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Michele Tafoya Says She Has ‘Hesitation’ About Lisa Guerrero Having ‘Devastating’ Miscarriage

Also in Traina Thoughts: vintage Charles Barkley; horrific bad beat; Bill Walton does the YMCA; and much more.

Jimmy Traina

1. “And so, I have my hesitation about, was this truly a devastating miscarriage?”

That is former Sunday Night Football sideline host Michele Tafoya on another former Monday Night Football sideline host, Lisa Guerrero.

Guerrero has a new book out, which was excerpted in Sports Illustrated earlier this week, and in the autobiography she details having a miscarriage while working a game in 2003.

Now, I have presented Tafoya’s quote without any context. Context is important and necessary when relaying someone’s quote. However, there is absolutely no context at all that would make Tafoya’s quote justifiable.

However, I will give you the context. Tafoya said on whatever show she has these days that because Guerrero didn’t tell her best friends at the time that she had a miscarriage and because she waited nearly 20 years to tell this story in a book, she questions the level of devastation.

Tafoya explained that she had two miscarriages of her own. However, how Tafoya handled her tragedies has nothing to do with Guerrero. People handle situations differently. For Tafoya to question anything about Guerrero’s miscarriage simply because of who Guerrero chose to tell and not tell is bizarre and cruel.

Here’s what Tafoya had to say about Guerrero’s miscarriage, as excerpted by Awful Announcing.

“I’ve had multiple miscarriages,” Tafoya said. “I’ve talked very openly about my struggles to have a baby, about my adoption of my second child. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. Losing a pregnancy between eight and 12 weeks is not uncommon. If it was such pain that she’s carried for 20 years, and her best friends still have to buy the book to learn about it? I see a disconnect there. It’s her story to tell, but having been through similar things, trust me when I tell you, my best friends knew.”

Tafoya later added of her health emergencies: “Trust me when I tell you that all my best friends knew about that. I don’t know why you would wait to publish a book 15 years after the fact to reveal this to your best friends. And so, I have my hesitation about, was this truly a devastating miscarriage?”

In addition to this horrible take, Tafoya said other cruel things about Guerrero as she read from the excerpt of the book. Throughout her book, Guerrero detailed her struggles with being a sideline reporter, flack she had gotten from media members and clashes she had with higher-ups at Monday Night Football. Tafoya repeatedly mocked Guerrero for these claims and said of Guerrero’s memoir, “I think what she’s doing is wrong and I think that her motivations are not pure. It’s a tough business and it’s what she signed up for. You either cut it or you can’t. I contend she wasn’t tough enough.”

Now here’s my dilemma and where I’m going to ask you guys to help me out. Tafoya clearly did this to get attention. I’m giving her that attention. Do you guys want me to do that? I honestly don’t want to write stories like this and I try my best to avoid going for easy, cheap traffic by writing about the carnival barkers in sports media. But I also know some of you guys like to hate-read. Plus, one media member calling out another media member is always good fodder, but it has to be genuine and not an obvious play for attention. So I want to hear from you. Email me (Jimmy.Traina@si.com) or hit me up on Twitter and let me know if you think I should cover this stuff or if I shouldn’t give the attention cravers the attention they are craving. I honestly want your feedback on this.

2. Charles Barkley got Adam Lefkoe (filling in for Ernie Johnson) all flustered on Thursday's Inside the NBA when he made a presidential election reference.

3. So many NBA people have weighed in about load management, but ESPN’s Richard Jefferson stood out for this thought that he shared Thursday.

4. Sometimes I have to really sell a video so you click into it. Sometimes I just have to tell you what it is and don’t have to sell it at all. This is one of those times. Here’s Bill Walton doing the YMCA.

5. If you’re someone who likes to place a wager on a sporting event, you’ll want to watch this video even though it will make you want to vomit.

6. This week’s SI Media Podcast features a conversation with Good Morning Football host Jason McCourty.

McCourty discusses his first year on the NFL Network show, how he's adjusted to doing a show that starts at 7 a.m., what it was like to replace Nate Burleson, whether it's tough for him as a former player to criticize current players and which of his GMFB cohosts is the crankiest in the morning.

The 13-year NFL veteran also talks about Bill Belichick's rules for Patriots players regarding the media, Tom Brady going viral for his expletive-filled answer about his future, the difference between people on the East Coast and Midwest, the NFL playoffs and much more.

Following McCourty, Sal Licata from WFAN radio and SNY TV in New York joins me for our weekly “Traina Thoughts” segment. This week, we discuss Scott Rolen getting into the Hall of Fame, Shannon Sharpe getting into a ruckus at an NBA game, the NFL conference championship games, the Rocky movies, movie soundtracks and more.

You can listen to the podcast below or download it on Apple, Spotify and Google.

You can also watch the SI Media Podcast on YouTube.

7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: We close out Royal Rumble week with Stone Cold winning the match in 1999, when he was at his peak. Enjoy the Rumble on Saturday.

Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on Twitter, Instagram and TikTok.

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Jimmy Traina
JIMMY TRAINA

Jimmy Traina is a staff writer and podcast host for Sports Illustrated. A 20-year veteran in the industry, he’s been covering the sports media landscape for seven years and writes a daily column, Traina Thoughts. Traina has hosted the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast since 2018, a show known for interviews with some of the most important and powerful people in sports media. He also was the creator and writer of SI’s Hot Clicks feature from 2007 to '13.

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