Report: Cris Collinsworth, NBC negotiating hefty extension

The future of “Sunday Night Football” has been a bit unclear with Al Michaels potentially leaving NBC after the 2021 season, but it would appear longtime color analyst Cris Collinsworth is not going anywhere.

Collinsworth and NBC are discussing a contract extension that would pay the 62-year-old somewhere in the neighborhood of $12.5 million per year, Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reports. While that is nowhere close to the $18 million Tony Romo makes with CBS, Marchand notes that most TV executives view Romo’s deal as an “outlandish anomaly” even if Romo’s peers try to use it as a negotiating tactic.

Michaels’ current contract with NBC is set to expire after he and Collinsworth call Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles. The 76-year-old is expected to join Amazon next season, when the tech giant will begin streaming “Thursday Night Football” exclusively. Michaels could still call select games for NBC next season.

NBC hired Mike Tirico several years ago as an eventual replacement for Michaels, and that plan is expected to take effect next season. There had been some speculation that Tirico could be paired with Drew Brees, but Collinsworth will remain with the network for the foreseeable future.

So, barring some unforeseen change, Collinsworth is not moving from NBC to Amazon with Michaels. Amazon likely has one dream partner in mind for Michaels.