1. Chris Mortensen was a frequent contributor to the network's SportsCenter, ESPN Radio, and ESPN.
14 Facts About Chris Mortensen
1. 2.
Chris Mortensen was born November 7,1951, in Torrance, California, Mortensen attended North Torrance High School in Torrance, California, and El Camino College before serving two years in the US Army during the Vietnam War.
3.
Chris Mortensen started his career with the South Bay Daily Breeze in 1969.
4.
From 1983 to 1990, Chris Mortensen worked at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, filing investigative reports and covering the Atlanta Braves, Atlanta Falcons and the National Football League.
5.
Chris Mortensen once covered the NFL for The National, where he was one of the first writers hired by editor Frank Deford.
6.
Chris Mortensen soon gained recognition as a pioneer of "insider" reporting of the National Football League on national television, breaking some of the biggest news, such as Peyton Manning's retirement.
7.
Chris Mortensen worked as an analyst for ESPN's coverage of the NFL draft and changed how ESPN covered the draft.
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Chris Mortensen left the network in April 2023 following the 2023 NFL draft due to health problems related to throat cancer.
9.
On January 21,2015, Chris Mortensen reported erroneously that 11 of the 12 footballs used in the AFC Championship Game on January 18,2015, between the New England Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts were 2 pounds per square inch under NFL regulation.
10.
Chris Mortensen was to appear on WEEI's Dennis and Callahan radio show on July 31,2015, but cancelled.
11.
Chris Mortensen was the author of the 1991 book Playing for Keeps: How One Man Kept the Mob from Sinking Its Hooks into Pro Football.
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Chris Mortensen was a Christian, and lived in Bella Vista, Arkansas.
13.
On January 15,2016, Chris Mortensen announced via an ESPN statement that he had been diagnosed with stage IV throat cancer and would consequently be taking a leave of absence from his on-air work at the cable network.
14.
Chris Mortensen survived eight years past the diagnosis, and died at his son's home in Irondale, Alabama, on March 3,2024, at the age of 72.