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Dan Orlovsky: There Were Moments I Thought I Was Going to FOX

“There were moments in the negotiation that I thought it was going to happen. I honestly did,” he said. “Me and my wife were just about to go to Los Angeles and start looking at homes and schools.”

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Dan Orlovsky

ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky said that after this year’s Super Bowl, when his contract with ESPN was done, he was very near leaving the network to head West for FOX.

Orlovsky was a guest on The Press Box podcast with Bryan Curtis and answered a question about his return to ESPN. He was asked if it was tied to him being able to broadcast Monday Night Football and its second game of a doubleheader.

“It was the tipping point, if I’m dead-honest, yeah,” said Orlovsky. He then went on to talk about where he was at mentally when it was time to negotiate for a new deal, his first since his initial one.

“This was the first time I was like ‘I really want to see what other opportunities there are,'” Orlovsky mentioned. “If it means going to a different network or if it means moving from Connecticut and away from the East Coast, I was ready for that.”

Orlovsky then got into how close he was in being ready to make the leap from ESPN to another network.

“There were moments in the negotiation that I thought it was going to happen. I honestly did,” he said. “Me and my wife were just about to go to Los Angeles and start looking at homes and schools.”

Orlovsky also noted that he felt like he needed to be challenged with something new and that was a major reason why he felt the tug to leave.

“I wanted to be challenged with a new opportunity. I believed that I was ready for it,” he said. “I believe that the work that I had done had proved that I was ready for it. When ESPN finally came to my people, my reps, and said this is what we want to do. I can’t pass up that opportunity. I can’t leave because that is an opportunity and situation that is an incredible one.”

He ceded that it would have been quite difficult to leave ESPN if he did make that choice.

“It was going to be tough to leave ESPN because I grew up watching SportsCenter like so many kids but I grew up watching SportsCenter forty minutes from it. ESPN was like heaven, so to speak… I adore the people I get to work with. To leave the NFL Live crew would have been probably the hardest thing.”

Curtis followed-up by asking if he meant FOX when he said he was looking to bolt for Los Angeles. He confirmed and then answered if the opportunity to call NFL games was on the table for him at FOX.

“That was going to be part of that transition, yes.”

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Report: NFL to Put Christmas Day Doubleheader Up For Bids

Bidding is expected to start at $50 million among the current NFL media partners but some think the games could sell for $75 million to $100 million apiece.

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The NFL will reportedly put its Christmas Day games up for auction, allowing its current media partners to bid for the games. Now, it’s up to CBS, FOX, ESPN, NBC, and Prime Video to pay up for rights to one of these two marquee games.

According to Front Office Sports Michael McCarthy, preference will be given to linear networks, so Prime Video and Peacock may sit this one out. Bidding is expected to start at $50 million but McCarthy and his sources expect that number to rise. John Kosner, the former ESPN executive, thinks the new Christmas Day games could sell for $75 million to $100 million apiece.

The NFL announced a Wednesday Christmas Day doubleheader during its annual league meetings. The league originally said it wouldn’t force games on Christmas Day if the holiday fell on an odd day of the week, though as the NFL continues to put games on days outside of Sundays, Mondays, Thursdays, and sometimes Saturdays, we’re running out of days that don’t feature NFL football.

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Colorado Rockies & DirecTV Reach Agreement to Carry Games on TV

“Colorado sports fans have made DIRECTV the top destination for their favorite local teams. We will continue to work with MLB…so fans can get their games.”

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Colorado Rockies

Breathe easy, Rockies fans — you will be able to watch your club on linear TV this year. At the buzzer, DirecTV and the Colorado Rockies agreed on terms to distribute the team’s games throughout its local service.

Starting today, DirecTV Choice subscribers across Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Southern Idaho, Western Nebraska, and Northern New Mexico can now watch the Rockies on a special channel simply titled, “ROCKIES.” The games will be available on DirecTV and DirecTV STREAM via channel 683.

“Colorado sports fans have made DIRECTV the top destination to get all their favorite local teams,” said Rob Thun, chief content officer of DIRECTV. “We will continue to work with MLB, the NBA, NHL, and other top leagues and their local franchises so the most avid fans can get the games they want while other customers have more choice over the content they want to pay to have in their homes.”

Reports just days ago out of Colorado said there were “no guarantees” the Rockies would not find a TV home in time for Opening Day following the sunsetting of AT&T SportsNet. The only other way to watch the team is to use its direct-to-consumer Rockies.tv streaming service, which fans say is too pricey for a team that lost 103 games last season. Luckily, the team was able to secure a TV home for 2024, though the future is still uncertain.

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Erin Andrews Reveals Infertility Journey in Emotional ‘Today Show’ Interview

FOX reporter Erin Andrews sat down with ‘The Today Show’s’ Kristen Welker to discuss her journey, how Welker’s own journey inspired her, and more.

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Erin Andrews

FOX reporter Erin Andrews shared her story of infertility and surrogacy with NBC’s Today Show. Last summer, Andrews and her husband welcomed a baby boy via surrogate after trying for a decade to get pregnant via IVF, during which she was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2016. Today, she sat down with Kristen Welker to discuss her journey, how Welker’s own journey inspired her, and more.

Andrews says Welker’s announcement on the Today Show made her think a baby could be possible. “I remember Kristin Welker’s announcement on your show,” Andrews said last year, “and I actually watched that the morning Mac was born, because that just hit me.”

When they finally sat down, Welker asked Andrews why her journey resonated with the sports reporter so much:

“Because I see myself in you. Kristen, the video of you moderating debates after you’re waiting on bad news or maybe you just received it, that’s me. I can tell you every stand-up I’ve done at a football game where I’ve gotten the news that it didn’t work. I’d be talking about Tom Brady going for this record and my record is that I still was failing…I would have chest pains every time I was waiting for the call if it worked, and I knew it wouldn’t work.

Erin Andrews on ‘Today’

Andrews knew surrogacy was the only path to having a child. Although her family’s first attempt failed, her second attempt was a success, and she got to hear her child’s heartbeat for the very first time. The pair discuss the complex emotions that come with surrogacy, saying that bonds with their child could be affected because they didn’t carry their child. However, Welker assured Andrews that those feelings go away once you can talk to your child.

Once her son was born in June, who Andrews called, “a miracle,” she then talks about her child glowingly, talking about how he is just like mom — vocal. “He’s all me,” she says.

Andrews supports Baby Quest, a non-profit that grants money to families in need of IVF or surrogacy to have a baby but don’t have the funds to pursue these expensive treatments. Both Andrews and Welker acknowledged how difficult and unattainable their journies are for some families — and Andrews even used the NFL’s “My Cleats, My Cause” initiative to raise awareness for her cause.

“People don’t need to feel embarrassed that they have a surrogate or are looking for other help,” Andrews said.

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