Tony Dungy Is Officially Gone
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
Tony Dungy’s tenure as a football analyst at NBC Sports is reportedly coming to an end.
The Hall of Fame head coach has been an analyst for NBC Sports’ NFL coverage since 2009, following his retirement from the Indianapolis Colts. Along with Dungy, the network also hired former New England Patriots star safety Rodney Harrison.
But according to a report from Andrew Marchand of The Athletic, Dungy will likely be let go from his role as an analyst on”Football Night in America,” though the network hasn’t made a final call:
“The Dungy move is one of the first decisions in what is anticipated to be a new-look show. While it is the highest-rated Sunday pregame show, it has the benefit of being sandwiched between the late 4:25 p.m. window on CBS and Fox and its premiere game on Sunday night.
The network may take the show fully on the road next season and slim down its cast, according to sources briefed on NBC’s plans.”
Marchand noted that NBC could reverse course and keep Dungy. It’s also possible that he’d be kept on in a smaller role for the network, like broadcasting legends Bob Costas and Al Michaels.
The 70-year-old Dungy won a Super Bowl ring as a safety for the star-studded Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1978 season. He was the defensive backs coach at the University of Minnesota in 1980 before accepting the Steelers’ DBs coaching position in 1981.
Dungy went on to coach the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1996 to 2001) before losing his job to Jon Gruden. The Colts hired Dungy after firing Jim Mora, and he led Indianapolis to a Super Bowl 41 championship.
Tony Dungy Would Be Latest Notable NFL Analyst To Lose His Job
If Dungy is out at NBC, this would be the latest major shakeup involving one of the NFL’s broadcast partners. Two years ago, CBS Sports moved on from longtime NFL analysts Phil Simms and Boomer Esiason.
And since 2023, ESPN has conducted a long series of notable talent cuts. This included NFL analysts Steve Young, Matt Hasselbeck, Todd McShay, Rob Ninkovich, Keyshawn Johnson and legendary reporter Suzy Kolber.
Matt Ryan left his job at CBS Sports to accept the Atlanta Falcons’ president of football job. And one year ago, Hall of Fame coach Jimmy Johnson retired from his role as an analyst at FOX Sports.
