Inside the thinking on the potential ESPN-Pat McAfee blockbuster

As we reported last week, ESPN has emerged as the favorite to land Pat McAfee’s show as McAfee contemplates walking away from his four-year, $120 million-plus deal with FanDuel.

The potential move is a high-risk, high-reward one for ESPN that could be fascinating to watch play out.

Let’s take a look at what is at hand.

1️⃣ ESPN, under chairman Jimmy Pitaro, has wanted to appeal to a younger audience. McAfee does that. Between being a former Pro Bowl punter, his WWE appearances, his work on “College GameDay” and his YouTube show, he is someone the younger demographic is drawn to.