There may be no one better positioned to weigh in on the massive ESPN-NFL media deal than Rich Eisen.
After launching his national career as a SportsCenter anchor during ESPN’s late-1990s heyday, Eisen went on to become one of the foundational voices of NFL Network, helping shape the league-owned channel from its inception. He’s spent the last 22 years there, and now, in a twist of timing that feels almost poetic, The Rich Eisen Show is set to return to ESPN platforms as part of the network’s new direct-to-consumer offering, complete with simulcasts on ESPN Radio, the ESPN App, Disney+, and more.
Few people understand both sides of this deal as well as Eisen. He helped build NFL Network from the ground up and cut his teeth at ESPN. That gives him a rare perspective on what this partnership could actually look like. And on Wednesday’s show, he spoke with a mix of pride and curiosity. He’s fully aware of how far both networks have come, and of the unusual spot he’s now in between them.
“And creating a sense of style and substance that I think is now its own brand, that over 22 years, that is part of a package that’s worth 10 percent of one of the greatest sports media companies ever created, and that’s a sense of accomplishment.”
That’s part of the larger story here. While the headline of this is baked into a media rights transaction — because it obviously is one — it’s also a merger of cultures and identities between a legacy cable behemoth, ESPN, and a league-backed operation like NFL Network, which built itself as a complementary, and sometimes competitive, brand.
“The number of people, who again, have created a sense of our own selves as a competitor to ESPN over 22 years, but a friendly one, that the opportunity to keep it going with a company like ESPN that is clearly all about the NFL is kind of exciting,” Eisen continued. “And there’s a lot of people in Inglewood who know how to do it, and have done it for 22 years. And I think they are eager to roll up their sleeves and see what this future can bear and bring. And that’s kind of exciting on that front. Again, we’re learning what that means… We’re still learning what it is, but it just blows me away that it is, in fact, happening.”
Exactly how it all comes together, though, is still up in the air. Eisen openly acknowledged the uncertainty and hinted at the logistical and editorial questions that come with a deal this big. But he remains confident that the people involved are familiar with the league, understand the workflow, and are ready to get to work.
“We’ve already done the crossovers,” Eisen added. “Remember, I popped on First Take prior to the draft? Daniel Jeremiah, I think, popped on NFL Live. And some NFL Live people popped on NFL Network programming. It’s been there. We’ve done it before. Now, I guess it’s just 24/7, 365. And it’s a brave new world. I know the NFL management team is excited about what this means moving forward… There’s a lot of space to fill up and a lot of NFL to talk about, and a lot of people who know how to do it sitting there that have the institutional knowledge of NFL Network and have the institutional knowledge of the NFL already built into our DNA.
“You don’t need to introduce us to the league, and the way to do drafts and combines, if that’s going to be continued. Personally, I hope it does. That’s what I’ve been doing for 22 years… There’s some ways that you can plug the brands together and go together forward as an exciting team. I know all the people who work in the NFL at ESPN, many of them were there when I was there 22 years ago. I can’t believe it. I’m going back.”
In a way, it brings things back to where they started.And Eisen sure sounds like he’s ready to dive back in.