Overview
- Michaels told The Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday that the decision to stop calling NFL games will come from Amazon, from himself, or from a mix of both, and he praised Prime for how it has treated him.
- He is 81 and in his fifth season as Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football play-by-play voice after an initial three-year deal and subsequent year-to-year renewals that include a reported commitment for 2026.
- Prime recently gave analyst Kirk Herbstreit an extension that reportedly includes an ‘out’ clause to allow the streamer to chase other booth partners if a preferred candidate becomes available.
- Critics and viewers have renewed complaints about Michaels’ recent broadcasts, citing subdued calls and specific miscues during the Oct. 8 Buccaneers–Cowboys telecast that intensified succession talk.
- Prime’s TNF package has grown in audience and inventory, adding a day-after-Thanksgiving game and a Wild Card slot including a Packers–Bears game that averaged over 30 million viewers, which raises the value of a marquee play-by-play successor and could prompt Prime to pursue names such as CBS’s Ian Eagle.