Troy Aikman Responds to Reports of Tension With Joe Buck in the Booth Over Contract Status

Troy Aikman Did Not Deny Tensions With Joe Buck, His Monday Night Football Partner This Season, Leaving Little Room for a New ESPN Deal

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Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and ESPN Monday Night Football analyst Troy Aikman had an opportunity Thursday to deny the tension between himself and broadcast partner Joe Buck, and he didn't take it.

He did not deny it. In fact, he kind of feeds off of it.

So the broadcast team, which has been together for more than two decades and is set to broadcast Super Bowl LXI on Feb. 14, its first on ESPN, apparently has beef.

"There's probably a time and a place for all of this to be discussed," Aikman said of the situation Thursday on Sportsradio 96.7 in Dallas. "I don't know if now is the time or not.

"I don't know. It's hard to understand what happened or not."

Aikman was specifically asked if reports of tension between him and Buck before Monday night's game between the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams were true. And this was his answer.

The smart, articulate analyst who breaks down plays immediately after they happen didn't deny a Front Office Sports report that he and Buck argued before working the play together. And over what? The fact that Buck has signed a new deal to remain with Disney/ABC/ESPN as the play-by-play man on Monday Night Football, and Aikman has no deal beyond this season.

There has been ongoing tension between the longtime partners over the season, with FOS reporting that Buck "broke the ice" on the tension, but he and Aikman fell out as a result.

Tensions were visibly eased and the two men broadcast the game and apparently plan to continue broadcasting together through the Super Bowl. But what happens after that is unclear.

ESPN's Troy Aikman before the game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida. (Nathan Ray Sibek / USA TODAY Sports)

NFL analyst Tony Romo has been placed on leave by CBS SPORTS following a drunken driving arrest in Wisconsin.

"I'll play through the season and be a free agent at the end of the year and kind of see what happens," Aikman said. "I'm looking forward to whatever the rest of the year holds, the Super Bowl and all, and where my next landing will be."

It's unclear what contributed to the drama between Aikman and Buck.

The pair may have reached a gentleman's agreement to form a united front in their contract negotiations, and Buck broke ranks. It's also possible that Aikman is simply jealous of his partner getting a new contract. Whatever it is, the incident puts both men in the crosshairs. Critics will now be watching MNF for further signs of tension. And ESPN and Buck will continue to comment on the matter, which neither has yet offered.

CBS Sports broadcaster and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo congratulates a fellow golfer on a hit during the OSF Children's Hospital of Illinois Pro-Am Tournament at Metamora Fields Golf Club in Metamora, Tuesday, June 27, 2023. (Matt DeHoff/Journal Star/USA TODAY Network)

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And one has to wonder: What's wrong with these former Dallas Cowboys players turned broadcasters?

While Aikman is apparently embroiled in a contract dispute with Disney/ABC/ESPN, Tony Romo is on CBS after being arrested and pleaded no contest to OWI (operating while intoxicated) charges in Wisconsin.

Romo has said through various statements that he seeks to openly use alcohol and painkillers.

So next year two former Dallas Cowboys players may be on the analyst free agent market.

Armando Salguero is the senior writer for NFL OutKick.

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