Part 6/10:
In the aftermath of Rodgers’s comments, Kimes responded during a segment on First Take. While she claimed not to be offended, the tone she took suggested there was indeed some defensiveness. This is crucial to understanding the larger implications of Rodgers's critique; it underscores an internal recognition among some at ESPN that perhaps the standards of analysis have lowered substantially.
Kimes's retort reflected an awareness that his criticism might be pertinent, but she also positioned herself in a defensive manner. By asserting that context matters, her response seemed like an attempt to justify the very structure of programming that Rodgers criticized.