Last year, as he transitioned into his ‘give-no-f—- era’, former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman perhaps saw how his ESPN colleague Pat McAfee held no bars to create his show. Now, that could be the very reason drawing a rift between the two. The color commentator is known to hold a grudge or two, and seeing that his last appearance at The Pat McAfee Show came two years ago, the host may have poked him the wrong way.

So much so that even after McAfee’s endless tries to host him, Aikman keeps slipping out. And it has seemingly come on the former NFL punter’s last nerve. During the NFL owners meeting in Phoenix’s live show, McAfee dropped subtle hints to ESPN NFL insider Peter Schrager that he is growing tired of the chase.

“I don’t know how we are with Troy, I’m gonna be honest. I like him,” McAfee told Schrager on Tuesday. “Troy [Aikman] never comes on our show. Then, Rich Eisen’s first day on ESPN at noon, he’s on the show. So, Troy always tells us, ‘Can’t do it noon. Sorry, it’s impossible.’ First day Rich [Eisen] is on, Troy’s like, ‘Get me on that phone.'”

When Aikman joined ESPN from FOX, McAfee could not hold his excitement. Since then, the color commentator has appeared on his show multiple times. But Aikman has reportedly been away from McAfee’s show since 2024, citing scheduling conflicts. At times, the former’s involvement with the Miami Dolphins has also come up as the reason, but Aikman’s appearance on Eisen’s show tells a different story. Here’s why…

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McAfee’s show airs from noon to 2 PM ET on ESPN with an exclusive hour on ESPN+ and YouTube. The Rich Eisen Show, running noon to 3 PM ET, replaces McAfee’s show for two weeks in February when McAfee goes away in the offseason. The two shows have essentially been running head-to-head on the platform, and with Aikman preferring Eisen, it only makes McAfee feel more vulnerable.

He already believes that ESPN brought Eisen in to show him that they’ve got replacements. But then again, Aikman is himself filming and traveling during the NFL regular season and would barely have any time to make an appearance during that stretch. That’s why McAfee doesn’t feel all that bad as of now.

“I won’t take it as a personal heat,” McAfee added. “But I do not know, and we don’t know Troy like that.”

There is no public knowledge of why Aikman would dislike McAfee. Nor is it like the time McAfee and fellow ESPN host Stephen A. Smith clashed over a creative difference, but continued showing respect in front of the cameras. Probably, the rather public invite would nudge Aikman to eventually return to The Pat McAfee Show or at least reply with what’s really going on.

For now, though, he is being selective about his appearance due to the NFL’s scrutiny of former players like him and Tom Brady, who have a conflict of interest by working on the booth but also being actively involved in team operations.

How can Troy Aikman’s involvement with the Dolphins raise concerns?

Conflict of interest has become a growing issue for the NFL. It first came into focus when Tom Brady took on a role with FOX after retiring and then purchased minority ownership in the Las Vegas Raiders.

Over the past two seasons, the league has been navigating how to handle that situation while also putting limitations on Brady. Now, a similar concern could be emerging.

The Dolphins brought in Troy Aikman as a consultant in January during their search for a new head coach and general manager. Aikman also continued serving as a broadcaster for ESPN. To prepare for game days, broadcasters hold meetings with the players and the entire team to outline how and what they are going to present during the live telecast. In those meetings, they also learn many plans of how they will approach their opponents, something that could be lethal if leaked.

Of course, the Dolphins weren’t planning on it. They wanted an experienced voice from outside the organization to help guide key hiring decisions. They even hired Jon-Eric Sullivan as GM and Jeff Hafley as head coach with Aikman’s guidance. Aikman still indicated he may stay involved.

“I’m gonna continue to work with them in some capacity, and that’s kind of scratched whatever itch I had when it came to being in the front office,” Aikman said.

That’s where the concern starts to build. Mike Florio raised that exact point, noting the league may need to step in, similar to how it has handled Brady’s situation.

“If, however, he’ll be working for the Dolphins, it would make sense for the league to draw lines as to where he can and can’t go as it relates to the other 31 teams,” Florio said. “Plenty of people have hobbies and/or side hustles. When an NFL broadcaster moonlights as a paid consultant or employee of one of the league’s teams, it’s a problem that shouldn’t be ignored.”

For now, there’s no clear direction from the league on how it plans to handle this. What does seem clear is that Aikman has enjoyed the experience with Miami and is open to continuing it, even as the broader questions around conflict of interest continue to grow.