Jemele Hill knows a thing or two about drama at ESPN.
The former “SportsCenter” host, who worked for the media giant from 2006 until she left the network in October 2018, didn’t hold back while discussing the Aaron Rodgers-Jimmy Kimmel controversy — and explained why ESPN needs to get a handle on the situation before history repeats itself.
Kimmel threatened legal action against Rodgers after the Jets quarterback suggested the late-night host was potentially associated with the late accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Tuesday.
“ESPN, or someone, is going to have to rein this in,” Hill said while appearing on “The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz” on Wednesday, adding that she believes Kimmel “made a call” to higher-ups at Disney.
“The Pat McAfee Show” airs on ESPN, while “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” airs on ABC, both of which are owned by parent company, Disney.
“We know there’s no more offensive crime in the universe of ESPN and Disney than host-on-host crime or talent-on-talent crime,” Hill said. “There is no bigger offense. Ask Tony Kornheiser and Hannah Storm — like there is no bigger thing.
“I experienced some of this myself when me and Chris Berman got into it behind the scenes and that escalated to a certain level of executive-ness. So, we know how this happens.”
Hill speculated if Rodgers’ weekly appearances on “The Pat McAfee Show” will eventually end due to the situation.
X/Pat McAfee
“I just have a feeling that is when these conversations are totally going to get out of hand about what Aaron Rodgers is or isn’t allowed to say,” Hill said. “And there’s a part of me that wonders, ‘Is this going to be the end of the weekly Aaron Rodgers appearances?’
“Maybe not right now in the moment. But looking down the line, at some point, I guess if you’re ABC or ESPN or those people who get paid to make these decisions, you wonder, ‘Is it worth it to have him on if every week there is going to be some kind of headline of him saying something and us making headlines for the wrong reasons?’”
Rodgers is not an ESPN employee.
McAfee, who joined ESPN in September 2023 after signing a massive contract in the spring, pays Rodgers more than seven figures per year to appear on his show each week, according to The Post’s Andrew Marchand.
X/Pat McAfee
McAfee addressed the controversy on Wednesday’s episode of his show, and apologized for being involved in the media firestorm.
An ESPN spokesperson declined to comment when asked by The Post about the situation.
In addition to Hill, Dan Le Batard and Pablo Torre, who also appeared on the show, are also former ESPN personalities.
“I remember at ESPN having pretty enormous fights just trying to keep Ron Magil, the animal guy, [communications director of the Miami-Dade Zoo] on the air at ESPN.
“I’ve got to imagine as ESPN is no commenting stuff around Aaron Rodgers because he is linking Disney’s biggest talk show host to the Epstein island … what kind of problem here does ESPN and Disney have on its hand.”
ESPN’s top personality, Stephen A. Smith, also weighed in on the controversy during the Wednesday installment of his YouTube show, “The Stephen A. Smith Show” — which covers bolder topics than what viewers see on the ESPN airwaves — and said Rodgers should apologize.
“I’ve been marveling at the way in which people who work still work at ESPN, like Stephen A., when they’re not at ESPN on-air can basically pivot to a certain horniness that was once unthinkable on Disney airwaves,” Torre said. “And I praise the pivot to horniness.
“I just wonder if Aaron Rodgers is at the point where he’s not even thinking that this is insane and legally actionable also on a network [like Disney].”
Kimmel and Rodgers have history, as the late-night host has used the four-time MVP as the butt of jokes on his talk show.
Rodgers has yet to address Kimmel’s threat, which came in the form of an X post Tuesday.
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