Former ESPN NFL insider Chris Mortensen died Sunday morning at the age of 72, the company announced.
Mortensen made his ESPN broadcasting debut in 1991 and announced in 2023 that he would be stepping away to focus on his “health, family and faith.”
Mortensen was a regular contributor on ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown and SportsCenter and also served as an analyst on the network’s NFL draft coverage. He is widely regarded as the original NFL insider.
Multiple reporters from across sports reacted to the news of Mortensen’s passing on social media:
Mortensen announced in 2016 that he was diagnosed with Stage 4 throat cancer and would be stepping away from his regular reporting duties. While receiving treatment that same year, he still managed to break the news of Peyton Manning’s retirement, which earned the universal respect of his colleagues.
Also in 2016, Mortensen was the Pro Football Writers of America’s Dick McCann Award winner and he was honored during the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s enshrinement ceremony.
Prior to joining ESPN, Mortensen wrote for several newspapers, including the Atlanta Journal-Constitution as an investigative reporter who covered the Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Falcons and the NFL. He received the George Polk Award for reporting in 1987.
Mortensen also was one of the first writers hired by editor Frank Deford for the sports daily The National in 1989. He was also a columnist for The Sporting News, a contributor to Sport magazine, and a consultant for CBS Sports’ NFL Today in 1990. Over his illustrious career, he received 18 awards in journalism and was nominated for two Pulitzer Prizes.
Mortensen is survived by his wife Micki and his son Alex.
2024-03-04 00:56:15
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