ESPN responds to Pat McAfee’s claims about radio show comments

Pat McAfee’s relationship with ESPN appears increasingly complicated.

A day after the former NFL punter and popular sports talk show personality said there’s a “mandate” that ESPN employees aren’t allowed on his show, ESPN officials responded with a statement to Richard Deitsch of The Athletic. McAfee’s show broadcasts on SiriusXM and YouTube.

Here is the statement:

“We didn’t intend to ban ESPN guests from the show & there is certainly no ban going forward. We are in the midst of figuring out the best process for future guests to appear on outside platforms & Pat will continue to make regular appearances on ESPN shows.”

McAfee’s popularity rose on ESPN in 2019 after he was a frequent guest picker on ESPN’s “College GameDay,” and he also appeared on the weekday morning show, “Get Up.”

With several months before football season, look for more developments in this story over the spring and summer

UPDATE:

From ESPN: “We didn’t intend to ban ESPN guests from the show & there is certainly no ban going forward. We are in the midst of figuring out the best process for future guests to appear on outside platforms & Pat will continue to make regular appearances on ESPN shows.” https://t.co/av41XMZOGH

— Richard Deitsch (@richarddeitsch) March 13, 2021

That’s officially the last appearance right there #ThatsBusinessBaby #PatMcAfeeShowLIVE pic.twitter.com/2WbCqewUpa

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) March 12, 2021

Keith Farner

A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.