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Takes

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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

United Airlines should fix its PR by making people horny with porn links

If you make us horny, guess what? We're not angry anymore... Just tweet out porn. Be like, hey, it's now being reported that this guy was a porn freak or something. Be like, hey, you know who else was a porn freak? United. And then just start giving us free links.

This is a satirical suggestion for a PR strategy.
Loss
Big CatBig Cat

United Airlines should become the presenting sponsor for the UFC to embrace their 'dragging' reputation

I had one go the self-deprecation route and become a UFC sponsor, like the presenting sponsor for UFC. That'd be pretty funny.

Hot TakeMediaHotSarcastic
United did not become a UFC sponsor; they eventually settled with the passenger and overhauled their policies.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Minor league teams should hold a 'Coke Night' promotion featuring cocaine-themed relay races

Minor league teams like to have fun with all sorts of wacky promotion nights, right? Why not have a Coke night? ... You give the mascot a vacuum, you give the little kid a vacuum, and then you see who can suck up the foul line the fastest on the way out to the outfield.

This is a satirical suggestion for a marketing promotion.
Loss
Big CatBig Cat

Adrian Peterson should walk across the country while holding a football to prove he doesn't have a fumbling problem

Adrian Peterson should walk across the country holding a football while people try to strip him showing that he can hold on to the rock... showing the news think about the news buzz where he's just like adrian peterson he's so crazy he's walking across the country.

Hot TakeFootballHotSarcastic
He did not do this. He signed with the Saints and fumbled once in four games before being traded.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Jameis Winston telling women to be silent and polite is hypocritical because he was told he had the right to remain silent

Well, it's a bit hypocritical that people are jumping down Winston's throat. When he was told that he had the right to remain silent, nobody said anything about it. But now he's telling women that, and I guess that's not fair.

This is a joke linking his legal issues (Miranda rights) to his comments about gender roles.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

The Dunk Contest is boring because there are a finite amount of body positions possible

It's not like the dunks aren't super impressive. It's just that we've seen every dunk. It's like watching porn. There's a finite amount of body positions that the human form can get into. Eventually, you just get bored with it.

This is a subjective opinion on entertainment fatigue.
Loss
Big CatBig Cat

Jamarcus Russell is due for a fake training video 'comeback' soon

I'm going to do a little prediction. I feel like we're due for a Jamarcus Russell comeback soon, too. Jamarcus Russell comebacks are just him making a YouTube video of doing crunches on one of those balls in the gym. Jamarcus Russell actually, he's jumping into the Atlantic Ocean in the middle of the winter and then he comes out and his skin's all tight because it's cold water. He's like, comeback, comeback season.

Jamarcus Russell did attempt several well-publicized comebacks between 2013-2016, but by 2017, these had mostly ceased.
Win
Big CatBig Cat

The Bruins firing Claude Julien during the Patriots parade is the greatest PR 101 move ever

The Boston Bruins who fired Claude Julien... The morning of the New England Patriots parade and held a press conference during the parade. That is the greatest PR 101 story of all time.

Firing a beloved, championship-winning coach during the height of a Super Bowl parade is a textbook way to minimize negative coverage.
Win
Big CatBig Cat

If a coach with personal issues wants to rehab their career, they should go work for Nick Saban

This is PR 101 in general for any coaches out there who might have a drinking problem... Lane Kiffin looking at you. If you want to be rehabbed, go to Nick Saban. Let Nick Saban scream in your face in front of the nation on Saturday afternoons on CBS... and you'll be back on track.

Steve Sarkisian, Lane Kiffin, and many others successfully used Alabama as a platform to secure new high-profile head coaching roles.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Mark Wahlberg used his sick kid as an excuse to leave the Super Bowl early

That is an unbelievable story, the fact that he got exposed for leaving early and then threw his kid out there. ... The blame aspect is really strong in that.

While never proven to be a lie, the timing was incredibly suspicious and is a lasting piece of Wahlberg/Patriots fan lore.
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Big CatBig Cat

One of the only benefits of having children is being able to use them as an excuse to avoid events

That is like one of the only pluses to having children... is to basically be able to blame. I can't go to this because my kid is sick or I can't go to this. I got to put the kid down. It's like getting a dog. ... I got to walk my dog. I can't be over here.

Inherently subjective and personal lifestyle opinion.
Loss
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

A real American stays inside on Sunday and watches the Pro Bowl

Hey, you know what it means to be a real American? You stay inside on Sunday and you watch the Pro Bowl. Yeah, you watch the Pro Bowl. You bet on the Pro Bowl. That's what an American does.

OpinionFootballMediumSarcastic
Watching the Pro Bowl is not a requirement or defining trait of American citizenship.
Push
Big CatBig Cat

Mark Dantonio's approach to fixing Michigan State's problems by 'firing himself' is a great PR move

Mark Dantonio... he fired himself, kind of. He said, to be honest with you, I've taken the approach of, hey, I'm a new coach coming in here. I'm going to fix the things that the other guy did last year... and that's how I'm going to take the approach.

The PR move was real; Dantonio did use this rhetoric. However, Michigan State only bounced back slightly in 2017 (10-3) before declining again.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

The only way to get a minor celebrity to show up to your event is to give them an award

Here's a free trick. If you ever want a minor celebrity to show up at something that you're doing, just give them an award. And be like, hey, we're giving you an award.

Observation of how the PR and awards industry functions.
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Big CatBig Cat

Johnny Manziel needs to get sued or arrested every few months just to let us know he's alive

Johnny Manziel is being sued because apparently he broke some bartender's nose. Good to know Johnny Manziel is still alive. We need him to get sued or arrested every few months to let us know that he's alive.

This is a humorous commentary on celebrity news cycles.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

RGIII is the most gullible person in sports and is the sucker in every room.

RGIII, I mean, he's basically just the sucker in every room. If you're in a room with RGIII, you're good. You're not the sucker... He would play three-card monte until the sun went down. He'd be Instagramming and laughing every time he lost.

Subjective characterization.
Loss
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Tim Tebow only quit football because of the NFL's crackdown on Adderall

So the NFL starts suspending players for taking Adderall, and Tim Tebow quits football entirely to go to baseball. I think he's just on Adderall all the time... we think Tim Tebow's thing is he is just straight up on copious amounts of Adderall all the time. Because he keeps changing. I'm going to be a football player... then I'm going to be on ESPN... then I'm going to play baseball.

Fact ClaimFootballHotSarcastic
There is no evidence Tim Tebow has ever used Adderall or that it influenced his career transitions.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Brock Osweiler should donate $25,000 to charity for every interception he throws

My other piece of advice would be... He's got a lot of money. Start a charity where every time he throws an interception, he donates like $25,000 to a charity. And then people can't get mad at him for interceptions. Or else you're basically killing children.

Hot TakeFootballHotSarcastic
Osweiler did not do this, nor would it be a sound financial strategy given his interception rate.
Win
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Ryan Fitzpatrick's best PR move is having Geno Smith as his backup

I think he has the best PR 101 built in already, and his backup is Geno Smith. So the second they see the alternative, they're like, okay, Ryan, we forgive you for everything.

Geno Smith replaced Fitzpatrick later that season but immediately tore his ACL, forcing Fitzpatrick back into the lineup, which ironically proved PFT's point that the Jets were stuck with him.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Ken Bone should immediately cash in and do a 'Prego porn' video

Ken is definitely going to get some propositions from a porn company to be like, hey... do you want to do some Prego porn? And you got to do it. Cash in. Just got to cash in.

Ken Bone did not do porn; he largely faded into obscurity after his 15 minutes of fame.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

ESPN First Take's ratings are down because Stephen A. Smith failed to kidnap Kevin Durant

So they need some help because First Take, when they lost Skip Bayless, both sides lost. Ratings are down because people realize that Stephen A. Smith wasn't going to back up that talk. They're like, oh, this guy's not going to kidnap anyone.

Satirical explanation for media ratings.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

ESPN First Take's ratings would improve if they made it an R-rated adult program

How can we solve First Take?... Or make it porn. People love porn. Just make it porn. Everybody's naked. First Take, porn... Replace them with Ron Jeremy, Peter North, and Madison Ivy.

Hot TakeMediaScorchingSarcastic
ESPN did not, in fact, turn First Take into a pornographic program.
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Big CatBig Cat

Charitable foundations are the best PR tool for shielding coaches from social media scandals

If you are trying to get out of your Twitter problems, either have the foundation... and just tweet from that. ... Foundations have never done anything wrong.

Comedic advice on PR strategy.
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Big CatBig Cat

Chad Kelly should legally change his name to Swag Kelly

Legally change your name to Swag. No way that will ever backfire when you're out of the NFL selling car insurance in bumfuck Mississippi. You will be Swag Kelly for life and you're good.

Chad Kelly did not legally change his name, though 'Swag Kelly' remains his enduring nickname.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Chad Kelly's decision to not send Mia Khalifa a dick picture shows maturity

The fact that he did not send her a dick picture tells me that he gets it. He's grown up a little bit. So just like emphasize that fact. If I were him, I would have owned it.

This is a satirical opinion on 'maturity' levels in social media scandals.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Ryan Lochte should lean into his gas station incident by getting a gun sponsorship

If I'm Lochte, I think it's pretty simple actually. If I'm Lochte, I get sponsored by a gun company because you're not going to get held up if you've got a gun. I've got like some catchphrases already... Lochte and loaded.

Hot TakeOlympicsHotSarcastic
Lochte actually lost most of his major sponsorships (Speedo, Ralph Lauren) after it was revealed he embellished the story. He did not get a gun sponsorship.
Void
Big CatBig Cat

The US Basketball team should just say they were 'guys being dudes' to explain accidentally walking into a Brazilian brothel.

If the USA team wants to keep all their fans, they just say, listen, we're just guys being dudes. Finally a place where guys can go to a bar by themselves, not be hassled by women. We found it. The only spa in all of Rio de Janeiro that only allows men. And then, whoops, turns out it was a bunch of prostitutes there.

This is a satirical PR strategy and not a verifiable prediction or fact claim.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Draymond Green sending a dick pic is a 'nut shot' from the Warriors forward

Another nut shot from Draymond. Let me say that again. I stumbled over it. Another nut shot from Draymond.

This is a joke/pun, not a testable claim.
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Big CatBig Cat

If you claim you were hacked after a scandal, you must lean into it with more fake hacks

If you are going to go the hacked route, you have to go farther down the rabbit hole of hacked. So you accidentally snap a picture of your penis, then you accidentally snap a picture of a swastika, then you accidentally snap a picture of like you throwing a rock at a pigeon and then you're like shit I got hacked.

Satirical PR strategy.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Draymond Green should sue Snapchat for entrapment

If I'm Draymond, I would consider suing Snapchat. They made an app that makes it really easy to send dick pics that disappear afterwards. So it's like entrapment.

Legal satire.
Loss
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Claiming you got a 'new phone' is a bulletproof excuse for missing an NFL drug test

The more I think about it, the more it's a bulletproof excuse for Le'Veon Bell. ... Isn't it like getting served? If you never get the call, then you don't have to pee. Unless you see the cup in front of your penis, you don't have to pee into it.

Hot TakeFootballHotSarcastic
The excuse did not prevent Le'Veon Bell from being suspended for three games for missing the tests.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Players should be nicknamed 'Big Country' to improve their public image

Just give yourself the nickname Big Country because everybody loves Big Country no matter what sport you're in. Just be like, 'Hey, that's just Big Country, you know, having some fun before the game, y'all.' And people will be like, 'All right, that's good.'

This is a subjective PR strategy suggested for comedic effect.
Win
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Professional athletes should stay in their rooms and say nothing during the month of July to avoid headlines

Basically just don't say anything during the month of July. Like anything that any professional athlete of note has to say is going to become a headline story. So just just shut up. Just maybe here's what you should do. Just stay in your room. Lock yourself in your room. And just hang out there for a while.

OpinionMediaMediumSarcastic
The 'July sports vacuum' is a real media phenomenon where trivial stories receive outsized coverage.
Loss
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

NFL teams will view Johnny Manziel as a nerd for playing Pokemon Go

Manziel was at a club. ... But he was playing Pokemon inside a club. And this is a pretty bad look for Johnny. ... well now NFL teams are going to be like, we don't want to hire him. He's a nerd.

OpinionFootballHotSarcastic
While Manziel never returned to the NFL, it was due to a myriad of personal and legal issues, not specifically a reputation for being a 'nerd' because of Pokemon Go.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Johnny Manziel should drink more beer to fix his image and show he's a leader

My PR 101 to Johnny is, like, toughen up your image a little bit. Be a little bit of a bad boy. Have a couple beers. No big deal. Just kind of, like, let people know you're a regular dude.

Given Manziel's history with substance abuse, advising him to drink was objectively bad PR advice, even as a joke.
Void
Big CatBig Cat

Miko Grimes should use a foundation Twitter account to blame future controversial tweets on interns

This is a longstanding PR 101 piece. Just start a Twitter account in the foundation's name, the Miko Grimes Foundation account. Then you can say an intern was tweeting and dropping [the hard J] on everyone's face.

Satirical advice on how to handle antisemitic controversy.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

UFC should start a drug-friendly 'Rogue Fighting League' on boats in international waters

Or it's my my third my third option here is you just start your own fighting league where like all sorts of drugs are okay you do a nine-sided ring instead of eight sides kind of one-ups ufc international waters so there's no testing right on boats yeah definitely on a boat

This is a satirical suggestion and not a real business plan.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Big Cat should become a vegan as a PR move to become the 'Subway Jared' of PETA

I think Big Cat needs to become vegan. You need to say, 'You know that whole throwing blood on me and talking shit to me thing? It worked. I'm a vegan now.' Good job. ... You would be the Subway Jared of PETA. You would be their biggest success story and nothing bad could ever come from that.

The advice is satirical and not meant to be taken literally.
Void
Big CatBig Cat

Johnny Manziel's NFL suspension is a PR victory because it keeps him relevant

He got suspended by the NFL for four games. And you know what? That's a great thing for him to have happen because Johnny Manziel, for the first time in a few months, is being talked about in the same sentence as the NFL... It's all good news when the NFL is suspending you because that means you still have a little bit of relevancy.

This is a subjective interpretation of PR value, though Manziel never actually played in the NFL again.
Loss
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Johnny Manziel should claim he has diarrhea to fix his reputation

The PR coming out of this is he just says when he comes back that he's got massive diarrhea from Mexico... if you just say explicitly like I've got diarrhea to your boss, your boss is going to be like, yeah, okay, don't go down that road with me. Johnny comes back... and he tells everybody, hey, guys. Sorry. The Montezuma's revenge.

Manziel did not use this specific excuse, and his NFL career never recovered.
Loss
Big CatBig Cat

Johnny Manziel should retire from football and play baseball to pull a 'Michael Jordan'

Retire from football, play baseball, come back to football, win three Super Bowls, call it the Michael Jordan.

Manziel never played professional baseball and never returned to win a Super Bowl.
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Big CatBig Cat

Cam Newton's next celebration should involve converting to Islam and refusing to stand for the anthem

Cam X, Cameron X, converted to Islam, doesn't stand for the national anthem. His touchdown dances to pray, and then he hands the ball to a black kid. I mean, there we go.

Cam Newton did not do this. This was a joke about how to maximize 'pissing off' old white fans.
Loss
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

NFL owners likely faked the Roger Goodell death hack to test public sentiment before potentially murdering him

I think it's more probable than not that this was an idea that was floated by the owners just to see – just to kind of like gauge the reaction and see what public sentiment would look like if Roger Goodell were to die. ... testing it out to see like if we killed him, would people hate us?

The hack was confirmed to be a security breach by an outside group, not a social experiment by NFL owners.
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Big CatBig Cat

The NFL faked the Roger Goodell death hack to cover up a photo of a Patriots fan flipping him off

Tweet comes out last night or this morning, Patriots fan giving Goodell the finger in a picture. Bad look. Real bad look. One of Goodell's security guards got fired for that. You can't let that happen to the boss man. So how do we cover it up? Fake killed Goodell.

This is a satirical conspiracy theory; the NFL Twitter account was genuinely hacked by the group 'OurMine'.
Push
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Aqib Talib can extend his career by seven years by capitalizing on his shooting incident

Tlaib may have just extended his career by like seven years. Because now he can get that really sappy E30 with Jeremy Schaap... A second chance is worth like two more contracts. So smart move on Tlaib's part, getting shot, because now he gets like an opportunity to prove himself again.

Talib played through 2019, so he got about 4 more years, though not primarily due to this incident.
Void
Big CatBig Cat

Dick Vitale should start a second career as a porn critic

Maybe if he [Dick Vitale] just became a full-on porn guy, it wouldn't be the worst thing ever. If he woke up in the morning and was like, 'here are my top five favorite porn picks for the day.' Wouldn't you just be like, that kind of fits for Dick Vitale?

Satirical suggestion for a 77-year-old broadcaster.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

The best way to handle a PR disaster is to claim it was satire and that people are too dumb to get it

Another thing you can do now here's, I've learned this from experience. If you say something that's just extremely offensive and rubs people the wrong way, it's satire. Dick Vitale could have said the fuck you thing was satire. And you guys all don't get it. You're all dumb.

While many attempt this, it rarely actually ends a PR crisis effectively, though it is a common trope.
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PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

The Mets should ban the media from reporting Matt Harvey's ERA

The Mets need to send out a release to all the press people saying, you're not allowed to cover our games. You're not getting a credential if you talk about what Matt Harvey's ERA is. So just put a moratorium on bad Matt Harvey talk.

This is a satirical suggestion for a PR strategy.
Void
Big CatBig Cat

Matt Harvey needs to start partying and doing cocaine to find his form

I also think he needs to party again. He used to be a party boy... I would say either get the Mets to basically make it a rule that no one can say anything bad about you or start doing a bunch of cocaine.

Satirical advice.
Void
PFT CommenterPFT Commenter

Drake is a bad musician and generally sucks

Here's a hot take about Drake, but I truly believe this. Drake sucks. Drake is not good... There's nothing good about Drake... Old Drake, before he became a musician, was good [on Degrassi].

Whether Drake 'sucks' is entirely a matter of musical taste, though his commercial success is undeniable.

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