Axed: Al Michaels Blindsided After Being Dumped From NBC’s NFL Playoff Coverage
Al Michaels will not be calling an NFL playoff game for NBC this year.
Legendary play-by-play announcer Al Michaels will not be calling an NFL playoff game for NBC this year, RadarOnline.com has learned.
NBC Sports has reportedly decided not to include Michaels in its postseason crew.
NBC Sports has decided not to include Michaels in its postseason crew.
Instead, the network will have Mike Tirico and Cris Collinsworth as the main duo for three of the playoff games, while Noah Eagle and Todd Blackledge – who usually call college games – will handle the fourth game, according to the New York Post.
This move comes after Michaels was replaced by Tirico on Sunday Night Football last year.
The 79-year-old joined Amazon Prime Video to do play-by-play for Thursday Night Football in 2022 after the streaming service secured the Thursday Night Football rights, but Michaels was ultimately brought back to NBC for last year's playoffs.
NBC Sports Vice President Greg Hughes confirmed the news of Michaels’ upcoming playoff absence on Tuesday.
The move comes after Michaels was replaced by Tirico on Sunday Night Football last year.
Meanwhile, in an interview with the Post in early November, Michaels believed that he would still be calling the NFL playoff games for NBC this 2023 season – although he did not know who his co-commentator would be at the time.
When told by the Post that his status was uncertain, Michaels seemed surprised and questioned the validity of the information.
"It's in my deal. Where are you hearing that from? That's part of my deal,” he responded at the time. “Are you hearing something that I'm not hearing?"
Although it is unclear why the longtime broadcaster was not included in NBC’s NFL postseason crew, sources theorized the decision had to do with a Jaguars-Chargers game Michaels covered during the 2022 season alongside analyst Tony Dungy.
It is unclear why the 79-year-old broadcaster was not included in NBC’s NFL postseason crew.
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Additional insiders indicated there was tension between Michaels and NBC Sports executives leading up to his removal this week. Michaels first joined NBC in 2006 when the network first secured the rights to Sunday Night Football.
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He initially teamed up with the late John Madden, who had previously been his partner on Monday Night Football at ABC.
Michaels spent 20 years as the play-by-play announcer for ABC’s Monday Night Football before moving to NBC in 2006.
Michaels first joined NBC in 2006 when the network first secured the rights to Sunday Night Football.
He currently has one more year left on his deal with Amazon, and Michaels recently expressed interest in returning to the streaming service for the 2024 NFL season to cover Thursday Night Football.
Michaels previously discussed his gig covering Amazon’s Thursday Night Football games and compared the experience of selling a used car.
"From the Amazon people, nothing but support,” he said after his first year with the streaming giant ended in January. “I think they understood what this was.”
“We’re making the most of it,” he continued. “I mean, you just can’t oversell something. Do you want me to sell you a 20-year-old Mazda? That’s what you’re asking me to do. I can’t sell you a used car.”
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