The National Football League (NFL) fans should sigh with relief now that Mina Kimes' exit from ESPN is unaffected and in fact, extended. Recent reports have verified that she has signed a substantial contract with the network.
The New York Post said that ESPN agreed to pay Kimes a little over $1.7 million a year in compensation. And expressly for her podcasting endeavors, Kimes has a separate contract with Peyton Manning's Omaha Productions.
With the latest ESPN contract in place, Mina Kimes will make at least $2 million annually. It's anticipated that she'll continue to fulfill her duties at ESPN and keep up her significant appearance on "NFL Live."
A salary of this size is normally only paid to hosts or play-by-play announcers. For Mina Kimes, however, this is not the case. She is being paid at this level by ESPN in order to continue serving as an NFL "analyst" and a film "expert."
The fact that Kimes has never played NFL football, or any other kind of football for that matter, is what makes her role intriguing. She is now the only general NFL commentator on the network who has no playing experience.
Even though they are not necessarily NFL stars, her teammates Ryan Clark, Robert Gryphon, Domonique Foxworth, Marcus Spears, Dan Orlovsky, and Bart Scott have all had some experience working with coaches and directors.
Even Field Yates, who, like Kimes, has never played football, does not have the title of "analyst" and does not get as much money as a premier host.
What, therefore, makes Mina Kimes unique in ESPN's eyes? Perception is the solution.
On social media, Kimes has a sizable fan base and is praised as though she were the football equivalent of Charles Barkley or Howard Cosell.
If ESPN had not extended Kimes' contract, they might have faced criticism and backlash from fans. Her devoted following would have probably sharply criticized the network.
In the big picture, it seems like a $2 million salary is a tiny amount to pay to prevent the Maria Taylor debacle that Kimes may have become.