06.17.09 PEOPLE KEEP HIRING MATT MILLEN

I think of the ability to fail upwards as more of a gift than a skill, one with which former Detroit Lions general manager Matt Millen seems blessed. After being named as an analyst for ESPN’s upcoming NFL coverage this season, that monolith is now reporting that Millen will also be the color guy for the NFL Network’s Thursday Night Football games.

“Matt Millen is one of the best television analysts in the business and we welcome him back to the booth on Thursday Night Football,” NFL Network president and CEO Steve Bornstein said in a statement. “Matt’s candor, knowledge and passion for the NFL, partnered with Bob Papa, make them a very entertaining and informative announcing team.”

Millen was hired in May by ESPN to serve as a college football game analyst and will contribute to ESPN’s NFL studio coverage throughout the year, appearing on “Monday Night Countdown,” “NFL Live,” “SportsCenter,” ESPNEWS and other programs.

Look, I don’t care what kind of TV guy he was before he took the Lions’ GM job in 2001. His credibility is shot; he may as well have “0-16″ tattooed onto his forehead, because that’s the only thing I think of when I see him. Like when some people (not me, but some) see Kobe, all they can think about is Eagle, Colorado. Matt Millen raped an entire franchise, and for these networks to thrust him back in front of a camera as some know-it-all is insulting. Suddenly, not getting the NFL Network is a good thing.