Pat McAfee is ESPN’s current poster boy, but it wasn’t always the way.Colleague Stephen A. Smith has revealed the former Indianapolis Colts punter operates under a different set of rules to him having once been the apple of the network’s eye.McAfee is one of the faces of ESPNGettyWhether it’s the College GameDay kicking contest – which last weekend saw one student score a massive $1.2 million – his popular daily talk show, or a debut on NFL Monday Night Countdown, fans feel McAfee is being plastered everywhere right now. He and Smith are two of the network’s biggest personalities, but according to the latter, one has significantly more freedom than the other – thanks to the deal he operates under.Stephen A. Smith reveals details of Pat McAfee’s ESPN freedom“Pat McAfee has a level of independence I’ve never had,” Smith told Matt Iseman of Front Office Sports Tonight.“He owns his own platforms. He leases that to ESPN. I’m employed by ESPN because ESPN owns First Take. I don’t own First Take, they do.”ESPN, as Smith infers, does not own The Pat McAfee Show.In 2023, the network agreed to a licensing deal with McAfee for the show, which was launched in 2017.That deal includes McAfee, his co-hosts, producers, and his Indianapolis studio, according to Front Office Sports.McAfee operates under a separate talent deal to be a part of College GameDay, and it has recently been reported that he is in talks to sign a big-money extension, even though his current contract runs until 2028.Such negotiations, and a wider remit on ESPN, shows how high McAfee’s stock is. Smith believes he’s earned that.“He just leases his show to ESPN; We work for ESPN,” the $105m broadcaster added.Smith claims that McAfee is held to a different set of rules due to leasing his show to ESPN as opposed to them owning it directlyGettyThe former Colts kicker brought The Pat McAfee Show over to ESPN in 2023, where it has grown and grownGetty“And so that’s not to imply that Pat is not a part of the team because he’s on ESPN’s airwaves. But there’s a different set of rules that we’re obligated and culpable and attached to that he’s not.“When people talk about that, they’re just missing the boat.“They don’t get the fact that he doesn’t work for us. You see, he works for himself. And that’s a testament to him.”NFL Weekly Newsletter - SIGN UP!talkSPORT is your home for NFL in the UK as we launch our biggest year of coverage yet!2026 promises to be an epic year for NFL on talkSPORT – and we want you to join us for the ride.MORE INFO & SIGN-UP HERE!This season will be our biggest ever with live commentary of 90+ games, including behind-the-scenes access to international games and all three London fixtures, plus bumper coverage of Super Bowl 61 at SoFi Stadium.Exclusive interviews, hard-hitting opinion, latest front-office drama and top breaking news – all delivered straight to your inbox each week.Some, though, have argued that McAfee’s ‘freedom’ has also allowed him to have too much power after College GameDay producer Jim Gaiero was removed from the show amid friction with the former Colts punter. While McAfee could soon dwarf Smith’s $100m-plus contract, and have more independence, that doesn’t mean the 23-year ESPN veteran is unhappy with his own status within the company.“I do have freedoms that the average person doesn’t have in this business, and I get that part,” Smith continued. “And there’s a lot of things that I can do because I negotiated the contractual right to do them, the reality is that’s an entirely different world than Pat McAfee.“Pat McAfee, when he says he’s his own boss, he truly is his own boss.”Join talkSPORT’s dedicated US Sports YouTube channel The S* Word every Tuesday and Thursday for our brand new NFL shows.On Tuesdays, Will Gavin and US senior reporter Brian T. Smith will debate the biggest talking points from the NFL weekend, while on Thursdays Efe Obada joins the crew to talk to players past and present and break down what to look for across the league.