Pat McAfee Net Worth in 2026: ESPN Salary, NFL Earnings and Business Ventures

McAfee earned roughly $15 million across eight NFL seasons with the Colts, but his ESPN deal already pays him about $30 million per year.

Pat McAfee on the ESPN Monday Night Countdown set at SoFi Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Pat McAfee has turned a seventh-round punting career with the Indianapolis Colts into a sports media fortune, and his next ESPN contract could double what he already earns from the network.

Celebrity Net Worth now estimates McAfee’s net worth at $80 million, up from $60 million in its 2024 and 2025 estimates. That growth follows his ESPN pay, which The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand reported in June sits around $30 million per year across his daily show, College GameDay and other network work.

What does ESPN pay McAfee?

ESPN personality Pat McAfee talks during College GameDay with Nick Saban | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

McAfee left FanDuel for ESPN in 2023 on a five-year, $85 million deal, with roughly $17 million per year tied to licensing The Pat McAfee Show. ESPN simulcasts two hours of the show each weekday, while ESPN+ and YouTube carry all three hours.

That $30 million total isn’t all take-home pay, because McAfee covers his show’s contributors, sets and production costs. He also funds the prize money for his College GameDay kicking contest, which has paid out more than $5 million to students attempting 33-yard field goals.

ESPN opened extension talks two years before his current deal expires in 2028. McAfee’s representatives, TKO executives Ari Emanuel and Mark Shapiro, opened with a $100 million annual ask before the sides settled into a $60 million to $65 million range, according to Marchand. ESPN content president Burke Magnus said in September 2025 that he “could not imagine” the network’s daytime schedule without the show.

McAfee’s NFL earnings with the Colts

Indianapolis Colts punter Pat McAfee (1) against the Minnesota Vikings | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Indianapolis drafted the West Virginia punter in the seventh round, No. 222 overall, in 2009. The Colts used the franchise tag on him in 2013 at $2.977 million, then re-signed him to a five-year, $14.5 million contract in 2014.

McAfee made two Pro Bowls and retired after the 2016 season with career earnings of about $14.8 million, less than half of what ESPN now pays him in one year.

He joined Barstool Sports after retirement before launching Pat McAfee Inc. and taking the show independent. In December 2021, FanDuel signed the show to a four-year, $120 million deal, but McAfee walked away from that contract in 2023 to move to ESPN despite the lower annual value.

What other ventures pay McAfee?

McAfee’s company keeps ownership of the show, so he can still sign outside partners. He announced a multiyear deal with DraftKings on June 1, giving the program its first official sportsbook partner since the FanDuel split. DraftKings also serves as ESPN’s official sportsbook sponsor.

McAfee began calling WWE events in 2018 and later wrestled part-time. He left wrestling after WrestleMania 42 in April, when Cody Rhodes beat his ally Randy Orton and McAfee followed through on a pledge to walk away. Emanuel also represents him in Hollywood, where he’s set to appear in director Peter Berg’s upcoming World War II film.

McAfee joined Monday Night Countdown this fall and will lead Monday Night Football alt-casts when the ManningCast isn’t airing, starting Oct. 19. This week, he shot down speculation about replacing Troy Aikman alongside Joe Buck, saying, “I’m not supposed to be in a football booth.”

A finalized extension in the reported range would make McAfee ESPN’s highest-paid employee, passing First Take host Stephen A. Smith, who signed a five-year deal worth more than $100 million in 2025.