Greg Olsen 'happy the way things worked out' ... with Panthers, not 'MNF' that is

Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen drew the biggest media gathering Wednesday on the Quail Hollow driving range, despite the presence a dozen spots down of some guy named Tiger.

Olsen ripped a few monster drives and hit a couple of toppers as he tried to loosen up before the Wells Fargo Championship pro-am.

Before Olsen played 18 holes with middle linebacker Luke Kuechly on his bag and center Ryan Kalil providing additional support, he was asked about the reported $4 million deal ESPN offered Cowboys tight end Jason Witten to be the “Monday Night Football” analyst.

Olsen interviewed for the “MNF” gig before signing a two-year extension worth $17.1 million last week. He said he hasn’t really kept up with the Witten developments.

“I’m happy for the way things worked out for me. I’ve always said I wanted to play. I’m glad we got things worked out,” Olsen said. “We felt good about what we were able to get accomplished, considering everything. We’ll let him worry about his own situation and see what plays out.”

Olsen, 33, last spring talked about wanting a new contract that would be commensurate with the highest-paid tight ends. Marty Hurney, a month after being hired as interim general manager, added incentives to Olsen’s deal.

Olsen, the only tight end in NFL history with three successive 1,000-yard receiving seasons, was limited to seven games last year after breaking his foot in Week 2.

Olsen served as a guest analyst for FOX during the Panthers’ bye week in November, and went to ESPN’s headquarters in March to audition for the “MNF” job.

Panthers coach Ron Rivera said he was never worried Olsen would retire because he told Rivera and Hurney before he auditioned for ESPN that he intended to keep playing.

Still, Rivera was glad to get Olsen extended.

“I think that was very fortuitous for us in terms of the timing,” said Rivera, who also played in the pro-am. “Greg’s young, obviously. He’s done a lot of good things for us and it’s good to have him locked up.”

Rivera agreed that "MNF" gave Olsen a little leverage, before jokingly adding: " But I’m not negotiating, so I’m not worried about that part."

This story was originally published May 2, 2018 at 4:31 PM with the headline "Greg Olsen 'happy the way things worked out' ... with Panthers, not 'MNF' that is."