Since Peyton Manning began working at ESPN in 2021, he has emerged as one of the most valuable and expensive assets. The earnings of the all-time great NFL quarterback have, until now, remained under wraps, but a new report is changing that. The former icon is now going toe-to-toe with Pat McAfee.

“I think Peyton Manning is in that neighborhood, too,” Andrew Marchand said in a recent episode of his podcast. “We don’t know Peyton Manning’s exact numbers, but he’s high up there with Omaha Productions. They’re getting a lot of money.”

For comparison, Pat McAfee’s original 2023 contract was worth a whopping $85 million, and the potential extension could be in the $60-$65 million per year range.

Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions being in the same range makes sense because of the massive, 10-year contract the company signed with ESPN in 2024.

The crown jewel is the much-loved ManningCast, where Peyton and his brother Eli provide their own casual and entertaining take during Monday Night Football games. Now running for five years, ManningCast will also get to broadcast the upcoming Super Bowl.

Per Awful Announcing, the company is also behind the popular podcasts of Mina Kimes, Scott Van Pelt, and others. In 2022, Omaha and ESPN launched six new podcasts, run by stars like Vince Carter, Cam Heyward, and Cooper Manning.  Former Alabama QB Greg McElroy’s Always College Football is another show that was part of this lineup. Omaha and ESPN also produced the comedy sketch on Chad Powers, which starred Glen Powell.

However, for Pat McAfee to be in the same ranks as the Mannings is an even bigger deal. The Pat McAfee Show, which is run by Pat McAfee Inc., is the only major title that is the business driver for the popular host.  The show has a whopping following of nearly three million on YouTube.

Peyton Manning has got himself a competitor now.

Pat McAfee might just be ESPN’s darling

According to The Athletic, McAfee and ESPN are currently working on an extension to his existing deal, which runs through 2028. The new contract is easily double what he makes right now, since he earns $30 million annually. His initial deal included terms for The Pat McAfee Show and separate contracts for College GameDay and other on-air appearances.

His daily show, which airs from noon to 2 p.m. ET on ESPN with an additional hour on YouTube, accounts for over $17 million of that on its own. However, there’s a catch: ESPN acquired the show with a production deal, which means that McAfee owns the program and bears its costs privately.

ESPN had a strong May this year, with The Pat McAfee Show drawing in 412,000 combined views across TV, YouTube, and streaming. The figure is a 25% increase from last year. The show’s own version of the State of the Union featuring execs from leagues like the NBA, MLB, and WNBA drew a viewership of 278,000 on ESPN alone, per Sports Business Journal’s Austin Karp.

There was no NBA game during this slot.

Perhaps this rapid rise pushed McAfee to consider getting a higher paycheck. His representatives made their first proposal with a rather bold figure of $100 million annually. But even if the $60-something million deal materializes, McAfee would earn more than any other employee at ESPN ever has before.