Joe Buck Hopes for Troy Aikman's New ESPN Deal

Joe Buck has voiced his hope that Troy Aikman and ESPN will finalize a new contract, following Buck's own six-year, $100 million-plus extension with the network. Buck's new deal ensures he will continue as the play-by-play announcer for "Monday Night Football."

In a recent interview on the podcast “Unfiltered with Ricky Bo and Bill Colarulo,” Buck addressed Aikman’s contract, which is set to expire after the current NFL season. Buck, who followed Aikman to ESPN from Fox, emphasized the close bond they share.

“I’m pretty well on record, having begged out of my last years at Fox to follow him to ESPN, where I stand on all that,” Buck said. “I legitimately love the guy like a brother. We’re basically the same age; I’m 57, he’s 59. We’ve both been through divorce. We’re both girl dads. Twenty-five years, you’re sharing a lot of life together. Forget games and in the booth and all that stuff."

He added, “So, I hope so. I mean, both of us were up. It wasn’t like we were doing some national signing day where we walk in arm-in-arm and then sign contracts at the same time. So we’ve always kind of kept that stuff separate. I’m obviously hopeful, to say the least, that something gets done. But that’s kind of his world, and ESPN’s world, and I’ve got to kind of mind my own yard in that stuff. I think that’s the best way to be.”

Buck and Aikman have worked together for 25 years, spanning their time at both Fox and ESPN. The broadcast duo is scheduled to call Super Bowl 2027 for ESPN.

Earlier, on a Sept. 20 episode of the “Sports Media with Richard Deitsch” podcast, Aikman had shared his perspective. He had anticipated a new contract by that point and indicated he had not yet heard from ESPN regarding his future.

“Good for him for getting an extension,” Aikman had said of Buck’s deal. “Where I land on that, I don’t really don’t have an answer there. I don’t really know. I’ve had no conversation with anyone from Bristol as far as what this means for me."

Aikman further elaborated on his role in joining ESPN in 2022. “I will say that I came over [from Fox] in 2022 in large part to kind of help mend the relationship with ESPN and the NFL. And there were a lot of people that were involved in that, Joe [Buck] and others. But I’m real proud of that. I feel like the reason I was brought over, I fulfilled whatever obligations that they were expecting from me. I’m proud, and so much so the league now owns 10 percent of the network. I would say that the fence has been mended."

He continued, “… Beyond that, I’m gonna go out and do my job like I have each and every year — this is my 26th season in broadcasting — every year I’ve given it everything that I have, and I will continue to do that. I’m excited about this year. I’m excited to be calling another Super Bowl [in 2027]… Where it all lands when it’s all said and done, I’ll be interested as anybody anyone to see what that will look like.”

Aikman acknowledged that Buck’s new deal would be a significant factor in his own broadcast future. “There’s no question that would factor into it — unfortunately or fortunately, how much of that is my decision is yet to be determined,” Aikman stated. “Would I want to continue to work with Joe Buck moving down the road? 100 percent.”

He expressed surprise that a deal hadn't been reached earlier. “I thought something would be done prior to the start of this season. I’ve never gone into a last year of a contract ever — since I signed with the Dallas Cowboys — so I thought that it would be done. It’s not. When it might get done, if it gets done is anyone’s guess, and it’s just not something that I’m really putting a lot of energy into.”

Both announcers transitioned to ESPN in March 2022 to call games for "Monday Night Football," after a 25-year partnership at Fox where they called over 300 games together.