Mike Tirico’s Replacement as Host of NBC’s ‘Football Night in America’ Revealed

Mike Tirico, NBC’s versatile employee,  was moved over to Sunday Night Football to do play-by-play.

Which means NBC needs a new host for its flagship pregame show. NBC announced on Thursday that they’ve tapped Maria Taylor to replace Mike Tirico as host of “Football Night in America,” the pre-show that airs before “Sunday Night Football.”

“Maria is the perfect choice to carry the legacy forward of anchoring the most-watched studio show in sports,” NBC Sports Executive Producer Sam Flood said in a statement.

In the last 12 months, Taylor – who was named one of 2021’s “Most Powerful Women in Sports” by Adweek – has hosted many of the most-watched events and programs in sports. Following her move to NBC Sports in July 2021, she hosted the Tokyo Olympics, Super Bowl LVI Pregame Show, and Beijing Olympics and Paralympics. Just prior to joining NBC Sports, she also hosted the primetime network broadcast of the NFL Draft and the NBA Finals.

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— Playmaker (@Playmakers747) May 13, 2022

Maria Taylor left ESPN under circumstances that were pretty awful. In July 2021, an ESPN employee leaked a recording of reporter Rachel Nichols,, alleging that ESPN only gave Taylor the job of hosting the 2020 NBA Finals because of the network’s “crappy longtime record on diversity.”

Nichols did not know she was being recorded.

ESPN reportedly offered her $3 million to stay, Taylor decided to move on to NBC.

Looks like that decision has paid off.

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