Dan Orlovsky reveals how close he came to leaving ESPN

Dan Orlovsky is sticking with ESPN, but the football analyst claims he seriously considered leaving the network to go elsewhere.

In an appearance on the “SI Media With Jimmy Traina” podcast, Orlovsky was asked if he came close to leaving ESPN when his contract was up over the summer. The former quarterback said he had, and that he felt he owed it to himself to see what other opportunities were on the table for him.

“I came close to very seriously entertaining other places,” Orlovsky said, via Ben Axelrod of Awful Announcing. “What I’ve learned is I do myself a disservice if I don’t … I’ve worked my absolute tail off for six or seven years now to get to that point this summer. I didn’t want to make a decision ‘just cause’ or emotionally or in the moment. So yeah, I tried to take my time to be very conscious of it and open-minded to every element or opportunity.

“There was a lot of really really deep conversations had with myself and my wife and our kids and other places and coaching. And it’s not necessarily the next step for 2025 or 2026. It’s what would be the next step for five years from now? Seven years from now. I worked really hard. I’m really proud to say that. It’s a trademark of kind of who I am. And I wanted to, for a lack of a better term, take advantage of that.”

Orlovsky made a lot of headlines this summer when he publicly questioned his position at ESPN. He even suggested he could go into coaching, which is something he still appears to be interested in. For now, though, his ESPN future is secure, at least for a few more years.

The 41-year-old is one of ESPN’s top football analysts, and has even found his way onto the network’s second broadcasting crew for “Monday Night Football.” ESPN was obviously motivated to keep him, and succeeded.