The quote:
"What we have here is a little social concern in the NFL," Limbaugh said. "The media has been very desirous that a black quarterback can do well--black coaches and black quarterbacks doing well. There is a little hope invested in McNabb and he got a lot of credit for the performance of this team that he didn't deserve."
But who really cares? The best thing I've seen on this "tempest in a teapot" is this, from Forbes:
On the radio, Limbaugh, who is ranked 36th on the Forbes Celebrity 100, runs his own show, syndicating it to over 600 stations. His popularity is based on his being edgy and different. Comments like his one about McNabb would be red meat for Limbaugh's usual audience. But it's his audience. On ESPN, a unit of The Walt Disney Co. (nyse: DIS - news - people ), he was a hired hand and part of the mainstream. It has its audience with or without Limbaugh. Being different was a liability, as it took just four weeks for Limbaugh to find out. (ESPN issued a statement accepting Limbaugh's resignation; The Walt Disney Co. did not comment on it.)
Calling McNabb overrated also showed contempt for the market in NFL players. Even if the media wanted McNabb to succeed, would his bosses be fooled into making him the highest-paid player in the NFL? Just last year the Eagles signed him to a 12-year $115 million contract. This contract came after consecutive Pro Bowl appearances and a year in which he was runner-up in MVP voting. The Eagles are owned by Jeffrey Lurie, a Hollywood movie producer, who bought the team in 1994 for $185 million and has seen its value rise to $617 million since then.
I do listen to Rush occasionally, just to see how long I can take it. Unfortunately, the end of his brief stint at ESPN probably won't make much of a dent in his media presence. Even with the drug thing, I'm afraid we'll continue to have Rush to kick around (and be kicked around by) for quite some time to come.
