Boomer Esiason enjoyed a successful career in the NFL, but today, he serves as co-host of WFAN’s popular morning sports radio show “Boomer and Gio” alongside Gregg Giannotti. While the show covers sports broadly, Esiason wanted to set the record straight regarding a recent high-profile incident in the WNBA.
The former NFL MVP didn’t hold back and offered a sharp critique of both the officiating crew and the surrounding fallout that has divided the sports fraternity.
Boomer Esiason Calls DiJonai Carrington’s Foul “Anger Management 101”
Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham is no stranger to public attention or controversy. During an Aug. 8 matchup between the Fever and the Chicago Sky, Cunningham was on the receiving end of a hard foul by Chicago guard DiJonai Carrington, who was ejected after officials reviewed and upgraded the call to a Flagrant 2.
Following her ejection, Carrington posted the words “White Privilege” on Threads and tagged the Fever, giving rise to a fresh controversy. In the aftermath of her post, Esiason criticized the officiating crew for not immediately ejecting Carrington.
“Well, Carrington had that hard foul on Cunningham, basically clotheslining her on the way to the basket. Officials originally assessed it as a flagrant 1,” Esiason said on WFAN’s morning show.
“I mean, what are the officials, [expletive]? This was a hatchet job. This was on purpose. This was anger management 101. Yeah, it was. I cannot believe that Stephanie White, the coach of the Fever, reacted the way that she did and did not stand up for her player. It’s insane what this league is doing to itself,” he added.
Boomer sounded off on the foul on Sophie Cunningham: “It’s insane what this league is doing to itself” pic.twitter.com/IaNaty1pic
— WFAN Sports Radio (@WFAN660) August 10, 2026
Following the game (a 90-86 win for Indiana), Fever coach Stephanie White agreed with the Flagrant 2 ruling but defended Carrington’s intent, stating she did not believe the hit on Cunningham was intentional.
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When it comes to Esiason, he has been co-hosting the morning show along with Gregg Giannotti since 2018. His radio work has been a staple of his career since he retired from the NFL, and now, at 65, he doesn’t seem to be slowing down.
Esiason had a successful career in the league. He played for the Cincinnati Bengals for around a decade; in 1988, he was the league’s MVP and was also voted to the First-Team All-Pro, and the Bengals made the Super Bowl after losing a close 20-16 game against the San Francisco 49ers.
After leaving the franchise, he had brief stints with the New York Jets and the Arizona Cardinals. Boomer returned to Cincinnati for his final season in 1997 before being inducted into the Bengals Ring of Honor.
