Pat McAfee was reportedly considering walking away from his $120 million deal with FanDuel a few months ago. There were numerous factors that made the former NFL punter think about his mega-million-dollar deal. While the whole situation is still quite unclear, ESPN appears to be the leading organization where McAfee might eventually end up.
Advertisement
The 36-year-old became a sensation because of his YouTube show called ‘The Pat McAfee Show.’ Along with that, he is an announcer and a performer at WWE. Additionally, McAfee is also a panelist at ‘College GameDay.’ And as it turns out, per The New York Post, the former Indianapolis Colts athlete might now end up working for ESPN alongside veterans like Stephen A. Smith and Joe Buck.
Is Pat McAfee heading to ESPN?
A few days ago, Pat tweeted a picture of him in a meeting with Disney CEO Bob Iger. Post that, McAfee told his audience that he is working on something that he will announce in the next few days. As it turns out, on May 16, Disney is also set to make announcements regarding its forthcoming corporate-wide programming.
Needless to say, fans think that the company will announce its relationship with McAfee. Though the exact amount of McAfee’s deal is not known, many expect it to be no less than an eight figure a year deal.
Update: Pat McAfee is "contemplating" leaving his $120M FanDuel deal and ESPN is the leading candidate to be his new home, per @AndrewMarchand
"The exact amount of money McAfee will earn in a deal is not known, though it is expected to be in the eight-figures-per-year range." pic.twitter.com/6tKJ2ihUmK
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) May 9, 2023
No one knows in what capacity Pat McAfee might work with ESPN, and as per ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro, who believes in roping in top people ain order to make them work for him, the company will do something big with the WWE personality.
It is believed that McAfee and his “The Pat McAfee Show” crew will continue their three-hour daily program. But an hour of the program might be aired on ESPN. If the deal comes to fruition, McAfee will join big names like of Stephen A. Smith, Scott Van Pelt, and Peyton Manning.
McAfee’s journey in the NFL
Pat McAfee played in West Virginia, where he featured as a kicker for the Mountaineers for four seasons. He was then named a First Team All-American in 2008. After that, the Indianapolis Colts drafted him as a punter in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft. Proving the Colts right, in 2009, Pat made the PFWA All-Rookie Team.
The star player went on to make his way to two Pro Bowls as well in 2014, and in 2016. Pat played for the Colts for eight seasons and missed only one game in his entire NFL career. He retired from the league in February 2017 after undergoing several knee surgeries.
