NBC is reportedly parting ways with legendary broadcaster Al Michaels ahead of the NFL playoffs.
The 79-year-old was unaware that his role was in jeopardy last month, Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reported Tuesday.
Michaels reportedly said he believed that he was still going to call a postseason contest on NBC, but did not know who else would be working.
“It’s in my deal,” he said when Marchand mentioned NBC’s uncertainty in November. “Where are you hearing that from? That’s part of my deal. Are you hearing something that I’m not hearing?”
Michaels is heralded as one of the greatest play-by-play announcers in American sports history. After working for ABC from 1976-2006, he joined NBC as the voice of “Sunday Night Football.”
He lost his Sunday role to Mike Tirico in 2022. NBC gave Michaels an emeritus title after replacing him, allowing him to contribute to the network’s playoff coverage. The title change came as a result of his strife with NBC’s top executives, per Marchand.
Michaels and analyst Tony Dungy were on the call for the Jacksonville Jaguars’ exhilarating comeback win over the Los Angeles Chargers this past January. Michaels dismissed criticism that he and Dungy were “low energy” during the game as “internet compost.”
When the playoffs begin Jan. 13, NBC will roll out two broadcasting teams for its four games. Tirico and Cris Collinsworth will work three games. College football broadcasters Noah Eagle and Todd Blackledge will call the other. Eagle, 27, will also be featured on Nickelodeon’s “SpongeBob SquarePants” telecast of the Super Bowl.
Michaels took a role with Amazon Prime Video during his shift with NBC last season. He can be heard calling “Thursday Night Football” for the streaming platform.
His absence from the playoffs will mark the end of a storied run, as no one has called more Super Bowls on television than he has. Michaels and Pat Summerall are tied with 11 assignments to the NFL’s biggest game.
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