Matthew Stafford’s Wife, Kelly, Voices Support for Charissa Thompson Amidst Criticism for Fabricating NFL Reports

Charissa Thompson, the host of Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime, recently revealed some tricks of the trade during her appearance at Barstool Sports’ ‘Pardon My Take’. Following this, the former NFL sideline reporter has been facing the wrath of social media along with harsh criticism from other reporters upon admitting that she made up sideline halftime reports numerous times.

Ironically, no one pardoned Thompson’s take, as she became the subject of many memes and faced criticism from multiple critics. However, Matthew Stafford’s wife, Kelly, and former NFL host Rachel Bonnetta voiced their support for Charissa Thompson. Kelly recently took to Instagram to share her thoughts about the matter.

“Thought of the day. A man makes a mistake or has his words taken out of context, his male colleagues/friends band together and support one another,” Kelly said. “A woman does the same thing, their female colleagues/fake friends do the opposite.”

Stafford’s post reflects how she sees people treating individuals differently based on their gender when they make mistakes. She suggested that when a man is at fault, his male peers tend to support him. However, when a woman faces a similar situation, her female colleagues or friends do the exact opposite.

She did not name anyone in her post but criticized certain “feminists” who adopt feminist principles only when they align with their beliefs. This post came after a handful of female sideline reporters, including ESPN’s Mollie McGrath, former NBC sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, CBS’ Tracy Wolfson, and ESPN’s Morgan Uber, spoke against Charissa.

Molly McGrath, an ESPN college football reporter, criticized Thompson for making up halftime reports and called it immoral and unethical. She pointed out that coaches and players trust reporters with sensitive details, and they should be taking them seriously. Another ESPN reporter, Morgan Uber, stated that Thompson’s actions only made the stereotype stronger that sideline reporters are seen as mere “eye candy.”

Rachel Bonnetta Voices Support for Charissa Thompson

Former NFL host Rachel Bonnetta posted a video on X to offer support to Charissa Thompson on Friday. Rachel revealed the demerits of being a sideline reporter and called it a “really tough gig”. The reporters put in a lot of preparation throughout the week, which included interviewing coaches and players. Despite this, they only receive two to three minutes of airtime during the entire broadcast. Therefore, she felt Charissa’s making up a few stories only made the report more interesting for the viewers.

Rachel even expressed frustration by saying women aren’t taken seriously in the sports world. She highlighted the challenges of coaches not wanting to communicate with female reporters. In her view, this development could have taken an entirely new way of helping the situation but made it worse instead.