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🎤 QUICK START ✍️

📺️ Dan Orlovsky returns. For now. As it turns out, Dan Orlovsky’s dramatic exit from ESPN’s First Take last month was just the precursor to a three-week vacation.

Despite making it sound like he wouldn’t be back without a new contract as he signed off from ESPN the day after the Super Bowl, the NFL analyst returned to the network’s airwaves on Monday without a new deal in place. To be clear, Orlovsky’s current contract is still expected to expire later this year — just later than he made it sound like it would three weeks ago.

🏀 Tirico gets a head start. While the NBA won’t be making its long awaited return to NBC until next season, Mike Tirico won’t have to wait until then to start getting reps. On Monday, NBC announced that the Sunday Night Football (and future Sunday Night Basketball) voice will call a pair of upcoming NBA games on its regional sports network, including the Philadelphia 76ers vs. the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday night and the Boston Celtics vs. the Trail Blazers on Wednesday.

With the NFL season in the rearview mirror, the plan is for Tirico to use the opportunities to reacquaint himself with both the NBA and its players ahead of next season’s launch. And with more than a month remaining in the regular season, it would hardly be a surprise if this becomes a common occurrence for Tirico in the weeks ahead.

🏈 Russini ducking Allen. While the Associated Press opted to make the voting for its NFL awards public after they were announced last month, the outlet apparently didn’t let the voters know. That’s led to some awkward interactions, with The Athletic’s Dianna Russini revealing to Barstool Sports’ Pardon My Take that she’s now avoiding reigning MVP Josh Allen after having voted for runner-up Lamar Jackson.

🚨LEADING OFF 🚨

End of an era

Fox NFL Sunday finished the 2024 NFL season as the league’s most-watched Sunday pregame studio show, extending the program’s streak — which dates back to its inception in 1994 — to 31 years. But while the show has become a staple of the NFL viewing experience, it will lose a core member of its roster, with Jimmy Johnson officially announcing his retirement on Monday.

“As you know, probably the most fun I’ve ever had in my career, that’s counting Super Bowls and national championships, was at Fox Sports,” Johnson told Colin Cowherd during an appearance on The Herd. “I have an absolute ball with my friends on the set, the best friends I’ve ever had, there with Fox. And on top of that, I love working for Eric Shanks, our CEO and our producer, Bill Richards. But I’ve made an extremely difficult decision.

“I’ve been thinking about it for the last four or five years. And I’ve decided to retire from Fox. I’m gonna miss it. I’m gonna miss all the guys. And I’ll see them occasionally, but it has been a great run, starting back 31 years ago.”

Johnson’s announcement was hardly a surprise, as it was heavily hinted at — video package and all — ahead of Fox’s broadcast of Super Bowl LIX last month. Still, the Hall of Fame head coach’s official retirement marks a seismic development for the NFL’s signature studio show, which Johnson was a part of at its launch and quickly returned to following his three-year stint coaching the Miami Dolphins from 1996-1999.

Despite its dominance in the ratings, Fox NFL Sunday has felt ripe for a reboot in recent years, between Johnson’s impending retirement, Terry Bradshaw’s on-air struggles and Michael Strahan’s A-list aspirations. The addition of Rob Gronkowski has breathed some new life into the show, but the former Patriots tight end is much more of a supporting actor — and comedic relief — than a leading man.

For 2025, I’d expect the show’s cast to largely remain the same, with the void left by Johnson perhaps providing an opportunity for auditions. But by the time Fox hosts its next Super Bowl at the end of the 2028 season, I suspect the show will look significantly different than it does now, with Johnson’s official retirement being the first domino to fall.

📱SOCIAL MEDIA POST OF THE DAY 🏆️ 

Mets weigh in on John Cena’s heel turn

🎤 MEDIA MOMENTS ✍️ 

• Of all of the fallout from President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance’s tense exchange with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, perhaps the least expected involved Shannon Sharpe. During an argument regarding Kevin Durant on Monday’s episode of First Take, the Hall of Fame tight end did his best Trump impression, telling Stephen A. Smith, "I'm gonna do you like President Trump did President Zelensky."

• Pat McAfee made headlines over the weekend by criticizing the Toronto crowd at the WWE Elimination Chamber event for booing the United States’ national anthem. On Monday’s episode of The Pat McAfee Show, the former All-Pro punter did his best to explain his reaction, before offering his neighbors to the north a truce of sorts.

• Speaking of McAfee, Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay joined the program as a guest on Monday, hinting at a potential reoccurring spot. He also admitted that “of course” he’s interested in eventually working in the media, especially if the salaries for top TV analysts remain where they currently are.

🔥 THE CLOSER 🔥 

When pro wrestling goes mainstream

If you’re a pro wrestling fan, then you already know what happened on Saturday night.

But even if you’re a well-adjusted adult who doesn’t dedicate hours each week to scripted feuds and choreographed fighting, there’s also a good chance you’re also aware that John Cena turned heel.

If you’re reading this, then odds are you’re somewhere in the middle — you know enough about the names and terminology involved to know that John Cena’s a now a bad guy, even if you don’t fully know how we got here. But even for somebody like me — a Wrestling Observer Newsletter subscriber who’s rarely missed an episode of Monday Night Raw for the last 15 years — it was somewhat jarring to see the amount of mainstream attention this all has received.

While it’s one thing to see the clip show up on ESPN’s Instagram account, it’s another for it to become a topic that’s debated on First Take. And while pro wrestling has certainly become more mainstream in recent years for various reasons, this is the most attention I can remember it receiving in the social media era.

What was it about this particularly development that broke through? In many ways, it was a perfect storm. Not only are Cena and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson — who Cena joined forces with — two of the biggest names in pro wrestling history, but they’re also Hollywood A-listers. And the shocking nature of the turn creative a wave of nostalgia, with the most obvious comparison being Hulk Hogan shedding his red and yellow to form the nWo.

As Don Draper famously once said, nostalgia — it’s delicate, but potent. And the potency of Cena’s heel turn has seemingly created a wave of curiosity among sports fans who want to know what the big deal is or already know and want to learn more.

What does all of this mean? For now it’s a temporary boost in social media engagement and maybe even a spiked rating or two heading into the heart of WrestleMania season. But don’t discount the power of such moments, which have a history of creating — or reestablishing — long-term fans.