The first domino from Troy Aikman’s ESPN move falls as Brian Griese leaves ESPN. Plus: the latest on the MLB lockout and Apple is looking for a clean sweep of the remaining NFL rights.
In first Aikman domino, Griese leaves ESPN
ESPN Monday Night Football analyst Brian Griese has departed the network to become quarterbacks coach of the San Francisco 49ers, it was reported Friday. The move is the first domino from ESPN’s yet-to-be-announced acquisition of Troy Aikman. Griese had been part of a three-man booth with Louis Riddick and play-by-play voice Steve Levy. Prior to joining MNF two years ago, he worked with Levy on ESPN’s college football games. Griese joined ESPN in 2009 and is the son of the longtime ESPN/ABC college football analyst Bob Griese. [ESPN.com 3.4]
MLB says it is “deadlocked” with union as ESPN slots replacement games
Major League Baseball and the players union resumed negotiations on a collective bargaining agreement over the weekend, but remain “deadlocked,” according to a league spokesman. The league is characterizing a Sunday proposal by the players as a step “backwards” that “was not designed to move the process forward.” The owners shut down the league in December and have been using the cancellation of games to pressure the players into a deal.
The sides continue to disagree on the luxury tax threshold, the size of a bonus pool for pre-arbitration players and a “streamlined” process for making rules changes, per The Athletic.
The cancellation of the first week of games is already having an impact on baseball’s media partners. ESPN has replaced its March 31 Yankees-Rangers Opening Day game with college basketball’s NIT Championship. There is no word yet on whether ESPN will shift the April 3 NCAA women’s basketball national championship to a later timeslot to fill the vacancy left by Sunday Night Baseball. The title game usually airs at 6 PM ET, leading into Sunday Night Baseball at 8:30. [The Athletic 3.6, ESPN advance schedule]
Apple reportedly wants to bundle Sunday Ticket, NFL Media and mobile rights
Apple is interested in bundling NFL Sunday Ticket, a 49 percent stake in NFL Media and the right to stream games on mobile devices into a single massive rights deal, Front Office Sports reported Friday. Apple has long been considered a leading contender for Sunday Ticket — the New York Post recently reported that Apple and Amazon were the top bidders — but Amazon is still considered the frontrunner for the NFL Media stake.
Per the report, a deal is not likely to be announced until this summer. [Front Office Sports 3.4]
