Balls.ie NFL Crash Course: Five essential podcasts.

If you're a new fan of the NFL you'll be delighted to hear that there are plenty of quality podcasts out there for you to devour. Here are five that you should be listening to as often as possible.

Football Today


This should be the staple of you NFL podcast diet. Recorded daily (Monday - Friday) during the NFL season, it features former journeyman offensive lineman Ross Tucker as the host and also former NFL scout Matt Williamson along with various other guests throughout the week. The analysis is quality and always informative.

The B.S. Report with Bill Simmons


Bill Simmons is the face of Grantland.com. He is also the host of the B.S. Report, one of the internet's most popular podcasts. Every Monday, he and his "Cousin" Sal guess the gambling lines for the upcoming week's NFL games. It's entertaining, funny and will have you logging onto you online betting account before you know what's happened. Throughout the week, it will also feature guests such as NFL Network's Michael Lombardi and others speaking about other sports such as the NBA and MLB.

The Rich Eisen Podcast


Rich Eisen is one of the most prominent faces of the NFL Network. New episodes of his podcast are available several times a week and feature interviews with players, coaches and NFL analysts.

SI.com NFL Podcast with Peter King


Peter King is SI.com's chief NFL writer and author of the 'Monday Morning Quarterback' column. His weekly podcast also features interviews with players, coaches and NFL analysts.

Fantasy Focus Football


If you're a fantasy NFL player then the Fantasy Focus Football podcast should be essential listening for you. ESPN's chief fantasy analyst Matthew Berry is the main voice of the show along with Nate Ravitz. When it comes to fantasy NFL their knowledge is excellent but the show is also features plenty of entertaining nonsense.

All podcasts are available through iTunes.