Mike Tirico leaves ESPN, ‘Monday Night Football’ to get new voice

There haven’t been many play-by-play voices in ithe long history of “Monday Night Football.”

But there will be a new one in 2016.

Mike Tirico, who paired with Jon Gruden on “Monday Night Football,” is leaving ESPN for NBC Sports, Sports Business Daily reported on Monday afternoon.

That leaves a prime opportunity for someone to become just the fifth — yes, fifth —play-by-play announcer in “MNF” history.

Keith Jackson, Frank Gifford, Al MIchaels and Tirico have been the only regular play-by-play announcers since the show began in 1970. Tirico held the role since replacing Michaels at the start of the 2006 season. Considering that Jackson only did the job for one year, we’re looking at a combined 45 seasons for just three men.

Tirico’s successor will have a lot to live up to. So who’s next?

Sean McDonough, a versatile and respected announcer for ESPN, could be the “MNF” successor but nothing has been decided, Sports Business Daily said. While ESPN could promote McDonough to the Monday night booth alongside Gruden, it seems logical to think it will look at every possibility before the NFL season, given what a high-profile job they’re filling.

SBD said Tirico, 49, will stay on at ESPN until his contract expires this summer. His move to NBC has brought some speculation about whether he would eventually replace Michaels on “Sunday Night Football” or even Bob Costas on the Olympics. Michaels, one of the best announcers ever, is 71 years old.

For now, Tirico is expected to call NBC’s five-game package on Thursday nights, Sports Business Daily said. This is the first year NBC has been a part of the NFL’s Thursday night package. 

– – – – – – –

Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab