Chris Mortensen Obituary

Chris Mortensen, a journalist who won awards and knew a lot about the NFL, has passed away, ESPN said. He was 72 years old. Mortensen was on ESPN for thirty years. He was on shows like “Sunday NFL Countdown” and talked about the NFL Draft. He also appeared on “SportsCenter.”

“Mort was very respected and everyone liked working with him,” said Jimmy Pitaro, who is the chairman of ESPN. “He was very good at covering the NFL and was one of the best for many years. We will miss him a lot, and we’re thinking of his family.”

Mortensen started working at ESPN in 1991. He quickly became known as someone who knew a lot about football. Before that, he worked for a newspaper in Atlanta, where he wrote about the Atlanta Braves and the Atlanta Falcons. In 1987, he won an award for a long story he wrote about amateur sports and college athletes.

In January 2016, Mortensen told everyone he had throat cancer. But he went back to work after he finished his treatment.

In September 2023, Mortensen said he was leaving ESPN “to take care of my health, family, and faith.”