ESPN's Todd McShay taking leave of absence to focus on health

ESPN's Todd McShay is taking a leave of absence.

The football analyst said Tuesday that he needed to take time off to focus on his health and family. McShay is an NFL draft analyst for the network and also does sideline work for ESPN's college football coverage. He was on the sideline Saturday for No. 1 Alabama's blowout win over Miami.

McShay has worked at ESPN since 2006 and has been an integral part of the network's football coverage over the past decade. The network said he had its full support while he was away.

McShay had coronavirus in 2020, left broadcast later that year

McShay was one of the first prominent media members to openly discuss his coronavirus experience in the spring of 2020. McShay wasn't a part of ESPN's 2020 NFL draft coverage because he had COVID-19. McShay told colleague Adam Schefter in May that he was hospitalized because of the virus and that he experienced some "really dark" times. He said at the time of the podcast that he was fully recovered.

In November, McShay left ESPN's broadcast of Northwestern vs. Wisconsin partway through with what play-by-play broadcaster Sean McDonough said was an illness. He returned to the sideline the next week and didn't miss any other games.

Here's hoping for the best for McShay and his family.

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