NBC & Fox are also pursuing Drew Brees for post-retirement NFL TV deals, but ESPN is current highest bidder in the $6.5M per year neighborhood, according to sources. https://t.co/sNdxfDKWy9
— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) April 6, 2020
A $50 million contract extension hasn’t taken New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees off of the radar for the NFL’s broadcast partners. The New York Post’s Andrew Marchand reports that multiple television networks are working to recruit Brees as a game broadcaster once he’s retired from the NFL.
Per Marchand’s report, ESPN is offering the highest bid for Brees’ services — averaging nearly $6.5 million per year, which is what Jon Gruden earned as color analyst for ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” program before his return to the NFL. It’s also slightly less than the $7 million FOX pays Troy Aikman each year.
Where Brees would fit into the FOX lineup is unclear; while the report says that he would prefer to call games rather than sit on an in-studio panel for pregame and postgame shows, that’s an option along with their “Thursday Night Football” broadcast team, as well as the second-ranked Sunday crew (behind Aikman and Joe Buck).
NBC is also in the mix, possibly envisioning Brees as a replacement for Cris Collinsworth on “Sunday Night Football” in the future; right around the time in which Mike Tirico is expected to succeed Al Michaels. A Brees-Tirico pairing could be fascinating.
However, ESPN is in the lead even if the flagship network is in a strange position. They have not yet officially ruled out their Monday night matchup of Joe Tessitore and Booger McFarland (whose on-air gaffes wore thin on fans watching at home in 2019), and could very well promote their No. 2 team of Steve Levy, Louis Riddick, and Al Michaels to the top spot. It’s very much a fluid situation.
That instability isn’t helped by Brees returning for at least one more season. While he did sign a two-year deal, it’s structured so that he can retire after the 2020 season, leaving the Saints with just over $22 million in dead money counting against the salary cap. If Brees does choose to play again in 2021, that year’s accounting figure jumps to more than $36 million, meaning they would probably need to kick the can down the road a bit further with another contract extension. So don’t assume that he’ll play out both years of this two-year contract.
Whatever happens next, it’s clear that Brees will have plenty of options once he’s hung up his cleats. The question seems to be which television network he’ll sign with, and who will join him in the booth.
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