Craig Carton is pushing back on the growing chorus praising Mike Tirico for what many in sports media have framed as a remarkable broadcasting feat. On Tuesday’s episode of The Craig Carton Show on SportsGrid, Carton openly mocked the narrative that Tirico’s quick pivot from calling Super Bowl LX to hosting NBC’s Winter Olympics coverage amounted to something heroic.
He argued that the coverage surrounding the assignment has drifted into exaggeration.
“Oh my gosh. How does Mike do it? What a warrior, what a great guy,” Carton said sarcastically.
Tirico handled play-by-play duties for the Super Bowl before transitioning almost immediately into his role as primetime host for NBC’s Olympic coverage in Italy, a move that NBC Sports promoted as a showcase of its top broadcaster’s range and endurance across two global tentpole events.
“That plane that he flew on stopped into New York to gas up. That’s a bombardier express. I’ve been on a bombardier. I took a bombardier to Vegas once. That thing is nicer than my house. Let’s play the smallest violin in America. For my guy, Mike Tirico,” said Carton.
Mike Tirico has become the network’s central voice across major properties, from Sunday Night Football to the Olympics, and his visibility during one of the busiest stretches on NBC’s calendar naturally drew attention from industry observers and viewers alike. NBC Sports positioned Tirico as the connective thread between the NFL’s championship stage and the Winter Games, reinforcing its strategy of building brand consistency through familiar on-air talent.
Carton, however, ridiculed the tone of admiration that followed.
“He got 15 million dollars this year to announce a football game. Get on a private jet, get on another private jet and go to Italy for a month. Don’t say it’s heroic, it’s not,” Carton added.
While Tirico’s schedule required coordination and travel across continents, Carton argued that such demands come with the territory at the highest levels of network sports television, particularly for talent entrusted with marquee events.
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