Super Bowl MVP to appear on the show since it launched after the first week of the 2010 regular season.

But, this particular edition of the show literally airs in primetime – the first edition of the Rich Eisen Podcast to appear first on NFL Network at 8PM ET. In fact, that’s the way the podcast will debut from now on – Thursday Nights on NFL Network in a half-hour format.

That said, regular listeners of this show will not tell one whit of a difference between what the podcast sounds like. In essence, we haven’t let the television aspect of this show go to our heads. Although I sort of DID just go third-person on you there.

The TV version of the podcast will just be a 30-minute long greatest hits portion of what you’re about to hear on NFL.com, iTunes or one whatever method you’ve chosen to download the program. But, the TV version will take you a behind the scenes of what it takes to pull this type of production off. It’s the ultimate total access you require. As always, feedback is welcome.

As for the show, Hines is his usual laid-back yet intense self talking about his Dancing With The Stars Championship and the heartbreak he still feels when reliving how he finished one step shy of winning the NFL’s Championship this year. Why does he keep playing the game? How much longer might he keep playing the game? Does he think the NFL is really biased against the Steelers? Did James Harrison really almost retire last year because of the fines and rules changes regarding his style of play? As always, Hines does not duck a thing.

Next up, we dial up the most decorated NFL color analyst in the business: 12-time Emmy Award winner Cris Collinsworth of NBC and formerly of Thursday Night Football here on NFL Network. Ever since the lockout skies began to brighten a bit, Collinsworth has taken to Twitter (@CollinsworthNBC) to throw a whole lot of cold water on the labor process. In essence, he has tweeted that he feels half the season if not the entire season will be destroyed by the labor strife. Even with the recent surge in optimism, Collinsworth has expressed his lingering doubts. So, I call up Cris to ask, in essence: What’s up with that?

We also ask the Sunday Night Football in America partner of Al Michaels where he thinks Kevin Kolb might wind up and whether his beloved Bengals truly are sending Carson Palmer off into retirement.

The last guest on the show is Kyle Chandler, the star of the current top-grossing film in America “Super 8.” He’s also been super the past few years as the passionate and frequently-embattled high school football coach Eric Taylor on the brilliant drama “Friday Night Lights.” Ever since this podcast launched, I’ve been eager to have him on to talk about the passion of football and the life lessons he learned playing one of the best TV characters created in quite some time. So, we do just that before delving into his new film directed by “Lost” creator J.J. Abrams and executive produced by the immortal Steven Spielberg. Talk about pop culture manna.

So, we hope you enjoy the first version of the podcast that you can enjoy on two different mediums. And we’re already tinkering how to make this show better and, frankly, we better work on that fast: next week’s guests are Maurice Jones-Drew, Michael Strahan and Warren Sapp TOGETHER in-studio and Saturday Night Live’s Jason Sudeikis.

Download: Multi-Platform Podcast: Hines Ward, Cris Collinsworth and Kyle Chandler

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As the lockout nears its 100th day and the two parties are apparently set for more secret meetings, it reminds me of a line from “Caddyshack” uttered by the genius that is Ted Knight: “Well? We’re waiting!”

Indeed. We are waiting. In the meantime, we booked the heck out of the latest podcast.

It starts off with Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett and moves on to a Cleveland reunion of sorts. Of sorts, because Willie McGinest is mostly known for his three Super Bowl rings with the New England Patriots and Kellen Winslow, Jr. has since moved on with distinction to Tampa Bay. We listen to the former Browns teammates reminisce about the old days and how Kellen has since grown into a more mature place in life: he’s now a father and, especially on a team with 12 first-year starters in 2010, also a veteran presence in the locker room. Good times ensue there.

Then we dial up one of the all-time great sports broadcasters in Marv Albert. As a native New Yorker growing up in Staten Island, I listened to Marv call games for the New York Rangers and New York Knicks as well as serve as the 11 o’clock sportscaster on NBC-TV. In other words, Marv is one of the main reasons why I wanted to become a sports broadcaster myself. So, when I read the news that CBS had hired Albert to call NFL games this fall, bringing him back in the NFL television booth for the first time since NBC lost the NFL package over a decade and a half ago, I pounced on the opportunity to have him call into the podcast. More good times there.

Finally, speaking of the last decade and a half, two of the best secondary bandits of that period join the podcast together: Tampa Bay’s Ronde Barber and Darren Sharper, a free-agent after two seasons with the New Orleans Saints. What makes them tick? How do they see the field and what makes them lick their chops the most? There was lots to ask Ronde in particular: the future of fellow secondary-mate Aqib Talib in Tampa Bay, as well as his brother Tiki shocking us by going back to the future and coming out of retirement.

In between some of this, we update you on two storylines we first introduced on the podcast a couple of weeks ago: a televised version of the podcast coming to NFL Network and NFL Network reporter Kara Henderson’s offer to fix Spandan Daftary — NFL Network producer and specific producer of the televised edition of the podcast – with her son’s kindergarten teacher.

Again, good times rolling all around here. Enjoy the show.

Download: Jam-Packed Podcast: Jason Garrett, Kellen Winslow, Willie McGinest, Marv Albert, Ronde Barber and Darren Sharper

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As usual, I entered the podcast day with no intention of talking about the labor situation but circumstances forced my hand. And by circumstances, I mean a clandestine meeting between Roger Goodell and several influential NFL owners and DeMaurice Smith and several influential NFL Players Association players under the watchful eye of Judge Arthur Boylan, the very judge charged with overseeing the court-ordered mediation between the two sides in this soon-to-be three-month old mess.

Say what?

Where in the world did this come from? What in the world does this mean?

To make heads or tails of this, I phoned up our affable legal expert Gabe Feldman to provide perspective on what this secret meeting means, especially when it took place on the eve of the all-important lockout injuction appeal to the 8th Circuit of the U.S. Court of Appeal. After Gabe coughs up his crucial information, NFL Network reporter Albert Breer, who has been all over this labor dispute from the beginning, unloads his reporter’s notebook. All of this, I promise you, as always, is news you can use. There will be NO legalese allowed.

All for the football discussion, we’ve got a player guest list that runs the gamut: Cooley, Boston College linebacker, cancer survivor and NFL rookie free-agent-in-waiting Mark Herzlich and Lions starting quarterback (when healthy) Matthew Stafford.

I have full, wide-ranging discussions with all three, especially Cooley, who holds his own when I hit him with a barrage of questions about his seemingly controversy-ridden organization. What was up with McNabb and Shanahan last season? Why didn’t that relationship work? Did McNabb truly refuse to wear a wristband containing the Shanahan playbook? Does Clinton Portis’ broadside comments about the lack of cohesion and professionalism in the Redskins’ locker room hold water? I hit Cooley on every last one of the topics, before he reveals the two separate prank phone call campaigns he’s been perpetrating on Jay Feely, A.J. Feeley, Carson Palmer, John Elway, John Fox and Marvin Lewis. For real.

As for Herzlich, his story is an inspiration that requires every last person to root for him. We catch up with the young man as he waits for his chance to play in the NFL and prove everyone how much heart truly means in being successful.

Stafford rounds out the podcast with a chat that will interest everyone who is eager to have the roar restored in Detroit. Of course, having his shoulder restored to health is the first step in that process. We ask Stafford about his readiness, his frustration in waiting to prove his worth to the deal that gave him a boatload of cash and of the time he and I first met the night before he was drafted first overall by Detroit. Please listen for that last story since it reveals the exact amount of money Stafford had in his wallet one night prior to striking it rich.

Good times all around on the podcast which is, yes, heading for NFL Network television soon. More on that on the next podcast with guests Jason Sudeikis, Ronde Barber, Darren Sharper and Kellen Winslow Jr. already booked for next week.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Chris Cooley, Mark Herzlich, Matthew Stafford, Gabe Feldman and Albert Breer

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Back from vacation, tanned and rested, fully charged and filled with vim and vigor to talk football except … there’s still no football. And with no football on the immediate horizon. Unless, of course, you consider the marbled foyer of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit some form of FieldTurf.

Sigh.

So, we have no choice to move onward and upward, and on this podcast, we do just that.

First up, my good friend and NFL Network colleague Warren Sapp joins the podcast for the very first time and, in honor of the occasion, I had a “This is Your Life”-type wrinkle in store for him. A few minutes into the conversation, I had his old coach Tony Dungy call in to surprise him. Warren had no earthly idea one of the favorite people in his world would be on the phone and the moment of truth is one of the more special moments this podcast has created. In other words, we do make dreams come true. To say the least, the conversation that ensued between Sapp and Dungy was deep, spiritual and real.

Next up, we throw open the podcast studio doors for Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez. A native Southern Californian, Sanchez has been spending much of his lockout time at home. Literally, spending a lot of time with his folks. He’s also hosted not one, but TWO player-organized workouts for the Jets, a make-shift OTA that he dubs “Jets West.” Thus, it’s a natural to find out just what in the world the Jets are accomplishing working out on their own and how it might pay off down the road when we EVENTUALLY get a playing season on the docket. Plus, Sanchez hits upon the large number of his receivers sitting on the verge of free agency, as well as what he needs to do to finally get the Jets through a conference championship game and into the league’s championship game.

Lastly, NFL Network reporter/host and podcast favorite Kara Henderson returns to the show. She’s joined by NFL Network segment producer Spandan Daftary aka “Spoon,” who currently has a big job on his plate: Creating a visual look to help bring this podcast to, yes, NFL Network television. What will it take to polish this, uh, show and make it shine for the bright lights of cable television? I must say, what Spoon has in store is quite exciting. It’s next-level stuff. Plus, the conversation about Kara trying to hook him up with one of her son’s kindergarten teachers is priceless. And potentially breaks new barriers on this podcast.

But, again, breaking new barriers (or mediums) appears to be a running theme with this show. Enjoy. Matthew Stafford already booked for next week, Lions fans. Same with Mark Herzlich. Excited about everything in store.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Warren Sapp, Tony Dungy, Mark Sanchez, Spandan Daftary and Kara Henderson

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In the midst of these dour locked-out times, I found a silver lining. Or, well, at least the podcast did. The producer of this podcast — NFL.com’s own Chris Law – hit me earlier this week with news: based on the average number of downloads a new edition of this podcast generates each week, this very edition of the show will push the entire library of shows past the one MILLION download plateau.

One freaking million.

That’s seven figures, people. I can’t thank each and every one of you enough.

So, to celebrate, we did, well, another podcast. And did our best to make it feel special.

Three-time Super Bowl winner Daryl “Moose” Johnston and NFL Network analyst Jamie Dukes kick off the show together with a wide-ranging conversation: a little bit of the draft, a little bit of the lockout and a whole lot of Dez Bryant and Jamie’s favorite conspiracy theory: that Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett sabotaged the offense in order to get predecessor Wade Phillips out of the picture.

Needless to say, Moose was having none of that. A spirited debate ensued.

After that, the only Super Bowl-winning head coach in the NFL Network stable joined the podcast: former Ravens head coach Billick, who says he’s a regular listener to the show and, thus, responsible for a nice part of the 1,000,000 downloads. Before delving into his thoughts on the NFL draft, I had to ask Brian his thoughts on the new draft rule I proposed on the previous show – that no team should be allowed to contact their draftee prior to the Commissioner’s announcement to avoid tipping the pick to viewers who mostly wish to be kept in suspense. I’ve been told that coaches and GMs would have a MAJOR problems with such a rule. So who better to ask than Billick?

We also chew on the subject of how NFL coaches and their staffs are handling the lack of a normal offseason, both inside the facility and within their own households. One of the most knowledgeable and erudite coaches I’ve come across, I could talk with Billick for hours. But, even though this podcast has a few limitations on time, so I did have to get to the final guests.

In the brief 42-episode history of this podcast, I’ve asked several of my NFL Network colleagues to appear on the show to give you a look at how we make the sausage here at the first-ever 24-7-365 television network dedicated to discussing the (now locked out) National Football League. They’ve all been great, but with all due respect, two have generated more fan interest from the listenership than the rest. I’m speaking about NFL Network host/reporter Kara Henderson and former NFL Network senior producer and now top-programming-and-production dog at FOX Soccer, Jason Wormser, a.k.a. “The Worm.”

Clearly, I could not celebrate the 1 millionth download of the show without them. As always, the conversation went in myriad directions. Too many to detail here, but I can reveal one thing: Nigel Spackle does indeed make his belated return to the show. Also buried deep within that conversation is a bit of news about this podcast and it’s possible and exciting expansion within the walls of NFL Network.

Thanks again to one and all for downloading and (hopefully) enjoying this show as much as you do. Here’s to the next million.

Download: Milestone Podcast: Brian Billick, Moose Johnston, Jamie Dukes, Kara Henderson and The Worm

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With one week’s worth of breathing room between us and the 2011 NFL Draft, I figured it would be the perfect time to look back and soak in what we’ve learned with the ultimate maven, Mike Mayock. I phoned up Mike on a pretty big day for him, too. It was the day NFL Network announced that Mayock would join Brad Nessler in the booth to comprise the new team to bring you Thursday Night Football starting this fall. So, there was lots to talk about with Mayock, who also was fresh back from the mother of all golf trips and about to pop a considerable amount of meat on the grill in his backyard, too.

Clearly, the man deserves the break… but not before I could bend his ear on all the important questions generated by the 254 choices made in Radio City Music Hall last week. Enjoy the bonus podcast, folks.

Download: NFL Draft Review with Mike Mayock

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For the first-time in the short history of this podcast (celebrating nine months!) the number of authors on our guest-list nearly eclipsed the number of football-related guests. And, yes, I’m counting Rex Ryan as an author.

The man best known for what comes out of his mouth wrote a book called “Play Like You Mean It” and the Jets head coach has been making serious media rounds to promote it. From NFL Total Access to David Letterman (four shows after yours truly appeared on the “Late Show”), Rex has been all over the media map to talk about his book and he shoe-horned this here podcast into his busy schedule.

Rex and I chat about some of the best stories in his book (did you know he elicited the Commissioner’s help to build trust with Santonio Holmes last training camp?) as well as whether he thinks all of his free agent wide receivers – Holmes, Braylon Edwards, Brad Smith — could possibly return in 2011. Plus, we get a health update on his dad, Buddy.

After Rex, we dial up another best-selling author. Actor Rob Lowe returns to the podcast for a second consecutive week to talk some more about his tome “Stories I Only Tell My Friends.” In this second chat with Rob, we dig deeper into his filmography and upbringing: “St. Elmo’s Fire,” “About Last Night,” “West Wing,” growing up with Martin and Charlie Sheen and hanging, if you will, with Demi Moore. Hey now. It’s all in there, including Rob’s thoughts on Charlie Sheen’s, shall we say, eschewing of the one thing that Rob credits with saving his life: rehab. Good stuff, all.

But before we get into our book nook, we revisit the NFL draft with the man who had the biggest scoop of draft weekend: insider Michael Lombardi, who was the first to report on the Patriots drafting of Ryan Mallett several minutes before the Patriots actually drafted Mallett. We delve into Mallett’s future with New England, as well as the pro readiness of every single one of the quarterbacks drafted within the first three rounds. When might we see Andy Dalton under center? Jake Locker? Christian Ponder? Colin Kaepernick? Blaine Gabbert? We also discuss the first-round intrigue surrounding the botched (or purposefully sabotaged?) draft deal between the Ravens and Bears.

The podcast wraps up with the Hot Topics segment with NFL Network Grand Dame Kara Henderson and future Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk, who may just be the best Hot Topics pairing in the post-Worm history of the podcast. In the wide-ranging chat, we all get something off our chest (which leads to Kara wanting to rename the segment) and Marshall makes a big announcement – his choice of musical entertainment for his and Deion Sanders‘ joint post-induction party in Canton this summer. It’s a big name.

If I may, most of you will be interested in hearing what I get off my chest since it involves what is, judging by my Twitter inbox, the biggest pet peeve of any draft viewer: the tipping of picks. With 25 kids invited to Radio City Music Hall this season and the proliferation of Skype cameras and satellite trucks in the homes of prospects who don’t go to New York City, the picks are being revealed on television well before the Commissioner makes the announcement. In effect, the Commissioner is just confirming what most of us already know: the guy on TV crying on the cellphone is about to get picked by the coach on the other end of the line.

I hate it, too. So, I make a suggestion that I think will fix the problem. Listen for it. And, as always, let me know your thoughts either by posting a message here or on my Twitter page: @richeisen. Even people agree with me and perhaps, together, we can make a difference, people.

Enjoy the show. A stand-alone podcast with the best of the best NFL draft experts and now NFL Network Thursday Night Football analyst Mike Mayock will be released Friday, May 6.

Download: Book Club Podcast: Rex Ryan, Rob Lowe, Marshall Faulk, Michael Lombardi and Kara Henderson

iTunes

After months of waiting, Draft Week has finally arrived and it could not come any sooner. I mean, this lockout is for the birds. So, let’s all soak in an actual, bona fide NFL event while we can with a podcast worthy of the occasion.

A podcast that includes the first of two chats with Rob Lowe. Yes, Rob Lowe. More on that in a moment.

The podcast kicks off with Auburn defensive tackle Nick Fairley, who blew up the Oregon Ducks in the National Championship Game and then, ever since, watched his draft stock dwindle week after week. Indeed, the player who once upon a time had a chance to be drafted first overall has virtually slipped out of the top five and may even slip into the middle of the first round all because of questions over his work ethic. Did he miss a flight to the Combine as rumored? How about blowing off a meeting with a team at the Combine? We ask those questions of Nick point-blank.

Then we turn matters over to the true Man of the Hour at this juncture on the NFL calendar – NFL Network draft maven Mike Mayock. Before Mike delivers his first and only pre-draft Mock Draft in his first-ever primetime special Wednesday night on NFL Network, we get in one last lengthy pre-draft one-on-one chat with him. How many quarterbacks might go in the first round? Will Cam Newton be the first? Who’s the top defensive player on his draft board? Will there be fewer trades this year because of the infernal lockout? What might be the biggest surprise in store? We pick Mike’s brain on all.

After Mike, there’s a brief intermezzo with a Papa John’s contest winner. His name is Raffi Lalazarian and he’s the commissioner of something called the AFFL, aka, The Armenian Fantasy Football League. The year-long sponsor of this podcast held a year-long contest in which fantasy leagues were asked to tell Papa John’s why their league is the best in the entire fantasy playing nation. Raffi’s league won and he and his 11 other league members are going to the NFL Draft as the Grand Prize Winners. Raffi is quite the card and I think you’ll enjoy my grilling of him on this podcast.

Of course, I couldn’t let my listeners go into the draft without providing Draft Week perspective from an actual grocery shopper so, for the second time in a month, we dialed up Atlanta Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff and tried to get some specifics out of him. Especially since, in the NFL.com mock draft in which I’m participating this week, I must choose the 27th overall pick for the Falcons. What does a draft board look like at this late stage of the game? How do you scout other teams to prepare for any trade possibilities in the draft? And does Thomas think there will be fewer trades because of, yes, that infernal lockout? So, we chat up Thomas and then bring it home with one of the true good guys in this Town of Tinsel.

That would be one Rob Lowe. The actor who starred in memorable pop-culture classics like “The Outsiders,” “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “About Last Night” has written a book called “Stories I Only Tell My Friends” that is a must-read for any pop-culture freak like, you know, myself. Rob grew up a Steelers fan but has now flipped head over heels for the Colts and there are a handful of football-related stories in his book that we discuss on the podcast. One involves “The Outsiders” and a game of tackle football that director Francis Ford Coppolla ordered the entire cast (Tom Cruise, Patrick Swayze, Matt Dillon et al) to play on concrete. But my favorite story involves Rob’s pursuit of a girl (one of many told in the book) and how her dad turned out to be, well … give a listen. And a read of his book.

Best of all, if my chat with Rob Lowe leaves you wanting more, he’s going to join me on next week’s podcast, too. On that show, we’ll review the draft, my Wednesday Night draft week appearance on “Late Show with David Letterman” — I’m on with Dave after Kate Hudson (Hey now) — and more on stories from Rob that he ordinarily only tells his friends.

Yes, that’s how we roll around these parts.

Enjoy the show, everyone.

Download: Draft Week Podcast: Rob Lowe, Nick Fairley, Thomas Dimitroff and Mike Mayock

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Part 1: Auburn DT Nick Fairley

Part 2: NFL Network’s Mike Mayock

Part 3: Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff

Part 4: Actor Rob Lowe

The last name on that list might not be familiar to you, but he’s an All-Star around these parts. Charlie Yook is the producer of the Emmy-nominated “NFL GameDay Morning” who also just happens to be the main producer of NFL Network’s coverage of the NFL Draft.

He will be in the chair in the satellite truck sitting on East 52nd Street outside of Radio City Music Hall for every minute of the draft just like I will be in the anchor seat for every minute of it inside Radio City Music Hall. So, I figured I’d get him on the podcast and ask him all the questions necessary, including the one most of you want to know: If NFL Network catches wind of the identity of an impending draft pick, will we reveal it before the Commissioner does.

That crucial response is deep within my lengthy pre-draft chat with Charlie and NFL Network reporter Kara Henderson, who will be covering the Denver Broncos the first night of the NFL Draft. Good times always ensue when Kara sits in on the Hot Topics segment and this one is no different.

The podcast kicks off with a Hall of Famer, a soon-to-be Hall of Famer and a future Hall of Famer sitting with me and the great Steve Mariucci to talk about the just-released 2011 NFL regular season schedule. Lots to soak in when 256 regular season games are placed in a discernable order that may not seem quite crucial in April (especially during a lockout) but comes home to roost when you’re actually having to navigate it on the way to a Super Bowl. What are some of the quirks of the schedule? Which team got hosed (Marshall has an idea; Warner has another) and which team will be needing an earlier wake up call than most (I have a notion on that one.) There’s also a great argument within between Marshall and Michael (what else is new) in regards to Tony Romo.

It’s all good.

In between the schedule and draft segment, I phone up Dan Patrick, an old friend and colleague (which I had put it that way in the actual interview) who, as always, does not disappoint. We go over the NBC Sunday Night Football schedule with the Football Night in America host and discuss the merits of releasing the schedule of a playing season that’s in danger of, you know, not being played. All that happened before we began reminiscing about our halcyon ESPN days and the impending book about those days. In fact, we talked more about that than football.

Enjoy the show and get set for a big-time podcast set for Draft Week with guests Auburn defensive tackle Nick Fairley, draft guru Mike Mayock, Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff and big-time Colts fan and author-to-be Rob Lowe. Yes, THAT Rob Lowe. See you next week.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Michael Irvin, Marshall Faulk, Steve Mariucci, Kurt Warner, Dan Patrick, Kara Henderson and Charlie Yook

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Contained within this week’s edition of my podcast, please find one of the most soulful and intense interviews I’ve ever conducted. And I’ve been talking a lot the past 15 years of my career.

Future Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis paid a visit to “NFL Total Access” for the very first time this week and after the show ended, stayed around for a special, exclusive one-on-one chat for the podcast. What ensued was pure passion and intensity. What makes Ray tick? How much time does he have left in his NFL career? In 2010, his 15th NFL season, Lewis missed a grand total of five snaps. Why does he keep going at an incredible pace?

I asked Ray to place us in his shoes as he gets ready for a game and he did just that. Then he revealed something about what he does after every Ravens home game – something I haven’t heard him reveal before or anywhere else. It truly is an incomparable chat and look forward to hearing your thoughts on it.

Lewis was accompanied by Shad Ireland, the first dialysis patient to ever complete the Ironman Triathlon. Lewis and Ireland are taking to the media airwaves to raise awareness of kidney disease and what you need to know about how to prevent it. It’s just another cause that Lewis has taken up on his journey to become a better man and make the world a better place.

Speaking of making things better, a federal judge ordered the seemingly intransigent sides in the NFL labor dispute into mediation. Salvation, might thy name be Chief Magistrate Judge Arthur J. Boylan? For the second straight week, I decided to present you the proverbial news you can use. What might happen in mediation? How does it work? How long might it take? What are the odds that it actually works and we have a deal before the draft? Who might be advocating for such a thing on both sides? Even worse, who might be advocating against it and why? Once again, we turn to Tulane Law School professor Gabe Feldman to make heads or tails of all this for us in the most cogent, understandable way possible.

Lastly, Kara Henderson returns to the podcast (making it back-to-back appearances) along with Michael Lombardi. We opine on what a deal before the draft could mean FOR the draft, and what the draft would look like should the status quo remain as such. Plus, Lombardi tells us his recollections of evaluating Lewis for the 1996 draft for the Cleveland Browns mere days before the Browns became the Ravens. Plus, when Kara joins the podcast, the conversation can go in any direction, as evidenced by my telling of a Pro Bowl karaoke story that involves Peyton Manning, Ed Reed, Willis McGahee and waking up the entire family of John Lynch.

Good times. Hope you enjoy. Nearing just two weeks until the draft and … perhaps a new CBA? You mediate, Judge Boylan. Mediate like the wind!

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Ray Lewis, Michael Lombardi, Gabe Feldman and Kara Henderson

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Yes, I broke down and got a legal expert to come on the podcast to address the litigation aspect of the lockout that’s about to get started in earnest. But, listen to me when I tell you, in all earnestness, that I did it for you.

Throughout this labor nightmare we’re all living in the NFL world, I’ve done my best to keep the awfulness from creeping into the podcast. But when I have talked lockout, I’ve only done it to make sure that my listeners get the real-deal, no-spin, straight scoop. After the union decertified, I got Peter King on for you. When Jeff Saturday came in studio for “NFL Total Access,” I spoke with him for nearly 30 minutes and got to the bottom of what happened in mediation and how the players plan to work this thing through to a playing season this fall.

I did it all for you.

So, by having Tulane law professor and sports law expert Gabe Feldman on this podcast, you will get everything you need to know in very simple, layman’s language on what to expect with the court hearings that will no doubt confuse us all over the coming weeks. Gabe will deliver the proverbial “news you can use.” And it will be as fun as a legal discussion can be. This won’t be an episode of “The Paper Chase” where you’ll get called out for being unprepared.

Again, it’s all for you.

As for the rest of the podcast, it’s all good times. Tony Gonzalez visited “NFL Total Access” and we’ll replay the conversation we had on the show about his future with the Atlanta Falcons (hint: it’s murky if the lockout runs long) as well as his thoughts on top draftees showing up at Radio City Music Hall to shake the Commissioner’s hand.

Dennis Quaid joins the show as his film “Soul Surfer” hits a theater near you. It’s the umpteenth sports movie for the man famous for his starring roles in “Breaking Away,” “Everybody’s All-American,” “Any Given Sunday,” “The Rookie” and “The Express.” We ask Quaid about why sports movies are fun for him to make and delve a bit into the football films only to maybe fish out a Lawrence Taylor story or two. Plus, we touch upon Quaid’s deep love for the New Orleans Saints.

The Hot Topics segment appears in the middle of all this and, as usual, Kara Henderson brings the noise. Paired with analyst Charles Davis, the NFL Network host/reporter also brings some of her own material to the table, including a never-before heard piece of tape from an interview she conducted with Andy Reid at the NFL Annual Meeting. It’s an instant classic to say the least. As for Davis, he’ll give us the latest inside scoop on the most scrutinized player in the draft: Cam Newton.

As always, enjoy. And remember … it’s all done for you.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast: Dennis Quaid, Tony Gonzalez and Gabe Feldman

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Download: Bonus Rich Eisen Podcast: Bonus Rich Eisen Podcast: Jim Mora and Brian Billick

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Alas, that’s virtually impossible to do. The work stoppage and its effects are everywhere and felt across the entire NFL landscape. So, once again, it proved virtually impossible to lock out the lockout from my podcast, especially since Jeff Saturday is hanging out with us at the NFL Network studios for three days this week.

A member of the union’s executive committee, Saturday served as a central figure in the two-year-long negotiations that broke down two and a half weeks ago. In fact, he was THE member of the now-dissolved NFL Players Association to inform the NFL that the union was, in fact, dissolving. Thus, I sat down with Saturday and had a lengthy, wide-ranging conversation in which I tried to gather crucial facts on the two issues to which I believe fans want and require answers: How in the world did we get here, and how do we get out of “here” and get back to playing football again?

My chat with Saturday aired over two nights on “NFL Total Access” this week and, I’m pleased to say, received some kudos for its candor. I figured I would replay the chat in its entirety for you here on the podcast. It’s chock-full of new and pertinent information — the ultimate definition of news you can use.

After the Saturday chat, Michael Lombardi joins us in-studio to place it all in perspective and also drop some quality NFL Draft nuggets as we are now officially less than one month away from the Panthers being put on the clock. Also, what are the Bills, Cardinals and Vikings thinking at quarterback? Would the Bengals draft a quarterback? If so, what would be Carson Palmer’s endgame then? Lombardi answers all.

Then, once again, we wrap up the podcast with a laugh. A few years ago, I met Rob Riggle at an NFL event and could not have been more excited. One of the funnier alums from “The Daily Show,” Riggle also happens to be a die-hard Chiefs fan. You may also know Riggle from his hilarious star-turn as the taser-loving Vegas cop in “The Hangover.”

Rob’s current gig is one of interest to the NFL fan: He plays former Broncos lineman and current ESPN analyst Mark Schlereth in a CBS sitcom pilot based on the life of the retired Super Bowl champ. How does one portray a character nicknamed “Stink?” What does he think about the future of his beloved Chiefs? How in the world did he pull off crashing Pete Carroll’s first training camp with the Seahawks last year? 

We talk about it all with the riotous Riggle, the only person I know whose career path in comedy started with the United States Marine Corps. For real.

Thanks for all your feedback on the podcast, especially last week’s. Most of you enjoyed hearing a comics-only podcast with the Stangel Brothers, Jeff Garlin and Jeffrey Ross. I might have to do that every once in a while. Especially if we’re stuck in lockout mode.

In the interim, next week’s podcast lineup is already forming: NFL Network reporter Kara Henderson returns, along with guests Tony Gonzalez of the Falcons and actor Dennis Quaid. See you then. Enjoy this week’s show.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast: Jeff Saturday, Michael Lombardi and Rob Riggle

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Download: Bonus Rich Eisen Podcast: Mike Mayock

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It’s a bummer.

In other words, we all need a laugh right about now. So, to help take our minds off of things, I booked four of the funniest guys that I know:

* Jeffrey Ross, the Roastmaster General himself.

* Jeff Garlin, the genius portrayer of Larry David’s friend/manager Jeff Greene on “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” for which Garlin also serves as executive producer.

* Eric and Justin Stangel, the brothers who serve as head writers and executive producers of “Late Show” with David Letterman.

Essentially, I have a free-form discussion with all of them to delve into their craft of making people laugh. By show’s end, I hope you have more of an appreciation of how much work and figurative blood and literal sweat and tears go into figuring out how to get a laugh out of somebody.

I first got the Stangels on the phone a day after they taped two Late Shows with Dave, while I got both Jeff’s to pay me separate in-studio visits. Garlin makes his third-ever appearance on the podcast while Ross makes his first, including his first-ever public comments on what happened on his most recent televised gig: Comedy Central’s “Roast of Donald Trump.” Plus, I got Ross to tell me the story of his first-ever roast and the first joke he told on that night. The story involves The Friar Club, Milton Berle, Buddy Hackett, a very famous finger (not a middle one) and a couple of bleeps.

Keen to know all your thoughts on this straight-up comedy edition of the podcast. For those seeking an NFL Draft/Pro Day fix, I’ve got a stand-alone podcast with Mike Mayock set to hit iTunes and NFL.com Friday. We’ll cover those bases then.

In the moment, though, just for a moment, sit back and enjoy a laugh. You deserve it.

Download: The Rich Eisen Comics-Only Podcast: Jeffrey Ross, Jeff Garlin and The Stangel Brothers

iTunes

Trust me. I know you don’t want to hear about it. I don’t want to talk about it. But decertification and litigation have finally descended upon our football universe and it’s sucking the oxygen out of anything to do with the NFL right now. Even the NFL Draft — the only certain-to-be-held, football-only event remaining on the 2011 calendar – is becoming infected by the labor strife that’s enveloped our beloved sport.

So, after much deliberation, I felt I had to open the podcast books to the subject matter. In other words, circumstances made me face this cold, hard reality: I could no longer lock out the lockout from my podcast.

Thus, I dialed up Hall of Fame writer and long-time NFL observer Peter King. Peter spent much of last week with the rest of the huddled media masses, freezing on the streets of Washington, D.C., hoping for good news from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service headquarters that never came. How did we get here? Why did we get here? And where do we go from here? And what’s with the story he broke on Tuesday: the NFLPA or whatever it’s currently called holding its own New York City draft party for top prospects that would normally be in town to hug the Commissioner at Radio City Music Hall?

Either way, regardless of who is in New York City and in what building, the NFL Draft will go down at the end of April. One of the top quarterbacks available, Jake Locker, joined us before he worked out with the Vikings on Tuesday, and later in the week with Seattle and Tennessee. What makes him tick? And would it be a dream come true for the Washington native to play for the Seahawks?

Speaking of dreams come true: I finally got one of my favorite people to come on my podcast – future Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk. He joined the Hot Topics segment with Hot Topics regular NFL Network host/reporter Kara Henderson and the resulting conversation went as expected: all over the map. From Pro Bowls to Thursday Night Football, Marshall, Kara and I frequently break bread together whenever we’re on the same assignment and the friendship came through the podcast mikes with flying colors. Plus, Marshall gives rare insight on how you get ready for induction in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, from getting a measuring for a jacket and bust to forming your acceptance speech.

It’s a no-holds barred conversation. In other words, we open our books for all to see.

Download: The Open-Book Rich Eisen Podcast: Peter King, Marshall Faulk, Kara Henderson and Jake Locker

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So, I put together a podcast that is 99.9 percent CBA-free.

 In fact, of the four guests participating in this week’s podcast, the one who mentioned the CBA was the only one I figured who wouldn’t: Blaine Gabbert. Indeed, the top quarterback on most experts’ 2011 draft boards joined the podcast and dropped the letters C-B-and-A when the subject of his impending March 17 Pro Day came up. Apparently, the lack of a CBA prevents Gabbert from having certain people to throw to at Missouri’s pro day next Thursday.

At any rate, it was a great pleasure to put together an entire show about the Combine – including my 40-yard dash and how Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett, in his running clothes, is only 0.7 seconds faster than me in a Prada suit – as well as the 2011 NFL Draft, which WILL happen regardless of the outcome of the mediation proceedings going down (and hopefully not down the tubes) in our nation’s capital.

I really enjoyed getting to meet Gabbert over the phone and the in-studio conversation I had with NFL Network talent evaluation mavens Charles Davis and Michael Lombardi could have gone on forever. We hardly touched upon the bevy of defensive line prospects and the stunning Combine workout of wide receiver Julio Jones. But there’s tons of time during the next few weeks to do so.

To wrap up the podcast, Nick Bakay came to the studio and, as usual, brought the funny. And he did so on various subjects: watching the Combine on TV, his beloved Buffalo Bills, Tom Brady’s ponytail and Tiki Barber’s stunning comeback. On that last subject, we phoned up an old friend of the podcast and the fiercest New York Giants fan we both know: The Worm.

As always, listen to the end. The Rich Eisen Podcast, good to the last drop. Even though this podcast does include 0.01 percent of Collective Bargaining Agreement talk.

Download: 99.9% CBA-Free Podcast: Blaine Gabbert, Charles Davis, Michael Lombardi and Nick Bakay.

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To that end, the first guest was a no-brainer: NFL Network talent evaluation expert Mike Mayock, who I hope and expect will be a regular podcast guest from here from now through the NFL Draft, which will go down in late April regardless of what goes down in CBA talks from now through March 3. We pick Mike’s brain and ask him for a soup-to-nuts combine preview. Who does he expect to wow at the combine? Which player desperately needs to do so? Who must interview well in the interview rooms? What quarterback in the 2011 class has the best chance to be a factor from the first snap? Mayock reveals all and, yes, we do touch upon Cam Newton.

Then, we put you in the shoes of a current front office talent evaluator, a man whose job, quite frankly, depends on being right based on what he sees in Indianapolis — Atlanta Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff joins the podcast. What’s an average day at the combine like for a GM? How do you prepare to evaluate 330 players in one 4-day span? What is the interview process like from the evaluator’s side of the Q-and-A? How much input does ownership have in the process? And, when the long day is over, how does one blow off steam? Dimitroff gives some quality and entertaining insights on all these fronts.

Of course, the combine days are also long for those who cover it. After doing our best to distinguish the disparate 40-yard dashes from the serpentine 3 cone drills, we on NFL Network need an outlet as well. And that’s where, yes, the Academy Awards come into play. Indeed, there’s not much Hollywood about the combine. Actually, there’s nothing Hollywood about the Combine. But, for some unknown reason, Oscar Sunday almost always falls on a combine Sunday. (It’s probably the other way around, but football rules the roost ’round these parts.) Therefore, we hold an annual NFL Network Oscar Party at the scouting combine and participate in a staff-wide Oscar pool, playing for pride of course.

So, to wind down this podcast, I phone up the biggest film buff we’ve ever had on staff at NFL Network and ask him for his Oscar picks. And that would be Jim Mora, the elder. Seriously. I kid you not, the man loves movies. In fact, he grew up around movies, his dad having worked in the film industry. So, Jim is on this podcast and will try and predict Oscar glory for a select few. Plus, I defy you to find another podcast in the universe on which you can hear the man most famous for a “Diddley-Poo” rant extol the virtues of Natalie Portman.

Finally, we wrap up the show by calling the two-time defending champ of the NFL Network Oscar pool and flat-out accuse him of being a fraud. To learn the identity of this mystery guest, you’ll have to listen to the end. That’s what we in the business call a tease. And a worthwhile pot of gold at the end of this combine podcast rainbow.

Enjoy the listen and I’ll see you in my Prada suit at the starter’s line of the 40-yard dash, if not before.

Download: Combine podcast: Mike Mayock, Thomas Dimitroff and Jim Mora.

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Hopefully, this podcast can be the wings beneath everybody’s wings.

For someone who talks football every single day of every single year, nothing is more exciting than the playing season. And nothing serves as more of a downer than the end of the playing season. It’s not that I get melancholy as the confetti drops to the field at the end of the Super Bowl. It usually happens a day or two later. Certainly, it sets in by the time the next weekend arrives and there’s no, you know, football.

Throw in labor uncertainly and you’ve got a whopper of a depression.

So, let’s live in the here and now as long as we can and revel in the exciting culmination of the most-watched and most exhilarating NFL season we’ve ever witnessed. Therefore, we phoned the receiver to whom Packers dialed-in quarterback Aaron Rodgers dialed up for touchdowns not once, but twice in Super Bowl XLV: Greg Jennings.

We caught the Pro Bowl receiver mere hours before the Packers celebrated the return of the Lombardi Trophy with their owner-fans in Lambeau Field. Greg gave us some quality first-hand knowledge of some of the more dramatic moments of Green Bay’s victory: his fourth-quarter, third-down catch that kept Green Bay’s last points-scoring drive alive, Charles Woodson’s halftime speech after he and the team learned his collarbone was broken and, lastly, watching Pittsburgh’s nerve-racking final drive from the sideline. Plus, Jennings revealed a part of his football journey that put this die-hard Wolverine in an awkward position.

After that, half of the Fox broadcast team that called the action of the most-watched televised event in American history joined us: Troy Aikman. The three-time Super Bowl winning quarterback gave us his perspective on the game and of Green Bay’s chances of repeating. Of course, we had to hit up the Hall of Fame Cowboy and longtime Dallas resident on all the issues the good folks of North Texas encountered hosting the Big Game. His answers were quite candid, to say the least.

To that end, an incredible amount of news was generated by Super Bowl week in North Texas. To help us sift through it all I arranged for a reunion of — from what I can tell by listener comments over the past four months — the two most popular guests of the Hot Topics segment: NFL Network reporter Kara Henderson and (now former) NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser, aka The Worm. It was just four short weeks ago that The Worm left NFL Network to help re-shape the Fox Soccer Channel, but it feels like four years. Despite an absurdly hectic schedule, I called The Worm over the weekend and told him that the sheer magnitude of the situation required him to not only be part of The Postpartum Podcast, but appear on it IN PERSON. He agreed. What ensued was, well, worth the trip.

Finally, we got Matthew Perry on the phone. He’s debuting a new sports-based comedy called “Mr. Sunshine” that hits the ABC airwaves this and all following Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. ET. Matthew’s been a busy bee, considering he is the creator, executive producer, writer and star of “Mr. Sunshine.” But Perry, like 162 million other Americans, carved out some time to watch Super Bowl XLV. So, we asked Matthew his thoughts on the Big Game. With him being a huge Patriots fan, I think you can guess which way his rooting interests were leaning.

One last note to pass along before you download this podcast. It will NOT be the last one before next playing season, whenever that may commence. I plan on doing this podcast as regularly as possible during the offseason. But as you’ll hear in this download, I do have some other things going on. But when I don’t, the show will go on.

Or, in other words, like Perry was once upon a time: I’ll be there for you.

Download: Postpartum Podcast: Greg Jennings, Troy Aikman & Matthew Perry

iTunes

So, we took the best interviews and conversations from the two seven-hour shows we aired on Wednesday and Thursday at the Super Bowl Media Center in downtown Dallas and made us a whiz-bang of a late-week, bonus Super Bowl podcast.

Guests include: John Elway, Jimmy Johnson, Phil Simms, Brooklyn Decker, Marisa Miller, Jay Mohr, Desmond Howard, Miles Austin, Drew Brees, Mike Pereira, Maurice Jones-Drew, Super Bowl XLV Halftime Show performers the Black Eyed Peas and, finally, Jerome Bettis with our sponsor Big Papa John crashing in on the set.

Enjoy the chats everyone … and enjoy the Super Bowl.

Download: Bonus SB XLV Podcast: Black Eyed Peas and so much more!

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In other words, this whole deal is Texas-sized. No pressure.

Of course, your humble podcaster tried to put together a collection of guests worthy of the very first official podcast of the NFL from a Super Bowl. I had to get actual players actually playing in the game: NFC Championship Game defensive hero B.J. Raji and the champion’s belt he borrowed from Aaron Rodgers phoned in to the podcast as did Pittsburgh’s beloved tight end Heath Miller, getting set for his third Super Bowl appearance in seven years. Good times.

Plus, for the first time in this podcast’s history, we reach into our archives — I assume the collection of shows we’ve built up over the last 20 weeks could be legitmately called an “archive” — and re-visit a large portion of the chat we had with Rodgers back in Week 3, just before the Packers took on the Bears in the first of three eventual matchups. Back in September, Rodgers spoke a lot about his long journey to self-made football excellence and I figured it would be an interesting listen, especially since we know now what Aaron didn’t know then — the journey would take him to the Super Bowl by season’s end.

I’m pleased to say Joe Buck returns to the podcast. We last spoke with the lead play-by-play voice of the NFL on Fox back around Thanksgiving and I dialed him up mere days before he will call the action of Super Bowl XLV on Fox. Joe has become a defacto Packers expert, having called their last five games, including the largest audience to ever watch an NFC Championship Game. Of course, we raise the subject of Jay Cutler and how Joe and Troy Aikman handled MCL-Gate in real-time. Always fun chatting with Joe and this conversation didn’t disappoint.

Then, one of the best champions this country has ever produced called into the podcast: Seven-time Grand Slam champion and die-hard New York Jets fan John McEnroe. One of the best television analysts in any sport, McEnroe is full of opinions so we touch on several subjects: his beloved Jets, Rex Ryan’s coaching style, Cutler and his colleagues’ Twitter criticism of him, Super Bowl XLV and his surprising cameo in an Oreo commercial during Championship Weekend.

Last and certainly not least, we phoned up NFL Films president Steve Sabol. One of the few men walking the planet to have attended every Super Bowl ever played, who better to lend perspective on this history-laden matchup between the Steelers and Packers? It’s also possibly one huge week for the Sabol family: Steve’s dad, Ed Sabol, the founder of NFL Films, is a finalist for enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, unbelievably, for the first time. We ask Steve about it all. He also tells a fabulous Howard Cosell story and recounts how his dad hired the legendary voice of NFL Films, John Facenda.

So, as always, be sure to listen to the last drop goodness.

Happy Super Bowl everybody. Hope you enjoy the final podcast of the playing season. A whole offseason awaits.

Download: Super Bowl XLV Podcast: B.J. Raji, Heath Miller, Joe Buck, John McEnroe & Steve Sabol

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I mean, I don’t listen to every podcast. But I can’t think of another one that includes or has included Snoop Dogg and Drew Brees back to back. Please let me know if there’s been another such occasion. It truly is just how I roll.

First off, though, we phoned up AFC Champion linebacker LaMarr Woodley and checked in with James Harrison’s bookend to see what’s going on behind the Steel Curtain. After dispatching the New York Jets, the Steelers are suddenly knocking on No. 7’s door. Or on the “Stairway to Seven.” How is Woodley handling it? What does he expect from the quarterback of the moment, Aaron Rodgers? My fellow Michigan Man gives us the scoop … and another Michigan Man, too. Give a listen.

After that, I call up the biggest Pittsburgh Steelers fan I know – Snoop. Phoning in from the road, Snoop breaks down the AFC Championship Game and previews Super Bowl XLV with some high-precision analysis. After all, Snoop is a football coach, too. Indeed, Snoop is going to Dallas not only to watch the Steelers take on the Packers, but he’s bringing his youth football team with him to play in the annual youth football game called The Snooperbowl. This year, however, The Snooperbowl has a twist: for the first time, Snoop’s team is not taking on a stranger, but rather a long-time friend. You bet: Snoop’s opponent is Deion Sanders’ youth football team, The Truth. It’s a battle royal in the making, set for the day before the Steelers and Packers have their own. We talk about it all, including the afterparty on Saturday night. I now have a special role in it with a pledge from Snoop that might leave my wife a bit unsettled.

Next, we switch gears to say the least with Brees, last year’s Super Bowl MVP, joining us during Pro Bowl week. It’s Drew’s fifth Hawaiian all-star rodeo and, sure, while we discuss the upcoming Pro Bowl I would have been remiss if I didn’t ask him about the way the Saints’ season ended. As usual, Brees tells it like it is and proved quite candid about what happened Wild Card weekend in Seattle and why it’s so tough to repeat as champions of the NFL. Brees also delves into the Super Bowl matchup and gives us his thoughts on Cutler-gate in Chicago.

That brings us to the biggest Bears fan I know — Jeff Garlin, who took time out from shooting “Curb Your Enthusiasm” to phone in and get a few things off his chest. What did he think about Jay Cutler’s Championship Sunday? Was the subsequent criticism unfair or on target? And what about the poor schnook who lost his job at the Chicago-based car dealership for wearing a Packers tie to work? Jeff hits on it all.

We have a new victim for our Hot Topics segment. NFL GameDay Morning coordinating producer Dan Fleschner joined the podcast for the very first time and teamed up with podcast veteran (and, judging by your comments and tweets, podcast favorite) Kara Henderson, who was fresh back from a six-day stint in Chicago covering the NFC Championship Game. Did the media’s coverage of Cutler’s injury get out of hand? What does it say about the role of Twitter in sports coverage? And exactly how long is the Super Bowl pregame version of NFL GameDay Morning? Could it possibly be longer than an actual morning?

Finally, my old ESPN tag-team colleague Dan Patrick calls in. Every Friday, I appear on Dan’s popular, superbly produced and executed national (television and broadcast radio) program and enjoy it. This podcast conversation, essentially, is a 20-minute long version of the rollicking 8-or-so minute long chat I usually have with Dan on his show. It goes in every possible direction before ending with a crescendo. Or a thud. It certainly ends with a “Booyah.”

Either way, it will end with you fully primed and prepared for every possible storyline heading into Super Bowl Week.

So be sure to listen to the end. I reveal the guests already in the hopper for next week’s first ever Super Bowl podcast.

Download: Bye Week Podcast: Snoop Dogg, Drew Brees, LaMarr Woodley, Jeff Garlin and Dan Patrick

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What better time to bust out the first SECOND podcast of the week of 2011 than Championship Week?

We’ve got two compelling football games for the right to play in the Super Bowl: Jets at Steelers in the AFC and, of all matchups, Packers at Bears in the NFC. It means the Packers will play for the right to hoist the Halas Trophy at Soldier Field while the Bears will play for the right to play for the Lombardi Trophy by beating Lombardi’s old franchise. Good times.

We talk about the matchups with NFL Network analysts Trent Green and three-time Super Bowl champion Daryl Johnston, who also called the Bears’ divisional playoff win over Seattle for FOX. We massage every aspect of the games with those two.

Before that chat, however, we bring in Jay Glazer of NFLN and FOX to discuss all the storylines that have hit the back burner thanks to all the playoff barnburners from the first two weeks of the postseason. We revisit all the coaching dramas that recently played out in Miami, San Francisco, Minnesota, Dallas and Cleveland and wonder about the ripple effects for the future. Plus, wither Donovan McNabb and Vince Young? And to whom might teams that will soon be in the quarterback market — Arizona, Minnesota, San Francisco and Tennessee to name a few – turn?

It’s all on the latest late-week podcast. Dan Patrick and Drew Brees already booked for next week’s podcast. Peace out.

Download: Bonus Championship Podcast: Jay Glazer, Daryl Johnston and Trent Green

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In other words, this podcast is not locked out but rather locked in.

As for this particular Championship Week podcast, we lock in CBS’s top analyst, Phil Simms, fresh off calling the most-watched divisional playoff game in television history. That is not an exaggeration. Over 42 million of our fellow Americans tuned into watch the Jets turn the 14-win Patriots into a one-and-done team, and we quiz Phil on virtually every aspect of the game. How did the Jets do what they did to Tom Brady? Why did the Patriots methodically march down the field in the fourth quarter of game they were trailing by 10 points? Does he get a new CBS blazer every season?

Of course, we also flash forward to the fabulous AFC Championship Game rematch between the Jets and Steelers that he will call with Jim Nantz Sunday night and also get Phil’s thoughts on the most red-hot quarterback on Planet Earth, Aaron Rodgers.

Next up, your humble host takes a moment for himself. I’m a University of Michigan graduate (Class of 1990) and with my football program trying to pull itself out of major doldrums, I phoned up the new head football coach of the Michigan Wolverines, Brady Hoke. To the hardcore Buckeyes and Spartans and Hawkeyes and Nittany Lions in my listenership, bare with me as I bare my Maize and Blue soul to coach Hoke. But, keep listening – we do talk some NFL, including the exploits of former Wolverines Brady and Charles Woodson as well as that of his brother, Bears defensive backs coach John Hoke, who has his hands full with the NFL’s A-Rod coming to town Sunday.

Then, we get back to our roots here on the podcast. We welcome in some of my in-house colleagues. NFL Network reporter and host Kara Henderson joins NFL Network senior producer Bardia Shah-Rais to talk Hot Topics. I know a lot of you have been missing The Worm (join the club), so we know we have our work cut out for us when we run through the water cooler subjects of football conversation – from last week’s games to this week’s games and even the hubbub caused by a couple of New York Giants essentially wishing they were New York Jets. Plus, we phone up a surprise guest for Kara and Bardia.

We finish the show with a flourish when Paul Rudd dials into the podcast. A long-time, big-time Chiefs fan and everyone’s favorite bromantic actor, Paul does not disappoint. Preparing to fly off to Germany to promote his film “How Do You Know” and then return for the Sundance Film Festival, Paul found enough time to call in and brag about his surprising Chiefs. He also lets us in on the back story of the “Afternoon Delight” scene from “Anchorman” as well as the Steve Carell chest-waxing scene from “The 40-Year-Old Virgin,” and then tells the funniest skiing story I’ve ever heard. Well, second funniest.

Be sure you stick to the end. Bottom line, Rudd brings it on this podcast.

Enjoy the latest show from all of us here at NFL.com and, of course, enjoy the games this weekend. It’s the last weekend with multiple football games in quite a while. Soak it in!

Download: The Rich Eisen Championship Podcast: Phil Simms, Brady Hoke and Paul Rudd

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Literally so on NBC in Seattle, where, apparently, the 12th Man’s reaction to Marshawn Lynch‘s 67-yard punking of the entire Saints defense registered a reading on a seismograph based near Qwest Field. Of course, we needed first-hand confirmation of this, so we called the man who handed the ball to Lynch and also handed the defending world champs their lunch –- Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. Matthew (as his mom wishes him to be called) is one of the quickest-witted athletes I’ve ever met and he was as much on his game during our conversation as he was last weekend. He previewed Seattle’s matchup with the Bears and also set the record straight on the Seahawks’ record. It’s quite entertaining.

After that, NFL Network information man Michael Lombardi joined us to set the table for all four divisional games on tap for this upcoming weekend, perhaps the best weekend in all of sports. Who does Michael think has the edge in the matchups set for Pittsburgh, Atlanta, Chicago and New England? And what does the loss to the Jets mean for the future of the Colts and Peyton Manning?

The man who called that scintillating Jets-Colts game on NBC joined us next. With the fifth season of Sunday Night Football on NBC now in the books, five-time Emmy Award winner Al Michaels phoned in for a de facto 2010 season exit interview. Can anyone beat the Patriots in the AFC? Are the Packers for real in the NFC? Might the Seahawks shock the world again? Why in the world are TV ratings for the NFL going through the roof? Michaels gave his thoughts on all those subjects and also delivered a crucial piece of advice for all up-and-coming play-by-play broadcasters.

But, we had to get off the phone with Michaels earlier than we wanted because Troy Polamalu called in on line two. We asked the soft-spoken, hard-hitting safety how in the world he can be, well, so soft-spoken and so hard-hitting all in one sound mind and body.

The answer from the man who personifies the Pittsburgh defense will intrigue you. Same goes for when I brought up the league’s new toothier policy on hard hits, mostly in the secondary. And mostly involving Pittsburgh Steelers. I must be honest: I think I’ve arranged for a Polamalu-Goodell summit. Troy also let us in on his charitable works, notably Twitchange.com — an organization utilizing celebrities to help make dreams come true for returning and fighting veterans of the U.S. Armed Forces. He says he can use all our help. We’re all in.

Finally, one of the funniest men in all of podcasting (and TV and radio and best-selling books) called into the podcast –- Adam Carolla. We completed home-and-home appearances for our podcasts (I appeared on his a couple months back) and I wish I could recount in just one neat sentence (or even a paragraph) the topics we discussed.

All I can say is I made him NFL Commissioner For A Day and he ran with it. For some reason, the name Adrienne Barbeau came into play. So did the notion of adding an extra upright to the goal posts on an NFL field, which would change the dynamics of the game we love forever … for the better.

It was a seismic event in and of itself. Enjoy the podcast everyone. Paul Rudd already booked for next week. Good times.

Download: Rich Eisen Divisional Podcast: Matt Hasselbeck, Troy Polamalu, Al Michaels and Adam Carolla

iTunes

iTunes

Twenty teams out, 12 remain alive. It’s time for Wild Card Weekend. And just like the players still in the Lombardi mix, the podcast is stepping up its game for the second-season.

All-time NBA great and TNT analyst Charles Barkley returns to the podcast (he may be the first return guest not named “The Worm”) to help break down the playoff matchups. In fact, we treat it like an NCAA tournament bracket and have him fill it out until we get a Super Bowl winner out of Sir Charles. His answer is surprising, but also provides a quality blast from the past.

Along the way, Barkley, as always, proved full of opinions and forwards several unique takes on Rex Ryan, Michael Vick, Tucker Carlson, Ed Rendell and the state of the BCS, which his beloved Auburn Tigers have a chance of taking next Monday.

Speaking of raising glass egg trophies, we dial-up a man who has done so twice. With Black Monday taking up the oxygen of several teams and the management evaluation process beginning en masse for the twenty teams that missed the playoffs, there is lots of intrigue on the coaching front.

But one name you don’t hear in this hopper is that of Urban Meyer.

Now we all know why he stepped down from Florida after posting a ridiculous winning percentage of 81 percent there. But, is he really out of the coaching game? Especially when Tim Tebow’s team needs a head coach right now? Does he ever harbor a desire to coach in the NFL?

Meyer joins us mere days removed from his last game on the Gator sidelines and we talk about two relationships he’s forged with big-time NFL figures: Patriots coach Bill Belichick and Commissioner Roger Goodell. Some great stories you won’t want to miss there.

As for reading the tea leaves in this ever-fluid coaching carousel that kicked off with Black Monday, NFL Network information man Jason La Canfora joins us to let us know about the vacancies in Carolina, Cleveland, Denver and San Francisco and who might win the Jim Harbaugh Sweepstakes that’s been sweeping the football landscape on the college and professional levels.

And, then, we switch gears. Do we ever. For the past several months, I’ve been searching for someone to fill the role of Official Podcast NFL media critic … someone to cast an unblinking eye on the morass of pregame and postgame shows on television, including the ones on NFL Network.

Who better to offer that critique than an Academy Award winning director? Steven Soderbergh says he’s been watching an absurd amount of NFL pregame and postgame shows of late and joins the podcast to grade what he’s seen.

I must be honest. When I phoned him up (he was at the CDC in Atlanta scouting locations for his new movie “Contagion”), I had no idea what he’d say about me or the shows I anchor on NFL Network, let alone my colleagues on networks across the dial. It turned out to be a monster conversation – the longest one on the podcast to date. Especially since I couldn’t let Soderbergh get off the phone without asking him about Matt Damon’s recent quote that Soderbergh plans to retire from making movies after next year.

Dare I say that the answer, I think, breaks entertainment news.

Eat your heart out, Mary Hart.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Charles Barkley, Urban Meyer, Jason La Canfora and Steven Soderbergh

Only one more week remains in the regular season, so we had not one but two NFL players getting ready for Week 17 de facto playoff games phone in.

Indy’s perennial Pro Bowl wide receiver Reggie Wayne joins us first, fresh off an exhilarating road win in Oakland thanks to Peyton Manning’s … feet. In the midst of preparing for a virtual do-or-die home contest with the Tennessee Titans, Reggie and I discuss the injury marred, roller coaster season the Colts have endured and appear to be one winnable home game away from overcoming to make the playoffs yet again.

The Colts have made the postseason every single campaign since Reggie’s rookie year – the Jim Mora “playoffs?!” season that we briefly touch upon. I ask Reggie about his future with the Colts – the only pro team he’s ever known – and his answer is interesting to say the least.

And then, yes, we get his side of the famous “Law dead” pet snake story about which Ed Reed had us rolling with laughter two podcasts ago.

Rams defensive lineman Chris Long also dialed us up to talk about the playoff game he’s essentially going to play in the last game of the regular season – Rams at Seahawks for all the NFC West marbles. If the Rams win, they will host the No. 5 seed in the first week of the playoffs, and we gauge the Rams’ readiness by talking with Chris.

In between those two segments, we welcome in The Worm, NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser, whose beloved Giants fell flat in Green Bay and are flat-out on life support. His take on the G-Men’s stunning and precipitous fall from grace and on their immediate future is shocking, but not even close to as shocking as the personal and professional news he breaks on the program.

We’ve been hinting at The Worm’s big announcement on the last two podcasts and, on this show, he finally takes the news public. I must say, people: it’s a little hard to take. In order to help soften the blow, we called in one of the funniest men on TV to join The Worm — Jeff Garlin of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” in person and in the flesh. Garlin is a monstrous Bears fan and he assesses his favorite team’s chances to win it all.

Needless to say, the “Hot Topics” portion of the podcast, broken up into two parts around the Long interview, is a quality listen.

Then last, but certainly not least, one of the hottest actors in entertainment joins us. And I’m not just saying that because the ladies in our makeup department swooned when I told them who was on the podcast today. And he was CALLING IN.

With his masterful portrayal of the brooding, calculating and, ultimately, confused and wayward Don Draper on the Emmy Award-winning drama “Mad Men,” Jon Hamm has hit the big time. He’s been nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Actor for the fourth time (he won in 2008) and he’ll be sure to get his fourth Emmy nomination for his performance later this year.

But long before he earned his due, Jon was a St. Louis kid who had his heart broken by the Cardinals when they moved out of town to the desert. We talk about which team – or teams – he roots for now, his fantasy teams (plural) and also who he thinks will win it all this year. Of course, I hit him up on the next season of “Mad Men” and who he thinks Draper – deep down — really is. It’s one of my favorite shows so I couldn’t let Hamm hang up without delving into “Mad Men.”

I hope you delve into this podcast with equal amounts of zeal. Enjoy.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Reggie Wayne, Chris Long, Jeff Garlin and Jon Hamm

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He’s battered, yes. A bit bruised, sure. But, all in all, NFL Network Senior Producer and podcast regular Jason Wormser is all in one piece. As his beloved Giants began to disintegrate against the Eagles in the most mind-bending, breathtaking and heartbreaking fashion imaginable, The Worm began to get, shall we say, unsettled to say the least.

I mean, they were at home, up by 21 points with 7 minutes to go in a game that would have put them in great position to win the NFC East and earn a week off in the playoffs. And when DeSean Jackson crossed the goal line (eventually) to seal the deal, my Twitter inbox became flooded with concern for The Worm from across the globe by all this podcast’s listenership.

I must be honest: it touches me to know that you care.

My listeners are compassionate, caring people. So, to cater to that kinder, gentler fan base, we switched up the normal order of the podcast and started with The Worm and got a figurative – and literal – pulse check. He’s fine, but he’s still quite bitter over and about what’s being called “The Crumble” as opposed to Pisarcik’s “The Fumble” — the result of which, believe it or not, has left the Giants in a win-and-in position for the playoffs in Week 16. After all the wreckage from Week 15, they’re one Week 16 win in Lambeau Field away from punching their ticket to the postseason.

We go over all the possible playoff-clinching scenarios with The Worm and this week’s Hot Topic guest, Nick Bakay. I’ve known Nick for years, dating back to our time together with ESPN. He’s also been associated with NFL Network since our first year and knows The Worm very well. Plus, he’s a die-hard Buffalo Bills fan, so I figured if Worm is crestfallen over an incomprehensible loss in a crucial contest due to a stunning breakdown in the kicking game with no time remaining, who better to help counsel him and place things in proper perspective than a Buffalo Bills man like Nick?

We hit on all those issues before turning to the Game of the Week for Week 16 – Saints at Falcons in Atlanta. The Falcons can sew up the NFC South with a win while the Saints could delay that party with a win and clinch a playoff spot of their own, something the previous Super Bowl champ was unable to do for themselves.

So, we fired up Saints Cam for Saints head coach Sean Payton and hit on all the hot-button issues with him: What happened in Baltimore last Sunday? How to correct those mistakes? What problems do the Falcons pose? I also wanted to pull the curtain back on the vaunted preparation methods of one of the sharpest game-planners of our generation, and Payton let us in on how he huddles up with Drew Brees throughout the week as well as his defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, who has his hands full this week.

We also talk about this game with the man who will call it on ESPN’s “Monday Night Football,” the superb Mike Tirico. I’ve also known Mike for years (we did a handful of SportsCenters together back in the day) and we had fun catching up. Tirico phoned in fresh off his trip to the first outdoors game in Minnesota in 29 years, a contest spiced up by the sudden appearance of Brett Favre on the active list for the Vikings – albeit for a half. We chat about Favre, the future of the Vikings, our old ESPN past and whether ESPN might soon be a thing of the past for one of his boothmates, Jon Gruden.

In between the Payton and Tirico chats, Bakay and The Worm return for yet more trips down memory lane. The three of us recall the old Hollywood Fantasy Football League that had a three-year run on “NFL Total Access,” in which celebs like Paul Rudd, Jeff Garlin, Josh Charles, Jaleel White and Nick once clashed on the virtual gridiron every week.

It all makes for one fabulous gift under the podcast tree from me to you. Hope you enjoy.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Sean Payton, Mike Tirico, Nick Bakay & The Worm

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But that would make for quite a short blog post, so let’s add a bit of meat to the meatiest podcast lineup we’ve had to date.

First up, fresh off the “Monday Night Football” scare the Texans put into his Ravens, Baltimore’s future Hall of Fame safety Ed Reed joins us. And he joins us from a very interesting place, too. Keep your ears peeled for that as we discuss the difficulty Baltimore’s secondary and defense endured in the latter throes of the game in Houston.

We ask Ed if that’s yet another instance of a disturbing trend for the Ravens or if he thinks the issues are fixable. We also talk about our times hanging at the Pro Bowl together and one of the funniest stories you’ll ever hear that involves his former teammate at the “U” in Miami, fellow Pro Bowler Reggie Wayne.

Then, we dial up multiple Grammy Award winning R&B/soul maestro John Legend. Legend’s newest album “Wake Up,” a collaboration with The Roots – Jimmy Fallon’s “house” band — is as good as anything he’s ever done. We talk about the album, which has generated five MORE Grammy nominations for John, before turning to his fantasy football team and his real-life football team – the Bengals.

Yes, Legend is an Ohio-native, which means he’s also an Ohio State Buckeye fan. We have fun with that, what with the way I bleed Maize and Blue.

Last, but certainly not least, Mark Wahlberg joins the podcast on the very day his movie “The Fighter” earned six Golden Globe nominations (including one for Wahlberg for Best Actor in a Drama) and his new genius show on HBO, “Boardwalk Empire,” earned a nomination for Best Drama Series.

In other words, the only thing more on fire than Wahlberg is his beloved New England Patriots, fresh off yet another stunning beat-down of a nine-win team hoping to earn its stripes by beating them. We talk about it all with Wahlberg, who, before playing fighter Micky Ward in “The Fighter” was also Vince Papale in “Invincible.” I make a suggestion as to who Wahlberg should play next if he cares to make one last sports-related biopic. We also delve into the crucial topic of whether or not there will be an “Entourage” movie once that critically-acclaimed show of his signs off of HBO next year.

In between all of those interviews, The Worm returns to the podcast fresh off his bye week. Senior Producer Jason Wormser is joined by NFL Network reporter Kara Henderson in two different Hot Topics segments in which, trust me, we hit absolutely everything under the sun.

It’s all to the good, as they say. I’m just trying to sound cool for Legend. Hope it works. You tell me.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Ed Reed, John Legend and Mark Wahlberg

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Rich Eisen with Jake Robinson and Antonio Stefan.

This latest show proves The Rich Eisen Podcast is a podcast for all ages.

Take, for instance, our first guest: Clay Matthews III, a youth who has been serving up healthy doses of pain on quarterbacks ever since the Packers plucked him out of USC last year. Clearly, Matthews has lots going for him, especially since — as Tom Brady has proven – merely by appearing on this podcast makes you a 42-point winner the following week. We talk about everything with the bona fide Defensive Player of the Year candidate from the Packers playoff chances, his family lineage and Aaron Rodgers’ insane level of play to his hair, the leg injury that appears to have slowed him and, yes, the one summer he was an NFL Network intern.

Good times, except for the moment I suggested his leg injury has slowed him. At that moment, I felt like a quarterback whose protection didn’t account for him.

Next up, in our Hot Topics segment, we had to get creative: The Worm, you see, is on a bye week. So, we first turn to Mike Florio, the one-time lawyer turned self-made NFL information man thanks to his creation of Profootballtalk.com, one of the most successful and popular sports startups on the Internet. We talk about how he got started before we get started on the hot issues in the league today: Josh McDaniels, Albert Haynesworth, Ed Hochuli‘s latest whiff on a Jay Cutler-related call, the latest player safety drama and the drama that led to the first 10-win teams in the NFL.

Then, we welcome in two information men-in-training. Yes, we get the thoughts of 9-year-old Jake Robinson and 10-year-old Antonio Stefan, two mouths of babes from which the most cogent football analysis you’ll ever hear comes forth. In other words, with The Worm out of the mix, we supplant one grown man who acts like a child with two actual children who know almost as much football.

Lastly, we go to the very opposite end of the career spectrum by calling up Larry King. Larry joins us nine days away from the final edition of “Larry King Live,” ending one of the most legendary runs in television history. Of course, we don’t have enough time to jam in all the memories from that 25-year run, and I wish we did. Certainly because we spoke a lot about how he got started as a sportscaster.

Bottom line: the chat I had with Larry was one of the most enjoyable I’ve ever had. And I hope we can continue it on another show.

In the meantime, enjoy this one. Podcast … Hello! You’re on the air!

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Clay Matthews, Mike Florio and Larry King

iTunes

So, we got the three-time Super Bowl winner and MVP quarterback on the line and hit him up as best we could on all things New England. Does he really hate the Jets? Is the offense currently better than the one with Randy Moss? And then the burning question of the day: What’s up with the hair?

We talk about it all with Tom and, yes, we hit him up about Gisele. I mean, let’s be honest. I DO have red blood coursing through my veins.

To be fair and balanced, I get the Jets side of things from one of the biggest fans of Gang Green that I know: Hank Azaria, one of the funniest and most popular voices of “The Simpsons” who is also appearing in the film “Love and Other Drugs,” currently in a theater near you. I also happen to be in not one but TWO fantasy leagues with Hank, whose playoff run in one league has been threatened by an injury bug straight out of the New York Giants. See if your team is suffering as similar a fate as Hank’s.

Eventually, we do get around to talking about “The Simpsons” and also the most famous new character in his vast collection, the legendary Jim Brockmire. (For those wondering who Brockmire is, check here.)

Joined in-studio by The Most Interesting Man in the World.

As if that’s not enough, we make a big announcement on this show. There’s now an official announcer lending his voice to the podcast: The Most Interesting Man in the World. True story. After spending decades as an actor on the silver and television screens, Jonathan Goldsmith has struck it big playing the man who is the life of parties he has never attended and once had an awkward moment just to see how it feels. Genius.

Goldsmith appeared in-studio to lay down some tracks for us. Afterwards, we chatted about the brilliant Dos Equis commercials that could be the funniest campaign on sports television.

Also, The Worm takes his usual spot in the Hot Topics segment joined by NFL Network reporter Kara Henderson, fresh back from covering the Falcons’ big win over the Packers. Yes, Falcons fans, we talk about your team at length and wonder if the Bears are truly the second-best team in the NFC.

Even the Chiefs get some quality discussion time before we turn our attention to the silliness Worm’s alter-ego, Nigel Spackle, has sparked in the United Kingdom, home to some of the most passionate fans of this podcast.

Yes, we’ve gone international. So, download and enjoy. And, as always, stay thirsty, my friends.

Download: Tom Brady and Hank Azaria: A Most Interesting Podcast

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Especially with just six weeks to go and, for the first time ever with just six weeks to go, 19 teams sit either in first place or within one game of it. And with all of THAT going on at once, we have a perfect podcast guest list: Peter King of NBC and SI.com and Joe Buck of FOX.

No one is more plugged in than Peter, and no one brings you the action with a better blend of personality and excitement than Joe, who called Childress’ last game in Minnesota and will call his third Super Bowl in February. We ran the gamut with both of those guys and then checked in with The Worm to see if he’s still breathing after his G-Men dropped their second straight November game. NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser is solo in the Hot Topics segment this week because most of the crew is with me in New York City for the Thursday Night Game between the Jets and Bengals.

So, I taped the podcast from the NFL Network team cam room in league headquarters in NYC, as you can see in the photo (that’s the team cam in the foreground to the right.) In between Peter and Joe’s take, The Worm lends his thoughts as to which teams are done in 2010 or still have a chance at glory.

Yes, it IS that time of year. Happy Thanksgiving from the Rich Eisen Podcast.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Peter King and Joe Buck

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Fresh off the Jaguars’ stunning, last-second, Hail-Mary-answered-prayer of a win over the Houston Texans, Maurice Jones-Drew joined us. We had our usual fun time (I’ve interviewed him perhaps more than any player since the inception of NFL Network seven years ago), and like any good interview, it has the potential to leave you with something lasting: a Week 11 touchdown celebration dance just for the podcast listeners. Alright, it would be for me. But, around these parts, my world is your world. That’s just the type of guy I am.

Promoting his film “Faster” that comes out a week from Friday, Billy Bob Thornton joined us fresh off his beloved Indianapolis Colts’ rebound victory against the Bengals. Even though he’s all Arkansan, Billy Bob loves his Colts. In fact, he’s a huge, big-time sports fan with special affection for the NFL. He basically is an analyst who happens to also have an Academy Award.

But, of course, the discussion of all Hot Topics is the domain of The Worm, a.k.a. NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser, whose G-Men surprisingly fell flat against the suddenly resurgent Cowboys. For the two-part segment, The Worm and I welcomed back Jeff Schaffer to the program. Jeff is the executive producer of “The League,” the FX fantasy football-based sitcom now in its second successful season. We have loads to talk about, what with Vick/McNabb, Patriots/Steelers and another big-time Gus Johnson call on the top of the docket. Plus, Jeff’s Seahawks took over first place in the NFC West again. He makes a great prediction about the playoffs that I believe is six weeks ahead of its time.

Enjoy the podcast everyone. And, as always, let me know your thoughts.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast: Maurice Jones-Drew and Billy Bob Thornton

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We have three A-list guests on the podcast today, starting with an MVP candidate and quarterback of the resurgent Chargers, Philip Rivers. San Diego just won its second game in a row with an eighth-string receiver catching two touchdowns from the red-hot Rivers, who talks at length about the attrition of his receiving corps. I also asked him point-blank if the front office’s handling of the Vincent Jackson contract dispute frustrated him.

It was a trailblazing discussion from an NFL media standpoint as well. You see, we simulcast part of the conversation live on NFL Network’s “Around the League.” What do you call a simulcasted podcast? Kara Henderson and The Worm take their crack at that when the NFL Network reporter/host and NFL Network’s irascible senior producer join me in the Hot Topics segment.

One week after declaring my podcast a Cowboys Free Zone for the rest of the 2010 season, Jerry Jones up and fires Wade Phillips, one of the few scenarios that I also said would cause me to lift the Cowboys blackout. Who knew that chicken would roost in my home so quickly? Wade got the gate, so the Cowboys DO return to the show – albeit BRIEFLY and for one last time (I swear) – before we hit on other pressing issues with Worm and Kara in a two-part Hot Topics segment.

Yes, I’m trying something differently there too. Let me know if you like The Worm segment split into two around the rest of my guests who, on this show, were none other than Charles Barkley and Bill Simmons.

The Round Mound of Rebound and The Sportsguy … two heavyweights and two conversations that went in every possible direction. If you’ve ever wondered whether Barkley played football or how long it takes Simmons to bang out one of his billion-word columns for ESPN, those questions will be answered. Ditto for who Barkley would pay to see play in the NFL and how Simmons went from mid-90’s internet newbie to a major sports voice of his generation.

It’s all here. Enjoy.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast: Philip Rivers, Charles Barkley and Bill Simmons

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Where in the world did these decisions come from?

In terms of Moss, did Brad Childress really make the move without telling his bosses first? And if so, what does the move mean for the future of the head coach in Minnesota?

As for McNabb, does the benching virtually ensure, just eight games into his once-heralded arrival in D.C., the end of his tenure as the Redskins’ quarterback?

And should the Tennessee Titans request a list of pre-approved lunch menus from Moss?

To brush away all the spin and speculation, I dialed up two of the best NFL insiders in the information game today: Jay Glazer of Fox Sports and NFL Network and Michael Lombardi, the NFL Network and NFL.com reporter who first broke the news that Childress had informed his team that Moss was no longer a part of it.

The conversation that followed is a must-listen to say the least. It gets to the bottom of a whole heck of a lot. I can only hope you all have the cardiovascular endurance to last the entire podcast.

Download: Moss-A-Palooza 2: Cardiovascular Endurance Edition

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No, Will Ferrell is not playing a caterer in his new movie. He’s actually the title character in “Megamind,” which opens in a theater near you on Nov. 5th. The caterer to whom I refer is Minnesota native Gus Tinucci, who had the extreme displeasure of being on the business end of an angry Randy Moss. The second shocking cutting of ties between Moss and a would-be playoff contender in the last 26 days was strange enough. But on Tuesday, the story took a bizarre twist.

Apparently, Moss was the author of an incredibly uncomfortable moment during lunch in the Vikings locker room last Friday when he, without provocation, went off on an expletive-laden review of the food being served. And, according to Mike Silver of Yahoo! Sports, this incident played a role in Brad Childress waiving Moss. It’s an odd wrinkle to say the least.

So, we called up Silver to explain where this story came from and if Childress would really put his neck on the line by sending Moss packing over a vulgar display of lunchroom decorum. We also shed a bit of psychoanalysis on the situation, because Mike and I both agree that Moss could be one of the most gracious and warm people you’ve ever met … when he wants to be.

Then we chat with Gus of Tinucci’s Restaurant and Catering, the source of said lunch for the Vikings. Yes, The Rich Eisen Podcast is part of this man’s 15 minutes of fame. I’m telling you, this podcast is going places.

It’s after all this that we finally get to our first scheduled guest: Hines Ward, one of the ultimate this-guy-can-play-on-my-team-type of guys of all time. We delve into the Steelers’ loss to the Saints and whether the current defense reminds Hines of the championship defenses of 2005 and 2008. I ask Ward about his hard-hitting colleague James Harrison and also touch upon any possible desire Hines may have to enter the media when it’s all said and done.

One last unscheduled guest -- the Vince Lombardi Trophy -- with Rich Eisen, Bardia Shah-Rais, and The Worm, whose pate also requires the white-glove treament. (Ben Liebenberg/NFL)

That’s when we call The Worm into the mix. The NFL Network senior producer and NFL fandom’s favorite kvetch takes his regular spot in the Hot Topics segment along with NFL Network senior producer Bardia Shah-Rais, making his third appearance on the podcast. We hit the Moss imbroglio and the stunning benching of Donovan McNabb. I also issue a demand in regards to the Network’s coverage of the Dallas Cowboys in the immediate future that might ruffle a feather or two up the NFLN flowchart.

Please listen for that and offer your thoughts on whether you agree with me.

As for the cherry on top of this action-packed podcast, we turn to Ferrell. He provides the show with the expected healthy doses of humor, good cheer and, of course, cowbell. I delve in-depth into the making of the movie “Anchorman” and also the brilliant cowbell sketch he wrote and acted in for “Saturday Night Live.” We also reminisce about the first time we met at the 1998 ESPY Awards after a Harry Caray performance that, at the time, appeared to be his very last on ESPN. Ever.

In other words, with all this stuff going on in the NFL, you’ve got a fever and the only prescription is more podcast.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast: Will Ferrell, Hines Ward, and Randy Moss’ favorite caterer

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At any rate, this late-week podcasting will soon cease since I’m soon to go on the road for NFL Network’s Thursday Night Football, so I figured to keep doing it while I can. This week, I flipped on the mics for two old friends brought together at the crossroads of NFL history by Rodney Harrison back in the 1999 preseason: Trent Green and Kurt Warner. When Harrison blew up Green’s knee in the summer of ’99, it kick-started Warner’s Disney-like magic carpet ride career that should one day land in Canton. The two talk about that moment at length and reminisce about how that championship season came to be as a whole.

It was a natural lead-in to how their old offensive coordinator is faring in Chicago right now. Their insights into the Mike Martz offense in Chicago and how it’s struggling under Jay Cutler is a must listen for Bears fans. I also ask the quarterback tandem if they think Brett Favre will play this week and which current quarterback they would choose if they needed to win one game right now. Warner and Green reunited on the podcast. And it feels so good. By the way, I think Green would be Peaches and Warner, Herb.

Download: Rich Eisen Podcast: Late Week Reunion Edition with Kurt Warner and Trent Green

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Pete Carroll and The Podcast conduct the very first (and probably last) off-camera Team Cam interview in NFL Network history

It’s been seven weeks since the birth of this podcast and I figured it was time to give the NFC West some love. Just because it was supposed to be the 49ers’ division for the taking and all they’ve done is essentially stuck a fork in themselves doesn’t mean we should neglect the perceived pariah of all NFL divisions. We may just have something cooking in the Pacific Northwest again and to that end we fired up Seahawks Cam for Pete Carroll. Literally.

Normally, that’s the lexicon (and also the conduit of interviewing) for “NFL Total Access,” but we truly used our Team Cam technology to interview the head coach of the Seahawks. You see, 25 minutes before we were supposed to have Pete call in to our podcast studios, the NFL Network phone systems went down. Kaput. Kablooey. So, Pete was kind enough to head to the nearest plug-in for Seahawks Cam (which was in a hallway downstairs from his office) and give us a nice chunk of his time away from preparing for the Raiders this week. We talked about his coaching philosophy, what he’s changed in his approach since his last foray in the NFL, his ever-changing roster and, yes, USC and his departure from there.

After Pete, we dialed up a true Los Angeles legend in every sense of the word: James Caan, the man who brought Brian Piccolo to life on the silver screen in Brian’s Song and died one of the more famous deaths in cinematic history in “The Godfather.” We talk about both at length, including Caan’s favorite scene from the movie, one that no one has apparently ever seen. A big-time football fan from his childhood days in Queens, Caan also reminisces about his time hanging with the old Oakland Raiders and spins yarns that only a man who trawled 1970s Hollywood in the glow of portraying Santino Corleone could.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, we have The Worm. NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser returns to his usual spot in the podcast, railing about poor clock management and sweating out the travails of his now 5-2 New York Giants. Joining Worm in the Hot Topics segment is NFL Network reporter and host Kara Henderson, fresh back from her double-dip Week 7 assignments: Redskins-Bears on Sunday and Giants-Cowboys on Monday night.

Kara gives us an inside glimpse into the Cowboys locker room after suffering what all observers believe is a season-sealing, clavicle-breaking loss to the Giants. After the game, Kara ran the gamut, interviewing Jerry Jones and running into the namesake of our dear, beloved sponsor.

And for all you Brits out there, The Worm sets the table for the annual game in Wembley this weekend with a surprise report from across the pond. It’s a performance of which even Caan would be envious. Well, maybe not.

Don’t miss any of this podcast. It’s an offer you truly can’t refuse.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast, Episode 7: Pete Carroll and James Caan

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So, I figured I’d fire up the podcast mics later in the week (again!) for a very VERY special edition of the Rich Eisen podcast. My guests to discuss this thorny issue of issuing toothier fines for hits the league deems flagrant is the co-chair of the Competition Committee Rich McKay, Hall of Fame defender Rod Woodson and future Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner.

As we all know, just two years ago, Kurt once thought of retiring on the spot after his receiver, Anquan Boldin, had his face broken by such a hit. Kurt will discuss that moment and why he felt that way in the podcast, while Rod gives his unique perspective on the new emphasis on punishing those who punish on the field with a bit too much face mask.

The podcast is a must-listen (if I dare say so myself) and will be up later today on my blog, richeisen.nfl.com and on iTunes.

Download: A very VERY special Rich Eisen Podcast: Hard hits with Kurt Warner, Rod Woodson and Rich McKay

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First of all, the remix. Dennis Miller returns for another engagement and it could not be more well-timed. You see, Dennis’ predecessor in the Monday Night Football booth twice removed is also on the podcast, none other than Jon Gruden, fresh off his assignment in Jacksonville for ESPN. The one-and-only Grudes opines on his love of the game and his new unique office situation in Tampa. The man still rarely sleeps, watches a ton of game film and appears to relish in the X’s and O’s of it all as much as he did when he was coaching.

It begged the question as to whether Gruden would be receptive to an overture for another head coaching gig in the NFL. His answer was intriguing to say the very least. After Gruden, we enjoyed another wide-ranging, gamut-running riff with Miller that featured his take on Jay Cutler and his beloved Steelers … before spinning off the rails. To wit: listen for mentions of George Burns, Starlight Express, Ron Jeremy, Tom Coughlin’s unique photo inscription and some incredible memories of his time on the Saturday Night Live set with Dana Carvey, Phil Hartman and, yes, Robert Downey Jr.

As for the extended portion of the show: We have three guests on today, one more than the usual. And that’s because our first guest was quite the newsmaker this week: Ray Anderson, the NFL’s executive vice-president of football operations, who had seen enough helmet paint swapping in the Week Six action to put more teeth into the league’s penalties for such violations. Anderson walks us through the genesis of the decision and the decision-making process itself before the league took action by handing out $175,000 of fines to three players in one day. We also ask Anderson point blank what he would say to fans who think the NFL is legislating out too much of the physicality that makes the game so unique.

As always, we don’t just criticize and analyze but make a suggestion. Since so many of these helmet-to-helmet plays happen in the blink of an eye and the on-field penalty of 15-yards is so severe, I suggest to Anderson that the league should make these penalties reviewable under instant replay.

Three weeks ago, on NFL Total Access, I asked the same thing to Jeff Fisher, co-chairman of the competition committee, and Fisher said he and the committee were not inclined to make these penalties reviewable. Undaunted, I pressed my case further with Anderson. Please listen for his answer.

Jason Wormser AKA "The Worm"

Of course, there’s another podcast appearance by NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser, a.k.a. The Worm. He’s joined in our Hot Topics segment by NFL GameDay Morning producer Charlie Yook, a big-time Bears fan who also happened to work closely with Gruden when the coach spent time with NFL Network before taking the Monday Night gig.

Yook tells a great story about how Gruden still, if you will, reaches out to him. It’s all quite festive, especially since The Worm finally gets his free pizza from our esteemed sponsor Papa John’s. Because of the extended remix, the podcast is a touch longer and a bit larger in size to download but, in the end, I hope you’ll agree that it was worth it. Enjoy and feedback, as always, is welcome.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast, Ep. 6: Jon Gruden, Dennis Miller and Ray Anderson

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Now, I hear you. How can I keep calling a second podcast of the week “special” if I make a second podcast in the week a regular thing? Or, as my good friend and former Bristol colleague and Bill Simmons compatriot Gus Ramsey put it on Twitter Thursday: You have more “special” episodes than “Moesha.”

First of all, I’ve never been compared to Brandy. Secondly, this week’s second podcast isn’t a “special edition.” As you can see from the headline, it’s a “very special edition” of the podcast.

You see, for the first time in 9 years, the Dallas Cowboys are 1-3. Forget the Metroplex, a 1-3 start from Dallas is a calling-all-cars situation on the national media landscape, especially when it happens in the very year that the Cowboys play host to a Super Bowl for the very first time.

So, I turned on the podcast mics and asked of three of my NFL Network compadres this very simple, burning question: What is up with the Dallas Cowboys? And those three colleagues of mine? None other than Jamie Dukes, Hall of Famer Rod Woodson and 3-time champion Dallas Cowboy Daryl “Moose” Johnston.

Now, that’s what I call a very special edition of the podcast.

Download: A Very Special Rich Eisen Podcast: What’s up with the Cowboys?

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Ice Cube joined me in the NFL Network Studio on Tuesday. (Ben Liebenberg/NFL)

We’re only five weeks in to this podcast project now and, in terms of putting together a diverse guest list, I may have set the bar as high as it can ever go.

First up, we have Minnesota pass rusher extraordinaire Jared Allen, straight from the “Monday Night Football” gridiron. And when I say straight from there, I’m almost being literal. With the Vikings-Jets game delayed 45 minutes by lightning, the final contest of Week 5 didn’t finish up until deep into the first Tuesday of Week 6. So, Allen didn’t walk back in his front door until 5:30 a.m. Minnesota time.

Mere hours later, he was on the phone with your humble podcaster talking about the disappointing loss and, begrudgingly at times (as it seemed to me), talking about Brett Favre and his mental status as the Vikings enter the second-quarter of the 2010 schedule at 1-3.

This weekend, Allen and his mates host the equally desperate 1-3 Cowboys. We talk about that matchup a bit before moving on to Allen’s new role as author. Yes, the Rhinestone Cowboy has written a book about his love of hunting and then eating what he hunts. It’s called “The Quarterback Killer’s Cookbook” and we have fun talking about his palate, which is far different from mine. We also wound up talking movies and you will never guess which movie Allen admits to making him cry.

Once we send Jared back to his duck blind for the day, that’s when The Worm takes his usual spot, talking about the hot topics around the league after five weeks. NFL Network senior producer Bardia Shah-Rais joins The Worm, and it’s the perfect pairing for the segment this week, what with his beloved 49ers at 0-5 and flat-out on the brink of a quarterback change, 2010 extinction and perhaps a coaching change the organization does not want to make.

Plus, Bardia does a killer Charley Casserly impersonation. In fact, it’s the only Casserly impersonation I know of. And with Charley in the news because of his Randy Moss/Tom Brady facial hair/Bieber hair argument story, we get the take on these topics and more from Bardia and The Worm.

Then, one final time, we completely change gears and welcome Ice Cube into the studio. The rap impresario and Godfather of the Friday trilogy came in proudly displayed his Raiders colors, fresh off his team’s shocking come from behind win over the Chargers to end a 13-game hex against their hated downstate division rivals. So, we let him crow a little bit about his 2-3 Raiders before we hit him up about the movie Friday and how it came to be a cult classic that’s just as fresh now as when it first hit the theaters 15, yes, 15 years ago.

It’s all good in the ‘hood. Enjoy the podcast and, as always, send in your feedback.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast, Episode 5: Ice Cube, Jared Allen, and more

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Now, we’ve got our first two-a-week.

You see, we tape the podcast each week on a Tuesday, figuring it’s the day after the Monday Night game, the day when all the dust settles on an NFL week. Plus, it’s the one universal off-day for players in the NFL. It’s easiest to get a player like Drew Brees or Aaron Rodgers or this week’s guest, LaDainian Tomlinson, to find 20 spare minutes and pick up the phone to chat.

But it’s also early in the NFL week that’s playing out; big-time NFL news can always break on a Wednesday. That’s the risk we run by taping the podcast on a Tuesday.

Well, this week, a doozy of a trade went down in the NFL – the Patriots suddenly cutting ties with Randy Moss, right in the midst of the season and sending him to, of all teams, the Minnesota Vikings and to, of all quarterbacks, Brett Favre on, of all weeks, the week in which they visit the New York Jets in the New Meadowlands where we could see the return, of all players, the man who once called Moss a “slouch” — Darrelle Revis. Yes, I know that was a run on sentence, but it’s a run-on sentence-type of transaction and set of circumstances, yes?

So, we got the whole podcast gang together and fired up the mics to discuss the Moss trade. The best of what Bill Belichick, Moss and Favre had to say on Thursday can be found on this podcast. NFL Network information man Jason La Canfora gives us the why and what of the shocking deal and answers the question on the lips of every New Englander concerned over the lack of a deep threat – could the Patriots now make a play for Vincent Jackson?

And we analyze the impact this deal will have on both the offenses in Minnesota and New England with former veteran quarterback Trent Green and Hall of Fame cornerback Rod Woodson.

It’s not as long as my usual shows, so we will call it … mini-podcast. But it still packs a wallop. See you next Tuesday with another regular version of the show, perhaps the first of two again. One never knows what might happen …

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast: Moss-a-palooza Special

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Fresh off his 133-yard, two touchdown punking of the Bills and everyone else who thought he had a fork stuck in him, LaDainian Tomlinson joins the program.

He was his usual humble self, but you know he’s feeling real good about himself right now. I ask him about how he views his departure from the Chargers now that he’s 7 months and four regular season games removed from it. He also lets us in on his free-agent meeting with the Vikings — this week’s opponent, by the way — as well as who he thinks is the most dynamic young runner in the league. His answer may surprise you, and I’m not just saying that as a tease to get you to listen. OK. Maybe I am just a little bit.

Jason Wormser A.K.A. The Worm, Rich Eisen, and "The League" executive producer Jeff Schaffer.

After LT, The Worm makes his weekly appearance on the podcast, feeling a lot better about his G-Men after their beat down of Jay Cutler and the Bears. Normally, I have a fellow NFL Network producer/cast member join Jason Wormser, a.k.a. The Worm, in our Hot Topics segment, but this week I make an exception.

Joining The Worm is the executive producer of the fantasy-football based FX program, “The League.” His name is Jeff Schaffer and he also just happens to be an executive producer, writer and director of “Curb Your Enthusiasm“ and, if that’s not enough, an executive producer and writer of “Seinfeld.”

So, we mine those fields of hilarity for a second straight week on the podcast, especially since Jeff and his writing partner were the ones who brought you “The Calzone” episode of “Seinfeld” from back in the day. He also wanted to take to the mic to rebut something Larry David said on the podcast last week. The Worm got along well with Jeff because, like The Worm, Jeff roots for two teams in the NFL, but may just be the only one who roots for these two teams, too. Listen up for that.

The podcast wraps up with Dennis Miller, one of the most hardcore football fans I’ve ever met. In his nine years hosting “Dennis Miller Live“ on HBO and three years hosting his own radio show, he usually does the interviewing. But, here, he appears in the rare role of interviewee. Since his mind is a pop culture Rolodex, we hit the spectrum of topics with the one time “Monday Night Football“ analyst including the Steelers, “Goodfellas,” Aaron Rodgers, Betty Grable, Braylon Edwards’ former beard, Peter O’Toole, Christo and the best Al Michaels story I’ve ever heard.

So, download and listen at your leisure. All feedback is greatly appreciated.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast, Episode 4: LaDainian Tomlinson and Dennis Miller

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First of all, we’re now sponsored. I know that might not be exciting for you, but for our guests it will be. Anyone appearing on the Rich Eisen Podcast from now on gets some free Papa John’s pizza because we’re now sponsored by, you guessed it, Papa John’s. Man, your inference skills are sharp.

At any rate, we’ve now got some Corporate America wind at our podcast sails. Should raise all boats. But, as I said, we’re up and running this week with some big time guests.

First up, Super Bowl MVP Drew Brees, who joined us coming off a loss Sunday AND a GQ photo shoot today. As we all know, good things come in threes. So for Brees, it’s the GQ photo shoot, an appearance on my podcast and thus free Papa John’s pizza. All good.

After Drew comes our Hot Topics segment with The Worm. From what I can tell by your comments on iTunes and on Twitter (where I can be followed on my blog page and @richeisen on Twitter itself) you’ve all been enthralled with The Worm, formerly known as NFL Network senior producer Jason Wormser. He’s extra bitter today because his Giants got dominated at home by the Titans and looked especially awful doing it.

His mood on Podcast Tape Day was nothing compared to Sunday, when he let loose some invective in front of one very impressionable guest of mine who watched games with us on the NFL Network set that day. It’s a very funny story you won’t want to miss. He also has more good stats and thoughts to pass along.

He’s joined by NFL Network senior bureau producer Drew Ohlmeyer, a big-time Jets fan who has lots of reasons to crow. The Worm, you see, also likes the Dolphins – something Drew gets all over him about.

But, the piece d’resistance, the cherry on top of the podcast, if you will, is Larry David. The creator of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” the funniest show on TV, is on the podcast, talking about his beloved Jets and how he watches games. He also chimes in on “Seinfeld,” another of his creations and perhaps the funniest show of ALL TIME. And, yes, he gets free pizza too.

It’s all not to be missed. Download, stream, enjoy.

Download: The Rich Eisen Podcast Episode 3: Uncurbed Enthusiasm

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Rodgers got quite introspective about his place in the game and the virtually untold story of how he got started on the road to football greatness. As for Strahan, we caught him in his usual gregarious mood, out and about, looking for a caffeine fix.

Episode Two also features a return of The Worm, who, again, is safe for children. NFL Network Senior Producer Jason Wormser, a.k.a. The Worm, along with NFL Network Coordinating Producer Mike Muriano talk about several hot topics in the league from which current AFC division leader has the best chance to stay in that spot by season’s end to what ails the Cowboys. The Worm brought his A-game today, toting a unique stat that he’s following that could prove useful while you watch games.

Here it is, folks. Podcast, Week Two style. Enjoy.

It was also great to catch up with Dan Patrick on the first show.  Besides talking football, listen in as Dan reveals something about his career that will surprise you.  We also look back at Week 1 with some of the producers from NFL Network.  Plus, you’ll also meet The Worm.  Once you do, it’ll be self-explanatory.  And don’t worry, he’s safe for kids.  It is official, Rich Eisen podcast is available to the free world.