Pat McAfee has majorly expanded his presence at ESPN in recent years, and this should only continue as he eyes a new contract.
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According to The Athletic's Andrew Marchand, sources say that the 39-year-old McAfee is negotiating a new deal with ESPN. He has two years remaining on his current contract, which pays him close to $30 million annually, but his new deal will reportedly top $60 million per year.
Marchand reports that this will not be a fixed amount, however. It will change on a sliding scale based on the responsibilities. McAfee obviously would continue his daily three-hour sports show, but he could expand his NFL coverage while becoming more of a presence on ESPN.
This potential pay increase with the longtime broadcaster continues McAfee's rise in the media since he departed the Indianapolis Colts.
The Pennsylvania native walked away from the NFL after a Pro Bowl season in 2016. He agreed to a deal with Barstool Sports, but he ultimately departed the company after reported issues with transparency.
McAfee built his daily sports show from the ground up, and he continues to hold ownership rights. ESPN just pays him to air the first two hours on its platform. All three hours still remain on YouTube.
McAfee had stops at DAZN and SiriusXM. He also had a deal with FanDuel that he departed before taking on his current role, which also includes appearances on College GameDay and other shows.
The former punter-turned-broadcaster is already one of two faces of the channel alongside Stephen A. Smith. However, he continues to bring in younger viewers through his various roles and antics. After all, Smith isn't diving off a houseboat into a river or leaping off a diving board during a live broadcast.
The unique approach to broadcasting also includes putting his own money on the line through the weekly field goal challenge in which students must hit a 33-yard kick to win potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars.
