Pat McAfee Reportedly Negotiating Lucrative Contract Extension with ESPN

Pat McAfee may not be able to return to professional wrestling, per the stipulation of Randy Orton losing to Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 42, but he's apparently doing just fine with one of WWE's biggest media partners.

The Athletic reported Tuesday that representatives for McAfee and ESPN are discussing a massive contract extension, which would pay him more than $60 million per year. That would make him the highest paid employee at ESPN.

An agreement has not yet been finalized, but if and when one is reached, it will likely result in McAfee having a larger presence on the network than he currently does, including more NFL coverage.

Pat McAfee may soon be getting a ton of dough and more screen time on ESPN

The former Pro Bowl punter for the Indianapolis Colts is currently the host of "The Pat McAfee Show", which airs every weekday from 12 p.m. ET to 2 p.m. ET on ESPN. According to The Athletic, McAfee has two years remaining on the licensing agreement that pays him over $17 million a year to broadcast the show. He maintains ownership of the program and is responsible for compensating all contributors.

His total yearly compensation from ESPN is currently around $30 million, when factoring in his duties on "College Game Day" during football season, and other alternative live broadcasts for major sporting events.

TKO executives Ari Emmuel and Mark Shapiro are said to be negotiating McAfee's new deal, with sources telling The Athletic that their initial proposal was closer to $100 million per year.

Front Office Sports first caught wind of a possible extension between Pat McAfee and the worldwide leader, but ESPN declined to comment on The Athletic's follow up report.

McAfee has emerged as one of the most prominent and popular voices in sports media over the last several years, but his approval rating in WWE took a nose dive when he returned to television ahead of WrestleMania 42.

Wrestling fans had waiting years for the creative team to book a program between reigning WWE Champion Cody Rhodes and Randy Orton, and when they finally did, TKO executives reportedly made the call to shoehorn McAfee into the middle of it to help boost ticket sales in Las Vegas.

The once proud WWE fan and contributor turned heel and loudly started criticizing the on-screen product as being total "ass". His involvement during the run up to the 'Showcase of the Immortals' was widely panned by critics and fans alike, and he reportedly removed himself from the storyline early due to the backlash.

McAfee was originally scheduled to compete in a tag team match at WWE Backlash in May, but the company quickly moved on from the Rhodes, Orton and McAfee saga after the American Nightmare successfully retained his title against The Viper back in April.

Add us as a preferred source on Google