When ESPN hired Jason Kelce, it was one of the biggest talent acquisitions, both in salary and in star power, in recent memory. The future Hall of Famer had just completed a fantastic career with the Philadelphia Eagles. But more importantly, he had proven himself to be a multi-dimensional personality by hosting one of the world’s most popular podcasts with his brother, Travis, at New Heights.
When ESPN hired Kelce, a lot of us observing the landscape expected him to take a central role in the network’s football coverage – this generation’s answer to John Madden. A former lineman who could articulate the game in a new and entertaining way and be a transcendent football analyst.
We couldn’t have been more wrong.
Kelce’s NFL contributions at the network have been quite limited, mostly to his weekly Monday Night Countdown appearances, where he is a supporting cast member. It’s beyond that where ESPN is getting the most out of Jason Kelce.
There was his experimental late-night show (which may or may not come back), he showed up on NHL coverage, and now he’s becoming a part of golf with his TGL appearance and upcoming assignment at the Masters Par 3 contest.
From the outside, it seems pretty random. And it seems like maybe ESPN doesn’t know how best to use one of its highest-paid stars.
But maybe we’ve all missed the forest for the trees, and this is exactly what both Jason Kelce and ESPN want.
It’s much like the ManningCast in the way that it’s not what anyone envisioned when imagining a media career for Peyton and Eli Manning. Any network would write a blank check to either (see Brady, Tom) to come in and be a top analyst week in and week out. But it’s what they are happy to do in showing up for most weeks during the NFL season to do their own thing.
The truth is, Kelce doesn’t really need the ESPN assignment. He still hosts New Heights and can probably get any endorsement deal he wants on top of all the other opportunities that come his way.
If his passion is showing up in totally unique roles in places you wouldn’t expect, because that’s what he wants out of his ESPN career, then more power to him. And if he doesn’t want to grind film like Dan Orlovsky or be the next Troy Aikman, then that is his prerogative. If ESPN feels that his name recognition and popularity can draw viewers to some of these other sports and help lift other telecasts, then they will see it as a success.
So maybe it’s time to start thinking of Jason Kelce as more of a personality than a football analyst. As much as football diehards may long for him to break down the intricacies of o-line play, it looks like he would much rather enjoy a day out at Augusta National.
He is ESPN’s everyman, showing up at any and every sporting event and living the ultimate fan experience. One day, he could be at the Masters, the next day, he could be at College GameDay taking his shirt off with Pat McAfee. Maybe he’ll show up at a baseball game with a mic in the crowd. Or smashing through tables with Bills Mafia again. Maybe he’ll try the late-night thing again. Maybe he will host a game show one day.
The possibilities for Jason Kelce are endless as his ESPN career evolves, but they just won’t be what any of us expect.
This originally appeared in the Wednesday edition of The A Block, Awful Announcing’s daily newsletter with the latest sports media news, commentary, and analysis. Sign up here and be the first to know everything you need to know about the sports media world.
