This is still one of the funniest scenes in the entire series. "You gotta hide me, I'm with you now" should be quoted as much as "varsity athlete" and "whatever happened there."
The whole Sopranos crew were frightened by Richie. He hit the ground running and was definitely a threat to Tony.
Just like Feech, Tony had no idea what kind of soldiers he had. They either would have helped the war vs NY. Or, just help them kill Tony