Pat McAfee joining ESPN’s ‘Monday Night Countdown’

The P in ESPN might soon stand for Pat McAfee.

The omnipresent character on ESPN’s airwaves is about to become an even bigger part of life for football fans this season. According to an announcement by ESPN on Wednesday, Pat McAfee is joining the network’s Monday Night Countdown studio show this upcoming season. He’ll join Scott Van Pelt, Jason Kelce, Marcus Spears, and Jason McCourty on the show’s panel.

The news comes as McAfee prepares to sign a new deal worth $60-65 million that includes a bigger role in ESPN’s NFL coverage.

Per The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand, in addition to McAfee’s role on Countdown, he’s expected “to be a large part of ESPN’s Super Bowl coverage next February.”

McAfee will continue roles hosting his weekday show at noon ET and as the centerpiece of College GameDay on Saturday mornings.

With McAfee joining Monday Night Countdown, it’s fair to say the former Indianapolis Colts punter is now a vital part of ESPN’s two most important properties: the NFL and college football.

Mondays on ESPN will now be fully dominated by Monday Night Football. The network’s programming will emanate from the site of the week’s game for 10 hours each Monday, beginning with The Pat McAfee Show from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET, followed by a two-hour on-site episode of NFL Live from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET, and then Monday Night Countdown before the game.

ESPN’s decision to include McAfee as a regular on Countdown signals the network’s overwhelming confidence in him as a needle-mover among sports fans. Few in the history of sports television have held such prominent roles on both the NFL and college football simultaneously, with McAfee’s GameDay colleague Kirk Herbstreit perhaps being the best example. McAfee, however, is doing it under the umbrella of one network: ESPN.

This season of Monday Night Countdown will debut on Sept. 14 ahead of a game between the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs live from Arrowhead Stadium.