Dan Orlovsky rose quickly as an NFL media personality after retiring from playing quarterback in 2017, and has already set his sights on calling top NFL games for a league partner before long.
In an appearance on the Sports Media with Richard Deitsch podcast, Orlovsky explained his hunger for the job and why believes he’s cut out for it despite not being as famous or experienced as some other candidates in media.
“While I absolutely believe I am good enough and capable enough and willing to put in the work to go and not only have one of those chairs but deserve it be really stinking good at it,” Orlovsky said. “I’m aware part of that is not in my control.”
After being hired by ESPN in July 2018 primarily to cover college football, Orlovsky has moved up quickly. He was added to the NFL Live cast in July 2020 and joined ESPN’s No. 2 NFL booth last May.
This season, in addition to calling games for ESPN, he appears nearly daily on NFL Live plus weekly on First Take and The Pat McAfee Show. Orlovsky also appears regularly on Get Up! and provides college football analysis for ESPN and ABC from the studio most weekends.
While Orlovsky is known online largely for his peculiarities when it comes to food and hygiene, he is also one of the smartest and hardest-working football analysts.
Orlovsky nearly signed with Fox Sports last year before negotiating a promotion to the No. 2 game booth from ESPN. He has been pursued frequently for jobs on NFL offensive coaching staffs since becoming an analyst.
Asked if he would be OK if he never got the chance to call NFL games with a top crew, Orlovsky was emphatic.
“I don’t think I would be,” he told Deitsch. “I think at some point, I want that opportunity and I want to work toward that opportunity … I don’t think I would be OK passing on that.”
[Sports Media with Richard Deitsch]
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.