Give ESPN Credit For Quickly Ending Disastrous RGIII-Monday Night Football Experiment | Bobby Burack

ESPN added former backup quarterback Robert Griffin III to the main studio desk on "Monday Night Football" last season. On Tuesday, the network announced it had demoted RGIII from the set.

Scott Van Pelt will return for his second season as host of the pregame show, along with analysts Ryan Clark and Marcus Spears. ESPN also confirmed it won the Jason Kelce sweepstakes, adding him to its "MNF" pregame and halftime coverage.

"Monday Night Countdown" was the weakest of the many NFL pregame shows last season. And RGIIII was the main reason why.

During the season, we labeled the addition of RGIII to "MNF" ESPN's "worst decision since handing Bomani Jones a television show," which ended in abrupt cancelation.

An NFL pregame is not "First Take." Viewers don't turn on "Countdown" for hot takes and clownish behavior. "Countdown" leads into ESPN's most expensive property, "Monday Night Football," for which Disney pays $2.7 billion annually.

Griffin represented both ESPN and the NFL as an analyst for the program. And he made a fool of himself. And, in return, a fool of ESPN and the NFL.

JACKSONVILLE, FL - DECEMBER 04: Robert Griffin III, former NFL quarterback and TV analyst for ESPN, looks on before the game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Cincinnati Bengals on December 4, 2023 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fl. (Photo by David Rosenblum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

RGIIII consistently undermined ESPN's coverage by defending Lamar Jackson, whom he refers to as his "little brother," against strawmen. 

Notably, Griffin shouted that he "wants to see people finally put respect on Lamar’s name" on-set ahead of the Ravens-Texans playoff game. Even Van Pelt turned to him, perplexed. "Who is disrespecting him?" asked Van Pelt. "He’s about to win MVP."

Griffin didn't answer the question.

He made similar comments all season long. No other player has their own personal advocate/fanboy on a highly-watched NFL pregame show – so why should Lamar Jackson?

Ultimately, RGIII could not separate his personal feelings from his role as an analyst. 

Early in the season, he called for the 49ers to put head coach Kyle Shanahan, one of the best coaches in the NFL, on the "hot seat." A week later, Griffin admitted his issues with Shanahan are "personal" and that he blames the coach for his lack of success as a Redskin.

Can you imagine if Tom Brady gets in the booth for Fox next season and starts bashing Bill Belichick over their fractured relationship? That would be highly unprofessional and Fox would not stand for it.

Griffin also acted like a dolt off-air, on social media. He made unsupported accusations about the Bears of sabotaging Justin Fields, then used his widely discredited reporting to call for players to boycott the Bears in protest.

There was also this gem:

Griffin never addressed my inquiry about the difference between Saturday and Lynch receiving an NFL coaching job. We can't qu(wh)ite figure out why. 

Nonetheless, "Monday Night Countdown" should be better next season without Griffin. 

Jason Kelce is arguably the most promising athlete-turned-broadcaster since Shaquille O’Neal over a decade ago. Marcus Spears is entertaining. Ryan Clark is a "pick-me" for Black Twitter but tones down his doofus-ness for Monday Night Football. And Scott Van Pelt is a respected host.

So, give ESPN credit. The network made a mistake in elevating Griffin to "MNF" and corrected that mistake as soon as it could.

ESPN has been reluctant to demote controversial black personalities since 2020, especially those who frequently comment on race. That tells you just how bad RGIII was in his role. 

Again, it was a Bomani-esque disaster – as cruel to Griffin as that comparison sounds.