As a Pro Bowl punter for the Indianapolis Colts, Pat McAfee pocketed $15 million over his eight NFL seasons. As host of the wildly popular Pat McAfee Show, he’s about to make nine figures.
FanDuel rewarded McAfee Thursday with a monster contract extension, signing him to a four-year deal worth close to $30 million annually. That’s more than Spotify paid podcast giant Joe Rogan ($100 million) last year. It also dwarfs the $50 million ESPN alum Dan Le Batard received from his new partnership with DraftKings.
Several years ago, McAfee auditioned—unsuccessfully—for the analyst role that would ultimately go to Jason Witten on Monday Night Football. The MNF snub was a setback for McAfee, though his pivot to radio and streaming content, hosting The Pat McAfee Show alongside former Packers linebacker A.J. Hawk on Sirius XM and YouTube, clearly paid off in the long run.
Known for his high energy and blue-collar aesthetic (his wardrobe consists almost exclusively of gym attire), McAfee has quickly emerged as a rising star in sports media, contributing to outlets such as ESPN, Fox Sports, Barstool, DAZN and Westwood One before finding a permanent home on Sirius. McAfee made headlines a month ago when friend of the show Aaron Rodgers came on to defend himself after he was criticized for misleading fans about his vaccination status. A known wrestling enthusiast, the 34-year-old also serves as a color commentator for WWE SmackDown Friday nights on Fox.
McAfee’s sense of humor and access to A-list celebrities like Rodgers has obviously served him well. It was also savvy of McAfee to embrace sports betting by partnering with FanDuel, an industry leader in that space.
“It is an absolute dream come true,” said McAfee, calling his new FanDuel fortune, a “hilarious amount of money.” “You have no idea how thankful I am that you allow us dumbasses into your life.” McAfee also announced he and his producing team will be moving to a new, larger studio in Indianapolis in the coming months.
“When we started this, we could have never fathomed how big it would get and how quickly it would get there,” said McAfee, reflecting on the show’s humble beginnings on terrestrial airwaves. “And we’re only getting started.”
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