The relationship between Joe Buck and Troy Aikman has been strained for weeks — and maybe longer — according to what appears to be the most detailed report yet regarding their recent tension.
In a piece published Wednesday, a source told Dylan Byers of Puck that Aikman had been “increasingly cold, difficult, short” and “making comments” in the weeks since learning that Buck had reached a new contract extension with ESPN. The source characterized the reported argument between Buck and Aikman — first publicized by Ryan Glasspiegel of Front Office Sports last week — as the result of Buck having “finally snapped.”
Byers reported that the relationship between Buck and Aikman “had been strained for some time,” quoting a source as saying the partnership had suffered “erosion.” It is not clear when that deterioration would have begun. Buck and Aikman are not just the longest-tenured broadcast pairing in NFL history, but have had a well-documented friendship that by all accounts has extended deep into their personal lives.
Whatever strain existed before has apparently descended into open conflict since news of Buck’s contract extension was reported by Andrew Marchand of The Athletic last month. Byers said he spoke to a “dozen-plus” sources about the rift and characterized Aikman as feeling as if Buck, ESPN and even CAA — the agency he and Buck share — had ‘screwed him over.’
According to Byers, Buck and his agent initially approached ESPN about an early negotiation in May and were informed as part of those talks that the company could move on from Aikman. That did not stop Buck from “almost immediately” accepting the deal. Buck was reportedly told that Aikman could be replaced by Greg Olsen of Fox or by ESPN’s own Kirk Herbstreit, with Buck said to have been “most receptive” to Olsen.
Aikman was not informed of the deal by Buck, ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro or CAA, per Byers, leaving him feeling “double-crossed.”
Aikman had also sought an early renegotiation with ESPN, according to the report, but those talks ground to a halt after one of his representatives suggested his value was in the range of $30 million/year — compared to the $18 million/year he currently makes. His current contract was reached at a time when Tony Romo’s $17 million/year was a record-setting figure, but his replacement at Fox, Tom Brady, shortly after reset the market with a $38 million/year deal.
Per Byers, Buck apologized to Aikman and the entire “Monday Night Football” production team for last week’s argument ahead of this past week’s 49ers-Commanders game, but Aikman did not reciprocate.
The Buck-Aikman relationship has brought uninvited scrutiny to the ESPN “Monday Night Football” booth mere months before the first-ever ESPN-produced Super Bowl, and the first Super Bowl on the Disney networks since 2006. That scrutiny is clearly extending beyond the sports niche. It is John Ourand who usually covers sports media at Puck. Byers’ primary beat is news media, and over the past year almost exclusively the inner workings of CBS News. It is, to say the least, atypical for there to be a heavily-sourced story about ESPN from a reporter who usually covers the news media.
