Pat McAfee’s Plan A went up in smoke a few years ago.
‘I never wanted children growing up,’ he tells the Daily Mail.
The ex-NFL star already had an idea of how hard it can be to raise a child – he was, after all, a self-confessed ‘piece of s***’ growing up who ran a ‘cigarette sales operation’ in 5th grade.
‘I hoped to die alone – and hopefully rich,’ McAfee says. And, for a while, that was the life he built toward.
In 2009, McAfee began an NFL career that would pay him nearly $20million over eight seasons with the Indianapolis Colts. One night, he played in the Super Bowl. Another ended with a drunken swim in a canal and McAfee’s arrest.
‘Then,’ he says. ‘I met my wife.’
Pat McAfee spoke to the Daily Mail about fatherhood and his career in football and media
The ex-NFL star hosts The Pat McAfee Show on Radio Row ahead of Super Bowl LX
Pat and Samantha McAfee, whose daughter was born in May 2023, are now expecting a son
By 2016, the sun began to set on his life in football. The punter had only one season left with the Colts when he went public with a girlfriend named Samantha.
They married a few years later, and then they agreed to start a family. Except it didn’t prove that simple.
Twice, Samantha suffered an ectopic pregnancy – when a fertilized egg grows outside the uterus. Twice, she required life-saving surgery.
Scarred by trauma and devastation, the couple turned to IVF, and Samantha was reduced – in McAfee’s words – to ‘a human science experiment.’ She was fed a diet of shots and pills as they juggled ‘agony’ and hope. And then, in May 2023, Samantha gave birth to their daughter, Mackenzie.
‘Now that I have a two-and-a-half-year-old, I have no idea what I would have done [without kids],’ McAfee tells the Daily Mail. ‘I love everything about it.’
That’s lucky because, in late November, science performed ‘another miracle.’ Samantha announced that they are expecting a son in June 2026, and McAfee is ‘pumped.’
Fatherhood has forced the 38-year-old to rewrite his bucket list. But he still has a chance to die rich thanks to football, the WWE and the media empire he has built outside Indianapolis.
Just days after the birth of his daughter, ESPN announced a five-year deal with The Pat McAfee Show that is said to be worth $85million.
In February, he brought his crew and his co-hosts to San Francisco ahead of Super Bowl LX. They broadcast live from Radio Row, bringing a typical dose of comedy, celebrity guests and crude language.
In the Bay Area, amid the marathon of pregame chatter, few made more noise than McAfee, whose daily talk show has turned him into one of the most polarizing but powerful personalities in sports media.
Since joining ESPN, McAfee has gone to war with high-profile executives on the network and broken the news that Travis Kelce would play on after Super Bowl LIX. His regular guests include Aaron Rodgers and, on Veteran’s Day last November, President Trump phoned in for a chat.
‘The Commander-in-Chief joining us is crazy to think about,’ McAfee says. ‘That was a fun day… a special moment.’ And a stark illustration of his rise since leaving the NFL nearly a decade ago.
McAfee has already interviewed Donald Trump, and he would like Elon Musk on his show
He spent eight seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and even played in Super Bowl XLIV
McAfee – in action here in St Louis, Missouri – has dabbled in professional wrestling
‘When I retired, I had zero job offers from anybody in TV,’ McAfee recalls.
Now, his show welcomes a conveyor belt of stars, including legendary coaches Nick Saban and Bill Belichick. But one big name still eludes McAfee.
‘I would like to talk to Elon [Musk]. I think he’s an alien,’ he tells the Daily Mail. ‘I don’t know how you can be that successful in so many different ventures… I would just like to try to pick his brain.
‘I enjoy those types of people who have a fearless amount of courage just to try to change the trajectory of mankind.’
The punter was only 29 when, in February 2017, he retired from the NFL to join Barstool Sports. He recorded The Pat McAfee Show as a three-hour podcast from behind an anonymous storefront in Indianapolis – it built an audience of nearly 700,000 in less than a year.
‘I could talk pretty good, but none of the TV people wanted anything to do with me,’ McAfee recalls. So, despite leaving Barstool the following year in 2018, he remains grateful for the chance to work with founder Dave Portnoy. ‘It was like a University of how to do this whole thing,’ he says.
And in recent years, from his new studio inside a converted church, McAfee has established himself as one of ESPN’s biggest stars. His show is on weekdays at ’12-3pm-ish.’ On Saturdays, he is a regular panelist on College GameDay.
Last week, reports claimed that McAfee had signed with Hollywood super-agent Ari Emanuel, who hopes to land him TV and movie roles and even turn him into ‘the next Sylvester Stallone.’
It probably helps that, in recent years, McAfee has been an announcer – and occasional wrestler – on WWE. He has become a master of pantomime who boasts big-name connections and an eye for viral content.
Now, he is spearheading a shift in sports media with even ESPN ditching traditional shows for louder, more brash broadcasters. So what’s the secret?
The former NFL punter is a regular panelist on ESPN’s College GameDay on Saturdays
McAfee and his wife suffered a devastating pregnancy battle before welcoming their first child
‘It’s a younger generation,’ McAfee says. ‘We’re all scrollers, so we all understand what we’re looking for. It’s just natural evolution, I think, and we’re lucky to be a part of it.’
He cites the COVID-19 pandemic as a key staging post. ‘We were an “essential business” because we were on radio at the time,’ McAfee explains. ‘So we were able to continue… and we took a lot of pride in the fact that we were the doofuses on people’s phones [as they were] going through some of the hardest stuff ever.
‘So through it all, we’ve just tried to entertain folks, inform folks and try to do it the right way. We’re very lucky. We’re very thankful. The group of guys that I’ve got alongside me are the greatest. And every day we just try to do our s*** and try to make the world a little happier.’
No doubt there are viewers at home – and inside ESPN HQ – who watch through their fingers rather than rose-colored glasses. Particularly Norby Williamson, the longtime executive who left ESPN after being called out by McAfee live on-air.
Following reports of low ratings, the ex-NFL player claimed ‘there are some people actively trying to sabotage us from within ESPN.’
He then name-checked Williamson and added: ‘Are we just going to combat that from a rat every single time?’
More reports of unrest have followed, with McAfee claiming late last year that the people who ‘hate me the most’ include ‘old ESPN people.’ In response, reports claimed network chiefs are growing frustrated with the ‘entitled diva.’
McAfee has caused ripples outside ESPN, too.
His interview with Trump sparked a backlash and so did comments by Rodgers who, in January 2024, used his weekly slot to seemingly suggest Jimmy Kimmel would be in the Jeffrey Epstein files.
McAfee has worked as a WWE announcer and reportedly now has a Hollywood super-agent
Legendary NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers is a regular guest on McAfee’s talk show
Amid the furor, the legendary quarterback later attempted to clarify his comments, but it’s easy to see why he is a good fit for the show. Rodgers is polarizing and doesn’t mind speaking his mind or flipping off convention – just like McAfee.
Even at 42, Rodgers remains an enigma to so many. Perhaps no one in the media speaks to him more regularly than McAfee. So does he want to see Rodgers back for a 22nd NFL season?
‘I would just like Aaron Rodgers to be happy,’ he says. ‘He’s committed so much of his life to this game. Obviously, there’s a lot of public scrutiny for everything that he’s ever done.
‘Some he’s obviously caused. Other things, I think he gets taken out of context a lot. He’s pretty misunderstood.’
Last season, Rodgers led the Pittsburgh Steelers to the playoffs.
‘I think he could still spin it,’ McAfee adds. ‘[But] whatever the hell he wants to do, I hope he’s happy. And if we get to see him throw some footballs again, I hope it’s on a winning team.’
Rodgers arrived for his first Steelers practice wearing a wedding ring, having tied the knot in secret. The identity of his wife, Brittani, remains a mystery.
So has McAfee met her?
‘I have not,’ he says with a laugh. ‘But I am, once again, happy for him… and if I get a chance to meet her, that’ll obviously be cool.’
In San Francisco, McAfee chose not to stick around to see the Seahawks beat the Patriots in Super Bowl LX. Instead, he headed home to watch with his young family.
The punter was a 22-year-old rookie when, in 2009, the Colts reached Super Bowl XLIV. He kicked off the game, which ended in a 31-17 loss to the New Orleans Saints.
‘I was not supposed to be there – I was nowhere near good enough at my job,’ he says. ‘I rode the coattails of an incredible team and I had no idea how hard it was to make it to the Super Bowl.’
McAfee can still picture the scene postgame: tears flowing, ‘dead silent.’
‘The most depressed locker room I’d ever been in my life,’ he says. ‘I was just a young, little doofus. I said, “Boys, it’s all right, we’ll be back.” We never made it.’
But it’s likely McAfee will return to Radio Row in 12 months’ time. And, who knows, maybe his son will one day be on the field.
‘I do not want him to be a kicker,’ the 38-year-old says. ‘If he wants to throw it a little bit, I’ll certainly help. But if he wants to be an astronaut? Cool.’
McAfee is convinced that both his kids will end up in team sports. ‘But whatever the hell they fall into… I can’t wait for all of it.’