And the final winner of the 2026 Winter Olympics is: Pat McAfee.
On Friday, The Pat McAfee Show hosted the two hottest stars of Team USA: Jack Hughes and Megan Keller. After scoring the two respective “golden goals” in overtime to defeat Canada, Hughes and Keller could have called their own media shots. But they made a point of talking to McAfee and his castmates. (Hughes actually traveled in person to the NFL Combine on McAfee’s home turf of Indianapolis; Keller also wanted to be in person but did her interview via FaceTime).
Call it another day at the office for McAfee’s “progrum.” In six short years, the former NFL punter’s eponymous weekday show has become a hot spot for stars, coaches, and league commissioners to kick back and let their hair down.
From LeBron James and Aaron Rodgers to Roger Goodell and Adam Silver to even President Donald Trump, everybody’s talking to McAfee. Not to mention famous football coaches from Bill Belichick to Nick Saban.
If you want to know why the 38-year-old star effectively plays by his own rules under the aegis of ESPN’s four letters, let’s start with his stream of A-List gets.
McAfee can now book just about anybody he wants. The only person who might have a comparable rolodex is former Colts teammate Peyton Manning, who hosts A-listers on the ManningCast with his brother, Eli Manning. No wonder McAfee’s weekday show just posted its most-watched year ever on ESPN, averaging 436,000 viewers across TV/digital platforms, up 8% from the year before.
Thanks partly to McAfee’s popular kicking contest, ESPN’s iconic College GameDay also posted its most-watched regular season ever, averaging 2.7 million viewers. That was up 22%. Also: Viewership among viewers under 35 years of age and women rose 35% and 34%, respectively. No wonder ESPN brass has stood by him through controversies, including a dustup with Jimmy Kimmel and his amplifying of false rumors about an innocent college student.
But that’s not the only reason McAfee’s on a roll business-wise. As a former All-Pro who’s played in a Super Bowl, he can relate to athletes and coaches on a different level. His interviews are fun, loose, and free-wheeling. McAfee’s experience as a part-time WWE wrestler and commentator serves him well. Nobody’s better at touting an upcoming guest like a carnival barker. Before bringing out Hughes, he declared: “He ate a stick earlier in the game, lost a tooth, looked like a legend–and became one immediately as he goes five-hole.”
The Indianapolis-based McAfee disdains most traditional sportswriters. In fact, he enjoys biting the hand that pays him $17 million a year to license his show by dissing “old ESPN people” and “journalism puppets.”
You’re either for or against McAfee. That works for him, not against him, when it comes to guests. While he will play hardball with ESPN producers he suspects are trying to undercut him, he and his crew treat their TV visitors like royalty. Frequent guests, like Peter Schrager on Friday’s show, hug it out with the cast like returning old friends. The A-listers on the McAfee show know they are not going to get grilled with uncomfortable questions, as they might by a TV anchor wearing a “J” for journalism hat. Instead, they get the interview equivalent of a back rub. Upfront, McAfee’s show warns viewers he and his fellow “stooges” are there to generate laughs; not gotcha moments. Like Mike Greenberg or Howard Stern, McAfee’s a smart and curious interviewer. But guests know he’s on their side.
Take Hughes’ appearance on Friday. While many sports media outfits have been outraged over the men’s team’s reaction to Trump’s post-game comments about the women, McAfee made it clear he disagrees with the “outrageous” expectations placed on Hughes and his teammates in that moment. As McAfee told Hughes: “Just know that anybody with a brain—so pumped for you and the women’s team.”
McAfee can be prickly and hyper-sensitive to criticism. During a press day at ESPN, he memorably went scorched earth on sports media columnists. Several years ago, he publicly threatened to buy Front Office Sports—and have me fired—because he didn’t like an otherwise complimentary post on X/Twitter. During the third hour of Friday’s show on YouTube, he noted his critics can “eat shit.”
But McAfee’s also famous for his good-hearted generosity. He’s donated an estimated $6 million out of his own pocket to kicking contest winners and charities, say sources. He just went viral on social media for picking up the $150,000 bar tab for the men’s team’s wild celebration at a Miami nightclub. “Thank you for representing the United States of America in such a great way, it was an honor to watch you win, enjoy the hell out of it, tonight all of your drinks are on me,” McAfee told the players in a video that has since circulated on social media. During Friday’s interview with Keller, he offered to pick up a similar tab for the women. No wonder a smiling Hughes agreed to fire a hockey puck for a $100,000 donation to charity.
Many rich celebs like to think they’re generous. But how many put their money where their mouth is like McAfee does? As ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky tweeted after he paid Team USA’s tab: “The secret’s getting out. Just a good dude.”
Like ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, McAfee has ambitions beyond sports. Super-agent Ari Emanuel is looking to turn McAfee into the next Sylvester Stallone, according to Lucas Shaw of Bloomberg. The executive chairman of WME Group has begun booking his new client for film/TV roles.
Meanwhile, FOS broke the story that ESPN wants The Pat McAfee Show to do a “Field-Cast” around its first Super Bowl on Feb. 14, 2027. But only if ESPN can overcome certain rights hurdles with the NFL.
At this point, who’s going to tell McAfee and his team no? He has a hotline to Burke Magnus, Jimmy Pitaro, and Bob Iger at ESPN and Disney. And NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell looked chummy when he appeared on his show last spring.
As McAfee tweeted: “BREAKING: Source(s) tell me that the rights hurdle is very hurdle-able Would be absolutely bonkers#FOOTBALL.”
