According to a new report from Outkick, ESPN is in discussions with Keyshawn Johnson about making the former NFL star receiver a host on the network’s national drive-time morning radio show.
Sources tell Outkick that ESPN’s first choice to be Johnson’s co-host is Max Kellerman, who is currently the co-host of ESPN’s televised talk show First Take alongside Stephen A. Smith and Molly Qerim. Smith used to do ESPN Radio too, but no longer does after renegotiating a massive new contract in the fall.
Should the Kellerman and Johnson radio pairing become a reality, it’s possible Kellerman could do radio prior to joining the First Take set or that ESPN could alter the TV show’s format to give Smith a rotating cast of co-hosts.
Mike Golic and Trey Wingo are the current radio hosts in the morning window that Johnson and Kellerman may end up occupying. Golic has been in that time slot for more than 20 years, and Mike Greenberg, who now is the lead host on Get Up! on ESPN, was his co-host until Wingo took over until 2017.
There will be more shake-ups at ESPN Radio coming soon, as conservative host Will Cain is leaving The Worldwide Leader at the end of June for a job at Fox News. It has not been announced who will take over in Cain’s afternoon time slot at the end of the month, and an internal memo said ESPN “continues to seek options to deliver premier content for our collective audience.”
Greenberg, Johnson, Kellerman, Mina Kimes and Peter Rosenberg have all been mentioned as possible replacements.
Johnson currently co-hosts a regional morning show on ESPN Radio in Los Angeles.
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