Former NFL MVP quarterback Boomer Esiason, unimpressed with the furor over pop star Taylor Swift and Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, stated bluntly that the NFL would be “here after she’s done.”
Esiason, who led the Cincinnati Bengals to Super Bowl XIII and was named All-Pro numerous times, discussed Swift on CBS Sports’ “Boomer and Gio” with co-host Gregg Giannotti
“Maybe, just maybe, we’ll see a K (kiss) at the end of the game in the Super Bowl and a ring,” Esiason speculated.
“Oh, my God,” Giannotti expostulated.
“I’m so psyched about it,” Esiason joked.
“Do you think that Travis Kelce and his $100 million would go to Kay Jewelers?” Giannotti wondered.
“Hey, Kay Jewelers is going to pay these guys, yeah,” Esiason quipped. “You don’t think that Kay Jewelers wouldn’t pay them for the post-game ceremony?”
“If they took an endorsement, those two, who are a combined, she’s probably a billionaire alone, right?” Giannotti asked.
“She’s two billion. She’s made over $2 billion on the Eras Tour alone,” Esiason pointed out.
“Now, if she ended up taking an endorsement from Kay Jewelers for her engagement, that is the most low-class thing I’ve ever heard in my life,” Giannotti asserted.
“The other thing, too, I was thinking that because of all these stories coming out, that she has ‘raised the level of the NFL,’ the NFL is going to be here after she’s done. It was here before she got started,” Esiason said bluntly.
Gianotti then interjected, “I love this. I love this Boomer heel turn on Taylor Swift, this is the greatest thing to ever happen.”
“You gotta know that her people are in touch with the NFL,” Esiason said. “And her people are probably saying, ‘If you want her at the game, you gotta pay for the jet coming back from Tokyo — and she needs her own suite.’ I’m telling you, man. This is business, man. This is all about business. How many times are we, CBS, going to show her? And are we going to show an arrival shot? … What’s interesting is if the NFL does pay for all of this stuff, you know, it could be like, ‘Okay, we’ll take care of all that but we want to be able to shoot you as you get to the stadium; we want to be able to whatever.’”
“Is this one of those Boomer breadcrumb things because you’ve heard that this is actually what’s going on or is this just your guess?” Giannotti asked.
“I think it’s my guess in this case,” Esiason said. “I have a feeling that she is so powerful, so consuming and the metrics show you how successful the NFL has been with her being a part of it, and they can break down what they believe is her financial impact on the NFL. And that number is close to $350 million in the short time she’s been around. Impressions, followers, social media.”
“It’s everything; she is beloved by her fans,” he acknowledged, then turned to Swift’s speech at the Grammys. “This is why I was a little disappointed last night; I really have taken a liking to her but that speech last night was like tone-deaf.”
“She didn’t get to where she’s gotten without promoting herself, right?” Giannotti insisted. “Can you really get on her for that?”
“I think she’s at the point now where she doesn’t have to promote herself; all she has to do is show up. …You want to endear her to people who may not like her or may wonder about her music or whatever,” Esiason suggested.
“Especially football fans,” Giuannoti agreed.
“Exactly. You say, ‘Thanks, I’ve enjoyed my time being part of the Chiefs’ kingdom,’ that kind of thing,” Esiason said.
Boomer Esiason sounds like he's starting to waver on Taylor Swift. pic.twitter.com/X3mD9A6xip
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) February 5, 2024
