Mike Greenberg has been named the new host of Sunday NFL Countdown on ESPN, becoming the fourth person to hold the position in the history of the program. This decision comes after ESPN let go of Sam Ponder, who had hosted the show since 2017, along with Robert Griffin III ahead of the beginning of the National Football League season. Greenberg had reportedly been in consideration for the role in addition to NFL Live and SEC Nation host Laura Rutledge last week. Andrew Marchand of The Athletic was the first to report the news of Greenberg being named the new host of the program.
Outside of hosting Sunday NFL Countdown, Greenberg is on the air weekday mornings hosting Get Up! on ESPN and #Greeny directly thereafter on ESPN Radio. He has hosted studio programming surrounding a sports league within the ESPN portfolio in the past, anchoring NBA Countdown for two seasons before moving on from the program before last season. Greenberg will be joined by Tedy Bruschi, Randy Moss, Rex Ryan and Alex Smith, along with senior NFL insider Adam Schefter. Moreover, on-site reporters for the program include Jeff Darlington, Dan Graziano, Kimberley A. Martin, Sal Paolantonio and Lindsey Thiry, and sports betting analyst Erin Dolan will return to the program as well.
The new role for Greenberg marks the second hosting change to the network’s NFL programming in the last two seasons. Ahead of the 2023 NFL season, the network named Scott Van Pelt as the new host of Monday Night Countdown, which is adding former Philadelphia Eagles offensive lineman and New Heights podcast host Jason Kelce as an analyst. The Walt Disney Company (ESPN/ABC) will broadcast the Super Bowl for the first time at the conclusion of the 2026 season from SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, Calif.
The Sunday NFL Countdown program will begin its 40th season with its first episode of the new year on Sunday, Sept. 8, starting a five-month stretch that concludes from the Super Bowl in New Orleans, La. in February. This program made its debut in 1985 as NFL GameDay, and it will continue to emanate from ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Conn., airing weekly from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. EST.
