Chris \u201cMad Dog\u201d Russo believes Molly Qerim left ESPN before her contract expired at the end of this year because she didn\u2019t want to finish the year as a \u201clame duck\u201d with a potential \u201cdemotion\u201d on the horizon.<\/p>\n
During an appearance on the\u00a0\u201cSI Media\u00a0podcast\u201d with Jimmy Traina<\/a>\u00a0this week, Russo explained that he was \u201cshocked\u201d by the \u201cFirst Take\u201d host\u2019s abrupt departure last month \u2014 and he \u201cassumed\u201d she left \u201cembarrassed\u201d over the optics of exiting the popular show. <\/p>\n \u201cI think she precipitated it. \u2026 I think, probably, she felt embarrassed,\u201d Russo, who\u2019s a regular analyst on \u201cFirst Take,\u201d said. \u201cI didn\u2019t talk to her about the specifics of why she decided as soon as it was in the\u00a0Sports Business Journal, but that\u2019s what I\u2019m thinking \u2014 that she probably would have felt embarrassed if the world would have thought that she was a lame duck and she was still doing the show. So, that I think that probably had a little something to do with it.\u201d<\/p>\n Molly Qerim attends ESPN First Take at Clark Atlanta University and Morehouse College on November 8, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. Russo explained that he was \u201cvery surprised\u201d when Stephen A. Smith called him to share the news that Qerim would be leaving \u201con the night before\u201d her exit.<\/p>\n \u201cI did not speak to Molly prior. I\u2019ve had sone conversation with her since. She was on air a long time. I think they probably wanted to move her around a little bit and try something different,\u201d Russo said.<\/p>\n \u201cNot that the ratings were bad, it\u2019s just the nature of the beast. You\u2019re on air forever, they like to make a change for making a change\u2019s sake. I think they wanted to keep Molly with the network, and I don\u2019t know if Molly wanted to do that. Because I think Molly probably looked at as, \u2018If I\u2019m not going to do\u00a0\u2018First Take,\u2019 I don\u2019t want to do\u00a0\u2018SportsCenter.\u2019 So she probably felt that that would be a demotion, I would assume.\u201d<\/p>\n Russo said that Qerim was \u201cvery important\u201d to\u00a0the success of \u201cFirst Take\u201d success and described her and Smith\u2019s relationship as \u201ca big brother, little sister deal.\u201d <\/p>\n Molly Qerim, Stephen A. Smith, Chris Russo and Ryan Clark speak onstage at the Fanatics Fest NYC 2024 at Jacob Javits Center on August 16, 2024 in New York City. Getty Images for Fanatics<\/p>\n \u201cI did not know that was occurring. I was shocked \u2014 I went to work on Wednesday [and] they had scrubbed her off all the promos and they\u2019re mad about stuff \u2026 she was off,\u201d Russo said. \u201cIt tells you the quickness of television. If you\u2019re gone, they get you out in 10 minutes.\u201d <\/p>\n Qerim hosted \u201cFirst Take\u201d for 10 years and worked at the network since 2005. <\/p>\n Stephen A. Smith and Molly Qerim during \u201cFirst Take\u201d at Fanatics Fest 2025 in New York City. She announced\u00a0her departure from ESPN\u00a0on her Instagram Story last month, adding the news \u201ccame out earlier than I intended.\u201d<\/p>\n Her post came hours after\u00a0Sports Business Journal<\/a>\u00a0reported that she turned down ESPN\u2019s offer for a new contract and will depart the company at the end of the year.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n In an interview with\u00a0The Athletic<\/a>\u00a0last month, Burke Magnus, ESPN\u2019s president of content, explained that prior to Qerim announcing her departure from the Worldwide Leader, both sides had already determined that she would be taken off of \u201cFirst Take\u201d<\/a> when her contract expired at the end of 2025.<\/p>\n Magnus shared they were in renewal conversations with Qerim, who he felt wanted to \u201cexplore other things\u201d \u2014 and in the end, \u201cwe just weren\u2019t totally aligned.\u201d<\/p>\n Molly Qerim attends \u2018Shaq\u2019s Fun House\u2019 at XS nightclub at Encore Las Vegas on February 9, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Getty Images<\/p>\n Magnus made it clear that ESPN wanted Qerim to stay at the company.<\/p>\n He said the company will take 30 to 45 days to try out a variety of candidates for the \u201cFirst Take\u201d hosting role, adding, \u201cI don\u2019t know if it\u2019ll be someone in-house or not.\u201d<\/p>\n So far, Amina Smith, MJ Acosta Ruiz, Peter Schrager and Shae Cornett have been serving as rotating hosts.<\/p>\n
\n Getty Images<\/p>\n
\n Getty Images for Fanatics<\/p>\n