ESPN's offer reportedly would pay Witten in the neighborhood of $4-4.5M a yearGETTY IMAGES
Cowboys TE Jason Witten "continues to contemplate his decision to retire" and join ESPN's "Monday Night Football" booth as lead analyst, according to Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com. However, a source said that another net has "made an 'interesting' last-minute proposal." Meanwhile, a source said that Cowboys coach Jason Garrett is "actively trying to persuade Witten to play a 16th season" in '18. A source said that Witten "hopes to have a final decision in the next 48 hours, with an announcement likely by Wednesday" (ESPN.com, 4/29). In Dallas, David Moore cited sources as saying that the multiyear offer from ESPN would pay Witten "in the neighborhood" of $4-4.5M a year. While Witten "didn't have his sights set on a career change when the season ended four months ago, the status of the job and the magnitude of the offer is something he can't ignore." While the timing comes as "something of a surprise to the Cowboys, the organization has not been blindsided by this development." Sources said that Witten went to Owner Jerry Jones "earlier this month as soon as ESPN's interest escalated to a point where an offer was imminent" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 4/28). In DC, Matt Bonesteel noted Witten would likely be "paired with play-by-play announcer Joe Tessitore." ESPN also "considered Kurt Warner, Rex Ryan, Matt Hasselbeck, Booger McFarland and Louis Riddick for the analyst role" (WASHINGTON POST, 4/28). CBS' Tony Romo said of Witten potentially moving to the booth, "I actually expect him to start off really good, but it really wouldn't matter. It would only be a matter of time before he excelled at it" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 4/29). ESPN's Bomani Jones tweeted, "All the money networks were willing to pay peyton manning and the possibility of a jason witten bidding war tells you a lot about who the nfl wants its broadcasts to speak to" (TWITTER.com, 4/30).
BRUCE ALMIGHTY: THE ATHLETIC's Richard Deitsch reported former Cardinals coach Bruce Arians is "expected to sign with CBS Sports as an NFL game analyst." He is "expected to join the existing team of play-by-play broadcaster Greg Gumbel and analyst Trent Green." After he announced he was retiring in January, Arians "made it clear to the football-airing networks that he wanted a job in broadcasting" (THEATHLETIC.com, 4/27). In Phoenix, Kent Somers wrote CBS "better hope its seven-second delay on NFL broadcasts this fall is fully functional," as Arians is a "conversational swearer" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 4/28).
