While the most notable stars are on the field, the commentators in the booth can be just as influential, making electric plays even more exciting. Troy Aikman is one of the best announcers in the game, who has been on both sides of that.
What is Aikman’s net worth following a legendary career in the NFL and in broadcasting?
Troy Aikman’s Net Worth, Salary, and Career Earnings
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Aikman’s net worth sits at $65 million. In addition to that, he has a salary of $18 million.
Aikman began growing his wealth in the NFL, where he played 12 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys.
After being selected No. 1 overall in the 1989 NFL Draft, Aikman became a three-time Super Bowl champion and six-time Pro Bowler, among numerous other accolades. Over his entire NFL career, Aikman earned $55.5 million, averaging $4.6 million per season.
His highest single-year earnings came in 1999, when he made $16 million. Aside from 1993, when he earned $10.75 million, he never made more than $6 million in a season. He retired in 2001, following the conclusion of the 2000 campaign.
Immediately after retiring, Aikman transitioned into broadcasting with FOX, where he has remained ever since. Just a year later, he was elevated to the network’s lead announcing team, working alongside Joe Buck and Cris Collinsworth. While no official figure has been confirmed, he was reportedly paid $7.5 million annually by Fox.
Nowadays, Aikman is with ESPN.
In 2022, Aikman and Buck departed FOX to join ESPN’s Monday Night Football. The network signed them to a five-year deal worth a combined $155 million, with Aikman receiving $90 million of that total—an average of $18 million per year.
Along with his two decades as a broadcaster, Aikman hosts a weekly sports radio program on Sporting News Radio and makes regular appearances on other shows, including the Dunham & Miller morning show on Dallas sports talk radio.
He is also a co-owner of a NASCAR racing team and holds a minority ownership stake in the San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball.
Aikman Speaks Up on Cowboys’ Deicison To Trade Micah Parson
The Cowboys recently traded away Micah Parsons to the Green Bay Packers. It was one of the most shocking decisions in the history of the league, and Aikman, who is a franchise legend, recently spoke about it.
Speaking on “The Rich Eisen Show,” the Hall of Fame quarterback acknowledged that he’s waiting to see how the deal unfolds.
“I guess we’ll know in time, quite honestly, as to whether or not it was a good trade on the Cowboys’ behalf,” he said. “Whether or not the Packers benefited the most from that.”
“It’s not so much the picks. It’s what you do with the picks,” Aikman continued. “And so time will tell as to who benefited most, just like it did when we made the trade with Herschel and the Minnesota Vikings.”
Preview and Prediction for Bears-Vikings Week 1 Game
Minnesota did everything possible to set J.J. McCarthy up for success. The Vikings improved an already solid offensive line by adding center Ryan Kelly and guard Will Fries in free agency and using a first-round pick on guard Donovan Jackson.
In theory, McCarthy should slide seamlessly into Head Coach Kevin O’Connell’s scheme that frequently targets the middle of the field, where McCarthy excelled in college. Plus, he has the ultimate safety net in superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
However, first-year starting quarterbacks typically struggle early on, regardless of the talent around them. The Vikings offense will also be without Jordan Addison, who will serve the first game of a three-game suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. Even if you believe in McCarthy’s long-term potential, expecting immediate success in Week 1 seems unrealistic.
On the other side, Williams enters his first game with new Head Coach Ben Johnson, who coordinated the Detroit Lions to three straight top-five finishes in points per game. Williams struggled through an inconsistent rookie year that showed flashes of brilliance but featured too many negative plays, including a league-leading number of sacks taken. Much of that stemmed from coaching issues that sometimes left Chicago’s offense looking dysfunctional.
Johnson was hired to bring stability to Chicago, but what form that takes remains unclear. While his Detroit offense derived from the Sean McVay system, Johnson doesn’t come from that coaching tree. He crafted an offense that maximized Jared Goff‘s strengths, but that might not be the same system that gets the best out of Williams. Regardless of the scheme, this represents a massive structural change for Williams, and building continuity could take time.
A matchup between two work-in-progress offenses suggests the defenses will hold the advantage, and that’s exactly what should happen Monday night. New Bears Defensive Coordinator Dennis Allen brings a man-heavy scheme that complements the skill sets of cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson and Tyrique Stevenson. Additionally, Addison’s suspension makes it easier to cheat safety help toward Jefferson.
The Vikings did manage to acquire Adam Thielen from the Carolina Panthers, but he’s not the separator he once was.
Meanwhile, Vikings Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores returns with his blitz-heavy, chaos-inducing defense that uses disguises and coverage rotations to create pressure and force turnovers. The losses of safety Cam Bynum and linebacker Pat Jones II may push this defense closer to the 2023 boom-or-bust version rather than the consistently dominant unit that finished second in the league in EPA/Play during 2024-25.
But an opponent with a new offensive system and a quarterback prone to taking sacks creates an environment where Minnesota’s defense should thrive. If the Vikings can lean on their running game and upgraded offensive line while mixing in some designed runs with McCarthy, their defense might generate enough plays to steal a close Week 1 victory.
Prediction: Vikings 17, Bears 13
