The sports bar I stopped in last night to catch the Lakers playoff game also had the NFL Draft airing on several flat screens. They had switched over to the NFL Network's coverage because even they agreed - ESPN's Draft coverage is "shameless shite." How is Mel Kiper STILL pimping Shedeur Sanders as the Draft's best quarterback?!?!
I have a theory why ESPN's Draft coverage got so exposed this year: Remember ESPN showcasing Jon Gruden's "QB Camp" for nearly a decade, where Gruden, a former NFL coach, would work with college quarterbacks, offering film study and one-on-one coaching to prepare QB prospects for the Draft? And most of his Monday Night Football announcing focused on QB play? Over time, not just through Gruden, ESPN's NFL coverage, to include the Draft, focused too totally on the QB.
About ten years ago when living for a half-decade in the Washington DC area, I would sometimes listen to the Orioles/Ravens flagship station, WBAL out of Baltimore. On Fridays during football season their afternoon hosts helmed a two-hour call-in block they termed "Flacco Free Fridays." Meaning all Ravens calls had to focus somewhere besides Flacco (and the Head Coach). This instantly diversified the show's football analysis. Fans would call to discuss 1) why the GM wasn't targeting more WRs in past drafts, 2) why a certain linebacker might be consistently playing out of position, 3) why the play-calling was so reluctant to pass on first down, 4) why the TEs were game-planned more for blocking than pass-catching, etc. One of the better football radio shows I've listened to, all because the hosts steered the discussion away from devolving into QB blaming.
ESPN's NFL coverage has entirely devolved into QB talk. So what happens when ESPN has to cover a Draft of relatively weaker QB prospects (like this year)? Their "draft gurus" Todd McShay and especially Mel Kiper get completely exposed - exposed for not knowing how to talk about anything besides Quarterbacks. Back when Gruden was on ESPN's Draft day desk, he couldn't speak to Linebacker analysis other than to exclaim "That's MY guy! He's a FOOTBALL player!" (Gruden's literal words.)
