He is ESPN’s latest breakthrough star and one of the best football minds in the business. Dan Orlovsky is separating from the pack of gridiron gabbers with insight, experience, and real talk.
Orlovsky’s road to Bristol, Connecticut was a winding one, but he has hit the big time thanks to a genuine love of the game and moreover, a love of dissecting the game.
A native of Shelton, Connecticut, Orlovsky played quarterback at UConn and still holds several school passing records. He was honored twice as the Walter Camp Connecticut Player of the Year, leading the Huskies to victory in their first-ever bowl appearance at the 2004 Motor City Bowl.
His 12-year NFL odyssey with the Lions, Texans, Colts, and Buccaneers was slightly less impressive. I hate myself for even mentioning it because it has been bludgeoned to death, but Orlovsky is best known for accidentally running out of the back of the end zone for a safety as quarterback of the Detroit Lions in 2008.
These days, when he goes outside the lines, it’s a good thing. After a stint on NFL Network, Orlovsky joined ESPN in 2018 as a college football and NFL analyst. He appears on NFL Live, calls a weekly ESPN/ABC college football game, and does color for Monday Night Football doubleheaders. He is also a regular contributor to Get Up, SportsCenter, First Take, and other ESPN shows.
Orlovsky is an absolutely fearless commentator, able to stand toe to toe with the more experienced likes of Stephen A. Smith and Chris “Mad Dog” Russo. The best part of his game is his exacting nature and ability to surgically cut through the BS and examine both offensive and defensive football.
Orlovsky has two fun segments, the “Dan Wagon” where he talks about weekly teams/players on the rise and “Orlov’s-Keys” discussing key points or aspects to watch with a player or game. In all of his commentary, he eschews fickle, soap opera analysis, and gets inside the stats to give viewers facts, not just flimsy takes.
His appearances on First Take are great examples. While Stephen A. Smith plays his villainous and hilarious role as a Dallas Cowboys/Dak Prescott antagonist, Orlovsky provides the perfect complement. He takes in Smith’s thunderous pontification and answers back, not with drama, but with hard evidence.
While his NFL quarterbacking career made him a journeyman, Orlovsky has become ESPN’s everyman. While many colleagues allude to their jet-set lives and All-Pro experiences, Orlovsky talks about his wife and four kids, tells dad jokes, openly discusses his faith in interviews, and is kidded about his pedestrian NFL career.
Still, this backup quarterback has become a new-generation quarterback whisperer. ESPN needs to bring back the QB Camp program previously hosted by Jon Gruden and give the damn thing to Orlovsky. He would be the absolute perfect choice. I can just see his eyes light up, sitting across from a quarterback prospect talking about signal calling, cadence, preparation, film, and strategy.
Orlovsky has also shown his versatility. There is a huge difference between being a studio panelist and a color analyst for a live game. These roles require a diverse skill set.
ESPN’s Rex Ryan is a perfect example. His early work for ESPN calling games was mediocre, but he now thrives as a panelist on NFL Sunday Countdown alongside Samantha Ponder, Randy Moss, Alex Smith, and Tedy Bruschi.
Orlovsky seemingly laughs in the face of this tough transition. He is as comfortable behind a desk as he is inside the booth ferreting out hidden gems or miscues that change a game.
One of the most impressive parts of Orlovsky’s performance is the way he injects his personality into his performance without having it override the performance. This is a skill mastered by Stephen A. Smith. Orlovsky is not at that level yet, but he’s on the come-up for sure.
Orlovsky’s aforementioned so-so NFL career presents even more of a challenge. Think about television’s top NFL personalities. Michael Strahan, Howie Long, and Terry Bradshaw, with Tom Brady set to debut in 2024 on FOX. Phil Simms and Boomer Esiason on CBS. Bruschi, Moss, Ryan Clark, and Troy Aikman at ESPN.
These guys bring Hall of Fame, Pro Bowl, and/or Super Bowl championships to their media gigs. Orlovsky damn near threw a pass from the stands and was a member of the 2008 0-16 Lions, not exactly a padded resume.
In addition, the national football media is littered with big school alums. I’m talking LSU, Tennessee, USC, Michigan, Ohio State, and Florida. Orlovsky went to UConn, a school whose best quarterbacks are the point guards on the men’s and women’s basketball teams.
He is truly an unlikely superstar. Things did not come easily for Orlovsky as a player. He had to fight for a job. He got signed and dumped by some of the most dismal teams of his era, but it was a blessing. He knows how hard it is to play quarterback in the NFL and has a giant bag filled with highs and lows.
This is the stuff that blue-chip athletes cannot bring to television. In short, there is no ego in Orlovsky. It’s not about him because it never was about him. He relies on hard work, preparation, and straight-up guts in voicing his views and opinions. He’s a worker.
It is on NFL Live that we see Orlovsky in full bloom. Credit host Laura Rutledge, deservedly one of ESPN’s foundation stars, and panelists Marcus Spears, Mina Kimes, and Ryan Clark. This group has terrific chemistry and Orlovsky is the Bunsen burner.
His frequent trips to center stage analyzing video on the big screen are electric. Orlovsky jumps around in his slim-fit suit and giant white sneakers as if the studio floor is on fire.
He pauses video, restarts it, and points out big plays and subtle angles. His raw enthusiasm is palpable – talking, whirling, and pirouetting like some crazed combination of Robin Williams, Richard Simmons, and Mikhail Baryshnikov. In this light, Orlovsky’s knowledge is not just mental, it’s actually physical.
In today’s on-demand, social media-driven society, football commentary has become too much about hyperbole, grand statements, hot takes, insults, and soundbites. Dan Orlovsky embraces none of this. Instead, he has risen darn close to the top of the football analyst ladder with an old-fashioned quality: likeability. This animated dude really likes football and, in turn, we like him.
John Molori is a weekly columnist for Barrett Sports Media. He has previously contributed to ESPNW, Patriots Football Weekly, Golf Content Network, Methuen Life Magazine, and wrote a syndicated Media Blitz column in the New England region, which was published by numerous outlets including The Boston Metro, Providence Journal, Lowell Sun, and the Eagle-Tribune. His career also includes fourteen years in television as a News and Sports Reporter, Host, Producer working for Continental Cablevision, MediaOne, and AT&T. He can be reached on Twitter @MoloriMedia.
