Over the last 24 hours, there’s been reports of tension between “Monday Night Football” broadcasters Joe Buck and Troy Aikman. Because Buck got rewarded with a new five-year, $100 million-plus contract and Aikman is still unsigned, it’s also been speculated that Aikman won’t return to ESPN next season as Buck’s “MNF” sidekick. With so many questions regarding his broadcasting future and his supposed fractured friendship with Buck, Aikman was asked during a radio appearance on 96.7 The Ticket on Thursday if there was any truth to either rumor.
Not mincing words, Aikman essentially confirmed he’d be leaving ESPN at the end of the NFL season, which culminates with Super Bowl LXI (ESPN will broadcast the Super Bowl for the first time this year). I don’t know that it’s hard to figure out kind of what happened. I’ll broadcast through this season and I’ll be a free agent at the end of the year and kind of see what happens.
I’m looking forward to whatever the rest of this season does hold and the Super Bowl and all that and where my next landing spot may be.” Aikman has been with ESPN since 2022 when he and Buck were brought over from Fox, where they served as the network’s No. 1 broadcast team. If Aikman does hit free agency, a logical landing spot could be CBS. The network parted ways with another legendary Dallas Cowboys quarterback, Tony Romo, earlier this year after his DUI incident.
Watt has replaced Romo alongside Jim Nantz on CBS’ No. 1 broadcast team, Aikman’s experience could be too enticing for the network to pass up, and Watt could be bumped back down to the No. 2 team. Another possibility is Aikman could head back to Fox. Though its top broadcast team is already full with Tom Brady and Kevin Burkhardt, it’s been rumored Greg Olen will be leaving at the end of the season, opening a spot on the No. 2 team alongside Joe Davis.
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