What the Heck Does NBC Do With Mike Tirico Now?

[Denver Native (Carol)]

Over this past weekend, news emerged that the NFL put the kibosh on Mike Tirico’s calling Thursday night games for NBC. This was the primary job, for now, that the network lured him away from ESPN on a big money deal to do. The story was stupefying at the break, but even more so when the league released this statement on the record.

rest - plus nfl statement - http://thebiglead.com/2016/08/24/what-the-heck-does-nbc-do-with-mike-tirico-now/

[MOtorboat]

Tirico and Tim Howard would be great on EPL games, but obviously Howard is still playing. The NFL saying no to Tirico is just dumb NFL ego shit. Let him do the games.

[weazel]

I think the boys at the NFL just get bored once in a while and just want to bully someone for a while. They're done with Brady so they had to kick some sand in the face of NBC.

[BroncoJoe]

Looks to me like NBC promised a particular team via contract with the NFL, and now they're trying to change/amend that contract.

Who's wrong again? Last time I checked, you can't just arbitrarily change a contract unless all parties agree.

From the article:


How NBC (and Tirico’s agent Sandy Montag) didn’t dot their i’s and cross their t’s on this boggles the mind. They really made this splashy hire without first clearing it through the highest channels? They just assumed the NFL would accept something that was different from their bid?

[weazel]

I get that Joe, but Tirico was there last season. You probably didn't notice because nobody watches Thursday Night Football

[Denver Native (Carol)]

from another article:


But a deal's a deal.

To win the bidding for half of the 10-game broadcast "TNF" package, NBC promised the league it would throw its first-string "SNF" announce team of Michaels, Cris Collinsworth and Michele Tafoya at the games.

The NBC bosses, as well as Michaels and Collinsworth, knew and accepted this arrangement. Up front. They knew the Michaels-Collinsworth tandem would have to call five "TNF" games on top of their normal "SNF" schedule in 2016-2017.

http://www.sportingnews.com/nfl/news/mike-tirico-al-michaels-nbc-sports-espn-thursday-night-football-sunday-night-football-cris-collinsworth/1hmobr8kc6ksn1cna4igjnbpko

If Thursday night football was a major reason Tirico left ESPN to join NBC, can he now come back on NBC?

[Al Wilson 4 Mayor]

Why wouldn't they want Tirico calling games? He's one of the best in the business.

[elsid13]

Why wouldn't they want Tirico calling games? He's one of the best in the business.

I'm sure DISNEY/ABC/ESPN had a little input/complaining going on.

[dogfish]

sounds like it may be time to put him out to pasture. . .

[OrangeHoof]

Al Michaels is 71. Did *he* agree to work two nights a week? What if he puts his foot down and says he's not working TNF - what exactly can the NFL do about that? I doubt NBC amended Michael's contract for the heavier work load.

Seems to me Michaels can refuse to work the games which opens the door for Tirico to do them. Problem solved.

Unless, of course, the NFL wants to be a dick about it which is certainly not beneath their character.

[Joel]

Seems to me that if the NFL contracted with NBC for Michaels to do two games a week but he refused, NBC would be in breach of contract. Unless Michaels were contractually obligated to do as many NFL games as NBC asks, in which case I'd think HE'D be in breach of contract. Either way, if the NFL quoted NBC a price based on a legal agreement they'd get the first team for TNF games, then NBC reneged on that part—regardless of cause—that's not the NFLs fault.

[MOtorboat]

Seems to me that if the NFL contracted with NBC for Michaels to do two games a week but he refused, NBC would be in breach of contract. Unless Michaels were contractually obligated to do as many NFL games as NBC asks, in which case I'd think HE'D be in breach of contract. Either way, if the NFL quoted NBC a price based on a legal agreement they'd get the first team for TNF games, then NBC reneged on that part—regardless of cause—that's not the NFLs fault.

It sure is a dumb thing to get huffy about, though. It's not like they hired Skip Bayless and tried to pull a switcharoo. They hired a longtime, well-respected announcer with extensive NFL experience and thought there'd be no problem assigning him to Thursday Night Football when a 71-year-old didn't want to work two games a week. It's just another dumb NFL thing, in my opinion.

[Joel]

It sure is a dumb thing to get huffy about, though. It's not like they hired Skip Bayless and tried to pull a switcharoo. They hired a longtime, well-respected announcer with extensive NFL experience and thought there'd be no problem assigning him to Thursday Night Football when a 71-year-old didn't want to work two games a week. It's just another dumb NFL thing, in my opinion.
Fair points. The NFL's all about market leveraging to the hilt so the owners squeeze every last cent out of what's already (by far) the worlds most profitable sport though. In terms of branding and celebrity, few sports commentators match Michaels' stature (e.g. since I haven't had (US) cable in 20 years, and only briefly then, I'd never heard of Tirico before this thread, and still wouldn't recognize him if I met him on the street tomorrow.)

"Just another dumb NFL thing" covers all of that pretty well, yeah. It's like they've never heard the story about killing the goose that laid the golden egg.

[OrangeHoof]

The NFL can add viewers to their Thursday night package in other ways. Why not have O.J. Simpson provide commentary from his jail cell? In fact, they can do a whole series on incarcerated ex-NFL players. O.J. does the Bills game. Rae Carruth does the Carolina game. Aaron Hernandez does the Patriots game. Darren Sharper does the Packers game. Ray Lewis does the...well, wait RayRay got off.

BTW, the NFL can enhance ratings for Thursday night if they didn't give us the Bucs vs the Saints or the Jags versus the Titans. Just a thought.

[Joel]

The NFL can add viewers to their Thursday night package in other ways. Why not have O.J. Simpson provide commentary from his jail cell? In fact, they can do a whole series on incarcerated ex-NFL players. O.J. does the Bills game. Rae Carruth does the Carolina game. Aaron Hernandez does the Patriots game. Darren Sharper does the Packers game. Ray Lewis does the...well, wait RayRay got off.

BTW, the NFL can enhance ratings for Thursday night if they didn't give us the Bucs vs the Saints or the Jags versus the Titans. Just a thought.
The fact they've spent several years shopping their formerly "exclusive NFLN broadcast" to competing networks shows just what a boondoggle it is. I'd rather watch my local JHS team play Thursdays than the Bucs vs. the Saints; more interesting game, and I'd be more heavily invested (especially if I had a kid playing.)

[Simple Jaded]

It's not like NBC threw Phil Simms at the gig, amirite?