One person that has become an emerging star in the sports media landscape over the last year or so is ESPN NFL analyst and writer for The Undefeated, Domonique Foxworth. Foxworth has taken his experience playing in the NFL and working as the president of the NFLPA and COO of the NBAPA and brought it to the media.
As Foxworth told Sarah Spain on the That’s What She Said podcast, he was one of those athletes that had said he was never going to be in the media after his playing career was over. However, he did love writing when he was in college at Maryland, and an opportunity at The Undefeated opened up and happened to be based near his home.
“It was coincidental that The Undefeated was also being created and it was launching out of D.C. It gave me this opportunity that felt different. I don’t want to talk about people playing football, but this was like you can talk about football and bigger things. Then, I end up on GET UP, First Take, Around The Horn, Highly Questionable.”
Foxworth told Spain that he felt like one of the few that was comfortable talking about heavy subjects last summer.
“This past summer, I was a superstar because there are so many people who feel comfortable going into those spaces. This summer when the pandemic hit and the George Floyd stuff happened, all of our shows became something different. When I do those things, I really enjoy the job at a different level. It feels artistic and it feels meaningful.”
Domonique Foxworth also understands the power of his words and told Spain that he gets this may be entertainment to some. Inside the sports world though, opinions of anyone on ESPN have power. He explained using former Houston Texans coach Bill O’Brien.
“I remember being very critical of Bill O’Brien when he was with the Texans and then he got fired. I remember thinking I didn’t take responsibility for it, but I do know part of the reason he had to go was because he had become a laughingstock and we had some hand in that. We are here to entertain, but our entertainment impacts how careers can go.”
Foxworth was right in terms of it is not his fault that O’Brien was fired. However, he does acknowledge that there is a responsibility on-air even when people think they are just giving “hot takes.” He wants to hear all perspectives when looking at a situation and that’s what has helped him become a star in the industry.
