Legendary TV announcer Al Michaels may have broadcast his last football game for NBC.
At the outset of the game, Michaels introduced his longtime broadcast booth partner Cris Collinsworth, 63, for ‘one final time,’ fueling speculation that he will leave the network.
Amazon has been pursuing Michaels to voice play-by-plays, and are willing to pay upwards of $11 million per year, according to the New York Post. ESPN is also seeking a contract with Michaels for its Monday Night Football booth.
‘I don’t know what the future will hold, but after this game is over, I’ve got some very close friends and guys who really understand the business inside and out, and we’ll talk about what’s out there and what I might want to do,’ Michaels said in a statement.
Michaels also gave a heartfelt send-off to longtime sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, who is leaving the network after finishing her fifth Super Bowl.
Eleven-time Super Bowl caller Al Michaels, 77, and six-time caller Michele Tafoya, 57, both covered their last game with NBC Sports at Sunday’s Superbowl
At the outset of the game, Michaels (left) introduced his longtime broadcast booth partner Cris Collinsworth, 63 (right), for ‘one final time,’ fueling speculation that he will leave the network before next year’s Superbowl
‘We love you,’ Michaels, 77, said to Latoya, 57, during Sunday’s game, before the Los Angeles Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20. ‘You’ve been so much fun.’
Tafoya, who will bring her sports reporting career to a close in favor of a straight news role, blew a kiss to the camera in response.
‘If I wanted to stay in sports television, I wouldn’t be leaving,’ Tafoya said in January.
‘This is about opening a new chapter for me, so that’s really all I can say.’
Michaels began Sunday’s broadcast with a tribute to his longtime broadcast partner.
‘The Bengals … get to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1988 when this man — come sliding in here for one final time — Cris Collinsworth played in that game,’ Michaels said, referencing Collinsworth’s trademark ‘slide.’
It is unclear whether veteran broadcaster Michaels was referring to the end of the 2021 season or an end to 16-year run with NBC sports that began after he left the Monday Night Football booth after 20 years in 2005.
Five-time Emmy winner Tafoya has worked with NBC for 11 seasons, covered more than 300 season games and 26 playoff games, according to Yahoo! Sports
Tafoya (pictured) sparked controversy on ‘The View’ in winter of 2021 after voicing conservative-leaning opinions on Colin Kaepernick
NBC Sports reporter Kathryn Tappen, pictured is the likely pick to replace Tafoya
Tafoya sparked controversy on ‘The View’ in winter of 2021 after voicing conservative-leaning opinions on Colin Kaepernick, saying that she did not feel sympathy for the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback after he hadn’t gotten an opportunity to play in the NFL for the last several years, after he knelt rather than standing for the national anthem in 2016 in protest of police brutality.
Since the appearance, she has returned to a few games, but had been missing from NBC’s NFL coverage since the Thanksgiving night game between the Buffalo Bills and the New Orleans Saints. Her frequent replacement, NBC Sports reporter Kathryn Tappen, is the likely pick to replace her.
‘My time with NBC Sports has been the most satisfying of my career,’ Tafoya wrote in a statement.
‘I’ve had the good fortune of collaborating with a team that is amongst the best at what they do, and the support I’ve received in this position has been unparalleled … Some may consider me crazy to walk away from one of the more coveted roles in sports television, and I do not doubt that I will miss many aspects of the job.’
‘But for some time, I have been considering other areas I would like to explore both personally and professionally. I couldn’t ignore that little voice anymore after what we have all endured over the last few years.’
Five-time Emmy winner Tafoya has worked with NBC for 11 seasons, covered more than 300 season games and 26 playoff games, according to Yahoo! Sports.
The Philadelphia Inquirer called Michael’s expected exit from the network the ‘worst-kept secret heading into the Super Bowl.’
He has called national games since joining ABC in 1977, and joined John Madden in NBC’s ‘Sunday Night Football’ booth in 2006. He has called games alongside Collinsworth since he replaced Madden in 2009.
Michaels, left, has called national games since joining ABC in 1977, and joined John Madden, right, in NBC’s ‘Sunday Night Football’ booth in 2006
Michaels, left, has called games alongside Cris Collinsworth, right, since he replaced Madden in 2009
Mike Tirico, pictured, who was hired from ESPN by NBC in 2016 to eventually replace Michaels, appears to be ready to call games alongside Collinsworth, who has two years remaining on his contract with the network
Fifteen Thursday night NFL games are slated to exclusively stream on Amazon Prime and air locally in the competing team’s home markets, with Frank Gaudell overseeing those broadcasts.
Last week, he told the Inquirer that he wasn’t ‘ready for any rocking chair or golf.’
Mike Tirico, who was hired from ESPN by NBC in 2016 to eventually replace Michaels, appears to be ready to call games alongside Collinsworth, who has two years remaining on his contract with the network.
NBC hired Mike Tirico away from ESPN back in 2016 to eventually become the play-by-play announcer on Sunday Night Football, and that plan appears ready to happen next season. Tirico will move from the studio to the booth to call games alongside Michaels’ current broadcast partner, Cris Collinsworth, who has two years remaining on his contract.