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NFL Network’s integration into ESPN has continued in recent weeks as several of the former’s talents have appeared on the latter’s airwaves.
When Disney acquired NFL Network for a 10% in return stake in ESPN, there were questions about how the two cable channels would coexist. Four months after the deal first went into effect, it is now apparent that ESPN plans to utilize NFL Network talent in a variety of ways.
On Monday morning, Kyle Brandt appeared on Get Up. Brandt is the last remaining original cohost of Good Morning Football, which has gone head-to-head against Mike Greenberg’s morning show for the past decade. Sources told Front Office Sports that Brandt is expected to join a number of ESPN studio shows as the calendar turns towards football season. One source expects Brandt to have a recurring weekly presence on Get Up.
An ESPN spokesperson declined to comment.
Last week, one of NFL Network’s top league insiders, Tom Pelissero, was on Get Up. Pelissero—who co-hosts The Insiders with Ian Rapoport, Mike Garafolo, and Judy Battista—is considered by many in the industry to be the top newsbreaker in the tier after Rapoport and Adam Schefter. Rapoport had his ESPN debut on NFL Live in May and later appeared alongside his longtime rival, Schefter, during Pat McAfee’s “Primetime State of Sports” special. (Rapoport has for years been a regular guest of McAfee’s.)
FOS previously reported that Rapoport and Garafolo have agreed to new deals with ESPN since the merger took effect.
Earlier this month, Stacey Dales had a spot on First Take. But she was not talking about the NFL, which she’s been covering for NFL Network since 2009. Instead, she was debating Caitlin Clark with David Dennis Jr., providing a counterpart in debates that ESPN has faced some criticism on social media for lacking.
Dales was a first-team All-American for two seasons at Oklahoma and the third overall pick in the 2002 WNBA Draft. Her professional career spanned from 2002 through 2007, with the Mystics and Sky. She is also expected to be a recurring presence on shows like Get Up and First Take, talking both football and women’s basketball, sources said.
The other interesting question is if and when the traffic flow will go the other way, and ESPN figures will start appearing on shows like GMFB and The Insiders. FOS previously reported that ESPN was considering putting digital shows on NFL Network, which it has done on ESPN2 with shows hosted by Mina Kimes and Kevin Clark.
