While J.J. Watt is finding his groove with Jim Nantz on CBS, another Texas football icon may be looking for a new broadcast home as soon as the season ends.
Troy Aikman has been the lead commentator alongside Joe Buck for 25 years, first at Fox in 2002 and then at ESPN beginning in 2022. The duo has called numerous iconic NFL games over the last 20 years. However, that partnership might be heading toward a divorce as ESPN re-signed Buck to a six-year contract extension, per Front Office Sports.
Aikman's deal with the network ends after the Super Bowl in February. After a reported argument between Buck and Aikman ahead of the Rams-Bills game on Monday night, Aikman not only confirmed it happened but hinted he's likely done with ESPN once the season wraps.
"There's probably a time and a place for all that," the three-time Super Bowl champion said during a radio interview with KTCK The Ticket in Dallas. "I don't know if now is the time. I don't know if it's hard to figure out kind of what's happened. I'll broadcast through this season, and I'll be a free agent at the end of the year and kind of see what happens. But I'm looking forward to whatever the rest of this season does hold and the Super Bowl and all that and where my next landing spot might be."
Here he is on The Ticket in Dallas this morning 😬 https://t.co/24WaRFJ0aP
- TanH (@thethucks) October 15, 2026
Aikman has been in the broadcast booth longer than he was a signal caller in Dallas en route to a Hall of Fame career. If he does happen to walk away from ESPN, a bidding war is likely to ensue for his services from the NFL's other broadcast partners.
It could also mean a game of musical chairs for CBS's No. 1 booth with Nantz and Watt, who replaced Tony Romo after his OWI arrest earlier this year. While CBS has made no intention to replace Watt for its premiere broadcast since naming him Romo's permanent replacement, the network would still at least inquire about Aikman, especially since it will be home to the Super Bowl in 2028.
Sports Illustratedhas already revealed its list of individuals who could replace Aikman at ESPN should that broadcast chapter close. Among the top five? None other than Romo.
Whatever happens, don't expect the number of former Dallas Cowboys on television to dwindle when the calendar flips to 2027.
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This article originally published at Aikman over Watt? Where Cowboys' legend's future could lead him after ESPN.