Cam Heyward on revised contract, Aaron Rodgers’ leadership and Micah Parsons | The Rich Eisen Show

Cam Heyward on revised contract, Aaron Rodgers’ leadership and Micah Parsons | The Rich Eisen Show

How you doing, Cam? I’m great. I’m glad I get to be on your show. Now you’re just doing big things now. But you know what, Cam? We’re just only no one speed around here. You know what I mean? I’m just I just want to match you in longevity and excellence and all that good stuff. But it’s good to see you. Sir, you have the longevity. Don’t ever take that away. That’s true. I guess I’m I’m You’re You’re the OG. I’m just old. Um you’re the senior as they would. Ah, okay. That’s a little offensive, but I understand. It’s good to see you, man. Um, okay. So, are are are you are you happy Rogers took his time? Because it kind of worked out, you know what I mean? Like kind of kind of worked out for you right now, Cam. Game one. Hey, a little reverse psychology there. Kind of there and then he found his way to the Steelers. Oh my gosh. I I mean, that’s what that’s what you’re talking about, right? four touchdown passes, using whatever chip he had on his shoulder to to his and your advantage. Um, and off you go. What was what was that like from your perspective, Cam? Uh, man, it it was like watching a conductor compose um or composer compose an an offense or, you know, an orchestra. And it was just amazing. Like he would communicate, he would get guys lined up. Um, but the thing I was hearing from the offense was he was never rattled. Uh, and when you have a guy who’s very seasoned and been doing it a long time, um, he’s gonna he’s gonna make everybody, you know, he’s going to show out and make sure everybody shows out with them. And how does that permeate a team in a sideline in a game throughout a week? I think I think it just allows you to, you know, keep battling um on defense. I know we didn’t have our best game, but uh to have an offense that was just even keel and you know you know match points for points uh sometimes get us lead you know and then keep battling back throughout the entire game um we just knew we had to get stops late and when you do that um and have that confidence in your offense uh that just makes you a complete team and you know in this game it’s not always going to be the defense dominating. It’s not always going to be the offensive dominating. It’s a mixture of both and having each other’s backs in those moments. And what can you tell us inside here, Cam, that the about you know narratives, man, you you have a podcast of your own. You’ve been in the league for a decade and a half. Um that that Rogers doesn’t work well with others that it’s his way or other. I know you just borrowed your brow, but listen that honestly that he that he uh needs it to be his way alone. and now he’s joined a Steelers system that looks like he’s very comfortable in. So what what do you say to anybody that says, “Well, it’s just a matter of time till it’s the other way around.” What do you say about that? You know, you look at his way and it’s the Steeler way. It’s about being accountable. It’s about doing things on and off the field that prepares you for the game. Um if you can’t roll with that, um you shouldn’t be on the field. Uh I I I think I’ve really enjoyed watching him the way he prepares, the way he challenges guys, and then he challenges himself. Um there’s no lack of accountability to there. And so when you look at that side of the ball, having that all the way through, I can respect that. Uh every one of our teammates can respect that and it just it it breeds competition. It breeds getting better. Um and it breeds a better team. Cam Hayward here on the Rich Eisen Show. you you referenced it yourself about not the defense’s best day. Um what what can you tell Steeler fans about that day and how you’re you’re coming out of that day? Hopefully it’s a hiccup. We we can move past it. Uh you know, I think as a defense, uh we’re just raring to get back on the field. Uh a lot to answer for, but uh hey, I’d rather have a win uh last week and be able to talk about our problems than have a loss and just, you know, um say we played okay. So, um, more ball we played. We got seven, we got 17 games. We’ve already played one, so we’re at 16. So, uh, there’s more room to, you know, let our our work speak for itself. And Jaylen Ramsey was lowering booms, man. He was he was hitting people and it caused a little bit of a a moment to say the least, but what is I think it was the best moment. You know, the end of the half he gets chippy and I think it kind of galvanized the defense a little bit. Um, you know, we love when we’re tippy and sometimes you need to just, you know, break it open a little bit. And after that, I felt like we played a lot of better better ball in the second half. And then, um, I just love football in its poetic ways that led to Jaylen Ramsey making a a gamewinning tackle that, you know, dislodged the ball out of Garrett Wilson’s hands. And again, you know, um I learned from my guy Sap all those years on Game Day Morning, front and back end of the defense must play together and it’s all one big organism on defense. What did you what did you get out of game one from that with Jaylen Ramsay now policing back there with the rest of the crew. Cam, I I think, you know, you can’t just pass the ball quick and think it’s a an easy, you know, way to get some yards. uh you know whether it’s uh you take your time and we get a chance to rush or you know Jaylen or Slay making some big plays. You know one play that’s not talked about enough uh Darius Slay um I think it was on the two-point conversion we he came off of his coverage and knocked out of bounds. Saved two points on the board. So you look at our score u we went 3432. That’s one of those big moments we don’t talk about enough, but having guys like that on the back end that um you know help our front end is going to go a long way in the future. And then one last one on on game uh week one. What was it like in the locker room afterwards for that one? It it it was special uh you know because it wasn’t a perfect game, especially on defense, but um having a kicker who kicks a 60 yard to win it. Um that’s special. having an offense continue to just go through a shootout and put up points. Um, and then a defense that made plays late. Uh, you know, we appreciate th these moments because they’re they’re far from few and, uh, when you have guys that do it in different ways and are able to balance each other out and overcome bad mistakes, that makes for a great win. Uh, fresh off of a week one victory prior to which um, you you you worked something out with the Steelers on a contract. I know that you were looking for one and uh I know it’s year 15. You know, it’s a business. Are you copaacetic here? Are you you’re you’re page turned. You’re happy. What do you turn term yourself right now? P page is turned. Uh you know, I’m glad I can put this to bed a little bit. Um the opportunity is there to earn some more money, but uh I got to play my game. I got to be, you know, at the top of my game, and I like it that way. Uh, and anyone who has a problem with that and you don’t have a problem with me getting more sacks, make it to the playoff, that’s a problem. So, uh, I’m I’m looking forward to hitting those incentives. Well, I mean, can you give voice to to I think you kind of just alluded to that right there is how it’s viewed by fans outside looking in for some people. Um, how money equals respect. Certainly for somebody who’s done it for as long as you. Do you want to give voice to that concept that after we saw Micah balling out last night for Green Bay again in just two games and what he was standing firm in his beliefs and things like that, contractual situations, Cam? Yeah, just, you know, we we have a limited time to do it and um when you’re at the top of your game and you’re you’re, you know, you’re respected around the league, um you want to be respected by your franchise. Um, and looking at the Micah situation, um, you know, I think everybody’s kicking themselves that they couldn’t come to agreement because that dude has been balling since he’s gotten green back. Uh, and you know, it’s going to make a lot of people scratch their heads like, dang, we couldn’t just get this done earlier. Um, and you know, I’m I’m happy to say I’m still a one helmet guy. Um, and you know, I I have the benefit of working with organization that, you know, takes care of their players. And then you know what what do you think of you want to put your podcasters hat on Micah and what he adds to Green Bay because I’m sure I’m sure you know you’re you’re keeping an eye on that game. You’re going to see Green Bay and obviously that is going to be a massive game for your quarterback that makes whatever chip he may have had on his shoulder in Metife look like a very very very small pebble. So uh what what do you see when you’re you’re looking at the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night and Micah’s addition to that defense? Cam? Well, first I have to make sure I get Aaron booked for that week. So, going into the podcast, I can show that. Very good. I mean, McAfee might open you out of the way. You know what I mean, Cam? I mean, you might be in position. You might be in the second position there. You never know. But hey, I don’t know. I might have to beat you to it. Okay. Very good. No, you got McAfee there standing there, too, but all good, man. So, you have the floor. Go for it. Yeah. You know, um I I I just think when you look at Green Bay, they are a sound football team. Um you know, they got wide receiver short days. They got you have the match up Aaron Rogers for Love and so that’s going to be a duel there. But um man, I’m going to have my questions ready for that podcast. Uh you know, I’m going to make sure Aaron’s well in tuned and ready to talk a lot of stuff. I bet. And what did you think of when you heard uh Jerry say, you know, Micah um is great. We we loved having him, but we needed to stop the run. What What did you as somebody who who can stop the run on the way to the quarterback think of something like that? Okay, I love Kenny Clark. Um, and I think he’s gonna be a big value to their team, but the one thing I worry about, you say you got to stop the run, did they stop the run. So, that that’s my only concern with that. Um, you know, you you could I would I wouldn’t just say Micah Parsons is the reason we couldn’t stop the run. So, um, if you think a trade is going to do that, I think that’s a little incomplete. Do you talked to DK Metaf this week about his uh reunion? Um, is that something that uh you go up, you address, you don’t, you just know? What do you What about that, Cam? Oh, you know, TK is raring at the bit. He already told me he’s got like 20 tickets for this game. So, he’s got people coming. Um, he was a little booked this week, so I’m look I’m planning on having him on next week. Yeah. Uh, I’m going to make sure my guest booker gets on top of that. But, uh, oh, somebody somebody just got pointed out. Okay. All right. I got it. And sometimes it’s better to have the guest on after to react to what happened than just a preview. You know, my guy, you know, talking the game. I love it. Yeah. Yeah. I’m It’s not my first rodeo. But but but do you say something to DK? He does he does he wear it on his sleeve at all this week? It goes unsaid. What What is it like around his parts for this week? It doesn’t go unsaid, but the way DK works. You don’t have to worry about that. Uh you know, he he is very relentless when he steps on the field. um and the way he prepares, he’s added a lot to our wide receiver group of how to work. Um I put him in that same category of like an Antonio Brown where they would work relentlessly and you’d be like, “Man, does this dude ever get tired?” So, um he’s he’s just chomping at the bit, but you know, we want to make sure we play the petty ball and so we want to make sure we reward our guy. And how’s Derek Harmon doing? Not to turn you into an information uh individual in the NFL, but obviously this is a rookie that was drafted to be right there with you on the line and he got hurt in the preseason. Is he close to coming back? We you going to get him? We’ll see. Um I am not a doctor, so I cannot I cannot say for sure, but I’m excited about his future. Um you know, that is a kid that I think is going to have a a really uh successful career. U he he works extremely hard. He plays with good pad level. um he’s strong uh and you know he wants to be great and so when you have a kid like that um you want to make sure you you give him every opportunity and um I keep telling him once you get on that field it’s going to happen. So uh once he’s healthy he he’ll be out there he’ll be able to ball. Okay. So I I guess the end of November uh your guests on your pod uh Jack Sawyer will Howard you going to have those guys? Who else you going to have? Would you would or or should we get you back? Cuz uh please that might be fun to talk about. Do you really want a piece of me that week, Cam? Hey man, we just want a pound of flesh. That’s all we want. Well, I mean, it’s been a while. Uh you I mean you you did you did personally hang on the same field and try to stop the last quarterback wide receiver combination to beat Michigan. You saw them first right there in front of you in week one. That was 2019. I did I did mess with Jack though. I told Jack, I said, “You know, we we come from the same cloth, but I never had someone play on a flag on my field.” So, Yeah, I know. But I saw him on your podcast cam. I saw him on your pod talking about some play that they’d never run. And it’s really Oh, yeah. Conor Stallions got offended by that, too. That was hilarious. By the way, he he could go away and I would never miss anything about him. Okay. But but I’m like, I didn’t understand. I didn’t understand, though. Maybe you can help me here. So, so Jack’s saying we had never run that play before and and and they stopped it because we never run it on the, you know, on was he saying they’d never run the play before or just not in that part of the field at that down in distance before and it was really odd that Michigan was able to stop a play that they had never run before. And I’m like wondering if this was all about shooting someone’s sidelines and get the signals to match up with the film of a play that was put on film, how would we have been able to stop a play that they’d never run before? I don’t understand. That didn’t I think I think it’s a commentary to that and then the fact that there was a check to that button. Okay. And so a play run before you have a check for it. That’s interesting. But they never run it before. So, why would there be a check for something they hadn’t seen or hadn’t hired somebody to sit in a a seat to shoot someone else’s sideline to correspond with that play, the hand signal, so you’d know what to check to? I don’t understand. All I know is you should have been on the documentary for Netflix when they were exploring Connor Stallion’s point of view. Oh my god. I I am I’m happy to push back on any point of view on this front cam, you know? So, I’m happy to come on. I’ll How about you bring Jack on and I’ll be there, too. You know what I Like I’m let’s do this sort of stuff. You know what I mean? Oh, I’m with it. I’m all for right now. Right now I’m wearing the color pants he doesn’t have. You know what I mean? Like that’s what I’ve got on right now cuz those are the pants. Well, it’s as gold pants as I’ve got, you know. So, I’m just pointing this stuff out, but Okay. I always love chatting with you, Cam. I always love chatting, too, buddy. Buddy, congrats on year 15. You’re feeling good. Like we feeling great. Cold tubs. No, you’re good. We’re good. Coming out of We got to do a cold tub together. How about that? Whoa. You know, this is an offline conversation. But, uh, say hi to everybody out there for me in, uh, in Steeler country. Good to I will. I wish I had that game in Ireland, man. But, it’s going to be, uh, it’s going to be Joe Davis and, um, and Greg Olsen on f on for the Fox crew on NFL Network. I’ll be there. I’ll be there as a studio holder in Los Angeles. That’s going to be great. That scene’s going to be awesome. I know that’s down the road and you got one at a time right now, but enjoy that and we’ll chat down the line. Sounds good. I’ll take pictures for you. Please do. I’d love it. Send it to us. Cam Hayward, everybody. Fresh off of a 1 and0 start in New Jersey getting ready for the Seattle Seahawks right here on the Rich Eisen Show. There goes Cam. [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music]

Cam Heyward joins The Rich Eisen Show to discuss:

0:00 Being teammates with Aaron Rodgers
3:30 Thoughts on Week 1
6:30 Steelers contract
7:00 Micah Parsons and the Green Bay Packers
11:30 Derrick Harmon’s injury
12:15 Who will be next on your podcast?
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