ESPN personality Domonique Foxworth appeared on Wednesday’s First Take, putting on a clinic in his takedown of radio veteran Chris “Mad Dog” Russo. In a piece of brilliant performance art rivaling some of the great character work done by legendary comedian Andy Kaufman, Foxworth laid into Russo, attacking him from all angles with an assortment of wild opinions, each bold declaration more jarring and controversial than the last.
Since joining First Take as a weekly sparring partner for featured panelist Stephen A. Smith (who, along with host Molly Qerim, is on vacation this week), Mad Dog has routinely waxed poetic about athletes he grew up watching, glorifying the likes of Johnny Unitas, Bob Cousy and others who dominated long before podcasts and social media changed the way we consume sports media. Russo’s outdated references, obsessing over stars of yesteryear, has frequently drawn the ire of JJ Redick, who, like most reasonable observers, would argue that today’s athletes are faster, stronger and ultimately more talented than their early predecessors from the 60s and 70s.
Foxworth proved a worthy opponent, challenging Russo on everything from Larry Bird’s place in history (“KD would COOK Bird”) to whether former Packers coach Vince Lombardi belongs among the all-time greats (“He ran one play”). It’s unlikely Foxworth meant everything he said—or even half of it—though believing your own words has never been a requirement of debate television, a format that rewards the bold and brash, turning wild, ill-informed takes into viral content while making stars out of wrestling heels like Skip Bayless (“It’s MY turn!”) and the aforementioned Stephen A.
A former defensive back for the Ravens and Broncos who earned his MBA from Harvard Business School, Foxworth knew exactly what he was doing, satirizing Russo’s penchant for meandering rants, lamenting the current state of sports while pining for a simpler time, back when quarterbacks threw 10 times a game and NBA teams only shot twos because the three hadn’t been invented yet. That could be interpreted as hostile, though Mad Dog, to his credit, didn’t take it as disrespect, showing a sense of humor, even as Foxworth trolled him to his face.
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