5. No one man is bigger then the machine
Bill Simmons’ contract will not be renewed by ESPN according to multiple sources. The TV personality and writer rose to fame with the outlet “Sports Guy” in the early 2000s. He was eventually able to use his influence to to become involved in the highly successful 30 for 30 series, which led Simmons to create his own online site called Grantland.com. Many question what was the true reason for Simmons’ departure, but two legitimate theories have arose. One, Simmons was looking for $6 Million from ESPN and according to Jason McIntyre of The Big Lead, that wasn’t going to happen. “It’s difficult to justify paying Bill Simmons $6 Million a year for the revenue he was driving.” Understandable, but the second theory seems to have legs as well. Simmons was suspended by ESPN for criticizing not only ESPN, but also NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. So when Simmons’ went on the Dan Patrick Show to talk about Deflategate, it seemed like the end was near.
