Behind the Line

ESPN has maintained their status for decades as the Worldwide Leader in Sports. ESPN has seemingly been indestructible...with the network dominating cable for decades. But over the last several years...ESPN has been going through financial struggles.

We reveal and react to a report released by Disney that shows ESPN financials. We discuss ESPN losing billions of dollars in profit and revenue. We explain why the business model at ESPN is antiquated...and how ESPN has been able to survive for decades. We also explain why ESPN will continue to struggle...and how ESPN could cease to exist by 2030.

Carli Lloyd hasn't been afraid to make her feelings known about Megan Rapinoe and the USWNT since she retired. Carli Lloyd was highly critical of Megan Rapinoe and the USWNT...for their uninspiring performance in the World Cup. Recently...Carli Lloyd was the guest on Kickin It on CBS...where she was asked why she stood for the national anthem.

We reveal and react to a clip from Kickin It...which was filmed after Carli Lloyd left the interview. We question why the panelists gave their reactions after Carli Lloyd left...instead of reacting to Carli Lloyd during the interview. We dispute points made by the CBS panelists...and commend Carli Lloyd for standing her ground.

Pat McAfee has been with ESPN for nearly two months...and Pat McAfee has been a regular on College Gameday since last year. The Athletic conducted a poll of the ESPN audience...asking the ESPN audience about their feelings towards Pat McAfee. The results from the poll were alarming.

We reveal and react to this poll from The Athletic...which shows that a large portion of the ESPN audience doesn't like Pat McAfee. We confirm the results of this poll...by highlighting recent television ratings for Pat McAfee at ESPN. We discuss the struggles of Pat McAfee at ESPN...and explain why this relationship between ESPN and Pat McAfee won't last long-term.

Megan Rapinoe was hired during the summer of 2021 to be the face of Victoria's Secret new and improved marketing campaign. Megan Rapinoe promoted Victoria's Secret as a changing brand...that was distancing themselves from the past. Unfortunately for Victoria's Secret...their association with Megan Rapinoe cost them billions of dollars.

We discuss the partnership between Megan Rapinoe and Victoria's Secret...and the impact it had on Victoria's Secret. We react to a report from FOX Business...which claims that Victoria's Secret has dissolved their partnership with Megan Rapinoe and is returning to the basics. We explain how Megan Rapinoe is bad for business...and her history of costing corporations billions of dollars.

The Phoenix Mercury announced Monday afternoon that they were hiring former Orlando Magic assistant Nate Tibbetts to be their new head coach. The Mercury also made WNBA history...by making Nate Tibbetts the highest paid coach in the history of the WNBA. Naturally...some in the mainstream media along with some players in the WNBA...had a problem with this.

We discuss media reaction to Nate Tibbetts becoming the highest paid coach in WNBA history. We also discuss the reaction from Napheesa Collier...who questioned why WNBA players aren't compensated the same as WNBA coaches. We explain why WNBA teams are hiring former NBA coaches. We also react to ratings for the WNBA Finals...and explain why this further proves the WNBA doesn't belong on network television.

Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffalos were pulling major ratings for television networks this season. With Deion Sanders and Colorado putting together a string of losses...it seems that America and the media are losing interest.

We reveal and react to ratings for Stanford/Colorado on ESPN. We discuss the inevitable decline of Deion Sanders this season. We also react to a clip of Stephen A Smith criticizing Colorado...but failing to criticize Deion Sanders. We highlight one crucial mistake Deion Sanders made this season...and question whether players in Colorado take him seriously.

Major League Baseball concluded their Divisional Rounds last week...with MLB ratings continuing their downward trend. MLB ratings for the Wild Card Round were down double-digits...with MLB ratings for the Divisional Round being saved by one series from potential record lows.

We reveal and react to MLB ratings for the playoffs. We discuss the marketing problem in Major League Baseball...by comparing the lack of marketing in MLB to the NBA and NHL. We also explain why Rob Manfred doesn't help MLB with the scheduling of games...and question why Rob Manfred puts MLB in a position to compete against the NFL.

Megan Rapinoe has participated in a series of final games over the past couple of months. With each supposed final game of Megan Rapinoe...the mainstream media seizes the opportunity to celebrate her career. Many thought Megan Rapinoe had played her final game in the NWSL...but Megan Rapinoe once again extended her retirement tour Sunday afternoon.

We discuss the ongoing retirement tour of Megan Rapinoe. We compare media coverage to attendance and television ratings...and question why the media is giving so much coverage to Megan Rapinoe. We also discuss Megan Rapinoe future...and whether Megan Rapinoe has political aspirations.

Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, and Jimmy Fallon made their triumphant return last week to late-night television. Throughout the Hollywood writer's strike...the media claimed that viewers missed the nightly comedy provided by Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Fallon. Unfortunately for the network trio...the ratings prove otherwise.

We reveal and react to late-night TV ratings. We discuss Greg Gutfeld once again dominating the genre...while Jimmy Fallon has consistently fallen to last place. We explain why Greg Gutfeld is successful on FOX News...and highlight the biggest problem in late-night TV.

Sunny Hostin has been responsible for many controversial statements on The View over the years...but the comparison Sunny Hostin made on Friday could be the most ludicrous. Sunny Hostin and the ladies of The View were discussing Israel...when Sunny Hostin made a puzzling comparison.

We reveal and react to a clip from Sunny Hostin and The View. We dispute the comparison made by Sunny Hostin...and discuss The View representing everything wrong with American media. We also react to recent ratings from The View...and question how 2.4 million people are watching The View.