UPDATE: Jeff Pearlman has since deleted the original TikTok and posted a follow-up video owning the comments, calling them “embarrassing” and offering an apology to Chris “Mad Dog” Russo. He said the post missed the mark and pledged to do better.
@jeffpearlmanauthor I bashed Mad Dog Russo the other day. It was stupid and wrongheaded. I need to do better. #maddog #chrisrusso #tiktok #judgment #word ♬ original sound – Jeff Pearlman
ORIGINAL: Jeff Pearlman looked up at a diner TV, saw Chris Russo talking about the Bears’ Super Bowl chances, and decided he needed answers.
The author and podcaster went on an extended rant in a recent TikTok video, questioning why Russo, at 65, still has a prominent platform in sports media. Pearlman made it clear he has no personal beef with Russo — even though Russo has apparently said some mean things about him over the years — but genuinely doesn’t understand why people still listen.
“I have a random and weird question,” Pearlman began. “I was just sitting at a diner and I look over at the TV and Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo is talking about whether the Bears can make the Super Bowl. And I was thinking, ‘Why does anyone listen to Mad Dog Russo talking about the Bears…’ Like, I don’t really understand his survival. He’s actually said some kind of mean things about me over the year — which I don’t know why — but I don’t have any beef with him.”
Pearlman continued: “I just actually don’t get the schtick, dating back to the Mike & the Mad Dog days, even though he was much more likable than Mike Francesa. I don’t get the schtick. Doesn’t it wear out after a while? Like, alright, so Russo’s probably in his 60s now; at some point, the whole, ‘You guys don’t understand blah blah blah,’ has to get old at some point, no? Why would anyone still listen to Mad Dog Russo about the Bears? He doesn’t even live in Chicago. I actually don’t get it anymore. The ecosystem confuses me. I’m not saying anyone should listen to me about why the Bears would make the Super Bowl, but I’m not telling you why the Bears will make the Super Bowl; I’m just an old guy telling stories.”
@jeffpearlmanauthor Can someone explain to me how Chris (Mad Dog) Russo maintains an audience? #edpn #nflmaddog #football #ugh ♬ original sound – Jeff Pearlman
Russo is arguably more visible now than he’s been in years. He’s 65, spent 19 years co-hosting Mike and the Mad Dog on WFAN before leaving for SiriusXM in 2008, and has been hosting Mad Dog Unleashed on his own SiriusXM channel ever since. That would be a solid career endpoint for most people. But Russo has experienced a legitimate career renaissance over the past few years, largely because of his weekly appearances on ESPN’s First Take.
Russo joined First Take in early 2022 as a weekly Wednesday contributor alongside Stephen A. Smith. The appearances introduced him to millions of younger viewers who had no idea who he was. His “What Are You Mad About?” segment became a regular feature, and Russo’s manic energy proved to be a perfect contrast to Smith’s bombast. ESPN extended his contract in 2024, and Russo has been open about how much the gig has meant to his career.
“I love the First Take gig. I’ve had a renaissance. It’s because of Stephen A.,” Russo told Front Office Sports.
Russo is a performer. He yells, he mispronounces words, he makes references to obscure 1940s baseball players that nobody else cares about, and he does it all with complete conviction. Either you find that entertaining or you don’t. There’s no middle ground with Russo, which is probably why Pearlman doesn’t get it. If you don’t enjoy the act, watching Russo scream about the Bears making the Super Bowl feels pointless.
But plenty of people do enjoy it. Russo was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2022. He’s had a national sports radio platform on SiriusXM for 16 years. He hosted High Heat on MLB Network until 2024. And now he’s a regular on one of ESPN’s flagship shows, introducing himself to an audience that wasn’t watching sports television when Mike and the Mad Dog were dominating New York radio in the 1990s.
“I just don’t get it. I actually don’t get it,” Pearlman later added. “I don’t get who survives in this business, who doesn’t survive in this business, who lasts in this business, who fades out in this business. How there’s so many really good people you don’t see anymore, but people who like Mad Dog — I’m not saying he’s a bad guy, I just don’t get the schtick and the entirety of the schtick. But someone explain it to me. I actually don’t get it.”
The sports media industry is full of talented people who couldn’t make it work, while others with less obvious appeal stick around for decades. Russo has survived because he’s loud, he’s consistent, and he’s built relationships with people like Stephen A. Smith, who have massive platforms. Whether that answers Pearlman’s question about why anyone should care what Russo thinks about the Bears is a different matter.
Russo doesn’t live in Chicago. He’s not a Bears expert. He’s a 65-year-old guy with opinions yelling into a microphone, which is exactly what he’s been doing for 40 years. The schtick hasn’t changed. The platform has just gotten bigger.
About Sam Neumann
Since the beginning of 2023, Sam has been a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. A 2021 graduate of Temple University, Sam is a Charlotte native, who currently calls Greenville, South Carolina his home. He also has a love/hate relationship with the New York Mets and Jets.