'No Negotiation': Dallas Cowboys Icon Troy Aikman Explains Move from FOX to ESPN

"The reason I wanted the opt out was because we couldn't agree on what fair market value was," said Aikman.

FRISCO - Yes, even with all his success and all his acclaim, as a football star and a broadcasting star, Troy Aikman wants and deserves respect.

"No negotiation'' on the part of FOX, it seems, demonstrated a lack thereof.

"The reason I wanted the opt out was because we couldn't agree on what fair market value was," said Aikman, the former Dallas Cowboys star, speaking on his dealings on his last contract with FOX before this spring's jump to ESPN. "They made a proposal and I thought it was a good start. But there was no negotiation. That was their position and that was where they were going to land. 

"So I said, 'OK, well I'll take it, but after the first year and one year only I have the option to opt out of the contract."

Next thing FOX knew, Aikman did indeed opt out of the contract for a new monster deal with ESPN to become the face, alongside long-time FOX partner Joe Buck, of "Monday Night Football.''

Aikman, 55, is a fixture in Dallas not only because of his Hall of Fame football career but also due to his work in the community. His "fixture'' status extends to TV, where he is considered the best NFL analyst in the business. 

Over the course of the offseason, he spoke frankly of his reasons for this career change - and he spoke passionately of the friends he'd made during his long stint at FOX, including "sister-like'' Erin Andrews and many more.

CLIP: Why did Troy Aikman want an opt-out from Fox, which led him to end up at ESPN?

POD: https://t.co/I1wSfLKNzE pic.twitter.com/LAM3IIVD46

— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) August 31, 2022

But in this recent podcast appearance, he explained the opt-out factor, and why he wanted that opt-out of what turned out to be his final contract with FOX after the first year of the deal.

Eventually, Tom Brady will retire and take Aikman's old spot at FOX. But more immediately, Aikman and Buck will team up to make their NFL regular-season debut as the Broncos and Russell Wilson play at Seattle on September 12.

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