Robert Griffin III ‘furious’ over ESPN hiring Jason McCourty just days after firing despite network’s cost-cutting claim

NFL analyst Robert Griffin III has been struggling to get over his shock firing by ESPN earlier this month.

And the recent arrival of Jason McCourty to the sports network just days after Griffin’s exit has enraged the former NFL quarterback , The U.S. Sun can reveal.

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Griffin was sensationally dumped by ESPN along with Sam Ponder just weeks before the new NFL season.

The former Washington Commanders quarterback signed a multi-year contract with ESPN in 2021 and was a regular on Monday Night Countdown.

According to The Athletic , Griffin and Ponder were let go for cost-cutting reasons.

According to a well-placed insider, Griffin is “furious” that ESPN has found the money to bring McCourty to its star-studded roster.

“He is still getting over this firing at ESPN, and it has been a very frustrating time for him, as he really got caught by surprise,” says a source close to RGIII’s entourage.

“But what happened with Jason McCourty being hired by ESPN made him furious, as it comes at a time where the group has been saying that they fired some people, including him, to cut costs.

“It doesn’t make any sense. He is working on his next steps, but when the news about McCourty broke, he was in shock, really disappointed and surprised that ESPN made a move to recruit someone new in this context.”

McCourty, the former NFL Network star, will make his eagerly awaited debut on the sports network later this week.

He joined Good Morning Football in 2022, just months after retiring from the league.

However, McCourty left the show over the summer as it moved filming locations from New York to Los Angeles .

He will now appear across ESPN’s extensive daytime programming alongside talent, including Stephen A. Smith and Shannon Sharpe .

“Officially official…” McCourty wrote on X on Tuesday morning, confirming he will appear on First Take , Get Up , and SportsCenter.

“Grew up with my TV locked on ESPN, now you guys will see my pearly whites on there!” he added.

According to the insider, Griffin feels like he has been “stabbed in the back” by ESPN.

“He isn’t the kind of person who will hold grudge for a while, but this move does hurt him, the source added.

First Take viewing figures

First Take went from strength to strength under the guidance of Stephen A. Smith and Molly Qerim last year.

The weekday ESPN debate show averaged 496,000 viewers in 2023 – making it the most-watched year in program history.

Its December average of 611,000 was a 24% year-on-year increase compared to 2022.

The show also reported more than 250 million views on YouTube.

First Take was helped by the addition of Shannon Sharpe alongside Smith and Qerim after he left Fox Sports’ Undisputed.

“He is very, very frustrated that McCourty got hired, and it’s something that really hurts him, and he can’t wait to move on from this bad time that he is going through.”

Griffin recently opened up about his shock firing from ESPN.

“I love football, but I loved the experience I had at ESPN more than anything,” Griffin told The Jim Rome Show .

“Getting the opportunity to be on Monday Night Countdown with the legendary broadcast crew of Suzy Kolber, Steve Young, Booger McFarland, and Adam Schefter was a dream come true.

“Then, to be part of the revamping of it with Scott Van Pelt, Ryan Clark, and Marcus Spears, I just truly enjoyed those experiences.”

Griffin III will continue presenting his podcast RG3 and The Ones on YouTube .

The 34-year-old remains confident that he’ll find a new analyst role in the near future.

“I’ll miss the people there that I got a chance to work with and I wish them the best moving forward,” Griffin continued.

“For me, and what the future holds, it’s just whatever God has in store for me.

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“I’m just going to keep walking by faith and not by sight and continue to just cover the game the way I know how to cover it, with the excitement and the enthusiasm.

“That is just me being my true, authentic self. There is no act here. I’m just always gonna be that guy.”

Griffin confirmed he was open to offers with the new NFL season just days away.

“I’ve got no bad blood with legacy media,” Griffin added.

“But there could be teams at Fox, NBC, CBS, Amazon, Netflix, or anywhere else that I would enjoy working with as well.

“I’m not gonna close the door on anything.”