Troy Aikman is weighing job offers from NFL teams and broadcast
networks and likely will decide within a few weeks which to take,
his agent said Thursday.
Networks have long been interested in Aikman, but the fact he's
taking their offers seriously is a shift that indicates he might be
ready to call it a career.
|  | | Football or not, Troy Aikman has plenty of options, says his agent. |
"I think he's had a few second thoughts about if he wants to
play football at all," agent Leigh Steinberg said. "Although
we're looking at those options, media is attractive to him and
we're exploring those options, too. That has now become an active
factor on the agenda."
Aikman, 34, is a free agent for the first time after 12 seasons
in Dallas. Although he led the Cowboys to three Super Bowl titles,
he was waived March 7 to avoid a $7 million bonus and extension
through 2007 due if he was on the roster the next day.
Some teams might be scared off by Aikman's health. He has suffered four concussions in his past 20 games ? and has
a degenerative back problem.
There also are questions of how much is left in his arm. Once
strong and supremely accurate, he was the lowest-rated starting
quarterback in the NFC last season.
But Steinberg said he has spoken to Kansas City about Aikman
replacing Elvis Grbac as the starter and Denver has offered him a
backup role. He said other teams have called, too, but he declined
to name them.
"Troy is employable," he said. "There are teams that want
him. I could cut a deal for him today."
Steinberg also could cut a network deal at any time.
Aikman has done color commentary on NFL Europe games for Fox and
is scheduled to do more this summer. Even with little experience,
his name and reputation would surely earn him a high-paying job as
an analyst, either in a studio or for games.
"There's obviously a number of different networks that cover
pro football in one way, shape or form. A number have come to us over
the years and said, 'If Troy would like some form of a role, when
football is over, we'd be interested in him,"' Steinberg said.
"Since the season ended, a number of them have come back and
queried whether we'd be interested. In recent weeks, I've been
fielding some of those discussions for Troy. Some of them have been
more serious."
Just like NFL teams are filling their rosters, networks are,
too.
Fox has an opening for an NFL game analyst because Matt Millen
joined the Detroit Lions as president and CEO. ESPN lost "NFL
2Night" studio analyst Marty Schottenheimer, who left to become
the Washington Redskins coach.
"The football positions are starting to wind down. The
combination of that and the limited number of broadcasting
opportunities is pushing toward a decision," Steinberg said. "I
think that probably with the next couple of weeks he'll hit a
decision point."
Aikman has not faced this sort of career crossroads since
college, when he opted to leave Oklahoma for UCLA. Steinberg said
he has handling it well.
"Troy is upbeat and optimistic about things and knows he's got
a great future ahead of him," the agent said. "He physically
feels great and was greatly gratified by some of the fan reaction
he's received in the last several weeks. He's a happy camper." Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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