Tag: Michele Tafoya

Dec 15, 2018; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; NFL network broadcaster Melissa Stark interviews Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins (10) after a game aNew York Jets at MetLife Stadium. The Texans defeated the Jets 29-22. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Report: Melissa Stark new ‘SNF’ sideline reporter for NBC

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Melissa Stark is joining NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” crew as a sideline reporter, the New York Post reported Friday.

Stark, 48, has worked for NFL Network since 2012. Her previous jobs include sideline reporter with ABC’s “Monday Night Football” from 2000-03 and national correspondent with “Today” on NBC beginning in the summer of 2003. With the network, she also covered the Olympics.

NBC has turned over two thirds of its “Sunday Night Football” talent ahead of the 2022 season. While Cris Collinsworth remains as game analyst, Mike Tirico is replacing Al Michaels on play by play.

Stark takes over for Michele Tafoya, who stepped away from sports journalism after Super Bowl LVI to transition to a career in social and political issues.

Kathryn Tappen, who worked the Super Bowl sideline for NBC along with Tafoya, had been considered the leading candidate for the job.

–Field Level Media

Oct 17, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; NBC ports sideline reporter Michele Tafoya reports from the field as the Seattle Seahawks play the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first quarter at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Michele Tafoya out at NBC Sports after Super Bowl

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Michele Tafoya is leaving NBC Sports after the network’s telecast of Super Bowl LVI on Feb. 13.

The departure of Tafoya, who has won four Emmy Awards as a sideline reporter, had been rumored for several weeks and was confirmed by NBC on Tuesday.

She began her career in sports media in 1993 and has been a fixture on “Sunday Night Football” since 2011. On Sunday, she’ll join Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth at Arrowhead Stadium on the call of the wild-card game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers, and it will mark her 325th game as an NFL sideline reporter.

“My time with NBC Sports has been the most satisfying of my career,” she said in a statement released by NBC. “I’ve had the good fortune of collaborating with a team that is amongst the best at what they do, and the support I’ve received in this position has been unparalleled.”

She did not specify her plans but said, “I couldn’t ignore that little voice anymore after what we have all endured over the last few years. There’s no better way to walk away from covering the NFL than with one more Super Bowl.”

Tafoya, 57, previously worked for CBS and ABC/ESPN. She also covered the Olympics and other events at NBC.

Kathryn Tappen, who filled in on Tafoya’s games off this season, will be a candidate to replace her on “Sunday Night Football.” Mike Tirico also is expected to assume the play-by-play role from Michaels in the 2022 season.

Tafoya’s three games off in 2021 came after controversial comments she made on “The View” about COVID-19 and former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick.

–Field Level Media