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Pat McAfee dealt ratings blow as MNF altcast beaten by analytics feed
Pat McAfee has hosted two altcasts on ESPN2 since its launch

Pat McAfee has been dealt a blow after his show proved to be the lowest-rated Monday Night Football altcast.

On Monday night, the Buffalo Bills secured a crushing 23-6 win over the Minnesota Vikings. Minnesota endured a Monday Night Football horror show against the Bills, with Carson Wentz recording one of the worst performances in NFL history.

Wentz completed just 8 of 25 pass attempts for 81 yards with two interceptions before he was replaced by Max Brosmer in the fourth quarter. As a result, the Vikings completed a move for Kirk Cousins at the NFL trade deadline to try to bolster the offense and make the unit as competitive as the defense.

McAfee was watching, but his Monday Night Football altcast on ESPN2 — which featured Tony Romo — lost in the ratings battle to NFL Network’s Playbook with Next Gen Stats. The presentation with former NFL players Dominique Foxworth and Brian Hoyer drew an audience of 499,000 while the McAfee show trailed by over 90,000.

McAfee’s altcast drew an audience of 406,000, despite his considerable star power and massive presence across ESPN from live streams to major spots during both college and NFL broadcasts.

However, one user praised McAfee’s second altcast. The user wrote on X: “I generally can’t stand McAfee, but I happened to put it on last night and I loved it. Refreshing to hear the announcers actually REACTING to the action rather than being in newscaster mode.”

Pat McAfee's altcast is losing the ratings battle to the NFL Network
Pat McAfee's altcast is losing the ratings battle to the NFL Network -Credit:Getty Images

During the Bills’ win over the Vikings, Romo made an unexpected guest appearance on Pat McAfee's Monday Night Football alt cast. The 46-year-old received a warm welcome after being introduced as the ESPN2 show's remote "quarterback expert" — a title he jokingly apologized for stealing from Dan Orlovsky.

“I’m doing good, and I'm sorry, Dan, that they gave me the quarterback specialist tier,” said Romo, who "mutually agreed" to part ways from CBS last month.

“But you know that I think you're a great quarterback guru. You know that.”

Monday's surprise cameo marked Romo's first media appearance since his highly publicized legal trouble. On July 23, he was arrested in Milwaukee on suspicion of operating while intoxicated, according to the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office.

The former Cowboys quarterback was pulled over around 8 p.m. while traveling southbound on Interstate 43 across Wisconsin's high-rise bridge, with citations revealing that an open container of an alcoholic beverage was discovered on the passenger's side of his vehicle.

Romo was released on July 24 on a first-offense operating while intoxicated charge, and subsequently pleaded no contest on Sept. 1.

Meanwhile, McAfee’s next ESPN2 altcast will take place in Week 12 for the Monday Night Football clash between the Carolina Panthers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium on Nov. 30.

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