SAN FRANCISCO — As Netflix’s push into sports podcasts continues, the personalities involved are navigating the new landscape for their audiences.
“It’s cool to get the opportunity,” The Volume’s John Middlekauff told Front Office Sports at Radio Row ahead of Super Bowl LX.
Middlekauff’s NFL-focused 3 & Out show was one of several sports and entertainment programs that signed deals with Netflix for the streamer to acquire exclusive video rights, while audio versions of the shows remain on other platforms.
“It’s definitely been pretty cool for everyone on the outside of me, like my family being able to see me on Netflix,” Middlekauff said. “Because it’s not like my mom watches YouTube.”
Middlekauff is a former NFL scout and Bay Area sports radio host, and has become the top NFL and college football voice for The Volume, Colin Cowherd’s digital media network. Middlekauff spoke to FOS about the move to Netflix and the future of sports podcasting. Some quotes have been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
FOS: How has the transition to Netflix been?
Middlekauff: Nothing’s really changed on my end, honestly. I kind of treat it like a daily radio show. The only thing that’s a little different than YouTube is with YouTube you’re playing the algorithm game. So, there would be a way that I would start a show with a topic—it probably would be a bigger story. And sometimes, especially during the hiring cycle, I would go live in the middle of the day. I don’t do that with Netflix. I just treat it like it’s going to come out the next day. So, maybe I wait a little bit longer in the day during the news cycle.
FOS: Have you talked to other sports podcasters moving to Netflix?
Middlekauff: I was not nervous to do it—it’s not like this is some startup. Once upon a time, people thought Apple had the market cornered with audio. And now everyone I meet listens on Spotify. It just shows you’re not going to corner the market. Netflix has been pretty successful with most things they’ve ever done. I was announced a couple weeks before the Barstool guys, and when they did it, that made me feel pretty good. Once I saw that, I felt validated and like it was the right decision.
FOS: What are the challenges and benefits of being a largely solo podcaster?
Middlekauff: I would say one of my only skills in life is to be able to talk—I’m a much better talker than I am a listener. I grew up listening to radio from when I was really young. Jim Rome was really big. In the late 90s, there was nothing like that. Loveline with Adam Carolla and Dr. Drew was a massive show. Nothing like that existed in the 90s. I loved radio. You didn’t know what these people looked like. So, it was like you became connected with them through their voice. I kind of got away from it—I worked in football—but once I got back into it, it was probably what I was born to do, just talk.
FOS: Would you be interested in doing more shows with a co-host?
Middlekauff: Yeah,I mean,you look at the shows that are successful, they usually have more than one individual. It’s pretty rare—Colin’s kind of unique. I’m always open to do whatever’s necessary as the landscape changes. But as right now, I’m definitely much more of an individual-based show. Now, big guests and stuff, you’d be crazy not to, but you’ve just got to do what works for you. You see the biggest podcasts, like Pardon My Take, they’re great at their personalities. Most people could not replicate it or even attempt to because it wouldn’t even be the same. So, I haven’t tried to force anything and just let things come naturally.
FOS: You’ve done some work on The Herd on FS1. Is doing more TV a goal of yours?
Middlekauff: I would say the digital thing is kind of my baby. This is my thing. Don’t get me wrong—I’m going on The Herd a couple weeks—whenever he asks, I say yeah. But I just had a baby, I’m very lucky that my setup is the way it is. It’s worked out to become a financially viable profession. This modern-day podcast media is where I thrive.
FOS: You host the Go Low golf podcast, too. What’s your future in golf media?
Middlekauff: I don’t really know. Football just takes up so much energy, and it pays the bills. The golf thing is a passion project. I think a lot of people view it like: ‘You get to talk about football, that’s so cool.’ But this is a job. I take it very seriously. I’ve been lucky enough to be around Colin, see the way he approaches it. It’s not complicated. You’ve got to focus on it. Golf, I can kind of just screw around. But the YouTube space of all these creators is crazy, and it’s fun. But it does take a lot of energy. The Waste Management Open in Phoenix is going on this week. I live five minutes away from there, and I can’t be there because I’m here. But I have to be here. This is where I need to be. Golf is something I love to do. I feel I can talk about golf from an entertainment standpoint pretty well. But I would say the money in golf is really in playing on camera. I consume a lot of that. People ask me all the time: What football podcast do you listen to? I’m like, “I don’t.” My golf podcast intake is pretty high.
