Troy Aikman Celebrates Girlfriend Marisa Howard's 40th Birthday with Romantic Dallas Date Night
The former Cowboys quarterback shared rare photos of his relationship with Howard, who is 19 years his junior, amid ongoing speculation about his ESPN contract.
Troy Aikman marked his girlfriend Marisa Howard's 40th birthday with a celebratory dinner in Dallas on Sunday, offering a rare public glimpse into their relationship. The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback, currently ESPN's lead NFL color commentator, shared photos from the evening on Instagram, where he posted a picture of himself with Howard at the restaurant Catch.
Howard, a yogi and children's author, was also the subject of a separate birthday tribute Aikman posted earlier on Sunday, captioned "Happy Birthday Beautiful." The couple, who has an age difference of 19 years, first made their relationship public in June of this year when Aikman shared images from a trip to Croatia that included his two daughters, Alexa and Jordan.
The romance between Aikman and Howard was initially reported by D Magazine in June 2025, following sightings of them attending hot yoga classes together in Dallas. At the time of the report, Howard was reportedly still legally married, having filed for divorce from Frank Howard Jr. in July 2024. She had previously worked as the director of communications and media at his molecular diagnostic testing laboratory, GeneIQ, and they share two daughters.
Aikman's personal life has been marked by previous marriages. His first marriage to former Cowboys publicist Rhonda Worthey ended in January 2011. He later married Catherine 'Capa' Mooty in 2017, with their divorce finalized in July 2024.
This personal milestone comes as Aikman's professional future at ESPN remains a topic of discussion. Despite his colleague Joe Buck recently signing a significant contract extension, Aikman has stated he has had "no conversations" with the network regarding his own future. Buck's new deal reportedly extends his role as the voice of "Monday Night Football" into the 2030s, with an annual salary increase.
Aikman and Buck, who have worked together in the broadcast booth since 2002 and moved to ESPN in 2022, are set to call their first Super Bowl together at the end of the current season. Aikman's current five-year contract, valued at $90 million, concludes after this season. He expressed surprise that contract discussions had not yet occurred, noting that he has never entered the final year of a contract without resolution previously. "When it might get done, if it gets done, is anybody's guess, and it's just not something that I'm really putting a lot of energy into," Aikman commented on the Sports Media with Richard Deitsch podcast.
He emphasized that working with Buck is a significant factor in his potential decision to continue with ESPN. "Would I like to continue working with Joe Buck moving down the road? 100 percent," Aikman stated. ESPN, however, has declined to comment on specific talent contract negotiations, stating that the network's immediate focus is on the upcoming Super Bowl broadcast.