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Griffin, who as recently as last year had been viewed as a rising star at ESPN, had two years remaining on his deal.. ESPN has fired “Sunday NFL Countdown” host Samantha Ponder and analyst Robert Griffin III, ... The buyouts of Ponder and Griffin are the only moves ESPN is making at the moment, but it could choose to shed more salary by the end of September. However, the cuts are not expected to be anywhere near the bloodletting in which around 20 big names were let go last June, including stalwarts like Jeff Van Gundy, Suzy Kolber and Jalen...

Conservative radio ringleader Rush Limbaugh is taking his schtick to ESPN. Starting this fall, Limbaugh, best known for his daily radio rants, will turn up on ESPN's "Sunday NFL Countdown," where he'll provide a weekly opinion piece on football. He'll also get into verbal sparring matches — "challenges" in cute TV talk — with "Countdown" football analysts Steve Young, Michael Irvin and Tom Jackson. "I'm really looking forward to it," Limbaugh said yesterday. "Football is a lot like life; I know life pretty well." Under the setup, Limbaugh, who lives in Florida, will be in ESPN's Bristol, Conn., studios about...