In the wake of the surprising news that Tony Kornheiser is out and Jon Gruden is in as a member of the ESPN Monday night booth, we’ve picked up some more information regarding the manner in which this whole thing went down.
We’re told that, when former Lions CEO Matt Millen accepted a position with ESPN, he did so with the understanding that if/when a spot opens in the Monday night booth he would be given the assignment.
Per a source with knowledge of Millen’s broadcasting career, we’re told that Millen is not happy about the fact that he didn’t get Kornheiser’s chair.
Our guess is that Millen doesn’t appreciate the irony at play here; he reportedly (by us) reneged on a verbal deal to join NBC in order to take the job with ESPN. And now he’s upset because he believes ESPN reneged on a verbal deal with him.
And there’s more. We’re told that Millen was also talking to NFL Network about replacing Cris Collinsworth as the Thursday Night Football game analyst. Now that Millen has been stiffed for a spot on MNF, we’re told that he has tried to resurrect discussions with NFLN. It’s expected, however, that the league-owned network will pass.
In fairness to ESPN and Millen, the folks in Bristol deny that there is any problem with one of their newest employees. Said ESPN spokesman Bill Hofheimer by e-mail, “No promises were made and Matt hasn’t voiced any concern to us. We are excited to welcome Matt to ESPN where he will play a major role on both NFL and college football.”