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Traina Thoughts: Unless Peyton Manning Joins the Booth, Expect 'MNF' to Stick With Tessitore and Booger

Expect ESPN to stick with Joe Tessitore and Booger McFarland for 'Monday Night Football'.  

Jimmy Traina

Mark Davis/Getty Images

1. On the latest Sports Illustrated Media Podcast, writer, author and podcast host Jim Miller, who knows as much about the inner workings at ESPN as anyone, said that you shouldn't expect any more changes to the Monday Night Football booth, with one exception.

"They're going to have a two-man booth unless somehow Peyton changes his mind," Miller said.  "They have a relationship with Peyton because of the ESPN+ show right now and Peyton has thought about this, but if you're Petyon, what's the upside?"

Miller added, "I believe from everything I've heard it's going to be the two of them [Joe Tessitore and Booger McFarland] and the only third possibility would be Peyton. Peyton is the only reason to pull up a third chair. If they start auditioning people and bringing somebody else in as a third that isn't Peyton, I'd be surprised and I'd ask, why?"

Miller also explains how Tony Romo impacted Jason Witten, who left ESPN after one season to return to the Cowboys.

"Tony Romo ruined the booth for all newcomers," Miller said. "He just wiped out an entire generation.​"

To listen to the full interview with Miller hit the play button below, listen on Spotify, or download on iTunes.

2. There are days, especially now with no football around, when I get to the SI office and there isn't a sports story half as interesting or compelling as the big non-sports story everyone is talking about. Today is one of those days. The Internet is abuzz over Gayle King's interview with R. Kelly that aired Wednesday on CBS This Morning. 

Since I often cover media in this space, I had to opine on what took place.

The interview captivated people for two reasons: 1) R. Kelly lost his mind while trying to defend himsef, and 2) Gayle King put on a masterclass in interviewing.

No matter how much crap Kelly threw at her and no matter how heated and out of control he got, King never flinched, paused, or got rattled. It was as impressive a perfomance that you'll ever see from an interviewer. 

On a lighter note (if there could ever be a lighter note regarding R. Kelly), the screengrabs and tweets from people praising King have been outstanding.

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3. I'm not an All-Star Game person, so there's nothing MLB can do to make it interesting to me, but I'd imagine this change in the system will give the Midsummer Classic a little extra juice.

4. Whether you agree or not with the method, it's pretty amazing that Phillies owner John Middleton would publicly admit that he listened to fans when choosing between Bryce Harper and Manny Machado.

5. No.

6. This tweet happened one year ago today and it should be celebrated.

7. RANDOM YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE DAY: After seeing this tweet this morning...

This video had to be posted today.

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Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustarted Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina. You can also follow on Twitter and Instagram.

IN CLOSING: Bryce Harper getting in trouble for tampering is highly comical.

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Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.

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