Chris Mortensen, an NFL reporter who has been with the network for over three decades, died on Sunday morning, at the age of 72, ESPN announced.
“Mort was widely respected as an industry pioneer and universally beloved as a supportive, hard-working teammate,” ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement. “He covered the NFL with extraordinary skill and passion and was at the top of his field for decades. He will truly be missed by colleagues and fans, and our hearts and thoughts are with his loved ones.”
Mortensen, who was diagnosed with Stage IV throat cancer in 2016, announced his choice to step away from ESPN ahead of the 2023 season “to focus on my health, family and faith.” His decision was revealed after he covered the 33rd NFL draft.
Joining ESPN in 1991, Mortensen played a crucial role in the network’s year-round coverage of the NFL reporting and regularly broke NFL news while making routine appearances on multiple flagship shows, such as “NFL Insiders,” “NFL Live,” “Sunday NFL Countdown,” “Monday Night Countdown” and “Outside The Lines.”
“It’s a sad day for everyone in the NFL,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “I admired how hard Chris worked to become one of the most influential and revered reporters in sports. He earned our respect and that of many others with his relentless pursuit of news but also the kindness he extended to everyone he met. He will be greatly missed by many of us in the league who were fortunate to know him well beyond the stories he broke each Sunday. We send our condolences to his family, his colleagues and the many people Chris touched throughout his well-lived life.”
In 2016, the Professional Football Writers of America chose him as the McCann Award Winner, inducting him into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Mortensen began his journalism career at the South Bay (Calif) after he graduated from El Camino College. The Army veteran joined Daily Breeze in 1969, which covered his native hometown Torrance, Calf. He worked at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution from 1983 to 1990 and was awarded the coveted George Polk Award in 1987 for his reporting. Mortensen also wrote for The National and had a column in The Sporting News before joining ESPN.
It was in ESPN that Chris Mortensen helped to change the nationwide coverage of the NFL forever and grew the game for over three decades.
