Almost every single nationally-televised MWC game is in the late-night 10pm ET timeslot. Those games do not get good TV ratings and do not remotely compare to broadcasts on ABC or in the ESPN primetime spot. 

I think the ideal scenario would be that BYU joins the expanded AAC (along with Boise, SDSU, and Air Force...and Gonzaga) for the 2022 season, but only plays a limited 6-game AAC schedule (at least until 2025) that always includes Boise, SDSU, and Air Force. BYU would be eligible for the AAC conference championship game and expanded bowl lineup, but would still have flexibility to play the marquee P5 matchups already scheduled as an independent.

Add BYU, Boise, SDSU, and Air Force home inventory to the AAC deal and sign a 4-year grant of rights. In that scenario, I believe the AAC would match (if not increase) its current $7M per team payout for 2022 through 2025. ESPN finances the increase by simply adding what it would have paid to BYU and the MWC into the AAC contract. That's about $25-30M per year, which finances the additions of BYU, Boise, SDSU, and AFA.

Also, I believe the only games that BYU would need to cancel are the 2-game series with Rice and Wyoming and an FCS opponent or two.