On 'The Pat McAfee Show,' Pat McAfee questioned if ESPN is counterprogramming him with Rich Eisen's return. Pat McAfee and Rich Eisen
By Matt Yoder on

With the end of the football season finally upon us, The Pat McAfee Show will be taking a scheduled two-week break. But ESPN has a ready made replacement with another big name in the sports media world in The Rich Eisen Show.

ESPN made the announcement on Tuesday that Eisen will replace McAfee in the weekday lineup for two weeks, from February 10-24. Currently, The Rich Eisen Show airs on Disney+ and ESPN+ as the former ESPN anchor was brought back into the Bristol fold before the announcement of the ESPN-NFL equity deal. McAfee is scheduled to return on Wednesday February 25 just before the start of on-field workouts at the NFL combine in his home base of Indianapolis.

When Eisen returned to being a part of the ESPN umbrella, his daily show was at the center of it, but we’ve also seen him host SportsCenter where he starred a generation ago alongside Stuart Scott. Once the ESPN-NFL deal fully kicks in this year, it will be fascinating to be seen how Eisen and other NFL Network talent will be fully integrated with ESPN now that both networks are under the same roof. Rich Eisen has been full of praise for ESPN leadership since the move took place with him being able to have the freedom to continue his show with ESPN and the network now offering space and freedom to their biggest personalities to do their own thing.

This setup represents a best-case scenario for ESPN. They’re able to have Pat McAfee take a couple weeks off and not miss a beat in their live, daily schedule by effortlessly slotting in a very similar show with another big name in the industry. McAfee may have been a little skittish about Eisen’s ESPN comeback and what it meant for him when it was initially announced, but so far it seems to be an arrangement that is working out for everybody involved.

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