Pat McAfee is everywhere, well, at least when it comes to ESPN. One could even argue that ESPN is positioning him to become the face of the network. Clay Travis made that suggestion after Andrew Marchand reported that McAfee was nearing a contract extension that could make him the highest-paid employee at ESPN. Most recently, the former Indianapolis Colts punter joined the network’s Monday Night Countdown for the 2026 NFL season.

But at some point, it seemed inevitable that McAfee would come under scrutiny for his growing number of roles at ESPN. And it appears that moment has arrived. Linda Cohn, who hosted SportsCenter for 34 years before recently retiring and launching The Linda Cohn Show, is now using her new platform to call out both Pat McAfee and ESPN for seemingly putting him everywhere.

“I admire it all, but admiring what Pat McAfee has accomplished doesn’t mean I believe he needs to be everywhere at every time,” Cohn said on her podcast. “Because, yeah, ESPN wants Pat McAfee to be everywhere at every time. How much Pat McAfee is enough Pat McAfee?! The answer apparently was more.”

The number of times Cohn used McAfee’s name is probably still fewer than McAfee’s appearances across ESPN. After retiring from the NFL, McAfee joined ESPN back in 2019 and has 3 confirmed regular shows on the network as of now. He runs his primary daily program, The Pat McAfee Show. Then, he remains a regular analyst on ESPN’s flagship college football program, College GameDay.

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And just now, he has joined ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown ahead of the 2026 season. He will join Scott Van Pelt, Jason Kelce, Jason McCourty and Marcus Spears on the show. Linda Cohn, meanwhile, expressed her frustration over McAfee’s multiple appearances throughout a normal day on ESPN.

“So, let’s review your potential Monday during the NFL season, which is just a couple of weeks away,” she added. “Three hours of Pat’s daily show, The Pat McAfee Show, from the game site. Then, Pat joins Monday Night Countdown before the game. And then, on certain nights, potentially, his own alternative broadcast of Monday Night Football. At this point, let’s just call it ‘Monday Night McAfee.

“…I have to ask this: Why?! Why? I have to laugh. Apparently, if Peyton and Eli take the night off, we cannot be left alone with the actual football game broadcast? What’s wrong with [Joe] Buck and [Troy] Aikman? Alone? Can’t we just watch them? The actual football game? I can’t stop laughing. It’s crazy, right?”

Of course, Cohn doesn’t blame McAfee for accepting multiple shows. In fact, she’s arguing why ESPN is bothering to keep McAfee everywhere all the time. At the same time, despite having multiple roles, Pat McAfee keeps dominating headlines for continuous criticism.

Most recently, the NFL legend grabbed the spotlight after ESPN’s founder Bill Rasmussen’s death. During a recent segment of First Take, ESPN was paying tribute to Rasmussen’s legacy, who founded ESPN nearly five decades ago.

However, his tribute was cut off midway by The Pat McAfee Show’s intro, and McAfee came under scrutiny. Cohn, meanwhile, went on to address it, admitting that McAfee would later say on his show that “he had nothing to do with it.”

“A founder is honored. A tribute is cut short. Pat gets blamed, he responds, and suddenly, we’re talking about Pat again. Welcome to overexposure. Somehow, someway, everything becomes about you,” Cohn added.

So that’s where things stand for Pat McAfee. While many may not agree, he’s somehow becoming the face of ESPN.